Two Stories, Intersecting at Bethlehem

A star shall come out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel…. Numbers 24:17 (1)

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” Matthew 2:1-2

Seeking the Star King (2)

At a lookout near Beth Peor, the Magi stood silently and gazed across the wide valley below. There in the distant hills lay their destination, Jerusalem, its golden temple glowing in the rising sun. They lingered there at the very spot where, 1400 years earlier, Israel’s God had promised to send a Ruler like no other, one who would wield the “scepter” of human kingship, and yet is called a “star”—a universal symbol of divinity. Such a mystery, for only a man can be a king—yet only God receives worship! Hundreds of years later, in Babylon, Israel’s great prophet, Daniel, dreamed of “one like a son of man,” who was given all authority, glory and sovereign power forever.

The God of all the earth also speaks in the heavens, and these learned men were experts in that language. They observed the stars with precision and believed cosmic events signaled divine actions in human affairs.(3) Many months ago, the King’s Star came together in the eastern sky, signaling, “This year the King of the final days will appear in Israel.” (4) “Surely,” reasoned the Magi, “the Child is born!” Immediately they began preparations for their long journey.

Can We Trust God? (Then and Now)

The Magi, with their entourage of soldiers, servants, and animals, needed to recuperate after hundreds of miles of travel. “Today we rest,” declared the Master Magi, “But at daybreak tomorrow we will set out for the palace in David’s city. And there, with his royal family, we will find the Messiah—and join with the throngs of other worshipers!”

It was not to be. When the Magi arrived, to their utter shock no one had heard of the momentous birth—or even seemed to care about it. Except for Herod, who cared a great deal. He fancied himself as a “king” but clearly was not. As influential advisors with exceptional political savvy, the Magi sensed Herod’s agitation and the anxiety of others in the room. When he interrogated them at length, their disappointment turned to alarm, then fear. “Have we made a fatal mistake? Can we trust Daniel’s God and the Writings he left us?”

Svetlana asked herself the same question. “Can I trust God and his Word?” In her background in a seedy Russian city, the only marriages she had ever experienced had been ruined by lovelessness, and betrayal, and neglect. Then she found herself married to an abusive and adulterous husband, and in a church with poorly taught leaders who instructed her just to be quiet and submit. Finally, after he divorced her, she found a better church and remarried a better man. “But he's the wrong man!” Svetlana exclaimed. “Viktor and I are so different, and we can’t seem to agree about anything.” She, with Viktor, felt strong temptation to give up. “Have I made another terrible mistake?” she wondered. “Did God make a mistake? Can I believe his Word?”

Star of Bethlehem, Birth of Hope

Herod demanded a private audience with the Master Magi and his assistant. He spoke in a low voice through a pasted smile, “Go to Bethlehem and its territory. My religion advisors claim that’s the best place to look for this king. Search diligently. And when you find him, come back and tell me where he is.” Then raising his voice for emphasis, “…So that I can go worship him, too!” Herod was a powerful and talented ruler, but a poor liar. Everyone could see his duplicity and feel his treachery.

The Magi were much relieved when Herod dismissed them. They bade him a polite farewell—then exited the city later that night under cover of darkness, with their best soldiers in the rear guard. They were safe for now, but any hope of finding the divine King had all but vanished. Still, they continued toward Bethlehem. The Magi drew closer to town, inching their way down the steep slope.

Suddenly they froze in their tracks. “The Star! The Star!” It was unmistakable. They’d last seen it in Babylon. Now it rose directly before them. The entire entourage erupted in a spontaneous cheer that shattered the silence and all pretentions of secrecy. Nothing could contain their overwhelming joy. But this time the Star’s appearance changed: it moved, directing their turns at every juncture of paths. One of them exclaimed, “It’s like that story in Daniel’s book. Remember how the pillar of fire shepherded his nation through the wilderness to this Promised Land? Now the Ancient of Days is leading us to the promised King!”

Svetlana made a difficult choice, the one she knew was right. She scaled back her thoughts to the baseline of what she knew for certain. “Jesus came to save and love those who rejected Him. In Him is my home forever. He’s my only hope. He’s the only hope for our marriage.” As she grew in her simple confidence in the gospel, everything began to change. Not all at once, and often at agonizingly slow speed. Viktor noticed, and he also began to change.

Worshiping with Their Treasures

At last the Magi’s path landed on a small plateau on the outskirts of Bethlehem. The soft chatter among their company drifted to silence as they proceeded slowly, with their eyes fixed on the Star. After a hundred yards it stopped over a humble dwelling. An oil lamp shone from its window. One man stood rigidly in the yard with a few small animals. The Master Magi approached him and fell down at Joseph’s feet. He got out the words, “We have come to worship…the Son of Man”— then began trembling. He quietly sobbed. Joseph begged him to get up. He then signaled with his hand, and a young woman walked out into the courtyard carrying a bundled child the size of a toddler. At this, the entire entourage fell prostrate in the dust. All the Magi came forward, knelt down, and placed their gifts at Mary’s feet. “Our treasures for the One who is born King in Israel.”

Svetlana carefully set up her grandmother’s porcelain crèche on their tiny dining table. She hadn’t done this for years. “It reminds me of her strong faith even during her most difficult trials. And it reminds me of what God has done in sending his Son. I give to him my whole heart. To Him I belong.”

A Sobering Insight

After a period of still reverence, Mary returned the Christ Child to his bed. The exhausted visitors set up camp in a nearby field. Dawn was approaching, and the eastern sky grew lighter. Their quest was done, and now they could rest, before their return journey through Jerusalem. But after several hours, the Master Magi awoke with a start, walked outside the tent and found two others who had risen at the same time. Each one shared his dream. “In my vision, a voice warned me not to return to the city.” “Mine was the same. Terrible trouble is on the way.” The Master paused a moment, and stated soberly, “Why were we so surprised that we didn’t find the King in a palace but in this humble dwelling? We should have known. And I fear there will be worse suffering for him in years to come. Remember what God revealed to our father Daniel: the Anointed One shall be ‘cut off and shall have nothing’ before the Holy City is destroyed and the end comes. All nations will worship him—but many will oppose him.” He concluded, “In my dream, God commanded us to return to our home by a different route.”

Joseph, who was also awake, overheard them. “There’s another way to the East. I’ll show you. And yes, it has been revealed to us that this child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many, and a sign that will be spoken against.”

Receiving an Abundant Gift

None of these disciplined travelers complained when they were awakened to strike camp and begin their journey home. Before setting out. they all stood at attention while the Master gave his parting blessing to Mary and Joseph—and knelt before the Child. As they began walking along the eastern road, one man, who had carefully studied Daniel’s book, remarked, “When the Queen of Sheba paid homage to God’s anointed king, Solomon, she presented to him vast treasures. But Solomon gave gifts to her so abundantly that she returned home with more than she brought.” “So are we,” said another. “We gave riches that last a mere lifetime. But the kingdom of this King will ‘endure forever.’ And we will be his citizens forever.”

After a difficult day, Svetlana wrote in her journal, “No matter how stubbornly I keep on hurting Christ by my sinful attitudes and actions, he won’t leave me. He proved this when he died on the cross. What’s more, he didn’t do it begrudgingly, but in love. How amazing is this covenant of grace. He’s the one who keeps it, even though I fail. My Lord Jesus never has failed and never will! All praise be to him. For His glory, I live. Even if I die.”

May each one of us have that kind of thankful heart during this season, and all year.

(1) Scriptures alluded to, in order; Matt. 2; Num. 24; Dan. 7:13-14; Exo. 13:21; Dan. 9:26; Luke 2:34-35; Dan. 6:26

(2) I am striving for accuracy in the story line of the Magi, but it is “historical fiction” based on Matthew’s sparse narrative. “Svetlana’s” story contains real quotes, but they are edited, with names and details changed for confidentiality.

(3) Matthew’s compact account has invited centuries of speculation about the identity of these “Magi” (or “wise men”). I take the view that they were a cast of Babylonian advisors, in the tradition of Daniel. Surely, Daniel would have left his own writings, and all the other Scripture he had, in Babylon’s vast libraries. Yet the point we must remember is that whatever the Magi believed, Matthew makes crystal clear their theological significance: the newborn Messiah is the new “Moses” to deliver his people from the new “Pharaoh,” Herod. The Magi are the first among the “all nations” to worship the Christ.

(4) See R.T. France, The Gospel of Matthew (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2007), p. 68, on this plausible conjecture for the identity of the “star” as viewed from Babylon or Persia—the conjunction of Jupiter (the royal planet) with Saturn (the planet of the “Westland”) in the constellation Pisces (representing the last days).