Who were those wise guys?

Scripture Matthew 2:1-12  NRSV   

2 In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2 asking, “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.” 3 When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; 4 and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. 5 They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:

6 

‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
    are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
    who is to shepherd my people Israel.’”

7 Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. 8 Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.” 9 When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. 11 On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.

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Today is Epiphany - the very last day of Christmas.  After today we can take down our Christmas decorations and put away our Christmas music CDs for another year.   The re-runs of the Grinch and Charlie Brown’s Christmas and Miracle on 34th Street and It’s a Wonderful Life are gone for another year.  Because we didn’t have a Christmas Pageant this year, we found a great video of a Christmas pageant to share with you all.  Please feel free to sing along if you know the tune.  

(YouTube video  Bethlehemian Rhapsody  -  5 minutes)

Christmas Pageants are great, aren’t they?  And unforgettable.  When Alex Torres started college a few years ago, people at Delhaven Christian Church were still talking about how great he was as one of the Three Kings when he was in Kindergarten.   But were they kings?  Or were they wise men, as the translation we are using today says.  Or were they magi?   I lean toward thinking of these three visitors as scholars and astrologers.  I can see why “kings” was used for the song because “we three scholars and astrologers of Orient are” just doesn’t flow as nicely, you know?   And you know, it’s pretty much a given that they weren’t there at the same time as the shepherds and angels, no matter what our Christmas pageants tell us.  It was a long trip, made longer by having to stop here and there to ask if they were heading the right way - like at Herod’s palace.  By the time they got to Bethlehem, Jesus would have been maybe 8 months old?  But the details are not as important as the larger truth in the story.

Today I am really happy that I am not a scholar who has to worry about getting all these details right.  Because I have been following an online discussion between several New Testament scholars about who these three persons were.   It’s a fairly drawn out conversation, even if you skip over the parts where they seem to be saying, “My original source is more nearly accurate than your original source.” I mean, today’s scholars can’t even agree on whether these three were all men, because the masculine plural is used even when only one person in a group is male so it is conceivable that one or more could have been female.  Although it does seem that the closest to consensus on who they were is closer to wise men than kings, and very possibly astrologers, perhaps from as near as Persia.  These discussions, while always fascinating, don’t really have a lot of bearing on what happened then, or what we celebrate now, however.  

Epiphany is what we think of as an “aha moment.”   In church, it is the day we celebrate that the child born of Mary is recognized as the Messiah, the one who was foretold, by an authority.   And that is what happens in this passage.  Three visitors, wise men, come from the East seeking the fulfillment of a prophecy - the birth of a king who would lead the people of Israel.  When they do find him the gifts they bring symbolize who he is  - gold for the king, incense for the God, myrrh to anoint him at his death.  That these three come, not from among the people of Israel, but from an entirely different place and different religion, tells us that this child has come for all the world, not just for Israel.  These three, who are quite possibly priests of another religion entirely, fall on their knees before a tiny baby who is no where near a palace where one might expect to find a king, and give him the respect and honor one gives a king, or a god.  And Jesus, of course, is both.  

From this point forward in the church year ahead, we will follow Jesus in his ministry.  We will see him be baptized, and perform miracles, heal the sick and raise the dead.  We will see him mocked as King of the Jews.  We will see him forgive the thief on the cross next to him, and then die on his own cross.  And we will see the women bring fragrant oils - myrrh - to anoint  him in his tomb only to discover that this king does not need such things, for he has defeated death.   In our church year, we see the beginning and the end of his earthly life, but in our own lives we recognize that there is no real end to his life, for he is our living savior, our risen King.

Whoever these three wise guys were - and regardless of what the scholars think - they made it clear to us and to the world that this, this is Christ the King.  This is not simply some fanciful tale of long ago, but the true story of God’s love for all people.  This child, born in such low estate, worshipped by shepherds, angels, and even scholars and kings, will through his death and resurrection heal the world of sin and darkness.  This child, the son of God, will live and reign in our world, and in our hearts, from the day of his birth until the end of time.  This is how God’s love shows.

Join me now in singing the story of these wise men, these three kings, and their encounter with Jesus, son of God, Christ and King and sacrifice.