As Christmas Day approaches, millions of Christians will return to their local churches to hear the story of Jesus’ birth and the days and months that followed. Despite the fact that most Christians and non-Christians alike are familiar with the story of the three wise men who visited Jesus, the details of those wise men remain a mystery to many.
If we follow the Biblical text (Matthew 2) strictly, the Bible never says there were three visitors, nor does it refer to them as kings. It says, “Magicians from the East came to praise Jesus” (Matthew 2:1-12). The “three” comes from the three gifts (gold, frankincense, and myrrh), not the number of heads in Matthew’s Gospel. Later Christian traditions standardized the number three, and early church interpretations often followed that logic.
What “Magi” meant in Matthew’s world
Academic discussions in seminaries tend to begin with the Greek word magoi (magi). Scholars at Duke Divinity School point out that the word magoi, associated with words such as “sorcerer/sorcerer,” refers to people known for reading the stars and interpreting the “signs of the times,” and is sometimes considered a near-clergy class sought as advisors to rulers.
The Rev. Dr. Samuel T. Lloyd III, former University of the South Seminary Trustee, explained the historical background behind this story, which is widely accepted in popular culture.
“For example, where did we get the concept of three wise men?
The text that Dean Willman read makes no mention of any of these three.
It seems to stem from the fact that there were three gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh, but no matter how many times we sing, “We are the three kings of the East,” nothing says that they were kings.
It seems to come from the Psalms and Isaiah set down today. In the reading we heard about kings bringing gifts.
And while you probably know the names of the kings like Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthasar, you don’t discover them until the 6th century.
And these travelers were not always wise.
Magi means magic in Greek.
Our best guess is that the Magi could be called Persian astrologers, magicians, and spiritual technicians.
Their role was to help people grasp the forces that loomed over their lives through horoscopes, divination, oracles, and magic.
After all, most human religions seem to function as an attempt to control the powers that come upon us from outside.
The magicians’ task was to use their bag of tricks to help people manage what was happening.
Now, if the wise men were not necessarily wise, nor were they necessarily kings, and not necessarily three, who were they?
First of all, they were foreigners, outsiders, Gentiles.
Matthew made this story of the travelers from Persia, today known as Iran, the center of the story of the birth of Christ.
We might say that the wise men were Iranians, or Iraqis, or Afghans.
It is sobering to know that among the first to worship Jesus as Christ the Messiah were the ancestors of people we in America now often consider our enemies. ”
Beeson School of Theology’s work emphasizes what Matthew is actually saying. The Magi begin their journey to worship Jesus, prompted by a star they interpret as significant.
What we don’t know (what the Bible doesn’t tell us)
Exact number: Could be 2, 3, 12, or more, but Matthew does not specify.
Name: “Caspar/Melchior/Balthazar” is a later tradition, not a Bible.
Exact country of origin: All Matthew says is “from the east.”
