Christmas 2017: Magi from Nabatean Kingdom, Bible Expert Says
While there are some people who are skeptical about the existence of the magi, a Bible expert has revealed that the three wise men who visited baby Jesus were real and belonged to the Nabatean Kingdom.
Although they don't openly discuss it, some Bible scholars are skeptical about the magi, classifying them as a myth comparable to Santa Claus. However, according to Fr. Dwight Longenecker, author of the "Mystery of the Magi-The Quest to Identify the Three Wise Men," there is no questioning that the three wise men were real and Biblical accounts of their existence, especially in the book of Matthew chapter 2 verses 1-12, are supported by history.
Fr. Longenecker believes that the three wise men, collectively known as the magi in the first Christmas story, were diplomats from the neighboring kingdom of the Nabatea, which was centered at the famous city of Petra. Upon researching on geography, ancient history, archeology, religion, and culture of the Roman Empire at the time of the birth of Christ, Fr. Longenecker established that the Nabatean king Aretas IV at that time had all the good reasons why he wanted to forge an alliance with King Herod the Great. Hence, when the magi at his court discerned that a new heir to the Judean throne was born, King Aretas IV sent the three wise men to pay homage to King Herod.
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Although the gifts of the three wise men to baby Jesus are widely accepted by the Christian community as real, Fr. Longenecker points out that there is an explanation for them, too. According to the Bible and history expert, gold, frankincense, and myrrh were diplomatic offerings representative of the Arabian kingdom.
For Fr. Longenecker, establishing the truth on the existence of the magi is important as it will remind people that gospel stories are not a figment of the imagination. Furthermore, as Christmas is the time to observe the birth of the Eternal Truth, Jesus Christ, proving that the magi existed, indeed, is important, according to Fr. Longenecker.
"It is important because the vast majority of people put the story of Christ's birth into the same big magical box with the other charming stories of Christmas...History matters because truth matters, and since Christmas is the time when the eternal Truth took human flesh and entered human history, the Magi matter," Fr. Longenecker said.
