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For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway. The Magi Visit the Messiah 2  After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi[a] from the east came to Jerusalem  2 and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” 3 When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.  4 When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born.  5 “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written: 6 “‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,      are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler      who will shepherd my people Israel.’[b]” 7 Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared.  8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.” 9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was.  10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.  11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.  12 And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

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Footnotes Matthew 2:1 Traditionally wise men Matthew 2:6 Micah 5:2,4

New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

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A visit to the feared king of the Jews, Herod, to ask him to tell you the whereabouts of a rival King of the Jews was unlikely to be a great success. Herod had a fierce temper and was known for his violent suppression of any challenger, so when people outside the palace heard about this request, they trembled at the thought of it. The arrival of a huge caravan of attendants from the East probably stirred up the whole area. Matthew is keen to point out that the coming of the Messiah impacted people far beyond the confines of Israel. As foretold in the Old Testament, the rule of God’s Anointed One would bring justice and peace to the whole world.2 He is warning the Jewish community that there is a new King of the Jews on the block – and not one from Herod’s dynasty.

It is said that wise men still seek Jesus, but who were the original group (‘three’ wise men is not in fact in the text)? Perhaps a remnant of the Jewish community in Babylon who still had access to Old Testament writings and maybe the prophecies of Daniel? Or astrologers from Mesopotamia who had seen a cosmic event such as the conjunction of Jupiter, Saturn and Mars in 6 BC 3 and interpreted it as an omen of the coming of a king? It is more likely that they were prominent men from the East to whom God had spoken, prompting their long journey and search.

It is still the work of God’s Holy Spirit today to draw people to search after God and to find him in the person of Jesus. After these Magi had found him and made their sacrificial and generous gifts, bowing before him in worship and submission, they returned home by another route. People always do when they encounter Jesus.

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