X-DreamersPrint or save as PDF. Each week is two pages; the layout fits A4 and US Letter.
Magi
Aim: Follow the magi from Herod's Jerusalem to the house, and compare their response with Herod's and the scribes'.
Before you start
- Read Matthew 2:1–12, and 2:16 for the timing.
- Open the magi in Jerusalem (QR 2) and at the house (QR 3). Herod's palace in Jerusalem Through the Ages is a good extra.
- This week can be used any time up to Epiphany, 6 January.
Plan · 40 min
| 5 min | Welcome. Ask: where do the wise men stand in your nativity set? |
| 5 min | Read Matthew 2:1–12. |
| 10 min | Show Jerusalem and the house (below). |
| 5 min | The evidence: when they came, how many, and the star. |
| 10 min | Discuss the questions. |
| 5 min | Pray. |
Read
Matthew 2:1–12
Show in the labs
1. Herod's palace · Jerusalem Through the Ages
Herod's palace on the western hill. A king who is “troubled”, and all Jerusalem with him.
2. In Herod's Jerusalem · Bethlehem and the Birth of Jesus
The scribes know the answer from Micah 5:2, and stay where they are.
3. At the house · Bethlehem and the Birth of Jesus
A house, a young child, three gifts. Not the night of the birth.
What the evidence says
Strongly supportedThe magi came later than the birth: a house, “the young child”, and Herod's “two years old and under”.Textually statedMatthew does not count the magi; he names three gifts.SpeculativeThat they were kings, and that they rode camels, comes from later reading of Psalm 72 and Isaiah 60.PlausibleA sign given by God fits a star that “went before them” and stopped (2:9). The planet and comet theories are speculative.Questions
- The magi worship, Herod plots, the scribes know but stay home. Which response do you recognise in yourself?
- Why might it matter that foreigners from the east are at the start of Matthew's Gospel?
- What is costly worship for you, now that Christmas is over?
Leader tip
Bring a nativity set and let someone move the magi away from the manger to a “house” across the table. It makes the point about timing without a lecture.
Closing prayer
Lord Jesus, the magi followed the light until they found you. Keep us seeking and worshipping you after Christmas is over. Amen.
Magi
Wise men from the east saw a star and came a long way to find the new king.
Read · Matthew 2:1–2 and 2:9–11
10When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. 11And 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.
Look
Scan the code to see the magi arrive at the house in Bethlehem.
xdreamers.com/labs/places-of-jesus/bethlehem?stop=magi
Can you find…
- The gold, the frankincense and the myrrh
- Mary with the child
- The door of the house
Wonder
- The magi brought gifts to Jesus. What would you bring him?
- Why do you think King Herod was afraid of a little child?
For the youngest: Matthew does not say how many wise men came. How many gifts were there?
Pray
Jesus, help us keep looking for you, like the wise men. Amen.
Draw or write
Draw the star over the house.