THE MAGI

“After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

— Mathew 2

Most Christians miss the significance of the Magi in the story of the birth of the Christ. The majority of the Protestant denominations, particularly, in the United States, do not place much interest in the origins of these mysterious travelers from the East.

Some do however, recognize their importance and they celebrate them on every January 6th, referred to as the Christian feast of Epiphany, also known as “El Dia De Los Reyes Magos” (the day of the magic kings) in Spain and Latin America and the house blessings star singing in Europe, marking the visit of the Magi to baby Jesus and the end of the Christmas season. But the Magi are crucial from the historical perspective of the birth of the Christ. Allow me to explain.

Matthew could’ve used another Greek word for astrologers or wisemen, but instead, he used the classic ancient term for an astronomy and astrology expert, μάγοι (magoi) – Magi in English. The Magi spoken of in the Bible, to the uninitiated, were mystics and scholars who had sophisticated star reading capabilities and relied heavily on astrological signs to mark important world events.

The word Magi describes a person well versed in celestial disciplines and dreams from East Persia associated with Zoroastrianism, the monotheistic pre-Islamic religion of ancient Persia, founded by Zarathushtra Spitama, more commonly known as Zoroaster, in the 6th century BC. At the time of Jesus, the Magi were found in various parts of Parthia, the ancient kingdom, which lay directly to the East of Israel in present-day Iran.

From c.250 BC to c.230 AD, the Parthians ruled a vast empire stretching from Syria and the Euphrates river in the West, to Pakistan and the Indus River in the East. In the first century BC, Parthia was the only world power capable of challenging Rome. At the heart of Parthia, was the region of Media, which was strongly tied to the Magi, the original Zoroastrian Priestly cast.

The Persians placed high value on astrology for understanding world events. They believed that cosmic science manifested spiritual realities and when the Persian empire expanded, it absorbed these priests into the Persian royal Court. By the first century, Babylonia, another region of Parthia, was the home of astrology in the ancient world, five centuries after Persia conquered Babylon.

The Old Testament says that the Jewish prophet Daniel, was in contact with the Magi at the Babylonian Royal Court and while in Babylon, Daniel had prophesied the Jewish Messiah would come after a period of 483 years, which would have coincided with the period of Jesus’s birth. Furthermore, the Magi in Babylonia, reading astrological signs, predicted the arrival of a new king and even more fascinating is that an ancient Babylonian tablet commentary, from a few centuries before Jesus‘s birth, predicted that a “King of the World,” would rise when a certain star followed the Moon.

So it’s plausible that the Magi, very aware of Daniel‘s prophecy and their own recorded celestial observations, recognized the star, anticipated the event, and traveled to witness and pay tribute to not just the birth of a king, but the birth of the King of Kings. A journey estimated to have taken two years!

It’s also crucial to realize that the Magi in the Bible, appear to have the backing of a powerful nation. They undertook a long and dangerous journey in search of a newborn king, they carried expensive treasures to be given as tribute, and they obtained an audience with King Herod the Great when they arrived in Jerusalem. These weren’t just curious astrologers but respected Dignitaries of a powerful foreign land. One that Herod feared.

What most people don’t know is that when the Magi showed up at Herod’s court asking about a new king, Herod was very troubled indeed, because less than four decades earlier after Julius Caesar was murdered in 44 BCE, Quintus Labienus, a Roman republican general and ambassador to the Parthians, joined the Parthians and assisted them in invading Roman territories in 40 BCE. The Parthian army crossed the Euphrates River and Labienus was able to entice Mark Antony's Roman garrisons in and around Syria to rally to his cause.

This reinforced Parthian army under the Parthian Prince, Pacorus, conquered the Levant from the Phoenician coast through the Land of Israel placing a new king in Jerusalem named Antigonus. But Herod returned with Roman support and took Judea from the Parthians and now, the Parthians were once again back in the form of Magi, searching for a new Jewish King, it makes sense that Herod was greatly troubled but couldn’t dare harm these Dignitaries.

In the writings of early Christians in the first century, including Clement of Alexandria, the Magi are usually described as Persian, which means they would’ve come from the East, but from which city in Parthia, did the Magi come from? Well, in the first century, the Parthian Court was centered on two locations, Ctesiphon (the C is silent) and Ecbatana.

Both cities had previously served as capitals for the Median and Persian empires. Ecbatana, a very ancient city, was located in the cool Highlands of the median plateau and was home to the Royal Court during the sweltering hot summer months when the heat at the lower elevations became unbearable, but for the rest of the year, the court was based at the great Metropolis of Ctesiphon, a major center of power, and one of the most populated cities in the world.

Ctesiphon was located on the east bank of Tigris River just south of present day Baghdad. It was closely connected with its twin city of Seleucia, across the river on the West bank. If the Magi were sponsored by the Parthian Court, as they most likely were, at the time of the birth of Christ, in the winter months, they must have come from Ctesiphon.

Ctesiphon was also the normal home of the Court in the winter months and just as importantly, it also was located at the heart of the trading routes on the shores of the Tigris and just to the East of the Euphrates river. Therefore, the Magi had access to all sorts of luxury goods, including Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh. So, it’s not a stretch of the imagination that the Magi would have had access to these valuable items. Furthermore, Parthia laid directly to the East from Judea, so it seems to fit the words “Magi From the East” used by Matthew.

Although, Parthia was far away, approximately 600 miles to the East, it was connected by well established and traveled caravan routes along the Fertile Crescent, which bypassed the ominous Syrian desert, which laid directly in between Judea and Parthia. The Syrian desert is a vast wasteland that was feared by ancient travelers, almost completely devoid of water or human life, it was known for it’s heat, unpredictable sandstorms, and armed bandits. And although traveling straight through it might’ve been much shorter, travelers almost always went around.

The route most likely taken by the Magi from Ctesiphon, would have had them travel West to cross the Euphrates River then travel Northwest along the shores of the Euphrates to the river fortress of Dura-Europos, then to the city of Nikephorion, before turning Southwest and skirting the edge of the Syrian desert. As they travelled along, they would’ve found refuge in the oasis town of Tadmor, before traveling onto Damascus, then onto the Jordan River valley, and finally, the steep descent from Jericho to Jerusalem and eventually, Bethlehem.

It should be inspiring to us all to know that the birth of God‘s Savior was communicated to these foreigners in the language that they understood, the language of the stars, and with this information, they came from far away on a dangerous journey into the heart of an antagonist empire, risking their lives and fortunes, just to bow at the feet of the baby Jesus and pay him tribute, but this is what the Magi did.

Although the Bible does not name the three Magi, oral traditions names them as Melchior, Caspar, and Balthazar, and they brought three valuable gifts; Gold, which allowed Mary and Joseph to escape Herod’s assassination of all one year olds and support themselves in Egypt, Frankincense, an important incense burned in ancient temples like the Tabernacle and representative of Jesus’s priestly role and sacrifice, Myrrh, an aromatic herb used in burial ceremonies symbolizing Jesus’s sacrificial destiny.

So, it may not have been a mistake after all for Matthew, to leave out the exact homeland of these foreign travelers in a way that they represent all the nations. The first sign that this newborn King, came not just for those near him, his own people, but also for those far away in the most distant places, that all who call on the name of the Christ might be saved.