Matthew 2:1-12

Wise Men, a Con Man, and a King

Please turn to Matthew chapter 2. This is a very well-known advent passage about the wise men from the east bringing gifts to Jesus. There’s a lot of mystery and wonder in this text. Part of that is because we’re not given many details about the wise men. However, we are clearly given their goal. And so, as I read, listen for why they were seeking Jesus and what they did when they found him.

Reading of Matthew 2:1-12.

Prayer

In our house, you’ll find several nativity scenes at this time of year. They’re festive and add to the aura of the season. But you know, they don’t really accurately depict the manger scene. And one of the inaccuracies is with the three wise men. Most nativity scenes have them. They’re usually tall, wearing middle-eastern attire, and bearing gifts as they stand next to the animals.

Well, first of all, we’re never told how many there were. Yes, they had three gifts, but that does not mean there were only three of them.

And second, they did not arrive when Jesus was born. No, actually, they arrived likely when he was 1 year old. They weren’t there to see Jesus in the manger.

I’m not trying to be the grinch and steal your Christmas joy. Rather, I just want to be sure we distinguish what we actually know versus what tradition has come up with over the centuries. There’s a big difference.

So, then, what do we know? Who were these wise men led by a star to Jerusalem and then to Jesus? Well, we are told they were from the east and we are given a clue of there origin base on their name. The name “wise men” comes from the Greek word magoi. Some translations give them the title of Magi. It’s a word derived from the Persian word for wise men.

And because of that, some believe that the Magi came from where the Medo-Persian empire was centered (which is where modern day Iran is). Others believe that the Magi came from the region where the Babylonian empire used to be centered. That’s where modern day Iraq is.

There are good reasons for both possibilities.

If we go back to the book of Daniel, it uses a very similar word for the wise men of the land. Daniel, as you may know, lived in Babylon in exile. Similarly, the book of Esther, which takes place in the Persian capital, also uses a similar word for wise men. In both cases, the Greek translation of the Old Testament uses the word magoi.

And honestly, I don’t think it makes much of a difference whether the Magi came from Medo-Persian roots or Babylonian roots. Even though these empires were centered in adjacent regions in the middle east, they overlapped as each kingdom took control. A few decades after Babylon conquered the whole region, they were then overthrown by the Medes and then the Persians. After that it was the Greeks under Alexander the Great who conquered the land, and then Roman Empire, which was in control when Jesus was born.

And when these empires overthrew one another, it’s not like they killed all the people. No, the people just were under the control of another kingdom. Yes, some of them moved out or were exiled. Others moved in to govern, but overall, the culture and history were preserved or intermixed with the new empire in power.

Furthermore, when we consider the Babylonians and the Medes and the Persians, they each had their wise men. We know this from the Old Testament text as well as from historical writings from the time. The Magi were the highest educated men of the land. They were given utmost respect and they had major influence in the culture. In fact, extra Biblical writings about the Medes particularly emphasize this. Someone could not become a king in that empire without first the same rigorous study as the wise men. Even more, in the Median Empire, it was the wise men who anointed the king. Think about the significance of tht if the Matthew 2 wise men came from that region.

The bottom line is that the Magi who were led to Jerusalem were held in the highest esteem and had significant cultural prominence.

Now, let me mention something else important. These Magi knew some of the Hebrew Scriptures. Let me make that case.

First, let’s go back to Babylon. When Babylon overthrew Judah in the early 5th century BC, thousands and thousands of Jews were relocated to Babylon. They brought their culture with them. They brought their history and they brought their writings. Even when they were later permitted to return to Jerusalem, most of them remained in Babylon and some even intermarried with the Babylonians.

Not only that, think of the testimony of Daniel and of Shadrach, Meshach and Abendego. Their wisdom and faithfulness earned them great status in the Babylonian Kingdom. King Nebuchadnezzar found them 10 time wiser than the wise men and enchanters of the region. That’s mentioned in Daniel chapter 1. And when they were put to the test, God delivered each of them - you know, the three thrown in the fiery furnace, and Daniel from the Lion’s den.

After each incident, it was the Babylonian king who decreed that the one true God should be worshipped and served. These men were furthermore elevated to a high standing in the land. Daniel himself ended up being promoted to the third highest position in the entire Babylonian kingdom. You see, their wisdom, wisdom from God, became part of the wisdom of the land.

A very similar thing happened in the Medo-Persian empire. Esther in the Old Testament was Jewish, but she was chosen to be queen by the Persian King. Some of you know the history. A plot was made against all the Jewish people in the land. They were to be slaughtered, but through the wisdom of Esther and her uncle, that plot was turned against the perpetrators. In the end, it was the Jewish people who prospered in all 127 provinces of the kingdom. It mentions from India to Ethiopia.

Here is my point. Whether the wise men from the east came from a Babylonian heritage or from a Medo-Persian heritage, the wisdom of the land included wisdom from God almighty. Their education would have included testimonies of God’s people and their teaching, which God had spread all throughout the east.

So, these Magi, who were the highest learned men in the near Eastern culture, would have studied and known the God of Israel, and his prophecies, and the wisdom given his people. Perhaps they knew Balaam’s prophecy from Numbers 24 that “a star shall come out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel.”

So, yes, they came from the east, but they were not unfamiliar with what God had revealed and the prophecies of the Messiah.

Now, we are not told what prompted them to leave their country and follow a star to Jerusalem. They may have been given a vision given by God in a dream (you know, similar to the dream they were given in verse 12); or it may have been an angel appearing to them similar to how angels appeared to Mary and Joseph and the shepherds. Or, as some have suggested, it may have been their studies of the Jewish Scriptures and the timing of the Messiah. We don’t know, but whatever means God used, they knew that they were to seek the promised king who had come… and that he was worthy to be worshiped.

Notice what they said when they arrived in Jerusalem. Verse 2. They asked: “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

Now, given the prominence and status of these Magi, their arrival in Jerusalem came with great acknowledgment. We know that because word of their arrival and their question.. filtered all the way up to King Herod.

By the way, this Herod was Herod the Great. That is how he was known. Multiple Herods are mentioned in the New Testament. All of them are descendants of this Herod, Herod the Great. And none of them reached the prominence and power of their father or grandfather.

This Herod was even given the title “king of the Jews” by the Roman senate. He wasn’t even Jewish. This Herod is the one who built the great city Caesarea by the sea. He similarly constructed the mountaintop fortress of Masada in the south.

This is the same Herod who ordered the massive renovation of the temple. He did this to try to please the Jews and solidify his title. If you remember, the temple had been rebuilt some 500 years earlier by some of the exiles who had returned. However, Herod transformed and refined it. He doubled the size of the temple mount. And he had the temple adorned with gold plates, and had it covered in white marble. The Jews appreciated this, of course, but it didn’t change their opinion of him.

In fact, in 2007 (you know, less than 20 years ago) archaeologists actually found Herod’s tomb. It was inside the massive fortress that he built near Bethlehem called the Herodium. When they found it, they also found that Herod’s sarcophagus had been smashed to pieces. You see, the Jews hated Herod the Great. It’s likely, back in the first century, a group made their way into the chamber and destroyed his coffin and did something with his bones.

That is because Herod was not a just ruler. He had his first wife executed, including his mother-in-law. He also executed three of his sons. And he had dozen of opponents killed, including high priests and pharisees.

Now, look at verse 3. When Herod heard about the wise men and that they were seeking the newborn king of the Jews, it says Herod was troubled. This larger-than-life ruler of the land, who had political and military power, was troubled.

Of course he was. These renowned Magi from the east had arrived and they were seeking a new king of the Jews. But that was Herod’s title.

Do you see why he asked the Magi in verse 8 to find the child born a King? It was not, as Herod had said, so that he could also worship him....