Epiphany 2008

Matthew 2:1-12

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us (in the phrase of John’s Gospel) or as Matthew exclaims, Emmanuel – God with us (Matthew and Luke), either way the human reaction was swift and polar. Whereas Mary and Joseph, Simeon and Anna, wise men (magi), and simple shepherds saw the ordinary and extraordinary as God’s creative act, Herod representing the empire had a very different response. Herod was Rome’s vassal king with military and social resources to thwart God’s work. Matthew reveals a socio-political structure in which the division is not along religious lines but between the powerful settled center (Herod and minions) and the powerless, insignificant and mobile margins (magi, Joseph, Mary). The contrast summarizes the world into which Jesus came for his saving ministry of reconciliation.

Herod was appointed by the senate in 40 BCE and died in 4 BCE (the year of the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem of Judea, the same place where King David was anointed by Samuel to replace the evil Saul (1 Sam 16:1-13). Herod according to the historian Josephus was brutal, using severe taxation and forced labor to build temples for God in Jerusalem and grandiose temples to Augustus in Caesarea. Hearing about the semi-slavery of the Hebrew people under Herod would remind the hearers of Pharaoh and the exodus under the leadership of Moses.

From the East magi came to Jerusalem. Magi were entertainers from the Persian priestly class in the service of Herodotus. They had access to the centers of power – as do entertainers today. Bono has a better chance of an audience with our president than anyone of us. With astrological insight, the magi claimed knowledge of events that transcended ordinary human observation. The only use of magi in the LXX (Greek text of Hebrew Scriptures) is in Daniel 2:2-10. King Nebuchadnezzar’s magi, despite being threatened with loss of property, limb and life, can not recall the king’s dream. Who can? The faithful Daniel.

Emperors often took the magi’s astrological knowledge seriously. Nero was alarmed at the appearance of a comet as a sign of his impending death. Herod too is willing to take the magi seriously. Coming from the East, these “3 kings” – magi are Gentiles. They come to Jerusalem that “holy city” where Yahweh dwells, but where the religious leaders are mere servants of the political and economic power base of Herod. Jerusalem is God’s chosen dwelling (Isa 2:2-4, Ps 48), and thus it is inviolable and indestructible (Isa 31:4-5; Jer 7:4; Ps 48:8). Isaiah recognized that trust and faithful adherence to God was a condition of God’s presence in the holy city (Isa 1:19-28). Micah (3:12) and Jeremiah (7:1-15) foretold the destruction of Jerusalem because of sin and corruption. Thus the magi come from afar to this “holy city” and their reception reveals a lack of faithfulness, justice, and righteousness consistent with its claim.

Matt 2:2 discloses the magi’s purpose, threat, political naïveté’, and ignorance. Their knowledge that a special king has been born comes from a star. “Where is the one born king of the Jews for we observed his star at its rising?” They do not know who the king is or where he is, but if he is king of the Jews, he must be in Jerusalem. Logical but wrong. What the magi noticed, everyone else seems to have missed or ignored. Their response is right: we have come to worship him. Tradition would have extended the same gesture of worship: prostration before Herod, but according to Matthew the magi did not submit to King Herod but sought to worship the newborn king.

Herod is frightened because the magi and star are dangerous if they challenge political stability by witnessing to an alternative king. The magi are not very politically astute in telling Herod about the “new king” unless they intended to undermine his confidence. According to Matthew, all Jerusalem was frightened by the message of the magi – meaning that the powerful elite were worried about their positions of privilege. Marginal Bethlehem and strangers from Gentile lands are threatening to the “holy city” of Jerusalem and the mighty leaders of the Roman Empire. How can the marginal and weaker group be a threat to the established empire?

Herod takes the lead and calls the chief priests and scribes (his advisory council) together –like the cabinet or the joint chiefs of staff. The Sanhedrin as was typical of imperial societies (see Matt 26:3, 57). Yes, church and state were in legion – upholding the societal structure and securing their patriarchal and hierarchical organization. This characterization by Matthew of the religious leaders in alignment with the political status quo is ominous…forecasting what we will see in the trial and death of Jesus in Jerusalem at the end of the gospel. The assembly is the constellation of earthly rulers against the Lord and his anointed. Its use here presents an alliance in opposition to God. Let those with ears, hear.

Herod asked the religious experts where the Christ was to be born and they answered in Bethlehem of Judea indicating an inconsequential place among marginal people: no threat to the seat of power. The elite’s information comes from Scripture Micah 5:2 and a line from 2 Sam 5:2. The passage in Micah describes a time when Gentiles will come to Jerusalem to worship Israel’s God and all people, Jew and Gentile will walk in God’s ways. God will also provide a shepherd-ruler who will rule faithfully (5:2). The contrast is clear: there is no hope in the situation of unjust rule through Rome conflated with religious leadership alignment. Micah 4:11 paints a hopeless picture against the imperial ambitions of the nations but then asserts that God’s purposes are otherwise. God will redeem his people by means of a humble shepherd from Bethlehem. God will work in and through those who submit to him and God’s rule will be one of justice and peace. As agent of God’s rule, Jesus will shepherd God’s people. The shepherd image is from Ezek 34 where false leaders are bad shepherds who harm the people in contrast with a good shepherd who is compassionate and protective.

Following the consultation with the assembly of religious leaders, Herod then calls for a secret meeting with the Magi. Hypocritically, Herod then sent the magi to Bethlehem saying, “Go and search diligently for the child: and when you have found him, bring me word, so that I may also go and worship him.” Referring to Jesus as the child rather than by name highlights the weak and vulnerable, marginal, insignificance of the children in the ancient world. They were to be silent and obedient until they reached adulthood and took over appropriate duties and responsibilities. The world of empire and political-religious power is a dangerous one.

The magi set out and were led by the star to the place where the child was. The response of the magi was joyous. Seeing the child and his mother, Mary, the magi fall down and worship him offering gold, frankincense and myrrh. Scholars have suggested that the gifts have symbolic significance: the gold indicating Jesus’ kingship, frankincense his divinity or high priestly office and myrrh his humanness or death. Matthew does not declare Jesus to be divine or a high priest, or attribute these meanings to the gifts.

Having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, the magi returned home by another way. A dream revealed to the magi what evil intent Herod had in mind and they responded. Just like Joseph did in taking Mary to be his wife and naming the child Jesus. The magi model important dimensions of discipleship: their marginality, their discovery of God’s purposes, their willingness to work in accord with God’s direction. The world of empire is a dangerous place for those who seek God’s purposes and respond to God’s initiative. God’s vision of human society and justice differs greatly with its preference for the margins. It is to such an existence that the gospel calls the reader: to the voluntary margins, being open disciples to be filled with the Spirit for the divinely appointed tasks.