Magi
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 saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet:
“ ‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
who will shepherd my people Israel.’ ”Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.” After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.
Matthew 2:1–12
Who were these “wise men?”
They were magous, or members of the Magi, (most likely) part of a religious order of the Achaemenid (or Persian) Empire.
Historical Background
Around 597 BC, Israel fell to the Babylonian Empire. Jerusalem’s walls were destroyed, and the primary Jewish population was removed from the Land, as described in Daniel 1:1–2. The Babylonians settled people in the Land who intermarried with the remaining Jewish population, creating the Samaritans.
The Babylonian Empire had a priestly class known as Chaldeans, who advised the king and made supplications to the Babylonian gods for the kingdom. A crisis in the Babylonian Kingdom almost caused this group of wise men to be destroyed:
Because of this the king was angry and very furious, and commanded that all the wise men of Babylon be destroyed. Daniel 2:12
Daniel saved the Magi by correctly interpreting Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, (probably) becoming something of a leader among them from that time forward.
Some 60 years later, just after Nebuchadnezzar’s son, Belshazzar, assumed the throne, God used Daniel to warn the Babylonians their kingdom was about to fall, as described in Daniel 5:28. Persia defeated Babylon by blocking the Euphrates River and entering the city through the gates through which the river passed.
Once in power, Darius assumed control over this group of wise leaders, merging them with a similar Persian group, the Magi. Thus, Daniel came to be counted among the Persian Magi. Darius codified Medo-Persian law, so the Magi—at least occasionally—helped select the next king. Darius, and later Cyrus, allowed the Jews to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem and Jews to return to the Land.
Artaxerxes declared Zoroastrian the official religion of the Achaemenid empire around 470 BC, a religion more closely aligned with Jewish belief. Thus, by the birth of Jesus, the Persian Empire was somewhat religiously aligned with Jewish belief, had at least some religious traditions and prophecies passed down from Daniel, and felt an affinity to Israel.
In 334 B.C., Alexander the Great brought most of the Persian Empire under Greek control, as described in Daniel 7:6 and 8:5. Alexander the Great ruled over Israel until he died in 275 BC, splitting the Greek Empire into four parts. Israel fell into the Seleucid Empire. In 160 BC, Antiochus IV Epiphanes attempted to eliminate the Jewish religion, eventually sacrificing a pig on the Temple Altar (known as the abomination of desolation).
The Jews revolted, becoming independent in 167 BC under the Hasmonean family. Hannukah celebrates the miracle of a day’s worth of consecrated oil lasting 7 days at the reconsecration of the Temple.
In 63 BC, Rome “annexed” Israel via a treaty with the Hasmonean rulers. Rome replaced the Hasmonean rulers with Herod the Great, who was friendly to Roman rule—and not fully Jewish.
The Persian Empire attempted to conquer Israel several times during the next few decades. Israel controlled the only overland trade routes between Egypt, Persia, Greece, and Italy. Controlling these trade routes would allow Persia to cut the Roman Empire in half.
The Persian army almost captured Israel early in Herod’s rule. While some Jewish groups—particularly the Sadducees—aligned with Greek culture and Roman rule, others—the Pharisees among them—aligned with the Persians. Thus, any war between Persia and Rome in Israel was more akin to a civil war rather than just some outside power attempting to conquer the Land.
Herod fled to Rome and requested several legions of Roman soldiers. He returned with the legions, driving the Persian armies out. Herod weakened Jewish independence by taking control of Jewish religious life through the High Priesthood.
Herod the Great is normally thought to be around 4 BC, but Josephus notes Herod died just after an eclipse. The total eclipse in 1 BC most fully matches the timeline given by Josephus, so we can take it that Jesus was born sometime before 1 BC, and Herod died in 1 BC.
Herod the Great’s will divided Israel into three parts:
Archelaus became king of Judea, Idumea, and Samaria
Antipas became tetrarch of Galilee and Perea
Philip became tetrarch of Iturea, Trachonitis, Batanea, Gaulanitis, Auranitis, and Paneas
In 6 AD, Rome dissolved Antipas’ tetrarchy of Perea, Idumea, and Samaria, making them a prefect under the Senate’s direct control. We encounter this political situation in the Gospel accounts.
The Visit
The historical background helps us understand several things about this visit of the Magi.
What prophecy did these Magi have about the coming Messiah? It is possible these prophecies began their development in the time of Daniel, being supplemented and carried through the years until the time of Christ.
What purpose did the visit of the Magi serve? We tend to think of their visit as religious, but there were political overtones. The Magi were from Persia; Persia and the Roman Empire had recently been at war over Israel.
How many were there? Modern depictions often show three Magi because there were three gifts—but this was probably not a small part of 10 or 15 with just a few Magi. Instead, the Magi were more likely to travel with a band of armed Persian soldiers—perhaps as many as 40 or 50. Not only would they be threatened by Roman legions, but they were also carrying valuable goods and, therefore, likely to be attacked and robbed along the way.
The visit of the Magi challenged the Sadducees and the Roman rulers. Here was a group of scholars from another religion seeking a prophetic event they didn’t expect and a military incursion from a nation that had just been driven out of the Land.