when really, they did not vist baby jesus until around his first birthday???
2006-12-24 03:22:58 · 15 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Holidays ➔ Christmas
Mathew 2:1 tells us:
Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem . . .
That's it. Matthew doesn't say how many wise men came from the east, doesn't mention their names, and doesn't provide any details about how they made their journey.
It has generally been assumed that the wise men (or magi) were three in number because Matthew 2:11 makes mention of three gifts: " . . . they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense and myrrh." The number of wise men is not specified in the Bible, however, and some Eastern religions have claimed up to twelve of them made the journey to Bethlehem. The names of the wise men, Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthasar, do not come from the Bible and did not appear in Christian literature until over five hundred years after the birth of Jesus. Nothing in the Bible says the wise men rode camels (or any other animal); they may have made their journey from the east on foot for all we know. And despite the familiar lyrics of the Christmas carol "We Three Kings," no biblical source depicts the three wise men as kings. (They were most likely learned men, perhaps astrologers.)
However many wise men there were, and however they got to Bethlehem, the Bible tells us they arrived just after the birth and found the baby Jesus in a manger, right?
Not quite. Matthew 2:11 states:
And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him . . .
The wise men came "into the house," not the stable, and they saw a "young child," not a newborn. This passage indicates that the wise men didn't arrive until quite some time after Jesus' birth. (According to Luke 2, it was shepherds, not wise men, who visited the infant Jesus in the manger.)
To sum up: we know from the Bible that wise men came from the east, that they followed a star to Bethlehem to find the Christ child, and that they brought him gold, and frankincense and myrrh. We must look to sources external to the Bible to find the origins of any of the other familiar details, however.
2006-12-24 03:29:08 · answer #1 · answered by ? 6 · 3⤊ 0⤋
It is a common misconception and it drives me crazy! It says nothing at all in the Bible about them visiting at the stable, in fact, it says in Matthew 2:11 "On coming to the HOUSE, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh."(NIV) Note is says HOUSE not STABLE or MANGER.
I think people put the wisemen in the nativity because they have misread the Bible, or they are just generally nieve.
2006-12-24 03:32:55 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Where does it say in the Bible that it took them a year to travel to get to him.
He was born at night and little while later the Wise Men where there giving him gifts. It is part of the story of Christ being born. Even the Shepard boy and his lambs where there.
Read you Bible again, you got lost somewhere in the translation..
2006-12-24 03:30:31 · answer #3 · answered by Angell 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Mainly because the authors of those particular books chose to write them that way. I believe and I've heard they actually showed up nearer to Jesus first birthday as they were on the flight to Egypt to excape Herod and his killing of all the first born male children. Something like that. Depends on what version of the Bible you read and what Gospel I guess. So I think you're right it was closer to his first birthday.
2006-12-24 03:30:01 · answer #4 · answered by dave_83501 4 · 2⤊ 1⤋
My understanding was that they saw the star in the east on the day of his birth, and came looking for the child then, not a year later.
2006-12-24 03:25:47 · answer #5 · answered by Dan821 4 · 2⤊ 2⤋
probably so they can tie in the commercial aspects of gift-giving to jesus's birth, (incorrectly) celebrated at this time of the year
2006-12-24 03:34:20 · answer #6 · answered by momof9 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
To assist with the C-Section- derrrr!
Love your work!
Merry Christmas to you and Goodwill to All!
2006-12-24 03:52:51 · answer #7 · answered by Ministry of Camp Revivalism 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
THE WISE MEN APPEARED AT THE MANGER THE NIGHT BABY JESUS WAS BORN.
2006-12-24 03:27:17 · answer #8 · answered by bettys 4 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Because you've done your research and most people haven't. Their included in most Christmas stories so its assumed they were there.
2006-12-24 03:26:11 · answer #9 · answered by thomas 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Because they arrived to see him after his birth. Birth, gifts, arrival..........all in the same category. They grouped everything together and voila!
2006-12-24 03:25:08 · answer #10 · answered by sci-girl1492 2 · 1⤊ 2⤋