Who Were the Wise Men?

Matthew 2:1-3; Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.

First of all, who were the wise men from the east?

The Greek word for wise men is Magos or Magian.  This is where we get the word Magi from. In the ancient world they were referred to as sorcerers and magicians.  This, of course, is different from what we think of a magician today. 

They were a priestly cast that gave council to Kings. They were also known as King makers.

But on this day, they came to acknowledge the King of the Jews. It says in verse 3, “When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.”

Why was Herod so troubled, along with all of Jerusalem?

Well, Herod had gained the throne of a rebellious buffer state situated between two large contending empires. The Parthian empire to the east, and the Roman empire to the west. Herod’s kingdom, which included Jerusalem and all Israel, was a buffer state situated between these two competing kingdoms.

At any time, those that were under Herod’s rule, which included the Jews, might want to conspire with the Parthians to come to their aid and throw Herod off the throne.

Eusebius, who was known as the “Father of Church History” recorded that Herod was the first foreigner to rule over Israel. In other words, Herod was not of the Judaic line. He was not a Jew, but an Idumean.

Once Herod came to power he did not appoint the orderly succession of high priests from generation to generation like before. This of course caused a great deal of tension between his kingdom and the Jews he ruled over. 

Also at this time, since the retirement of Tiberius Caesar Augustus, Rome was without any experienced military commander and Pro-Parthian Armenia was wanting to revolt against Rome.

The time was also ripe for another Parthian invasion of Herod’s buffer province, except for the fact that Parthia itself was racked with internal dissension. Phraates IV, an unpopular and aging king, had been deposed and it was not improbable that the Persian Magi were already involved in maneuvering to choose his successor. 

So, in the midst of all this tension between two massive empires sitting on either side of Jerusalem, which was being ruled by a foreign king that was despised by the Jews, comes a large caravan of Persian king makers, the Magi (or the wise men) 

The Magi, in their dual priestly and governmental office, composed the upper house of the council of the Magistranes (“magistrates”) whose duties included the absolute choice and election of the king of the realm.

And here they are in Jerusalem asking a foreign appointed king, King Herod, “Where is he that is born King of the Jews?”

Hopefully, now you can see why Herod and all of Israel was troubled. It was conceivable that the Magi could have taken advantage of king Herod’s lack of popularity to further their own interests with the establishment of a new dynasty, if a sufficiently strong contender could be found…this is why Herod was troubled.  He feared for his position as king. And as we know, those in power do not like to lose their power. 

But…here’s a question that puzzled me for a long time. Who sent the Magi, and who told them about a star that would herald the birth of the King of the Jews?

In the book of Daniel chapter 2 (which is over 500 years before the time of King Herod), King Nebuchadnezzar, who was king of Babylon, had a dream.  When he awoke, he called together the astrologers, the sorcerers and the Chaldeans to interpret the dream.

What’s interesting is that Nebuchadnezzar didn’t tell them the dream. He expected them to know it and give the interpretation. And if they could not tell him the dream, nor the interpretation, then they would all be killed.

In verse 10 and 11 the Chaldeans said, “There is not a man upon the earth that can shew the king’s matter: therefore there is no king, lord, nor ruler, that asked such things at any magician, or astrologer, or Chaldean. And it is a rare thing that the king requireth, and there is none other that can shew it before the king, except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.”

Here’s the king’s reaction in verse 12,13; “For this cause the king was angry and very furious, and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon. And the decree went forth that the wise men should be slain; and they sought Daniel and his fellows to be slain.”

Notice that phrase, “wise men,” it’s the same used for the Magi in chapter 2 of Matthew.

As some of you know, the Lord, through Daniel, gave the interpretation of the dream. And because of that, Nebuchadnezzar made Daniel head of the Chaldean. 

Daniel 2:46-48 says, “Then the king Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face, and worshipped Daniel, and commanded that they should offer an oblation and sweet odours unto him. The king answered unto Daniel, and said, Of a truth it is, that your God is a God of gods, and a Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, seeing thou couldest reveal this secret. Then the king made Daniel a great man, and gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief of the governors over all the wise men of Babylon.”

In other words, Daniel was now…Chief of the Magi. 

Later when the Babylonian kingdom was destroyed by the Medes and the Persians, Daniel was still Chief of the Magi at that time and continued to serve the Persian Empire in that capacity until his death. 

For many years after Daniels’ passing, the Magi held to religious beliefs that paralleled that of Judaism. His influence upon the Magi is what ultimately laid the groundwork for the day when the Magi would come to herald the Birth of the King of the Jews.

The prophecies in the book of Daniel are so accurate in their detail that many critics, before 1947, had said that they must have been written after the event and not beforehand.

Not only did they speak of the rise and fall of the Babylonian and the Median-Persian empire, but also the Greecian and Roman empires.  They also speak of what is yet to come to pass.  

You see, in 1947, the Dead Sea scrolls were discovered in the caves of Qumran, near the Dead Sea in Israel. They dated the scrolls to be as old as 300 BC.  Among the scrolls was the scroll of Daniel, or the book of Daniel as we call it. 

Therefore, when they were copied from previous scrolls, some of the events in Daniel had not happened yet. They were still in the future, for them. And even some of the events in Daniel are still future to us.

So what’s the point I’m trying to make, other than tell you who the Magi were and who sent them?

I don’t have time this evening to get into it, but the star that the Magi followed was an alignment of planets and stars in the heavens.  

In Genesis 1:14 it says, “And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:”

These “signs and seasons” were markers of appointed times. 

You see, the stars and the constellations in the heavens tell of a story that has been told since the beginning of time. Today the constellations are referred to as the Zodiac, but long ago, it was called the Mazzaroth.  

In what many believe to be the oldest book of the Bible with respect to when it was written, the Book of Job talks about the Mazzaroth.  

Job 38:31-33 says, “Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades, or loose the bands of Orion? Canst thou bring forth Mazzaroth in his season? or canst thou guide Arcturus with his sons? Knowest thou the ordinances of heaven? canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth?” 

Genesis makes it clear, God did all his work in 6 days and rested on the seventh.  In those days of work, he put the lights up in the heavens.  He set the stars, the planets, and the constellations in motion.  

Therefore, from the beginning of time, God heralded the birth of Jesus Christ. 

And that knowledge was given to a prophet named Daniel who would tell the wise men of the east what to look for in the sky. 

When they saw the sign appear in the east, that’s when they knew it was time to mount up and move west to Jerusalem. It was there they learned the birthplace of the Messiah from the prophet Micah who said in Micah 5:2, “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. ”

Even the star alignment rested over the place to where they were to go, which was Bethlehem. 

Bethlehem means…House of Bread. Jesus was known as the Heavenly Manna, or that bread from heaven that gives life.

I’ve said all of that to say this…

Jesus was not an afterthought. 

He did not begin to exist 2000 years ago. 

He is God manifest in the flesh. He is from everlasting to everlasting.

It was written in the very heavens that he was to be born, King of the Jews. 

He came to die for our sins, and to rise again for our salvation.

Before Jesus went to the cross, he prayed for his disciples. And not just for them, but for all that would listen to them that preached His Word.

In John 17:20-22, Jesus says, “Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:”

So, for this Christmas season, don’t let it pass by as another holiday with some nice dinner and a few gifts.  

Bring to your remembrance that from the beginning of creation, God had you on his mind.

From the establishment of the heavens and the earth, God had written it into the sky that he would one day send a savior for all humanity.

His birth may have caused wicked kings to tremble, but it brought great joy to those that would believe and receive Him as Lord and Savior.

Think about this. You were on His mind before the foundations of the earth were ever laid. 

You were on His heart before he set the stars up in the heavens.

You are NOT insignificant. You are wanted and loved by the God of all creation. 

He is offering you the gift of salvation through His Son, Jesus Christ, today.  

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)

Today is the day of Salvation. 

I hope and pray that you will not turn away His Gift.