The Wise Men



Matthew 2: The Journey of the Wise Men: This story is dramatic and powerful. It deserves to be told faithfully.

The story of the wise men found in the second chapter of Matthew is full of details we often miss. Somehow, we have combined it with the story of the shepherds and the manger from Mark 2. Naturally! They both relate to the birth of Jesus. But, in our effort to share as many of the amazing aspects of Jesus' birth as we can, we've gotten into the habit of viewing both of these events as part of the same 55 minute Christmas Pageant. (How often do we see a manger scene without "3 kings" in it?) Even more professional efforts to tell the story, like The Nativity Story (a film we own and one I very highly recommend), don't tell the story of the wise men accurately. How can they? In trying to combine all these events into one composite work, we forget that they are not actually the same story. We start to harmonize them, with the result that we must change the details.

So, I wanted to point out some of the details that set this story apart. But first, I want to say that the most important thing is that we tell the story. Sure, it matters to me if we have wise men in our manger scenes. And, yes, I do count them when they are there. And, yes again, I would notice whether the star is over a stable or not in your church's Christmas Pageant. But, I understand why it happens: it's become part of our culture, and I'd rather have a not-quite-accurate picture of Jesus in our culture than no picture of Him at all! Besides, noticing things like that is just part of my personality. Please don't take it personally.

So, as I said, some things I notice in the Christmas story I was surprised to find the first time I saw them (based on how we normally tell the tale).

The story of the wise men begins after Jesus was born: These wise men began their journey after seeing the star of Jesus' birth. I assume that the star appeared at Jesus' birth because when the wise men arrive they are seeking "He who has been born King of the Jews." (It is possible that the star appeared when Jesus was conceived, but I doubt the wise men took that long to get to Jerusalem. Also, the whole story paints a picture of an older Jesus.) Notice, these wise men are not referred to as kings. And, there were probably many more than 3 to have travelled so far.

It probably took months of preparation to make the journey from "the East." The East probably refers to the land of Babylon. (I believe the word is used in that way in other passages.) The time of preparation and travel is not only expected, but confirmed by verse 16. These wise men may have been members of Daniel's school, since he was made chief of all the wise men of Babylon in Daniel 2:46-49. Since there were more Jews living in Babylon than Judea when Jesus was born, these man may even have been Jewish. These two possibilities would explain their interest in the Messiah and their desire "to worship" him. Apparently, they were among the first to understand Christ's divinity!

The wise men came to Herod and told him their story, which troubled "all of Jerusalem". They told him "what time the star appeared" which we learn later was a length of months or even years. Herod searched out the prophecy about the Messiah's birth and he directed the wise men to go to Bethlehem (v.8). Of course, Herod's intentions were not honorable, but the fact that they received guidance from Herod is something we often miss.

It is when the wise men left that the star began lead them to the house of Joseph. (btw, The Star of Bethlehem is another film we like to watch every year. It has some interesting ideas about the timing of all of this, and explains how the star could have changed direction.) Notice, Mary and Joseph are no longer in a stable. They have settled in and found a home in Bethlehem.

When the wise men arrive at Joseph's house, they find "the young child" (v. 11, not "the babe") with Mary. The Greek uses the word for "Toddler." Notice also, that the wise men do in fact "worship" Jesus. Their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh were an offering, and one that probably saved Joseph and his family later when they fled from Herod.

While the wise men are staying with (or at lest near) Jesus' family, they are warned in a dream not to return to Herod. In that culture, they may have stayed for days or even weeks before returning home. After all, they had travelled for months. After a trip like that, would you want to drop in for just an hour or two?

Then (presumably after the wise men leave) Joseph is warned in a dream that Herod "will seek the young child" to destroy him. So, "when he arose" (the next morning perhaps, instead of hastily in the middle of the night?) Joseph took his family and fled to Egypt. This is another long journey.

Then (as in after Joseph got to Egypt?) Herod murdered all the male children in Bethlehem who were "two years old and under". (We don't often see this in a Christmas Pageant, do we?) The two years is important, because the basis for the age is set by "the time which he had determined from the wise men" (v. 16, referring to v. 7). So, at this point in the story, we can determine that Jesus was about 2 years old.

Joseph stayed in Egypt with his family until after Herod had died (months or years?) and then returned to Judea, but not to Bethlehem. Rather, they lived in Nazareth in the Galilee, where Jesus would spend most of his life and where he would begin His great ministry.