The Three Kings   

In Matthew 2:1-2, the Bible says, “Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, ‘Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east, and have come to worship Him.’”

There’s a footnote in my Bible about the word magi, saying that it refers to “a caste of wise men specializing in astrology, medicine and natural science.” In the King James Version, it says, “...there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem.”

As you probably know, the Bible doesn’t really tell us how many wise men there were. In fact, all the Bible tells us is that they came from the east to Jerusalem. In the 2nd century, a church scholar named Tertullian suggested that these men were kings because the Old Testament had predicted that kings would come to worship the Christ. He also concluded that there were three kings based on the number of gifts mentioned.

Whether there was one person per gift or not, what is important is they brought some very special and costly gifts to Jesus. They gave Him the very best that they had.

Gold indicated Kingship. What is more fitting than gold for a King?!
Frankincense was an ingredient used by the priests in temple worship to blend with the smell of the sacrifices. Frankincense was brought to symbolize worship of the one true King.

And then myrrh. This is kind of a strange gift to give a baby or a child. It appears to be some kind of an oil or ointment. But here’s the strange part, or at least it would seem strange if we didn’t know the rest of the story.

You see, in Jesus’ time, people used myrrh to embalm their dead. It may have started with the Egyptians as they used it in wrapping and preserving human mummies. Most people would consider that a most thoughtless gift for a baby shower. But not for this baby. You see, these wise men apparently knew that Jesus was born to die.

Peter wrote: “He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed” (1 Peter 2:24).

Myrrh reminds us that, as exciting as it was for Jesus to be born, the reason He came was to die, to die a terrible death on the cross so that our sins could be forgiven, and so we could be adopted into the marvelous family of God.