Prophecy: The killing all of the baby boys in Bethlehem under the age of two, it is often assumed that the Magi arrived within two years.
02 THE MAGI PREPARES FOR THE 1ST COMING
The Southern Kingdom of Israel was conquered by Babylon in 597 BC, and the Babylonians immediately began deporting everyone (except the poor people) from Jerusalem to Babylon. Among the deportees was Daniel, a young nobleman.
Through his God-given wisdom and visions, Daniel became the chief of Babylon’s wise men and astrologers. For his entire adult life, Daniel served the kings of Babylon and Persia while remaining true to God. His interpretations of visions were always accurate, and many modern Christians believe many of his own visions are prophecies which have not yet been fulfilled.
It seems likely that Daniel would have had a lasting influence on the wise men of Babylon, and may have left them a prophecy regarding a king of the Jews and a special astrological event. Whether their knowledge came from Daniel or not, Magi traveled from the East to King Herod in Jerusalem with only one aim: to find and worship the king of the Jews heralded by a special star.
The Bible is not precise about the time of year when the Magi saw the star, when they started traveling, or when they arrived. However, based on King Herod’s later response of killing all of the baby boys in Bethlehem under the age of two, it is often assumed that the Magi arrived within two years after the birth of Jesus, and may have even arrived immediately after his birth.
There’s a bunch of people who start the Christmas season early. Too early by most others’ estimations. Some claim it’s mostly commerce driven. Not always. Believe it or not, I’ve heard of a family who starts their Christmas on May 1. True story. And it’s very difficult for them to wait even that long to begin the preparation for the celebration of that blessed event… that they just celebrated four months prior. So, you may be a two weeks before? Three weeks before? The day after Thanksgiving? Just know this, the one true God started early to prepare for the birth of the Messiah, earlier than anyone’s story you’ve heard. I’ll start with his actions about a thousand years before.
ACTOR’S SEGMENT
A thousand years before Jesus was born, King David ruled over Israel —the height of its glory. He defeated virtually all of the surrounding nations, he instilled peace in the region, he gathered an enormous amount of wealth. Yet, Jesus said that David acknowledged the day would come when a new Lord would rule. And Jesus strongly indicated he was that Lord.
Several prophecies in the Old Testament testify that the Messiah would be a descendant of King David. For that to happen God had to keep the line of David alive through all of the upcoming disasters that were to befall Israel. And, there were a lot of them.
Babylon! The Babylonians conquered Judah, the Southern Kingdom. They wiped out Jerusalem, took all of the prominent Jews into exile. At that time, it appeared to be the end of the existence of the Hebrew nation, this would include the kingly line of David.
However, God planned for the Israelites to be in exile for only about seventy years, at which time they would return to Israel. While the Israelites were in captivity, they became familiar with the Babylonians. More importantly, the Babylonians became familiar with the Israelites and their God. Then, the Persians defeated the Babylonians, and that meant the Persians became familiar with the Israelites and their God.
The Babylonians and the Persians were the repositories of knowledge and great wisdom, information, and advanced technology in that part of the world. In those cultures, anything they learned was sure to be written down, catalogued, remembered, and used at the appropriate time. Their records went back to the time writing was invented.
Watch the docudrama of The Magi Prepares:
Excellent video and presentation. Thanks!