Matthew 2

1 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,
2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.

Now, this just blows me away, really. These guys show up from far away and they want to go to do what? To worship WHO? A BABY! Can you imagine? I have a lot of questions about this. First of all: How do they know that this king is King of the Jews? How do they know that that's HIS star? And, if they are not Jews, why would they want to worship him? And why would they care about a king that is born to the Jewish nation? Too many questions...

I have a gut feeling that these three wise men were very wise indeed. They were led of God. They had the humility to fall down at the feet of a baby by faith that He was going to be a great King some day. And they put their faith into action by giving the best gifts they could offer.

3 When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.

I can understand Herod being troubled, but shouldn't the Jews in Jerusalem been happy about it?

4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.
5 And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judae: for thus it is written by the prophet,
6 And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor that shall rule my people Israel.

So, the chief priests and scribes knew their scriptures. They knew where the Messiah would be born. Why didn't they go and look for Jesus, too? They could have followed the star, couldn't they?

7 Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared.
8 And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also.
9 When they had heard the king, they departed; and lo, the star which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was.

A moving star! How about that?

10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.

Those guys were jumping up and down! They were excited!

11 And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.
12 And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.

They were really hearing from God. They were led of Him, warned of Him and obeyed. Who WERE these guys? I mean, I know they were star-studiers or astrologers or wisemen who came from the East, but, WHO were they to be so in tune with God at a time like this?