The Bible doesn't say that there were three wise men that traveled from afar riding on camels to visit the baby Jesus lying in a manger? Matthew 2:1 says: Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem . . .
The Bible doesn't say how many wise men there were that came from the east, doesn't mention their names, and doesn't provide any details about how they made their journey.
It has generally been assumed that the wise men (or magi) were three in number because Matthew 2:11 makes mention of three gifts: " . . . they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense and myrrh."
And despite the familiar lyrics of the Christmas carol "We Three Kings," no biblical source depicts the three wise men as kings.
The Bible doesn't say that these wise men arrived just after the birth and found the baby Jesus lying in a manger. Matthew 2:11 states: And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him . . .
The wise men came "into the house," not the stable, and they saw a "young child," not a newborn. This passage indicates that the wise men didn't arrive until quite some time after Jesus' birth. (According to Luke 2, it was shepherds, not wise men, who visited the infant Jesus in the manger.)
We DO know from the Bible that wise men came from the east, that they followed a star to Bethlehem to find the Christ child, and that they brought him gold, and frankincense and myrrh.
(from our Sunday Church Bulletin)
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1 comment:
I'm not religous, so I have no idea whats going on in the bible. No offense religous people.
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