The Wise Men (Magi)
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The wise men came 'from the east' to Jerusalem after Jesus was born in Bethlehem, asking where the newborn King of the Jews could be found, because they had seen his star and come to worship him. Herod sent them on to Bethlehem, and the star went before them until it stood over the place where the young child was. They found him with Mary his mother, fell down and worshipped him, and opened their treasures of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Warned of God in a dream not to return to Herod, they went home another way. Matthew never says how many there were or calls them kings; the number three is a later tradition drawn from the three gifts, and their visit has long been read as a sign that the nations would come to Israel's Messiah.
Biography
- Occupation
- Magi (wise men)
- Era
- New Testament
- Nationality
- From the east (country not named)
- Also Known As
- Magi
Did You Know?
Matthew calls them magoi, a Greek word for a learned priestly class associated with Persia and Babylon and with the study of the stars; the same word is translated 'sorcerer' for Elymas in Acts 13:8.
The familiar picture of three wise men comes from the three gifts named in Matthew 2:11. Scripture gives no number, and the traditional names Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar appear only centuries later.
By the time they arrived the family was in 'the house' and Jesus is called 'the young child,' and Herod's order to kill the boys of Bethlehem 'from two years old and under' was based on the time he had learned from the wise men (Matthew 2:11, 16).
Key Chapters
Key Passages
Seeking the King of the Jews
Matthew 2:1-2
Foreign visitors guided by a star ask the question Jerusalem's own leaders should have been asking, and their eagerness exposes Herod's fear.
1ow 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,
The Star Over the Young Child
Matthew 2:9-11
Their 'exceeding great joy' and costly gifts show what worship looks like: they bow before a child in an ordinary house and hold nothing back.
9hen they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was.
Warned in a Dream
Matthew 2:12
God protects the child by redirecting the wise men, and their quiet obedience frustrates a king's murderous plan.
12nd being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.
