Matthew 2:1-2 NCV “Jesus was born in the town of Bethlehem in Judea during the time when Herod was king. When Jesus was born, some wise men from the east came to Jerusalem. They asked, “Where is the baby who was born to be the king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.”
Magi-also called Wise Men in the Christian tradition, the noble pilgrims “from the east” who followed a miraculous guiding star to Bethlehem, where they paid homage to the infant Jesus as king of the Jews. Britannia.com
Matthew 2:11 NCV “They came to the house where the child was and saw him with his mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. They opened their gifts and gave him treasures of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.” Strange gifts for a baby but then this wasn’t just an ordinary baby.
Gold, this gift was representative of the Christ child’s kingly status.
Frankincense or incense is a symbol of deity. The smoke of burning incense by Western Catholic and Eastern Christian churches symbolizes the faithful’s prayer rising to heaven. Wikipedia.com. The scriptures dictate that its use was purely for Holy purposes. It was not to be made for personal use, at the risk of being cut off from the entire community. The conversation.com
Myrrh, an embalming oil as a symbol of death. Myrrh-a natural gum or resin extracted from a small thorny tree species of the “genus Commiphora”. A flowering plant in the frankincense and myrrh family. Is found in tropical regions of Africa, India and Vietnam. Myrrh has many properties; it’s used in perfumes, anointing oils, many medicines; it’s a pain reliever and often used in balms as it has numbing qualities. It’s mostly recognized, though, as an embalming fluid.
The Three Magi, Wise Men, Three Kings from Orient are bearing gifts we’ve traveled afar. Their gifts were the gifts of prophecy. King, Deity and Death.
Another tidbit of the Christmas story. I hope you’ve enjoyed it, I have. Be blessed today and be a blessing! Thank you for joining me 😊
Sunshine On My Shoulder 