How Old Was Jesus When The Wise Men Came?

How Old Was Jesus When The Wise Men Came?

Jesus lived in a house at the time of his birth. His age may be between two to three years when the wise men came. That is why Herod gave him the cruel command to kill all children of this age and below. (Matthew 2:11, 16)

The Bible says:

And as they (the Astrologers) entered the house, they found the tiny child, along with Mary, his mother and being lowered. They paid the obeisance. They also unveiled their treasures and gave him gifts, including gold and myrrh, frankincense.

How Old Was Jesus When The Magi Came To Visit Him?

Matthew 2:1 is the most appropriate answer to this question because it states that they arrived in Jerusalem “when” (KJV) Jesus was born. The story of the magician approaching Jesus is found in Matthew chapter 2.

The Greek word used in this passage is Gennethentos (Gennethentos)–an aorist that means Jesus was born. It implies that Jesus was born just one day earlier, justifying the meaning of the KJV version “when Jesus was born” or, in other translations of the modern era, “after Jesus was born”. In any event, the implication would be “soon to follow”.

Luke’s Gospel throws a wrench in the works, as it is a completely different nativity narrative that specifically mentions that the family left Bethlehem to Nazareth at the time Jesus was just one week old. When read literally, this excludes the magi’s visit and the tragic consequences of their visit within an initial couple of weeks. 

According to some scholars, the magi visited Jesus when he was closer to two, hoping they would solve the issue. But, according to legend, the magi was not the only one to visit Bethlehem, and Luke clarifies that Jesus was living in Nazareth and stayed there each year until he was 12 years old. 

Matthew states that following his departure from Bethlehem, Jesus spent his first few time in Egypt. He also says that Jesus then moved to Nazareth under the reign of Archelaus.

Moses. In light of these and other factors, It is evident that the magi had never had a chance to meet Jesus. They were used as a literary device to explain the reason for Jesus’s escape to Egypt so that there could be parallels drawn between Jesus Moses and Jesus.

Where Did The Wise Men (Magi) Come From?

The historical belief is that they are from Persia and maybe were Zoroastrian. There is no evidence in the Bible which confirms this. The only thing the Bible states is that they come out of the East. What is the distance to the East? It doesn’t specify.

As was pointed out by a different person who pointed out that as was pointed out by another person, the Wise Men were not present when Christ was born. Christ was birthed in the home of a manager’s. 

However, Matthew 2:11 tells us, When they came to the home and saw the infant child and Mary, his mother. They washed their feet and prayed to him.

Take note, The Wise Men found the Christ Child in a home and not in a place of management. He is also classified as a child and not an infant or “babe”. 

Additionally, Herod had all of the male children of Bethlehem (not an overwhelming number, BTW, since Bethlehem was a tiny village) murdered from the age of 2 and below based on the fact that the Wise Men declared they witnessed the signs of his birth, i.e. the star.

In ancient times two years was enough time to travel the outskirts of China, Tibet, Korea or even the Americas since Polynesians would cross over the sea between New Zealand to Hawaii shortly after this in huge outrigger canoes.

The Story Of The Wise Men And Jesus

The story of the wise men. Jesus is the Son of God who would grow up to do amazing things. His parents on earth were Mary and Joseph. Jesus was born inside a barn since there was no space for him in Bethlehem.

Bethlehem was part of Judea, an area that was ruled by a king named Herod. King Herod was in Jerusalem when some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem asking its government where is the newborn King of the Jews. We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship Him. 

When Herod heard that there was another king born in Judea, he was very upset, as was everyone else in Jerusalem. The Jews knew that their King would eventually come and was always told that the King of the Jews, the world’s saviour, would be born in Bethlehem. So Herod called all the important priests and Jews and asked him where this King was born. 

So they told that to King Herod, then King Herod thought of a way to trick the wise men. He arranged an exclusive meeting with them and learned when The King of Jews stars first appeared, and King Herod explained to the wise men To go to Bethlehem and look for the child. If you find him, return and tell me about it to go to Bethlehem and worship Him as well.

But secretly, Herod wanted to know where the King of the Jews was so he could get rid of him. So the wise men went on their way, and the star they had seen the East guided them to Bethlehem. It went ahead of them and stopped over the place where Jesus was, and the wise men were filled with joy. 

They went into the house and saw Mary and Jesus, and they bowed down and worshipped Jesus. They gave him special gifts fit for the King that he was gold frankincense and myrrh. Then God warned them in a dream to not go home from Jerusalem where King Herod was, but God told them to go home a different way, so they did. 

And then an angel appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, get up. The angel told Joseph to go to Egypt with Mary and Jesus because Herod was looking to kill Jesus that very night Joseph left for Egypt with Jesus and Mary. They stayed in Egypt until Herod was gone, and it was safe for them to go home to Israel.

But when they returned and the angel warned them about the new ruler of Judea, who was Herod’s son, Joseph and his family went to the region of Galilee and found their new home in Nazareth, where Jesus would grow up and eventually be all the amazing things God had planned for him to do.