What I'm about to propose does not contradict anything found in scripture. However, what you are about to hear may be much different from what you’ve learned about the journey of the Wise Men. After many years of contemplating and reconciling the scriptures regarding the Christmas story, I’ve settled on what I consider to be the most logical and reasonable explanation of how their journey unfolded.
There are many theories about the star and the journey of the Wise Men. Many, if not most of them, are not based on scripture. And there are many questions that are not answered in the limited Bible passages that we have in Matthew Chapter 2.
1 - What was the "star" that first appeared?
2 - Why did the Wise Men first end up in Jerusalem and not Bethlehem?
3 - What was the 'star' that led them from Jerusalem to Bethlehem?
4 - When did the Wise Men actually arrive?
5 - How old was Jesus when the Wise Men found Him?
6- Why did the Wise Men come in the first place?
I hope to answer all those questions. Let’s start at the beginning. Here’s the timeline that I’ll split into 7 scenes.
SCENE 1 (The Birth of Jesus)
We know that near Bethlehem, the night that Jesus was born, shepherds tending to their sheep in the fields were startled when "suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified!" (Luke 2:9).
It's important to note the term "the radiance of the Lord's glory". This should not be down-played or overlooked. It was an extreme, miraculous illumination and must have been very powerful. If it was 'of the Lord's glory', it must have been incredibly bright and overpowering.
The angel announced to the shepherds that a Savior was born in a manger in Bethlehem. What happens next is key....."Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God.." (Luke 2:13).
I doubt that this great company of the heavenly host appeared in the dark. On the contrary, they must have appeared in a magnificent, giant spotlight called the 'radiance of the Lord's glory'. Some translations call the great company of the heavenly host a multitude, or a vast, heavenly army. To totally illuminate this vast, heavenly army, the radiance of brilliant light must have extended up into the heavens, with an enormous diameter - sort of a giant pillar of light.
Such a miraculous array of brilliance in the dark, night time sky would have been visible for hundreds of miles. No one knows how long it lasted, but at some point, the angels vanished, went back to heaven, and the darkness quickly returned. The scene in the field reverted back to what it was before: the shepherds in the fields around Bethlehem on a quiet, still, dark night. After such an amazing experience, the shepherds did what they never do -- they left their sheep in the fields and quickly ran off -- to find Jesus.
SCENE 2 (The Wise Men See The Light)
The Wise Men (also referred to as Magi), located in far away Persia or Babylon, were sky-watchers. Could it be, that from hundreds of miles away, they were witnessing that same miraculous illumination that the shepherds experienced? I say yes! You see, I propose that what they saw wasn't a star at all, but that brilliant radiance of God's glory on the very night Jesus was born, seen from a distance.
The Wise Men later would tell Herod that they saw the star "rise" when they were back home in the East. Obviously, since the radiance of God's glory shone upon the angel and shepherds standing on the ground, to the Wise Men it would appear low in the horizon, rising upward.
Perhaps hundreds of people from many different countries saw it in the night time sky before it went out. However, the Wise Men reacted to it. They knew it was something that must have been supernatural -- that this was a sign of something of huge importance. It's possible that they were familiar with ancient prophecies, such as recorded in the books of Isaiah and Numbers, that dealt with a miraculous coming star or bright light.
The Wise Men, who were experts regarding the stars, concluded that this supernatural beam of light, or "star" as they referred to it, was in the direction of distant holy city of Jerusalem, and that it must have been an omen that signified the birth of some powerful and important new king of the Jews. They were convinced that it was a once in a lifetime event, and that they must make a journey to make homage to this newly born king.
The journey would take a lot of preparation. They would need to get a caravan together, which included supplies, food, animals, and people. Just getting ready could take weeks. Their journey could take months. There would be no guiding star at this point in their journey -- they didn't need one since they would be headed to Jerusalem. By the way, the Bible never mentions exactly how many Wise Men there were!
SCENE 3 (Jesus Brought To Jerusalem)
In the meantime, while remaining in Bethlehem after Jesus was born, Joseph and Mary waited for Mary's days of purification to be over so they could bring baby Jesus to the temple in Jerusalem. Because Mary delivered a baby boy, by Jewish law she was ceremonial unclean for 40 days as defined by the Law (Leviticus 12:1-8). In other words, Jesus was at least 40 days old before they brought Him from Bethlehem to Jerusalem, about 6 miles, to dedicate Him to the Lord. They went in front of a priest, to offer their sacrifice. And because the sacrifice was one that was representative of those who were poor (Luke 2:24), a pair of doves or two young pigeons, it confirms that Wise Men had not arrived yet with their valuable riches to give them, which included gold. The Wise Men were still on their way.
After their visit to the temple in Jerusalem, where they also encountered the prophets Simeon and Anna, Joseph, Mary, and Jesus returned back to a house in Bethlehem, possibly owned by a relative since "everyone went to their own town" to register for the census (Luke 2:3) to begin with, meaning that Joseph had relatives there. Who knows, perhaps they were considering settling down in Bethlehem. They obviously decided to stay in Bethlehem for sometime. As it turns out, months would pass before the Wise Men would finally arrive at the house where they were staying in Bethlehem.
SCENE 4 (The Wise Men Reach Jerusalem)
When the Wise Men finally arrived in Jerusalem, they didn't know exactly where to find this newborn king, since there was no guiding star. If there was a guiding star, they would have been led to Bethlehem, not Jerusalem. The only star or beacon they saw was the one in the very beginning - the "radiance of the Lord's glory" which they saw from afar the time the angels visited the shepherds on the night Jesus was born. And that supernatural beacon was temporary -- short lived. The "radiance of the Lord's glory" disappeared when the angels disappeared. So the Wise Men did the most logical thing in trying to locate the new king -- go to Jerusalem and ask King Herod for details on where the newborn king could be found.
What an insult! What boldness! Ask King Herod? Herod pretended to go along with the Wise Men, but inwardly, he was furious. After all, he, and he alone, was king of the Jews. Remember, King Herod was the jealous tyrant who even killed two of his sons and a wife in fear they were a threat to take his power. So he had to destroy this new rival. He summoned the chief priests and the scribes for answers regarding the location of a new king of the Jews that threatened to take his place.
The chief priests and scribes knew the Old Testament scriptures well, and based on Micah 5:2, they knew that the king they were waiting for would be the Messiah and was to be born in Bethlehem. So Herod sent the Wise Men on their way to Bethlehem, but not before asking them the exact date that they had seen that bright “star” or light to begin with months before. It was so he could estimate how old Jesus was and develop a plan to kill him. He asked the Wise Men to return after they found Jesus so he could know precisely where Jesus was, pretended that he also wanted to worship this newborn king.
Matthew 2:8 Then he told them, “Go to Bethlehem and search carefully for the child. And when you find him, come back and tell me so that I can go and worship him, too!”
SCENE 5 (Wise Men Head Toward Bethlehem)
As the Wise Men headed toward Bethlehem, something fantastic happened. A supernatural beacon of light suddenly appeared that was similar in design to what the Wise Men first saw back in the east. They recognized it immediately and were overjoyed. I picture this beacon resembling a helicopter's searchlight peering down out of the night time sky, only much more intense. The Bible says that the miraculous beacon moved ahead of them and not only guided them to Bethlehem, but it stopped right over the exact house where Jesus was staying, pinpointing His location! It was a supernatural, miraculous guiding light. It's obvious that God wanted the Wise Men to find Jesus quickly.
Matthew 2:9-10 "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."
SCENE 6 (Wise Men Arrive in Bethlehem)
The Wise Men entered the house, bowed down before Jesus, and worshiped Him. Then they presented Him with gifts - gifts that were fitting for a king. Their mission was accomplished. Their quest to find the newly born king, honor him, and worship Him was over.
Matthew 2:11 "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."
SCENE 7: (The Escape)
Divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, the Wise Men departed for their own country another way, saving their lives. Likewise, during that very night, Joseph was also warned in a dream to take Jesus and Mary, flee to Egypt for safety, and stay there until further notice. So they quickly took off during the night before Herod could execute a plan.
When Herod found out that the Wise Men outwitted him, he was furious. In an attempt to kill the newborn king, Herod decided to kill all the baby boys in Bethlehem and vicinity, figuring that Jesus had to be one of them. Since he calculated that the new king was probably several months to a year old, he added a safety factor just to make sure, extending the age to two years old and under.
Matthew 2:16 Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.
A terrible slaughter occurred, but Joseph, Mary and Jesus safely made it to Egypt, where they lived until Herod died (at least a year later). Through God's providence, the valuable gifts from the Magi were God's provision to provide travel to Egypt (approximately 100 miles) as well as living expenses while there. Perhaps using the valuable gifts for provision was the real reason the Wise Men came, unbeknownst to them!
As you can see, God orchestrated this entire event from beginning to end using people, angels, dreams, and miracles. Nothing would be able to stop God's plan to send His Son to redeem us. Jesus had arrived and His mission to ultimately die on the cross for our sins had begun. Praise God!
So, to answer the questions that were listed in the beginning:
1 - What was the "star" that first appeared?
It was not an astronomical star, but what the Wise Men saw was actually the temporary radiance surrounding the multitude of angels appearing to the shepherds.
2 - Why did the Wise Men first end up in Jerusalem and not Bethlehem?
Because when the radiance went dark after the angels left the shepherds, there was no guiding star or beacon, so they went to the most logical place: Jerusalem, where they could ask Herod.
3 - What was the 'star' that led them from Jerusalem to Bethlehem?
It was a supernatural guiding beacon that moved ahead of them and stopped right over the house where Jesus was staying.
4 - When did the Wise Men actually arrive?
Herod calculated how long it took the Wise Men to reach Jerusalem from the time they first saw the "star" signifying the birth of Jesus. Since Herod killed all the boys 2 years old and under, most likely Jesus was several months to a year old, since Herod would have certainly added a safety factor of an extra year just to be sure Jesus was included.
5 - How old was Jesus when the Wise Men found Him?
Several months to a year old.
6- Why did the Wise Men come in the first place?
Perhaps the real reason the Wise Men came was God's providence and provision: to provide valuable gifts that would cover the expenses of travel to Egypt (approximately 100 miles) as well as living expenses while there (at least a year).
3 Important Lessons From The Wise Men
