Ep. 5: The Magi
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MATTHEW 2:1-18
The story of the visitation by the Magi is a curious one. The very term, Magi, used by many commentators, has negative and positive connotations. It can imply the magical arts but it can also be possibly referring to the eastern priest-sages, whose researches seem to have embraced much deep knowledge, though often tinged with superstition. It is to these latter, that the Magi spoken of here must have belonged. At the period in question, the Jewish diaspora among the Medes and Persians would have given them knowledge of the great hope of Israel.
Would these Eastern Magi connect a celestial phenomenon with the birth of a Jewish king, unless they had access to Jewish knowledge regarding the birth of the Messiah King? They came to Jerusalem to find out more and in their simplicity of heart sought out the official head of the nation, Herod, who, true to his innate paranoia, saw the whole thing as a threat. The subsequent conduct of Herod shows that the Magi must have told him that their earliest observation of the celestial phenomenon had taken place two years before they arrived in Jerusalem.
Regarding this celestial phenomenon, where did this idea come from regarding the birth of the Messiah? We can be clear that God would not have spoken through the superstitions and errors of astrology (though it didn’t stop some rabbis from delving). Also, Jewish expectation would not have been of a few Magi guided by a star to his home, it was not a narrative that would appeal to them. So, what about Scripture? Balaam’s prophecy (Numbers 24:17) was too vague, Isaiah’s prophecy of ‘they shall bring gold and incense …’ (Isaiah 60) doesn’t work in a contextual sense, as it refers to Jerusalem.
Thus, there is no historical basis for this story, either in the Old Testament or in Jewish tradition. So, again we ask, what rational explanation can be given of its origin since its invention would never have occurred to any contemporary Jew? There may be a possible answer from the realm of astronomy, though. Here is the thinking …
There was a celestial phenomenon that occurred two years earlier. It was the conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn in the constellation of Pisces, something that had also happened three years before the birth of Moses (according to legend). This has been attested by experts and would have presented the most brilliant and unmissable spectacle in the night sky. It would have given the impression of a new star in the sky, possibly the ‘star of the Magi’. This has also been noticed in the astronomical tables of the Chinese. The jury is out.
The sad conclusion of this story is, of course, the slaughter of the infants living in Bethlehem and its vicinity by Herod. This was not the mass slaughter of legend, probably no more than around twenty of them, according to the population of Bethlehem at that time. But the deed was nonetheless atrocious, and these infants may justly be regarded as martyrs, even the first witnesses for Christ.
This is an extract from the book, Jesus : Life and Times, available for £10 here (Finalist for Academic Book of the year at 2023 CRT awards)