Who Were the Wise Men?

The Nativity scene. Amongst the yearly plethora of Christmas trees, gifts, same radio songs playing over and over, and Santa Claus, we constantly look to the Nativity to remind ourselves of the reason for the season. But this year I want to focus solely on one of the strangest aspects of the Christmas story.

The wise men are one of the most iconic images of Christmas. Somehow mixed in all the winter imagery is a forlorn desert-scape under a starry night. Three men dressed as Persian royalty ride camels toward a quaint Middle Eastern village in the middle of nowhere, a star lighting the way. This striking image coincides with the Nativity itself; Mary in a stable having given birth to a glowing baby, the wise men making a ceremonious procession towards the child, bowing down as they humbly surrender frankincense and myrrh to Him.

But the classical depiction of the story is riddled with misconceptions. The Bible never tells us how many wise men there were (travelling in a caravan of only three would have been extraordinarily dangerous). Nor does it give us their names. Despite the popular Christmas song, they are never described as being three kings from the Orient.

Perhaps more damaging is that the scriptures don’t even place the wise men at the birth of Christ. Matthew 2:1-2: Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, saying, where is he that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east and are come to worship him. Herod was not happy to hear that a prophesied king had been born. But while conspiring to kill anyone he deemed a threat to his own lineage, Herod craftily told them Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also (verse 8).

Considering how long this and the subsequent journey to Bethlehem would have taken, it’s unlikely they arrived at the moment Jesus was born. The text seems to support this; He and His mother are in a house (rather than stable) by the time they arrive.

What’s even more fascinating, however, is how the wise men are portrayed heroically. And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh (verse 11). An angel warns them of Herod’s deceit. Verse 12: And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.

This has a lot to do with why the wise men are so greatly favored in yearly reenactments. We dress our children up as them in Christmas plays. Christian purists tend to get huffed up and defensive at the suggestion they were astrologers, insisting they were only astronomers (actually, astrology and astronomy were barely different at the time).

But now let’s dig into the deep and terrible truth. The term “wise men” in modern translations is a bit misleading. The original Greek word magoi is sometimes pronounced in English as magi. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that this is the root word for “magic” or “magician.” Magoi was a term used to describe sorcerers, astrologers, or users of witchcraft and divination. Obviously the Bible utterly condemns these practices.

But the fact that the wise men came from the East is even more perplexing. Magi, especially Easterners, were not exactly viewed favorably in Greco-Roman society.

Now, place yourself in the position of an ancient Christian hearing the story of Jesus’ birth for the first time. Imagine the shock when you realize that sorcerers from Persia used astrological signs to locate Jesus, and were actually heroes by not informing Herod where He was. In that way, they are crucial to the early life of Christ. It would almost be like hearing a sermon today on all the great things a Satanist has done for the kingdom of God!

With that in mind, tackling the meaning behind this story becomes an even more monumental task.

The first question is why astrologers from the Far East, who in any Old Testament story likely would have been villains, came searching for the Messiah in the first place. Where did they receive such in-depth knowledge of Judaism, and what drove them to such a passion that they would climb aboard camels and begin such a long journey across the wilderness?

I read many theories on this, but one in particular stood out as the most intriguing. In the book of Daniel, the prophet is taken captive at an early age as an adviser to king Nebuchadnezzar. From the outset, it becomes clear that Daniel’s God is superior; he can successfully interpret the king’s dreams when the “magicians, soothsayers, and astrologers” cannot. Later, Babylon is conquered by the Medo-Persians and Daniel becomes adviser to king Darius. Here’s where the connection might be; there were also astrologers and magicians working at the palace in Shushan. Daniel, who wrote the most exact prophecies of the Messiah, including when He would come, probably worked with them closely for the rest of his life. Centuries later, he was still a revered prophet to the Persians. The Greek version of the Old Testament, the Septuagint (translated in the 300s BC) uses the same word magoi in Daniel to describe the astrologers.

Centuries later, these foreign priests, heretics to the Jews, were actually anticipating the arrival of the Daniel’s Messiah. The star was the sign they were looking for.

Now here’s where things get interesting. In December 2015, I wrote a Christmas blog entitled Where Does the Bible Say to Celebrate Christmas? You can click the link to read it, but here’s the conclusion; the Jews claimed to be looking for the Messiah to deliver them from Rome. It was spelled out clearly in the Old Testament when and where Jesus would be born. Theoretically, all of Israel and Judah should have been at Bethlehem awaiting His arrival. It should have been a nationwide celebration. Heaven was so excited the Spirit searched all of Judah looking for someone to share the news with. But it only found hearts that weren’t ready. And so in the end, only a group of lowly shepherds were told by the angels to go see the Christ-child.

It reminds me of the story of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10. The Samaritans were a despised people, outcasts of Jewish society. Priests, the alleged representations of God, pass by a man in need without stopping. But a Samaritan comes by the traveler and assists him. It’s an accusation against the hypocrisy of self-righteous religious leaders who are so caught up in legalism they neglect to help those in need.

The wise men are along the same vein. Instead of the religious leaders bringing valuable gifts in reverence to the holy Child, a group of foreign heathens, demonic practitioners of astrology and magic, sought Him out.

It symbolizes the ultimate destiny of Christ’s mission; to reach beyond the Jews to the Gentiles. It was foreshadowed the moment He was born. The shepherds were Jews. The magi were Gentiles. This is exactly the order in which the church would be established after Jesus was gone. Christianity started in Judah, then spread to the Gentile world in Rome, then reached out to all corners of the earth. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord shall call (Acts 2:39).

<<< Instead of the religious leaders bringing valuable gifts in reverence to the holy Child, a group of foreign heathens, demonic practitioners of astrology and magic, sought Him out. >>>

That seems a little misguided. It is far more likely to have been educated men from Persia who were students of Daniel, whose influence on two kingdoms (Babylon and Medo-Persia) were significant and covered almost 100 years. Many Jews remained behind even after the decree of Cyrus. These also could all have been Jewish scholars, who living outside of Israel, still read the Word and noted the signs.

They would have studied the stars, but not the corrupted pagan version that exists, but the original meaning given by God.

Psalm 19:1-6 (AMP)
1 THE HEAVENS declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows and proclaims His handiwork.
2 Day after day pours forth speech, and night after night shows forth knowledge.
3 There is no speech nor spoken word [from the stars]; their voice is not heard.
4 Yet their voice [in evidence] goes out through all the earth, their sayings to the end of the world. Of the heavens has God made a tent for the sun,
5 Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber; and it rejoices as a strong man to run his course.
6 Its going forth is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit to the ends of it; and nothing [yes, no one] is hidden from the heat of it.

They would have recognized the new star, and made the connection to the prophecies, including this one.

Numbers 24:17 (AMP)
17 I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but He is not near. A star (Star) shall come forth out of Jacob, and a scepter (Scepter) shall rise out of Israel and shall crush all the corners of Moab and break down all the sons of Sheth [Moab’s sons of tumult].

There likely were many more than 3, as even three and their servants would not have disturbed Herod and “all of Jerusalem.” This was a very large entourage, the nobility from the East. And though only three gifts were offered, it was more than enough to cover the cost of moving the family to Egypt.

They were welcomed by Mary & Joseph at the house where they were staying, and worshiped the child. (Matthew 2:11)

Compare how John the Baptist addresses the religious leaders in chapter 3.

Hebrews 11:6 (AMP)
6 But without faith it is impossible to please and be satisfactory to Him. For whoever would come near to God must [necessarily] believe that God exists and that He is the rewarder of those who earnestly and diligently seek Him [out].

The wise men sought Jesus for the right reasons. We do them a great disservice by assuming wrong motives, or demon worship. The entire focus of Matthew is declaring the Kingdom of Heaven, and the King to the Jewish people. This includes Jews living abroad.

Understanding God’s original purpose of the stars is critical to what is written above.

Witness Of The Stars - E.W. Bullinger 1893 is an outstanding work and a must have for any Bible student. Its readily available for free online.

Bullinger acknowledges - The Gospel in the Stars or Primeval Astronomy by Joseph A. Seiss 1884.

Knowing God’s original plan for the stars will make this story, and many more passages in God’s Word, come alive.

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