The Star of Bethlehem

 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,

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.

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

And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.

And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea:  for thus it is written by the prophet,

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.

Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared.

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.

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.

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

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.

And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.Matthew 2:1-12

 Every year as Christmas Day approaches, planetaria all around the world execute their annual star of wonder pirouettes.  Guides will mercilessly tantalize visitors with legends of what the star of Bethlehem may have been. 

 Was the star of Bethlehem a comet?

Or was it a meteor?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Or was it a supernova (or a nova)?

Or was it a planetary conjunction?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 I contend that none of these hypotheses, being the most common of explanations as to what the star of Bethlehem was, is an acceptable proposition.  I put the case that this ‘star’ was in fact God’s Shekinah glory:  a visible manifestation of His divine presence, as prophesied in Numbers 24:17.

 Of course, the putting of the case for the star of Bethlehem being God’s Shekinah glory does in no way at all -- neither in whole nor in part -- reflect any kind of reluctance to believe that our Lord can manipulate His entire creation when there is reason to so do!

 Please allow me to state my case.

 Firstly, as there exist no corroboratory records of sightings of comets that pertain to the period of our Saviour’s birth (7 – 5 BC), I say that one may confidently exclude comets from any consideration in this matter.

 Secondly, as meteors are ephemeral (they last only a short while in their passage across the sky), I say that they may be similarly excluded.

 Thirdly, as there exist no corroboratory records of sightings of supernovae (stars that explode, becoming so extremely luminous that they may cast shadows at night and may even be seen in the daylight) that pertain to the period of our Saviour’s birth, I say that they, too, may be similarly excluded.

 Fourthly, as planetary conjunctions -- which are not unusual -- do not appear as being one ‘star’, I say here also that they, too, may be similarly excluded.  Remember that the people who were apparently the only ones to see the star -- the wise men, or Magi, who were professional stargazers -- called it ‘his star’.  Interestingly, it is said that in the 17^th century, German astronomer, Johannes Kepler (1571 – 1630), declared that a 7 BC triple conjunction of Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars was the star of Bethlehem; perhaps it is more accurately said that in the 17^th century, Kepler declared that a 6 BC nova was the star; and perhaps it is most accurately said that, either way, Kepler was wrong.

 Moreover, nobody but the Magi saw the star of Bethlehem. 

 Furthermore, this ‘star’ went before the Magi and it led them from Jerusalem to a house in Bethlehem -- it led them in a direction from north to south!  Due to the earth’s ‘anticlockwise’ rotation, natural objects in the sky generally move in a direction from east to west.

 As asides, I note that the shepherds who appeared at our Saviour’s birth (Luke 2:8-20) and the (unnamed) Magi who saw the star of Bethlehem are separated by approximately two years, explaining the age bracket that Herod the Great chose for his related slaughter (Matthew 2:16); there were not necessarily three Magi -- in terms of number, all we know for sure is that there were at least two of them; the Magi were not necessarily kings; the Magi used Old Testament prophecy and did not use the pseudo-science of astrology in the fulfilment of their desire to worship at the feet of our Saviour; the gifts brought by the Magi are symbolic:  the gold symbolises our Saviour’s kingship, the frankincense symbolises His deity, and the myrrh symbolises His sacrificial death.

 This ‘star’ was God’s Shekinah glory

 In Matthew 2:7, the word star (Greek, asteros) is clearly not a reference to a literal star created on day four of creation week, as the subject of Herod the Great’s enquiry was not in appearance prior to our Saviour’s birth.  That the Magi refer to the phenomenon as a star does not negate this point.

 Intense similarities exist amongst what we find in Matthew 2:9 and what we find in Exodus 13:21, 33:18-23, and 40:34-38 and what we find in Luke 2:8-12 and what we find in John 1:14.

 Finally, it is quite telling that those of the hierarchy in Israel, with all of their deep meditation upon Old Testament prophecy, were not as aware of or as interested in the coming of Christ as were some Gentiles from the east.  We all ought to mimic the worship of which we read in Matthew 2:11!

COPYRIGHT © 2005 JOHN THEOLOGIDIS