Merry Christmas Everyone
As we celebrate Christmas, I have been thinking about the Wise Men, the Magi, in this famous passage of Matthew 2:1-12.
There's so much to mull on in this - let's have a look together:
Matthew 2: 1 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king,
behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem,
2 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.”
These two verses tell us so much about these Wise Men already. From this short passage, we can see the following:
1. They were obviously very h
ungry for the one real God and were seeking Him earnestly.
2. They
knew some things about the scriptures pretty well, and in their knowledge of prophecies, they were not fools, but wise in the will of the Lord (Eph 5:17).
3. They must have known that they were fallen and in need of a Messiah who would be the King of the Jews, and waited in great expectation for His arrival,
watching very carefully, looking out for signs. This was in spite of the fact that they themselves were probably not even Jews. They somehow knew this Messiah meant salvation even for them!
4. When they saw the star, they knew it was probably the sign, and they moved by faith, stopping their lives for easily up to a year or more to make this long journey for a short visit to worship. Herod had ordered the killing of all male children 2 and below, so we can conclude quite safely that it took quite a while for them to reach Jerusalem.
5. The journey took a long time and was dangerous - stars appear only at night, so much of their travelling must have been at night
6. They weren't fully clear about their directions - arriving in Jerusalem, they had to ask to see Jesus, who was not actually in Jerusalem, but Bethlehem.
These Wise Men really wanted to know God, worship HIm and witness His plan unfold and be a part of it with their giving.
3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
V3 gives me the impression that unlike the common notion that there were 3 wise men (presumably because 3 gifts were mentioned), the entourage that arrived must have been substantial for all Jerusalem to be troubled. This is not in scriptures, but it's just a thought thrown in for free!
4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together,
he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
5 So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:
6 ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, Are not the least among the rulers of Judah;
For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.’ ”
V4 to 6 amaze me - we see the religious leaders of that day actually knowing scriptures enough to know where the Christ was to be born, and not only were they seemingly callous, unexcited by it, they actually gave this information to King Herod. I'm certain they knew Herod's reputation for jealously guarding his power (he executed members of his family including his wife to protect it), but thought nothing of it. Also, we hear nothing about these supposed leaders of the religious elite actually bothering to come visit Jesus. This was THE much-awaited Messiah their own prophets had pointed to - such is cold knowledge of scriptures, apart from knowing the Living God behind the Word. This so strongly contrasts with the Wise Men, who must have hungered deeply for the God of the scriptures.
7 Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men,
determined from them what time the star appeared.
8 And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the young Child,
and when you have found Him, bring back word to me,
that I may come and worship Him also.”
In V7 we see how Herod was keen to know when the star appeared. This tells us that there was a span of time between the birth of Jesus and the Wise Men's visit. Even in his deceit, Herod had the sense to suggest that He wanted to go worship Jesus, which is more than the chief priests and scribes did.
9 When they heard the king, they departed; and behold,
the star which they had seen in the East went before them,
till it came and stood over where the young Child was.
10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.
As an interesting note, it is only here where the star moved, guiding them to where Jesus was. The anticipation of the Wise Men was such that this caused them to "rejoice with exceedingly great joy".
11 And when they had come into the house, they saw
the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him.
And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him:
gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
12 Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod,
they departed for their own country another way. (NKJV)
The Wise Men did not show up at the stable - Joseph and family were by now living in a house. It was not on Christmas that they showed up, but possibly a few months to more than a year. T
hey weren't there to celebrate Christmas - they were there to celebrate Christ.
It was not about the day but the encounter with the Person.
When they saw Jesus, it was not a disappointment to them. As King of the Jews, they might have been expecting a lot more pomp and splendour, but they did not mind - it seems like they understood God ways!
They worshipped a humble baby in an equally humble setting, knowing who He was and what He would do for them. At great expense to themselves, they paid great homage and blessed the One they looked upon to be their saviour.
Their hunger for the One True God and His salvation is truly worth our consideration.
Today we have the benefit of hindsight - we know who this Child grew up to be. We know He died in our place and that He rose again from the dead, purchasing the salvation the Wise Men must have expected and longed to see. We know that because of His work of love, we experience Him in our lives as the Holy Spirit, working for our good.
How much more reason have we to celebrate then the Wise Men, to seek this God our Christ, not only at Christmas but all our lives?
May this sharing give you cause to rejoice even more at this Christmas period.
