THE EPIPHANY OF THE LORD
(A biblical reflection on THE SOLEMNITY OF THE EPIPHANY OF THE LORD, Sunday, 5 January 2020)
Gospel Reading: Matthew 2:1-12
First Reading: Isaiah 60:1-6; Psalms: Psalm 72:1-2,7-8,10-13; Second Reading: Ephesians 3:2-3,5-6
The Scripture Text
Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is He who has been born king of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the east, and have come to worship Him.” When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet: ‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will govern My people Israel.’”
Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star appeared, and he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found Him bring me word, that I too may come and worship Him.” When they had heard the king they went their way; and lo, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy; and going into the house they saw the child with Mary His mother, and they fell down and worshiped Him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered Him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. (Matthew 2:1-12 RSV)
Epiphany means “manifestation” or “appearance”. In Greek mythology, this word describes a time when a god appeared among human beings. Thus, it is appropriate that we use the term for Jesus’ appearance in our world. Matthew’s Gospel is the only one containing the popular story about the wise men who followed a star to Bethlehem in search of a newborn king.
The term “wise men” was usually reserved for men learned in the science, and among the Persians these were especially the priestly caste. “From the East” meant “from Mesopotamia”, of which Persia was the only country of any importance then. The Magi (wise-men from the East) are the central personages in today’s feast of Epiphany. They were pagans who did not know the true God of the Jews. Yet that true God revealed to them that the King He had promised to the Jews had come. The expected Prince was born. Being from the East, clearly these men were not Jewish.
They came to Jerusalem, the capital of Judah, expecting, of course, to find the city and the whole country rejoicing. Instead they found suspicion and hatred in the reigning king – a hatred which in a few days turned to murder. Among the religious leaders they found knowledge of their past history, but utter indifference as regards the present and the future. These leaders knew the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem; they must have realized that the Magi were very sure of the truth revealed to them – they would not have come such a long journey on a “fool’s errand”. In spite of that, the thought of going to Bethlehem with the Magi never entered their minds. Indeed, many Jewish people thought the Messiah would come from Bethlehem, the city King David came from, because the Messiah was to be one of David’s descendants. Like David, the Messiah would be a military/political leader who would bring peace and prosperity.
These were the leaders who some years later refused to listen to Christ and in spite of His miracles refused to admit His claim that He was not only the promised Messiah, but the true true Son of God. These were the men who rejected Him because He had mercy on sinners, and spoke of a future life. What they wanted from their Messiah was political power and earthly freedom and prosperity. Like Herod they ended with murder – the crucifixion of the “King of the Jews”. The pagan king was not much worse that the indifferent leaders of God’s chosen People.
We too know the true facts concerning Christ, His mission, and His present and future kingdom. Like the leaders of the Jews of His day, we also could become absorbed in the affairs of this life and the quest for wealth, pleasure and power. We could become so totally absorbed in such things as to have neither the interest nor the time to pay our respects to Christ or to welcome Him into our homes and our hearts, as our true Lord. God forbid it should ever be thus with us. Rather let us resolve this morning to make the Magi our models, to follow them to Bethlehem and offer Him all that we have and are. He will accept our offering and we will return by another way, wiser and better men.
Finding the house where Jesus and His parents are staying, the wise-men pay homage and give the child gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. The rich symbolism in this story deserves our close attention. A loyal subject who had an audience with the king did not approach him empty handed but brought gifts to show appreciation for receiving such a great honor. Failing to do so would have been a breach of etiquette. Because a gift should reflect the importance of the person who receives it, only the best and most expensive gifts (like gold, frankincense, and myrrh) were good enough for a king. Gold, the most precious of metals, was especially valuable because it was so rare. Frankincense and myrrh, on the other hand, were perfumes only the rich could afford because merchants had to import them from distant lands.
Matthew carefully chose all these symbolic details to tell us Jesus was not just an important individual but was also the Messiah-King whom many of the Jews were eagerly awaiting. By including the Gentile visitors – the wise-men from the East – may have been Matthew’s way of saying the Messiah would be for all people, not only the Jews.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for revealing that Your plan of salvation is meant for everyone, including myself. Help all those who are searching for You to find the light of truth in Your Son Jesus. Amen.