Rumours are circulating like wildfire. “Have you heard the news? He’s here! He’s in Bethlehem!” The chief priests and teachers of the law are overjoyed, they can’t believe the promised Messiah has come on their watch. Even King Herod has inquired about His arrival. The true King of the Jews has arrived.
So they pack their bags and off they go!
Or not.
In our first glimpse of the Magi, we saw that the Magi make their way to Jesus with the help of the star and also with the help of the Bible. But as they dash off to meet Jesus, there’s another group of people who don’t: the chief priests and teachers of the law.
After we hear them speaking with Herod, the silence of these chief priests and teachers of the law is deafening. These are the Bible experts; they know what the scriptures promise. They’ve heard the rumours circulating around the city. In fact, the rumours are causing so much of a stir that Matthew notes that it isn’t just Herod who’s disturbed, but “all Jerusalem with him” (Matthew 2:3). And it gets even worse: Bethlehem is just 5 miles or so down the road from Jerusalem. Their promised Messiah is quite literally down the road, yet they stay put in Jerusalem.
The contrast Matthew draws couldn’t be starker: these Gentile foreigners, these outsiders called the Magi, travel a long way to meet the promised, newborn King of the Jews. Meanwhile, the people in the know, the people with the scriptures in their hands and in their heads, the people the Messiah was born among, stay put at home. The Magi worship Jesus; the chief priests and teachers of the law don’t.
As we saw in the first glimpse of the Magi’s story, Matthew isn’t just writing like a news reporter, reporting the events of Jesus’s arrival, he’s also telling the events of this story in such a way as to teach us a lesson. So, there’s a lesson here for us: look what we could miss out on.
Rejoicing exceedingly
A little later in the passage, Matthew records what happens when the Magi see the star for a second time. In verse 10, we read they are so overcome with joy that they don’t know what to do with themselves. One translation captures Matthew’s struggle to put their joy into words: “when the Magi saw the star they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy!” (Matthew 2:10, ESV). And that was just when they saw the star! Imagine the joy that overflowed when they actually came face to face with Jesus?! But meanwhile, the chief priests take the easy option, staying put in Jerusalem.
What does this mean for you and me?
A need vs. an invitation
Sometimes we talk about the need to follow Jesus in everyday life, the need to read our Bibles, the need to serve in church, the need to share the gospel message with our friends, and the need to care for the vulnerable. These are definitely things we need to do. But it’s unhelpful if we just think of them as needs because sooner or later we will think of them as duties rather than the invitations which they really are.
For example, we certainly need to read the Bible, but it’s about so much more than a need. Reading our Bible is an invitation to experience joy in the presence of our generous Lord. When the Magi see the star that points them to Jesus they rejoice. Like them, when we read the Bible that points us to Jesus, we can experience the great joy that God is inviting us to.
Stephen Unwin is a writer and editor with Our Daily Bread Ministries. He has degrees in sound engineering and theology and is currently studying for a PhD on the theology of gift and gratitude. He’s married to Katy and they live in Melbourne, Australia.
