The Mystery of the MagiSýnishorn

  The Star 

Many theories have been suggested about what the Magi actually saw in the sky over Israel. In my opinion, explanations based on strictly natural phenomena fall short. If the Magi’s star was a natural star, it would have defied the laws of physics. The movement of stars usually traverses the sky from east to west. But, the “star” the Magi saw led them from Jerusalem to Bethlehem, moving north to south, leading them to an individual house. The Bible says that when the star came to the place where the Child was, it “stood still,” something stars don’t do. 

It is possible that what the Magi saw was similar to something the prophets witnessed hundreds of years earlier. God told Moses, “Let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them” (Exodus 25:8). Once finished, the Shekinah glory of God, took up residence in the Holy of Holies. Many years later, King Solomon built the temple, and again, God’s Shekinah glory filled the temple in a dramatic fashion.

The glory of God rested in the Holy of Holies in Solomon’s temple for hundreds of years, but Israel continued to sin and rebel. As judgment approached, however, something far more tragic had already happened. The glory of God departed from the temple. It left so quietly that most of Israel never even noticed, but the prophet Ezekiel saw it (Ezekiel 10). The destruction of Solomon’s temple and the conquering of the nation were merely outward manifestations of their spiritual bankruptcy.

Returning to the star of Bethlehem, when Ezekiel saw the glory of the Lord departing from the first temple, he could actually trace its movement step-by-step. This sounds remarkably similar to what the shepherds saw when the angels appeared and announced the Savior’s birth, “The glory of the Lord shone around them” (Luke 2:9). It sounds even more similar to what the Magi saw that allowed them to trace the moving of the “star” to a precise residential address. A natural heavenly body could never provide such precision or standstill over a particular house (Matthew 2:9). Could it be that the Magi actually saw the once-departed Shekinah glory of God returning to Israel? 

Jesus came into the world as the ultimate “Shekinah,” the ultimate dwelling of God among men. This is why the Scriptures said that He would be called “Immanuel,” which means “God with us!” (Isaiah 7:14). No wonder multitudes of angels announced His birth and worshipped God! Such a marvel the earth had never known. No spectacle of creation or human invention could compare to the miracle that God wrapped Himself in human flesh and made His home among us. John says that “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14). When we celebrate Christmas, we are literally celebrating the fact that God came to live among us. What an amazing thought!