The Visit of the Wise Men
Matthew 2:1-12 (ESV)
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, saying, “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.” When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet:
“‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’”Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.” After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.
The star is obviously significant. And what I find most interesting is that there was no specific prophecy about this portion of the story. We see prophecy fulfilled about Jesus - that He was to be born of a virgin in Bethlehem. But out of all of the prophecies that point to the details of Christ's birh, there is no mention of a Messianic star. These wise men were astrologers* and believed in God's Messiah -- so much that they traveled the longest distance to meet this "king of the Jews", to worship Him and lavish Him with gifts. I am just very amazed about this aspect of the story -- especially amazed because Jesus refers to Himself as the "bright and morning star" (Revelation 22:16). I'm certainly not trying to read into anything here in these passages of Scripture, but I am curious to understand more about this "star in the East" that these wise men knew would lead them to the king of the Jews. Look at the way they spoke of the star to king Herod. They say "we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him." They actually describe the star as belonging to the Messiah, and this was how they knew to come. Could you imagine what was going through their minds as they searched the sky to find a new star they hadn't seen yet? What prompted them to follow the star? Even more curious to me is that they knew the star had such tremendous significance that they followed it all the way to Jerusalem, and went straight to the king. Why didn't the star lead them straight to Bethlehem where Jesus had already been born? My thoughts are that the wise men were also under the impression that their Messiah would reign as a political king, as was everyone else in that day (see verse 3). Jesus' birth was a stumbling block to the Jews because they were looking for a political savior. But God's plan all along was to become human -- Immanuel (God with us) -- and humble Himself to the lowest status.
After the wise men were told that the king would be born in Bethlehem, the star appeared again and stopped right above the place where the Messiah was. The star gave the wise men great joy (v. 10) and as soon as it stopped, they were able to meet their long awaited Messiah! My hope is that we have this much expectancy for the second appearance of Jesus when He shall soon return to gather His Bride. Are you joyfully expectant for your long awaited Messiah's return? He shall indeed return and soon we shall all look up and see that our redemption draws nigh.
[*The wise men could possibly have been either astrologers or astronomers, but it is not completely certain. It is important to differentiate between astronomy versus astrology. It is a healthy fascination to study astronomy in a general sense, but it becomes unhealthy when you look to the stars to dictate your life (astrology), which is divination. God created the stars -- the constellations and solar systems, and He calls them by name. He spoke them into existence! So, we must look to Him for wisdom and knowledge, and the best place to go is His Word. If you would like to learn more about this, please check out the YouTube videos of Rick Larson's teaching as well (a 7-part video teaching) as he incorporates Scripture to answer the questions about this divine star. Quite fascinating!]
I love this post. <3
ReplyDeleteYes the star is mysterious. I haven't thought on it much, either, and now that you mention it, I'm curious to know more about it, as well.
:)
I'll tell you another thought on it at church. ;)
ReplyDeleteI definitely want to hear your thoughts!!!
ReplyDeleteThis is very interesting: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_of_Bethlehem
ReplyDeleteWhy didn't I look on Wikipedia in the first place?! :)
Here is an interesting 7-part video series on the topic. It is titled, "The Real Star of Bethlehem". Very interesting stuff here. Let me know what you think of it.
ReplyDeletehttp://youtu.be/aCLmRB-OpGE
It seems as though the Magi came from the East, probably Babylon which is where Israel was led into captivity. These magi maybe came from the same stock and trade of the men spoken of in Daniel 2:2. Daniel's prophecy of the 'seventy weeks' was written in Babylon and so they may have had access to that and from it deciphered that the time of Messiah's cut off (crucifixion) from Israel was nearing.
Also, in Daniel 5:11, Daniel was set in charge of all of these men due to his abilities from God to interpret dreams and so it would not seem far-fetched to think the wise men were aware of Israel's prophecies.
One final note. Numbers 4:17 says, speaking of Christ, 'There shall a star out of Jacob, a scepter shall rise out of Israel'. Just some things to ponder. Watch the video series and I think you will have much to think about. It is the best thing I have watched on the topic.
I think Rick Larson's videos are absolutely fascinating. It's a bit overwhelming, but I'm listening intently. Also, I am finding out more about the other things you mentioned as well. I need to have more of a historical understanding, so this is sort of jump-starting that for me. Thanks, Joe!
ReplyDeleteJohn McAurthur thinks it's a supernatural light, like an angel lighting the way. For myself I think it was a conjunction of all the planets in our solar system. I know that in 2000 (if I'm remembering right) all the planets lined up opposite the sun for awhile, which was neat, but we couldn't see them, and since this happens every 2000 years, about the time of Christ all the planets were in conjunction on the dark side of Earth. (For myself I'm convinced that Herod the Great died before the lunar eclipse in 1BC, which would fit.)
ReplyDeleteWhen I read the account I see the plants moving from East to West, and the house they were in on the west side of Bethlehem, (perhaps the last one before the fields?) The wise men would see the star moving and say to themselves, 'cmon, this is it, let's follow it, its showing us the way.'
If that helps.
You are welcome.
ReplyDeleteEi-carrumba!!!! Never thought about it! ;) Love your writing and thoughts-will hopefully snag a moment to watch videos. Happy New Year 2012, April! xxoooxxooooo
ReplyDelete