In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.” When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet: ‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.’” Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.” When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road. (Matthew 2:1-12, NRSV)
Of course we all know this story…
Of when the 3 men named Gaspar, Melchior and Balthasar come and bring the gifts of Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh to Jesus as a baby in the manger. Right there along side of the shepherds and the animals in the stable…
Except, I didn’t read any of that in the story here…
And the story actually said, On entering the house. The went to a house, not the stable, or manger. The star did not rise until Jesus was born, so there is no way that they would have arrived the night of His birth.
Actually it probably took them 2 years to get there.
And as for their names, that is not in the Bible, nor is the number. The gifts numbered 3 only in what they were, but how much Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh was there? Maybe there were 300 magi…
We do not know, but we know that they did not return into Jerusalem or to Herod, because they were warned to not go back that way. So they did not tell Herod where to find the King of the world…
So we know there were 3 kinds of gifts, and at least 2 magi, because the word is plural, and they did not see Jesus in the stable, but in a house, probably 2 years after His birth, but does that change what Jesus has done for us?
And it is most certainly true that wise men (and women) still seek Him!
aSacredRebel 