Epiphany is the Presentation of Christ to the Gentiles

Matthew 2:1-12

Epiphany is observed by the church every year on January 6, and commemorates the manifestation or presentation of Christ to the gentiles, by way of the Magi.

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born the king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.

” When King Herod heard this, he was very disturbed. When he had called together all the chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born.” In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet Micah had written: And you Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, are not the least among the princes of Judea: for out of you shall come a Governor that shall rule my people Israel.

Then Herod secretly met with the Magi, and found out from them, the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said,“Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you have found him, report back to me, so that I too, may go and worship him.” After their visit with the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was.

When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. When they arrived, they saw the child and they bowed down and worshiped Him. Then they opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

So, we are reminded that this child Jesus was far more than a future king. He is divine and should be worshiped.

So, who were these Magi? Tradition says that these men were gentiles three kings, very wise men from Mesopotamia, somewhere in the east, perhaps Persia, (Iran) or Babylonia (Iraq). They were known for their learning, their wisdom. They were very interested in astronomy and when they observed the movements of stars and planets, they carefully recorded everything they saw. Anything out of the ordinary was taken by them to be some kind of an omen. Now they had seen a star that could not be identified.

How then did they know to come to Jerusalem? We do not know, but can only speculate. These types of wise men were diligent to discover what signs and omens meant. And if they had access to the holy books of Israel, which they very well could have had in the east, since Babylon remained a center of Jewish studies, they might have come across the prophecy of Balaam, an early prophet from the east who had predicted that a star would march forth in Israel : “I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre (staff or rod)shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth. (Numbers 24:17)

It may be that they saw the phenomenon, searched their collections of books, talked to various scribes of the different religions, and learned that Israel was the place. If they had inquired about it further, they might have discovered that this one who was to be born would be special, worthy of worship. Then, when they came to Israel, where would they have gone looking for a king but to the palace?

It is also possible that God revealed these things to them when they saw the star, and then confirmed the revelation when the star appeared over the house where Jesus was.

Herod the Great ruled from 37 B.C. to 4 B.C and was a ruthless tyrant. He would have killed anyone, even a member of his own family, if he thought they were in any way conspiring against him. And so, the thought of a king being born was an immediate threat, especially if the child was the promised Messiah, the king of the Jews.

Herod was not Jewish. He was an Edomite, a descendant of Esau and not Jacob. He had tried to appease the Jews by marrying into the Hasmonean family (the line of Jewish kings (the Maccabeans) that had reigned for a hundred years), and by building the temple in Jerusalem. But he was not trusted by the Jews; and he himself trusted no one.

The Magi came to worship Jesus. And after they received confirmation from, the Bible, and then from the Star, they knew this was of God, and so they came and worshiped him.

In the Book of Revelation, we read about those in heaven who lay their crowns before Him and acknowledge that He is worthy to receive all the glory and honor and power and wealth and praise (Revelation. 4:10, 11; 5:9-14). So, what the Magi do here is a little preview of what everyone will do in the future, bow before Him as Lord and King.

The Bible also tells us that one day every knee should bow to Christ as the wise men did on that fateful day, we now call Epiphany.

St. Paul wrote in his Epistle to the Philippians: “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth” (Philippians 2:10)

The Grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen

The Most Rev. Dr. Rick Aaron Reid, Presiding Bishop Traditional Anglican Church of America Rector, St. Andrew’s Anglican Church, Newton, North Carolina 28658