THE MAGI AND THE STAR OF BEITHLECHEM

 THE MAGI AND THE 

STAR OF BEIT-LECHEM

THE MAGI FROM THE EAST 

Who were the magi from the east? Were these “wise men” Zoroastrians, Medes, Persians, and were they Arabs at all (biblically, all “desert dwellers” opposed to Israel were Arabs or Arab-like)? Or, perhaps they were Jews, descendants of those Jews exiled in Babylon in 605 BC, 597 BC and 586 BC who did not return to Y’srael with the 40,000 Jews who made aliya back to the land with Zerubabel, Ezra, Nechemyah and others returning to rebuild the Temple. Or, were they Arab Iraqis, descendants of the Babylonians who had been influenced by the Jews while in captivity who had taught them the biblical prophesies and the secret of astronomical calculations?

THE MAGI WERE NOT COURT ASTROLOGERS

The Magi were esteemed students of prophecy and astronomy observing the seasons and stars and interpreting their signs -the purpose for which stars were created (Genesis 1). These wise-men considered the kokavim or “stars” that appeared to them in the east, to be what is called in Hebrew an ot, or a “sign.” There is no reason to take the word “star” in Greek to mean anything else. The star was a sign of a new king. They saw the star in the east and they came to the city, David’s Yerushalyim where mashiach was to rule that the star referenced. They were expecting a king on the throne, not a babe in a manger, and in some other locale. The heavens were and are as musical notes, a grand cantata, signposts of God YHWH’s design. Can we read His music today? Not so good!

MESSIANIC JEWS TWO-THOUSAND YEARS AGO 

Messianic (or, Christian) Jews knowing the Holy Scriptures were reading the heavens and were awaiting His coming. Miriam was hailed by Gavriel six times as “blessed,” and was told that she would be remembered and called “blessed” by generations in the future. Anna was a messianic believer from the tribe of Asher praying night and day in the Temple; she saw Yeshua as a new born babe and knew He was her messiah!  Sh’meon believed the messianic prophesy of the nevi, Isaiah, saw the few day’s old babe, and knew that baby was his messiah. He took Him, held Him, and holding the eight-day old baby king high in his arms declared he was now ready to depart this world; he had seen His salvation. In name, Yeshuameans salvation; in person, Yeshua was the Lamb!

Not just selective Jews were messianic, but many Arabs also were awaiting the Jewish messiah. The magi from the east were believers perhaps descendants of the Medeswhom the prophet Daniel referenced as magoi (Daniel 1:20; 2:2; 4:7; 5:7), who were also on quest for truth. The magi of the NT era studied the biblical/Jewish prophecies and calculated their fulfillment according to astrological equations. These men were not rogues or charlatans, but disciples of the Word of God who set out for the holy city, with gifts of gold for a king, incense for the king’s death, and myrrh for the king’s resurrection. Because of the three gifts tradition has deduced there were three, though they came according to the Jewish prophecy of Isaiah in numbers, 

arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of YHWH has risen upon you. For behold, darkness will cover the earth and deep darkness the peoples; but YHWH will rise upon you and His glory will appear upon you. Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. Lift up your eyes round about and see; they all gather together, they come to you. Your sons will come from a far, and your daughters will be carried in the arms. Then you will see and be radiant, and your heart will thrill and rejoice; because the abundance of the sea will be turned to you, the wealth of the nations will come to you. A multitude of camels will cover you, then your camels of Midian and Ephah; all those from Sheba will come; They will bring gold and frankincense, and will bear good news of the praises of YHWH (Isaiah 60:1-5).

Tertullian (AD 225) is responsible for the tradition that the magi were kings though as this prophecy of Isaiah suggests (and other prophecies, Ps. 68:29, 31; 72:10-11; Isa 49:7) kings would come.  Tertullian and the tradition are correct. It was in the 6^th century AD that names were given to these magi: Melkon which later evolved to Melchior; Balthasar; and Gaspar. 

THE PROPHECY OF ISAIAH 

The Prophet Isaiah predicted hat Israel was to “rise from darkness for your light has come.” Israel was indeed in darkness. They had experienced the oppression of Babylon, of Persia, of Antiochus and the Syrians, and now the oppression of Rome. Israel was under spiritual darkness as the Pharisees, Sadducees, scribes and chief priests did not know the Lord. They were blind guides of those sitting in darkness. Isaiah also prophesied that the kavod or glory of YHWH was to rise upon Israel. Think of how those studying prophecy may have interpreted that prophecy. Yeshua, that babe born in Beit L’chem raised in Nazaret was that glory of YHWH. The prophecy of Isaiah reiterated the presence of darkness that would cover the earth, deep darkness would cover the peoples, even beyond the Holy Land. But, included in that prophecy was the promise that nations would come to Israel’s light and that kings from beyond the borders of Israel would come to the brightness of the rising star! The messianic hope extended beyond the Holy Land, to all the families of the earth, to all the peoples. This bright light would attract Israeli sons and daughters from far away, and they would come home to see this illumination; Israel would rejoice, their hearts thrilled, nations would bring their wealth, and a multitude of camels from Midian, Ephah and Sheba would cover the land, and gold and frankincense would be gifts along with good news and praises of YHWH.

WHO WERE THESE [ARAB/PERSIAN] BELIEVERS

Median was a son of Avraham and Keturah (Genesis 25:1-6). Thus, Median was a half-brother to Isaac. Ephah was the son of Midian and also a descendant of Avraham and Keturah (1 Chronicles 1:33; Genesis 25:4), a nephew to Isaac. Sheba was also a son of Avraham mentioned in relation with Dedan (Genesis 25:3) as Cushites. The peoples of Sheba or Sabeans were traders of gold and spices. In fact their Queen of Sheba had once traveled in likeness from the east having heard of the grand Temple of God and its builder, Shlomo in Jerusalem. She had brought incense, spices, gold, and precious stone (1 Kings 10:1-2, 10). Her pilgrimage foreshadowed the future and prophetic pilgrimage of Arab believers to a greater Temple of God, the Lord God Himself, Yeshua at His birth. 

The prophet, Yirmeyahu noted frankincense “coming from Sheba” (Jeremiah 6:20); the prophet Ezekiel spoke of the merchants of Sheba bringing gold and spices (Ezekiel 27:22). Hebrews Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yacov had sons, half-brothers, nieces and nephews who were Arab kinfolk. The magi were distance cousins of the Jewish people, estranged Arab relatives.

A GHOST TOUR OF JERUSALEM (believe it, or not!)

A GHOST STORY

FROM JERUSALEM

By Dr. Reginald (Reggie) K. Lisemby

Executive Director, CHRISTIAN MINISTRY TO ISRAEL
© Copyright 2001 Crumbs from the Jewish Table

Around campfires late in the night are stories stirred and tales told of things that go bump in the night; yarns of strange experiences, sightings of goblins, buggers, and ghosts are all uttered as though they were actually true. Humbug! Let me tell you a real ghost-story. A Ghost Story from Jerusalem!

The story begins many, many years ago in the mid 10 Century B.C. an age where book learning, song, and poetic drama were flourishing. The psalms were the central feature of music, Hebrew literature was increasing, and architecture was accomplishing one of its greatest feats, a magnificent colossal building of some forty acres, its massive stones decorated with dazzling art work in ivory, wood, and gold. It is with this building that our story grows mysterious. This ‘house’ was haunted, or, should I say possessed?

On the day that this skyscraping edifice was completed, a gold coffin-like box was carried inside, and soon a dark foggy apparition penetrated the new structure as though it claimed residence. There was no objection, of course, from anyone watching. After all, what could the people do? How does one serve an eviction to a ghost? I tell you, the place was haunted, or, should I say possessed? Strange things happened in this bizarre domicile. Separating the rear barracks from the frontage, was a thick, heavy, dark curtain that hung from ceiling to floor, interwoven with images of celestial creatures with multiple wings and multiple heads. The Spirit lived beyond this veil in the posterior berth, and should any man dare to cross the threshold and enter His dark lodge without a brazen bowl of fresh, chaste, aromatic blood, and without an invitation to 'have a peek,' that fool feel dead. Perhaps, the sight and/or smell of the vital juices appeased Him, the Spirit. A legend even spun that a rope came to be tied to the leg of the brave souls who entered His place, so that, if the man collapsed lifeless, his fellows could pull him out of that house that was haunted, or, should I say possessed. 

There were spine-chilling tales of men who had witnessed the sound of this phantom breathing “ruuuaaacchh,” and eyewitness accounts of the massive hand-thick veil floating as a pendulum from the breath of the ghost behind the curtain. There was much suspicion, conjecture, and puzzlement among the community about the dark ways of this obscure “spook” and His display of aura, but well known and accurate was the insight to this ghost’s status in the spirit world. This Spirit was indeed the chieftain, the ‘granddaddy’ of them all. He was the heavy. For hundreds of centuries, this haint confined Himself to His habitation in the back room, or, so it seemed to the generations who lived and died passing on the yarns to their posterity.

There was also, however, a paradox. This ghost seemingly wanted to make contact with the people although He was unapproachable and remote because of the blood thing He demanded.

Once upon a day, it was early spring, a man appeared in the village of the possessed house. He was in some ways an ordinary man, medium height, sun-wrinkled skin, a pleasant fellow, yet, He was extra-ordinary, too. He was magnificent in humility, modest in condescendence, heavenly in demeanor, and so very kind. He was a holy man, and He was wonderfully exceptional. Yet this man was for some reason ostracized from the community, grossly tortured, condemned to die, was nailed to a horribly ugly tree, speared in His side, and, of all places, He was hung high in the sky upon that cross atop a mount called skull hill! At first, no one saw it. There was not a hint of suspicion concerning this man and skull hill which was just north of the gate to the haunted domicile, or, should I say possessed?

Whoever that man was, dying upon that cruel, lofty, and lonely hill, He had a supernatural link to the ghost of the forty-acre shrine in the city. Simultaneously, with the shriek of that man’s death on skull hill as His soul was ripped from His body, the five- inch thick heavy drape hanging in the haunted house was completely shredded from top to bottom, and the earthquake had collapsed the house. And, that house was never haunted again, or, should I say it was never again possessed?

More ghoulish than that forty-acre building being despoiled in concert with the man’s death, that man’s corpse soon came to be missing parallel with the Spirit’s dearth from the haunted house. His grave was as vacant as the once-upon-a-time haunted house. Yarns, legends, stories, and theories began to spin. Some said the man sat up in the grave, got up, and walked out, yet only after he had meticulously folded his funeral garb. Others said He had been seen with his family and friends displaying His violent wounds about His head and hands along with the hole in his chest. Some said that He had appeared to his companions after walking through a wall, and that He had spoken to them. Still others said they would never believe such a spook story unless they saw themselves the holes in his hands and feet.

For forty-nine days people whispered tales, and on the fiftieth day, it was a holiday in Jerusalem, followers of the martyred man gathered in memorial of the One Who had been betrayed, beaten, spiked to a tree, taken down with tender hands, wrapped in linens, and buried in a borrowed tomb, but was now missing. The saga goes, that on this festive day while one hundred and twenty followers of the man were singing and mostly praying, lights suddenly appeared flickering about the room, in accompaniment with sounds that were suddenly heard, roaring like a mighty wind. More audacious was that uneducated fellows from the north who lived near a lake called the Galil began to speak the oracles of Elohim in languages they did not know, in tongues they had never spoken!

In a papyrus-leafed book an account was written of this ghost story by one of the locals, a physician, and doctors do not lie, don’t you know. Dr. Lukos recorded that the delightful holy man who had been tortured, buried, and who had disappeared was linked to the Spirit of the former possessed house, and this same ghost was the one who had blown in, hovered above the one hundred and twenty, and had fallen upon them, and had occupied them. Or, should I say, possessed? They were possessed!

No longer did the Spirit of the former forty-acre domicile possess that house of wood and precious stones. He had taken up residence in every single soul present in that room, the upper room in Jerusalem.

Doctor Lukos reported in his book (and his book is still being printed after two- thousand years, so it must be true) that the ghost and the man were interfaced. What? Yes! They were clones. Ohhh! That is spine chilling, isn’t it? They were clones!

Well, no one has seen that majestic man for over two-thousand years, though many of His fellows chronicled His promises that they would be forever possessed by Him, sealed as His possession. And, not only they, but anyone who wanted Him to abide with them and in them, if they would ask Him, He would breathe upon them!

The city of Jerusalem rebuilt the former haunted or should I say once possessed house, but there have been no marks or indications that the Spirit ever returned. His presence is gone, forever gone from that house, but not gone from a presence somewhere! The followers of that Man were told by Him after His resurrection, and then were told by His ghost after His ascension, not to fear. Never fear! Fear not man! Fear not ghostly troll! Fear not demon or phantom or apparition or spook! His blood had satisfied or propitiated the Spirit’s requirement for blood, and that the Spirit of the former shrine now wished to befriend mankind.

This Ghost still roams the earth, and He is seeking and saving those who desire to make their life God’s habitation. And, after two-thousand years, dear reader, He wants to make your heart His final abode!

© Copyright 20015  Crumbs from the Jewish Table