THE VISIT OF THE MAGI

 After Jesus had been born at Bethlehem in Judea during the reign of King Herod (c. 75 – d. 4 BC), suddenly some wise men came to Jerusalem from the east asking, “Where is the infant king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose and have come to do him homage.” (Numbers 24:17) When King Herod heard this he was perturbed, and so was the whole of Jerusalem. He called together all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, and enquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They told him, “At Bethlehem in Judea, for this is what the prophet wrote: But you Bethlehem Ephratha, the least among the clans of Judah, from you will come for me a future ruler of Israel whose origins go back to the distant past, to the days of old. (Micah 5:1)  (2 Samuel 5:2) Then Herod summoned the wise men to see him privately. He asked them the exact date on which the star had appeared and sent them on to Bethlehem with the words, “Go and find out all about the child, and when you have found him, let me know, so that I too may go and do him homage.” Having listened to what the king had to say, they set out. Suddenly the star they had seen rising went forward and halted over the place where the child was. The sight of the star filled them with delight, and going into the house they saw the child with his mother Mary, and falling on their knees they did him homage. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts of gold and frankincense, and myrrh. (Psalm 72:10-11, 15) However, they were given a warning in a dream not to go back to Herod. They returned to their own country by a different way. (1 Kings 13:9-10) Return