The Journey of the Magi — Bible

I was reading through this passage earlier this week and I was SHOCKED when I got to the last sentence. Keep in mind this was written centuries before Jesus.

Advent Reading - Day 09

Isaiah 11:1-9

1 Arise, shine, for your light has come,
    and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.
2 For behold, darkness shall cover the earth,
    and thick darkness the peoples;
but the Lord will arise upon you,
    and his glory will be seen upon you.
3 And nations shall come to your light,
    and kings to the brightness of your rising.
4 Lift up your eyes all around, and see;
    they all gather together, they come to you;
your sons shall come from afar,
    and your daughters shall be carried on the hip.
5 Then you shall see and be radiant;
    your heart shall thrill and exult,
because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you,
    the wealth of the nations shall come to you.
6 A multitude of camels shall cover you,
    the young camels of Midian and Ephah;
    all those from Sheba shall come.
They shall bring gold and frankincense,
    and shall bring good news, the praises of the Lord.

Summary: All the nations will come to honor God’s covenant people.

Isaiah foretold what would happen! I just can’t get over this passage—I’m not sure I ever before paid attention to verse 6—foreigners who come bringing gold and frankincense. That’s exactly what happened!

Forward this email or tell someone about this cool connection today.

"They returned to their country by another route."

Matthew 2:12b

I think the Magi are among the most interesting characters in the Bible. Probably some kind of Persian or Babylonian stargazers--"wise men"--they saw something in the heavens so compelling that they left their homes and temples and libraries miles away to the East, and journeyed toward Bethlehem. And when they got there, what did they see?

Whatever it was, it changed them. I love how T.S. Eliot imagines them on their return home:

We returned to our places, these Kingdoms,
But no longer at ease here, in the old dispensation,
With an alien people clutching their gods.

from "The Journey of the Magi," by T.S. Eliot

Matthew is more matter-of-fact: "They returned to their country by another route." See, here's the truth: encounters with Jesus are always like that. You can't meet Jesus and continue on as before, unchanged.

What different route or path do you need to take today?

Today's Scripture

Matthew 2:1-12

Frankincense Foretold in the Old Testament!

Advent Reading - Day 09

By Another Route

Today's Scripture