by Don Burke
Wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews?”
Did you know that the Wise Men who came to worship the new King very likely did not see Him in the manger or even visit Him in the stable?
These Wise Men – also called Magi – were from the East. This most likely means they lived in the area around the ancient city of Babylon, where generations earlier Daniel (also a wise man) had lived. It is quite feasible that these men were familiar with Daniel’s prophecies of the anointed prince who was to come, and that is why they connected this new brilliant star with that event.
The star apparently first appeared at the time of Jesus’ birth, because Herod used that appearance to estimate the child’s age (Matthew 2:16). This would mean the shepherds of Bethlehem and the Wise Men in the East were all staring into the night sky at the same time – one being invited by an angel, the other invited by a star.
Both were no doubt eager to see this new king, but unlike the shepherds living in nearby Bethlehem the Wise Men’s journey would take months, not minutes. Probably a couple of months would be required to travel that distance even at the best possible speed along the established trade routes of the day. The travel time would be greatly increased if they traveled with a trade caravan (to find safety in numbers) going about normal business travels. And all the preparations for such a journey would add yet more time. Based on all this, along with inferences from Matthew’s account, it seems quite feasible that Jesus was possibly a year old or more by the time the Wise Men arrived.
So, while the gospel accounts don’t spell it out in so many words, the implications do seem pretty clear: It was almost impossible for the Magi to have visited Jesus in the stable at His birth.
If the Wise Men then were not actually there to give their gifts to the infant Christ Child in the manger, is it wrong to include them as we depict the Christmas story in our church plays or nativity reenactments? Of course, some people may see this differently than I do, and that’s okay. But the Magi are part of the story of the infant King just as much as the shepherds. And just like the nearby shepherds who immediately left their work to visit the Child when heaven was filled with the angels inviting them to come see, the Wise Men no doubt also quickly organized a trip when they saw the star-messenger inviting them to come see. The idea that these men and their gifts should be removed from the story of the Christ Child because their travels took so long just doesn’t seem quite right to me. So, if individuals or churches decide to condense the travel-time of the Magi in order to include them in a story that they were legitimately a part of…I have no problem with that.
