Pagans Come to Visit
This week is Epiphany, the celebration on the church calendar that commemorates the revelation that Jesus is here for all of us. The text is the same for each of the three cycles years, Matthew 2:1-12. This contains the well-known story of the Magi, or wise men visiting the baby Jesus. This may be a historical occurrence or not, that is beside the point. The Gospel writer is concerned with the deeper meaning of the visit of these men and the reaction of Herod.
It has been suggested by some that the wise men or Magi where adherents of Zoroastrianism, an ancient faith that fell before the advance of Christianity, then Islam. This too is beside the point. What is the point is that these were Gentiles. Those not of the Jewish faith had heard of this King and wished to pay homage.
A Hostile Home Team Reaction
By contrast, the Gospel writer positions the Jewish response as utterly hostile. Herod is alarmed and desirous of this newborn King’s death. Herod, in this story, accepts the prophetic nature of Jesus’s arrival as it was explained to him by the chief priests and scribes who quoted Hebrew scripture. Herod accepts this prophesy but tries to counteract it, ultimately with violence in Verse 16.
This hostile reaction from the Jewish authorities foreshadows what will happen to Jesus at the end of His earthly ministry. It also foreshadows that it is not simply pious Jews who are good and holy, but those outside of this tradition can be as well. The story of the Good Samaritan will drive this point home later.
The Scope of Jesus’s Message
What is crucial to understand from this passage is the all-encompassing nature of Jesus’s message and His ministry on earth. He has come for everyone, Jew and Gentile alike. This is the epiphany, which simply means a revelation or perception of the essential nature or meaning of something. That something is that God has become man, and Jesus is here to reign as King over all humanity. God truly did love the whole world. Matthew’s text makes clear that this saving grace that Jesus offers is to be extended to all groups, all genders, all faith traditions, all levels of society. Our response is to simply believe, then obey.
Praise Be to God
