Magi
The general view of the Magi, or as some translate “the wise men,” is that they were Persian astrologers, ignorant of Yahweh, but somehow drawn to the birth of an unknown king. The fact is that we don’t know their nationality nor their religious beliefs. But, there is a higher probability that they were part of the Jewish diaspora still living in Babylon and serving in the Persian court.
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The first place we see this word, it is used to describe Daniel who was retained by the Persians when Babylon fell to them. Later, when Zerubbabel returned to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem, the vast bulk of the Jewish people stayed in Babylon. In fact, the Babylonian diaspora remained until 400 A.D. They developed Babylonian Mishnah, one of the foundations of the Talmud.
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If the Magi were Jewish court astronomer/astrologers, they would have been attracted by the planetary movement. In 1992, Dr. Craig Chester, of the Monterey Institute for Astronomical Research, gave a lecture on what may have attracted the Magi. He tells us that in 3 B.C. and 2 B.C. there was a series of conjunctions—those times when two planets have the same celestial longitude—involving Jupiter. For the astrologers, Jupiter represented the birth of kings. If Jewish, their interest would have been colored by Hebrew prophecy as well. If the book of Daniel was available—and we would argue that it was, whether they were Persian or Jewish—it would have told them that a great Jewish king was due to be born.
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