THE KING OF THE JEWS
The question,
“Saying, where is He who is born
King of the Jews?” proclaims the
certitude of the knowledge of these “wise
men.” In that they did not ask “whether
there is?” but “where is?”
They showed no sign of doubt.
THE STAR
The phrase, “For
we have seen His Star in the east,” probably
would have been better translated, “We,
dwelling in the east, saw His Star.”
This Passage, with
Verses 9 & 10, seems to make it clear that the star did not precede them in
their journey to Jerusalem, as is popularly supposed, but upon seeing it in the
“east,” they knew it was “His
Star.”
Many
questions beg to be asked concerning that statement, of which are few
definitive answers:
·
What was the star
they saw in the heavens? Astronomy can suggest nothing which satisfies all
these conditions, and therefore, the appearance must have been strictly miraculous.
·
About 1,600 years
before, Balaam had prophesied, “…there
shall come a Star out of Jacob…” a Prophecy with which these wise men may
very well have been acquainted (Num. 24:15-19). And yet, this Prophecy alone
would have given them precious little information!
·
How did they know it
was “His Star”? They were emphatic
in their statement to Herod and could have only achieved the knowledge through
Revelation from God, which they, no doubt, had received.
No doubt, they had
hungrily studied the Prophecies of Daniel and had been convinced of this coming
King.
From these brief
statements, there is every evidence that they knew Who He was and what He was,
at least up to a point!
WORSHIP
The phrase, “And are come to worship Him,” does not necessarily mean the
acceptance of Him as God, but rather as Lord and King.
However, for these “wise men” to come without delay, especially, a journey of
several hundred miles, requiring several weeks, would not have been undertaken
without something powerful happening to them far greater than the ordinary.
Having tabulated Daniel’s Prophecies, and
knowing this was the approximate time for the Birth of this King, quite
possibly, they had accepted Daniel’s God and had sought Him earnestly pertaining
to these all-important events, and consequently, experienced a Revelation from
the Lord of some magnitude. Little else could explain their attention, haste,
and knowledge.
