In my Christmas Eve sermon this year, I try to gently re-envision some of our classic conceptions of the nativity.
For example, rather than taking place in a barn or cave, it’s likelier that Jesus was born in the front-room of a Judean peasant’s house, where they kept their animals at night. It may differ from our traditional mental image, but it’s no less profound for its humility!
In this blog post I want to talk about another common element we see in every nativity scene: three wise men from the east wearing extravagant turbans, holding gilded boxes full of gifts for the newborn Jesus.
What does the biblical text really say, and what might we learn from the world behind it?
We Three Kings
Let’s start by talking about these so-called wise men: literally “magi from the east” (Matthew 2:1). The words magi (plural) and magus (singular) refer to priests of ancient Iranian Zoroastrianism. By the time of the 1st century AD, they were found all over the eastern Mediterranean world. Although they were often described in ancient sources as learned advisors to royalty and participants in astrology and mystical rites, there is no evidence of them being kings themselves. This has more to do with a later Christian desire to have these magi fulfill Old Testament prophecy about the Messiah being worshipped by kings.
Fun Fact: The word “magi” traveled through Latin and into French to then become our English word “magician!”
There are some scholars who posit that these magi were actually the descendants of Jews who remained in Babylon after the exile and continued to advise the kings of Persia (think Daniel and his friends). But because Matthew’s gospel is concerned with establishing the inclusion of Gentiles in the mission of Jesus, I think it makes more sense to consider these as non-Jewish astrologers whose non-Israelite religious practices somehow revealed to them the coming of the savior of the world: a foreshadowing of the shocking inclusiveness of Christ’s Church which was on the way.
One detail we can clarify for certain, however, is this: In our nativity sets, there are almost always three of these magi, but nowhere in Matthew’s gospel do we read how many there were. Yes, there are three gifts that they bring (gold, frankincense, and myrrh), but it’s entirely possible this was a much bigger group of these astrologer/sorcerers coming to visit Jesus. Most of our mental conception of these guys comes from early Byzantine depictions of this scene, and of course the 1857 carol We Three Kings by John Henry Hopkins, Jr.
Fun Fact: The opening words of Hopkins’ song are “we three kings of orient are…” The word “orient” comes from the Latin “oriri,” which means “to rise.” The sun rises in the east, therefore the word “orient” has come to mean “east!” This is the opposite of the word “occident,” which means “setting” and now means “west.”
Gold For a Toddler?
Here’s another detail we likely get wrong: Nowhere in the Bible does it say that the magi were there when Jesus was an infant. In fact, if the magi set out from “the East” (Persia? Babylon?) immediately after they saw “his star as it rose” (Matthew 2:2), it would have taken them at least 4-5 months to travel to Bethlehem. There is also this intriguing detail: After Herod meets with them, he orders all children in Bethlehem under 2 years old to be killed (Matthew 2:16).
For both reasons, it’s entirely possible Jesus was already a toddler when the magi came for a visit. I know that idea really disrupts our nativity sets, but it presents a really fascinating new scene for us to consider. What would it have been like for 1-year-old Jesus to have these strange foreign men bowing down and presenting him with costly gifts? How would the toddlers you know react?
Fun Fact: In the apocryphal Infancy Gospel of Thomas, Jesus is depicted as a precocious child with the power to bring clay birds to life. Although this text has been discredited within orthodox Christianity, the clay-into-birds story shows up in the Qur’an!
All Nations Will Come To Your Light
One final detail to share about the world of the text of Matthew’s gospel. I find it extremely interesting to consider the visitation of the magi in light of Isaiah 60. That chapter is one of my favorite visions of New Creation in the whole of the Bible (I encourage you to read it if you haven’t before!). In it, the prophet describes a time in which all nations come to worship the Lord as one. They each bring their unique gifts, cultures, and strengths to beautify God’s temple in a renewed and shining Jerusalem. As a part of this beautiful vision, we read this:
Isaiah 60:6
Vast caravans of camels will converge on you,
the camels of Midian and Ephah.
The people of Sheba will bring gold and frankincense
and will come worshiping the LORD.
How profound to consider that the magi’s visit to worship Jesus was the beginning of the fulfillment of this prophecy. The gospel being proclaimed in many languages on the day of Pentecost is another (See Acts 2).
Fun Fact: The ancient Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem had a mosaic depiction of the magi worshipping Jesus on the front entrance. When a Persian army sacked the town and burned all the buildings in 614, they spared this church because they saw pictures of people wearing Persian garb like themselves!
However, there is one small detail which seems amiss. Sheba is generally considered to be located somewhere to the south of Judea (either in Arabia or possibly even in Ethiopia). Plus, the primary source for frankincense in the 1st century was in modern-day Yemen, in the south of the Arabian Peninsula. But Matthew says these magi come “from the east.” Does this mean the prophecy of Isaiah 60 has no relevance here?
Well, the way I see it, Matthew is more concerned at capturing the spirit of this prophecy rather than its literal fulfillment (he doesn’t mention vast caravans of camels, either!). Regardless, it is a beautiful thing to consider “the nations” coming to worship Jesus as a foreshadowing of the full inclusion of the Gentiles which would one day define the Church of Christ.
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Well, that’s all I’ve got for you today. I hope these little details and fun facts help the story of Jesus’ birth come alive for you in new ways, and that they give you a renewed wonder at the profound love of our savior.
Merry Christmas, everyone!