Christmas Nativity scenes around the world feature a familiar cast of characters: Jesus, Mary, Joseph, an angel or two, some barnyard animals, shepherds and, of course, the three wise men led by a star.
Within the New Testament, the story of the wise men is found only in the Gospel of Matthew. It spans 12 short verses, and is simpler than most readers likely remember. The wise men arrive in Jerusalem from an unnamed location “in the East,” led by a star and in search of a new king. They make their way to Bethlehem, where they bow before Jesus and offer gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. Then, they return home by a different route.
The details in this story are slim, and so it raises more questions than it answers. Where were the wise men actually from? Why were they interested in Jesus? And, above all, who were they?
I am a scholar of early Christian literature who has spent years researching and writing about the wise men. I maintain that their identity in Matthew’s Gospel is ultimately more mysterious and more complex than what traditional Christmas stories suggest. One of the keys to understanding them lies in what Matthew calls them: “magi.”
What’s in a name?
“Magi” is a Greek word that is difficult to translate. Some versions of the New Testament render it as “wise men” and others say “astrologers.” But neither of these captures the full sense of the term.
“Magi” is where the English word “magic” derives from, and just as magic can have both positive and negative connotations today, so too did magi have a range of meanings and uses in the ancient world. Some ancient authors speak positively of individuals they describe as magi, while others consider the label to be more of an insult.
Take, for example, the New Testament Book of Acts, which mentions two magi: one is named Simon, and the other is named Elymas.
Simon is a performer who amazes crowds with his ability to do magic, and he angers Jesus’ apostles by offering them money in exchange for some of their powers. Elymas is an adviser to a government official on the island of Cyprus, and he is referred to as a “false prophet.” He is struck blind for trying to interfere with the apostle Paul’s attempts to convert the official to Christianity.
When it comes to both of these characters, the label “magi” is meant negatively. It was intended to suggest to readers that they are sinister charlatans, and not to be trusted.
In other ancient literature, however, magi are sought-after specialists who possess valuable skills like divination. In the Greek translation of the Book of Daniel, the king of Babylon summons magi to his court and asks them to decipher the details of a strange dream.
The Greek historian Herodotus tells a similar story in which the Median king Astyages asks magi about a dream featuring his daughter, and they foretell the birth of the Persian king Cyrus the Great. The Jewish philosopher Philo of Alexandria likewise speaks of magi as people with the special ability to understand mysterious visions.
Many ancient authors who speak of people as magi also frequently do so in the context of religion and ritual. One of the more well-known instances of this is a teacher named Zoroaster, from whom Zoroastrianism takes its name.
The Greek biographer Diogenes Laertius says that Zoroaster was actually the first of all the magi. He also writes that magi lived simple, ascetic lives characterized by limited comforts, and that they had a reputation for worshiping their gods through sacrifice.
The Greek biographer Plutarch speaks similarly of Zoroaster as a magi who taught a form of spiritual dualism, good versus evil.
The identity of Matthew’s magi
Who, then, are the magi who visit Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew? The answer, it turns out, is complicated. Matthew doesn’t tell his readers exactly what he means when he refers to his visitors in this way, and so it is up to them to figure it out.
Biblical scholars often argue that Matthew intended for the magi in his Gospel to be understood as gentiles or non-Jews who come to Bethlehem to worship Jesus. They surmise that this story is meant to foreshadow the fact that Christianity would eventually become a gentile religious movement instead of a Jewish one.
The argument that the magi are meant to be understood as gentiles is based in part on the fact that they come to Jerusalem and Bethlehem “from the East,” which could suggest that they are “outsiders.” But in light of how magi are spoken of in other ancient literature, this understanding is too simple. Had Matthew intended to say that gentiles came to Bethlehem, he would have done so without using a loaded word like magi.
Because Matthew doesn’t bother to say exactly who these visitors were supposed to be, the magi have fascinated readers and kept them guessing for nearly 2,000 years.
They have been imagined as Zoroastrian priests, astrologers and, of course, as kings. They have appeared in various forms in paintings, in film, in literature and in song.
Given the complex nature of the word magi in the ancient world, one has to wonder if Matthew chose this word precisely to inspire a sense of mystery in his readers, and to keep them wondering about who the magi actually were.
If this is the case, then I would argue that he certainly accomplished that goal many times over.
FAQs
Tradition says that there were three and that their names were Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthasar, but since the Bible does not say, we have no way of knowing whether the tradition is accurate. It is a common misconception that the wise men visited Jesus at the stable on the night of His birth.
Who were the three wise men that came to visit Jesus? ›
Three wise men, or Magi as they were known, whose names were Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar, traveled a far distance to pay homage to Christ. They brought with them fine gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Three Kings Day, or El Dia de Reyes, remains an important holiday for Catholics.
Who were the three visitors to Jesus? ›
In Christianity, the Biblical Magi (/ˈmeɪdʒaɪ/ or /ˈmædʒaɪ/; singular: magus), also known as the Three Wise Men, Three Kings, and Three Magi, are distinguished foreigners who visit Jesus after his birth, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh in homage to his birth.
Who were the wise men discuss their visit to Jesus? ›
The wise men arrive in Jerusalem from an unnamed location “in the East,” led by a star and in search of a new king. They make their way to Bethlehem, where they bow before Jesus and offer gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. Then, they return home by a different route.
What is the name of the three wise men? ›
From a wide assortment of names suggested for the Magi, those that eventually prevailed were Gaspar (or Caspar), Melchior, and Balthasar.
Why do we say there were three wise men? ›
The Magi had a lively postbiblical career. As early as the 2nd century, they were promoted to kings, probably because frankincense is associated with royalty in one of the Psalms. Their number, which varied in different accounts from two to 12, eventually settled on three, most likely because of their three gifts.
What is the difference between the wise men and the shepherd? ›
So—when the shepherds came to the manger where Jesus lay, they didn't bring gifts—for they had none to offer. On the other hand, the wise men were obviously men of substance. They had money enough to take a long journey from the East, as well as the leisure to do so.
What ethnicity were the wise men? ›
The wise men arrived bearing three gifts, namely gold, frankincense and myrrh. The term "wise men" is perhaps the best English equivalent of the Greek word for Magi. The magi were a Median Kurdish priestly caste or tribe who rose to prominence in ancient Persia (today's Iran).
Were the wise men Jews? ›
The magi must be considered Gentiles because, as learned as they are, they seem not to know the Hebrew scriptures. Their ignorance of the Jewish sacred texts is apparent from the fact that they are forced to ask the location of the messiah's birth-place.
Who are the three wise men in the circle? ›
The Circle is run by three “Wise Men”: Eamon Bailey, a likeable family-man type; CEO Tom Stenton, the ruthless businessman; and the reclusive Ty Gospodinov, the Circle's “boy-wonder visionary,” who created the company's flagship product, TruYou – a real-identity system for the Internet that, as Eggers explains ( ...
Eastern tradition sets the number of Magi at 12, but Western tradition sets their number at three, probably based on the three gifts of “gold, frankincense, and myrrh” (Matthew 2:11) presented to the infant.
How old was Mary when she had Jesus? ›
Her age during her pregnancy has varied up to 17 in apocryphal sources. In a large part, apocryphal texts are historically unreliable. According to ancient Jewish custom, Mary technically could have been betrothed at about 12, but some scholars hold the view that in Judea it typically happened later.
What did the 3 wise men's gifts represent? ›
Their gifts had special symbolic meanings as well: gold signified Jesus' status as "King of the Jews;" frankincense represented the infant's divinity and identity as the Son of God; and myrrh touched upon Jesus' mortality.
What is Jesus actual birthday? ›
Scholarly Consensus: Taking into account all the available evidence, many scholars place Jesus's birth between 6 and 4 BC, with the death of King Herod serving as a significant anchor point.
What religion were the three wise men? ›
In the Parthian Empire there was a caste of astrologer priests based in the ancient religion of Zoroastrianism. Most scholars think the Magi were Zoroastrian priest-astrologers from Persia. However, none of this is recorded in Matthew's Gospel.
What is a real name of Jesus? ›
Jesus' name in Hebrew was “Yeshua” which translates to English as Joshua. So how did we get the name “Jesus”?
Who are the three wise men in the Star of Bethlehem? ›
As the well-known story in the Gospel of Matthew goes, the Star of Bethlehem guided three Magi, or wise men, to Jerusalem some 2,000 years ago. And after consulting with King Herod of Judea, the men found newborn baby Jesus in the little town of Bethlehem.
What does gold frankincense and myrrh symbolize? ›
Each of these precious gifts has a symbolic meaning. Frankincense was used for worship in the Temple; it is symbolic of Christ the High Priest. Gold is symbolic of Christ the King. Myrrh a perfume, was used to anoint dead bodies, it is symbolic of His death for the sake of truth, and therefore of Christ the Prophet.
How many shepherds went to see Jesus? ›
How Many Shepherds Are in the Nativity? Luke never tells us the shepherds' names, which is amazing considering how instrumental they are in the story — and how embedded they are in our understanding and vision of the nativity. It's also unclear how many arrived to celebrate and worship the birth of Jesus.
Was there a fourth wise man? ›
The story is an addition and expansion of the account of the Biblical Magi, recounted in the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. It tells about a "fourth" wise man (accepting the tradition that the Magi numbered three), a priest of the Magi named Artaban, one of the Medes from Persia.
