LEARNING DAILY

Matthew 2:1-2, Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wisemen from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”

“His star”. “Various scientific explanations have been offered to account for the star, but this was not simply a natural phenomenon. It was “His star”, supernaturally placed in the heavens for the purpose of guiding the wise men. We see throughout history that God always guides His people” (notes from the David Jeremiah Study Bible). The wise men in the East – probably living in the area of Persia or Babylon – saw a sign in the heavens that alerted them to the birth of a King, the King of the Jews.

The wise men were probably part of a group of astrologers who studied the stars. Daniel speaks of them in Daniel 1:20 and in other writings. Many Bible authorities related the teachings of Daniel (9:24-27 may or may not be a timeline for the birth of the Messiah) when in captivity in Babylon regarding prophecies of a promised Messiah whose name would be “Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end” (From Isaiah 9:7 and I did take some liberty using this here!) Isaiah the baby, Jesus who would become a King. The star prompted the wise men to travel to Jerusalem. They probably did not know the prophecy found in Micah 5:2, “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be ruler of Israel, whose goings forth are from old. From everlasting.” Jerusalem would be the logical place to start looking for the King of the Jews.

I have always thought the star was a continual guide for the wise men. I did have questions about why no one else saw, or did they?  A closer reading of Matthew’s account and it is seen that the star guided them to Bethlehem after they left Herod. “When they saw the star, rejoiced with exceedingly great joy” (Matthew 2:10). The star led them to where the “young child” was with His mother.

The manger scene we have displayed has the wise men kneeling, presenting their gifts to the new born baby. That is not very accurate. King Herod inquired of the wise men when the star first appeared to them. We learn from Matthew’s account that Herod believed the star appeared to the wise men when Jesus was born which would mean it took somewhere in a two-year period for them to find Jesus.

I am very curious about this star, “His star”. I have found that scholars believe this star was more than a star. It seemed to appear only to the wise men; it did not act like a normal star as to how it led them from Jerusalem to Bethlehem (from a website I enjoy called GotQuestions). This website suggests the star may have been an angel or a manifestation of the Shekinah Glory of God – the presence of the Lord. Would that not fit into the narrative of the angel Gabriel appearing to both Mary and Joseph, the miraculous story of Zacharias and Elizabeth, and the angels appearing to the shepherds? Remember the Shekinah Glory leading God’s people out of Egypt?

“His star”. Regardless of scientific or theological explanations for the star, it holds great significance; it is the divine intervention and guidance of wise men to Jesus. It is one more sign that shows the God’s control and arrangement of the birth of the Messiah, the One who would save all who come to Him from their sin and death.