Epiphany

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him."  When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.  Gathering together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born.  They said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea; for this is what has been written by the prophet:

'AND YOU, BETHLEHEM, LAND OF JUDAH,
ARE BY NO MEANS LEAST AMONG THE LEADERS OF JUDAH;
FOR OUT OF YOU SHALL COME FORTH A RULER
WHO WILL SHEPHERD MY PEOPLE ISRAEL.' "

 
Then Herod secretly called the magi and determined from them the[4] exact time the star appeared.  And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the Child; and when you have found Him, report to me, so that I too may come and worship Him."  After hearing the king, they went their way; and the star, which they had seen in the east, went on before them until it came and stood over the place where the Child was.  When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.  After coming into the house they saw the Child with Mary His mother; and they fell to the ground and worshiped Him. Then, opening their treasures, they presented to Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  And having been warned by God in a dream not to return to Herod, the magi left for their own country by another way.  (Matthew 2:1-2)

"Epiphany" means revealed or insight.  And the visit of the Magi indicates that God's intent in the birth of Immanuel was to reveal His Savior to all people.  The Magi were probably Persians, gentiles.  And they came and bowed down to Savior, as well as members of Israel.  They were subject to this King and His salvation would be for them, too.  And God had planted that piece of information to give them their "insight" into who Jesus was centuries before when Israel was in captivity in Babylon.

The ESV Study Bible notes:

The wise men would likely have been familiar with [Old Testament] prophecy through interaction with Jews in Babylon, and they may have remembered Balaam's prophecy that "A star shall come out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel" (Num. 24:17).  This was understood by Jews to point to a messianic deliverer.

Greg has suggested that perhaps what they had read that gave them the insight that a King had been born of unique importance was the "70 Weeks" prophecy in Daniel 9 (See "The Bible Fast Forward".  Daniel, you'll remember, was a prophet during the Babylonian Exile.  And this prophecy seems to indicate the timing of the birth of Messiah.

God continues to give individuals "insight" into their sinful condition and His unique solution for salvation.  In Scripture, God reveals Jesus as the King and Savior for all mankind.  And the natural and appropriate response to His revelation is worship, just as the Wise Men offered.

Comments

[Paul]

Melinda,

My name is Paul Donahoo. I sent Greg a Star of Bethlehem DVD in the mail a few weeks ago. I don't guess he was able to get around to watching it. But, if he still has it, I think you might find it really interesting...especially in light of this post. Perhaps you could borrow it from Greg. I would love to get your thoughts on the research contained in the presentation. My e-mail is [email protected]