Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him

 

 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?  For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him."  When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.  And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.  So they said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:

'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,

Are not least among the rulers of Judah;

For out of you shall come a Ruler

Who will shepherd My people Israel.'"

Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared.  And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also."  When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was.  When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.  And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him.  And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him:  gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.

 

- Matthew 2:1–12 

 

Yesterday, we read the final chapter of Mark's Gospel:  Now when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, that they might come and anoint Him.  Very early in the morning, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen.  And they said among themselves, "Who will roll away the stone from the door of the tomb for us?"  But when they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away -- for it was very large.  And entering the tomb, they saw a young man clothed in a long white robe sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed.  But he said to them, "Do not be alarmed.  You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified.  He is risen!  He is not here.  See the place where they laid Him.  But go, tell His disciples -- and Peter -- that He is going before you into Galilee;  there you will see Him, as He said to you."  So they went out quickly and fled from the tomb, for they trembled and were amazed.  And they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.  Now when He rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven demons.  She went and told those who had been with Him, as they mourned and wept.  And when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe. After that, He appeared in another form to two of them as they walked and went into the country.  And they went and told it to the rest, but they did not believe them either.  Later He appeared to the eleven as they sat at the table; and He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him after He had risen.  And He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.  He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.  And these signs will follow those who believe:  In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover."  So then, after the Lord had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God.  And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs.  Amen.

 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?  For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him."  This Herod the king is also known as Herod the Great, who ruled Judea from 37-4 BC.   He was the father of Herod Antipas, who will play a role in Jesus' adult life.  Herod the king was a great builder; he was also known as Herod the Builder.  His greatest project was the remodeling and expansion of the temple in Jerusalem, which became known as one of the architectural wonders of the world.  But he was also a cruel leader, even in a world in which leaders were known for their cruelty and absolute use of power.  My study Bible says that an ancient prophecy of Jacob indicated the Messiah would come when a king ruled who was not from the tribe of Judah (Genesis 49:10).  As Herod was a non-Jew calling himself the king of Judea, the coming of Christ was surely at hand.   The wise men, or magi, who come from the East (most likely Persia), were the scholars of their time.   In the Old Testament, my study Bible notes, Balaam (Numbers 23, 24) was one of their predecessors -- a Gentile who anticipated the Messiah.  These foreigners, it says, prefigure the Church, in which membership is determined by faith and not by ethnic lineage.  The star proclaims the extraordinary birth of Christ.  To the ancient pagans, a star signified a god, a deified king (Numbers 24:17).  Christ being born under this star fulfills the prophecy in Psalm 109:3 (Septuagint) and shows all of creation participating in the Incarnation.  (See also Psalms 19:1, 148:3.)

 

 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.  And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.  So they said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:  'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not least among the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.'"  My study Bible comments that Herod had to summon the Jewish leaders because he knew little about the Jewish Messiah and he feared losing his throne to this newborn King.  The chief priests were the political and religious leaders of the Jews, and the scribes were high cabinet officers.  They knew where the Messiah was to be born, but in spite of all the signs being in place, they had no idea that He had come (see Jesus' remark at Matthew 16:3).  The text quotes from the prophecy of Micah 5:2.

Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared.  And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also."  When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was.  When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.  And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him.  And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him:  gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.   On the fact that the wise men came into the house, my study Bible remarks that whereas the Jewish shepherds worshiped the Savior in the cave on the day He was born (Luke 2:8-20), the Gentile magi came to worship Him some time later.  By then, Joseph and Mary had found a house in which to dwell with Jesus.  This indicates, it says, that Christ first came to the Jews and then afterward was worshiped by the Gentiles.  In an Orthodox hymn which is sung at Compline of the Nativity, the significance of the Magi's gifts is revealed:  "Gold is for the King of ages.  Frankincense is for the God of all.  Myrrh is offered to the Immortal One, who shall be three days dead."

 

What are the significance of these gifts to Jesus brought by the worshiping Magi?  Gold is a traditional gift fit for a king, the most precious metal and purified substance.  Frankincense was such a precious commodity in the ancient world, as it was used for worship all around the Mediterranean and Near East, that the first great trade route of the world was the Incense Route, long before there was a Silk Route.  So frankincense was proper for a god.  Also traded on the Incense Route was myrrh, used in worship but also especially as preservative for the important rites of the dead, thus fit, in the words of the hymn, for "the Immortal One, who shall be three days dead."  What we have in these gifts, then, is a testimony to the understanding of these ancient wise men who come from the East, suggesting the universality of the Christian message and the gospel of Jesus Christ.  For if even these men, simply because they are the scholars of their time, understand this about Jesus, then surely it reveals that although He is born a King in Bethlehem, and from the tradition and prophecy of the Jews, He is meant for the world and to be grasped and understood around the world.  That these ancient wise men could understand the significance of the Christ is testimony to the universal capacity for the reception of the gospel and Person of Jesus Christ the Savior.  As my study Bible points out, Luke gives us the similar reception of the shepherds in the cave, as they were made wise, so to speak, by the revelation of the angels (Luke 2:8-20).  Let us note also the role that the "unseen world" of the angels plays in the wisdom of the Magi, for they comprehend the divine warning given in a dream, and heed the message.  Let us note the contrast with the powerful King Herod, and his advisors the great and learned men of Israel, the chief priests and the scribes, who are the experts in Scripture, and should know about this King born in Bethlehem even if no one else knows.  But, as St. Paul writes, "Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men . . . God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty" (see 1 Corinthians 1:25-27).   As we begin reading in Matthew's Gospel, let us ponder the nature of this revelation of Christ to the world, right from the beginning:  it hides itself from the mighty and their powerful learned advisors, and imparts divine wisdom to the humble and foolish, the outsiders and those on the margins, to come to worship and honor the One who is Lord of lords and King of kings.   So it was then, and so, it seems to me, it continues now.