Did Three Wise Men Really Visit Jesus in the Barn?

One of the most famous parts of the Nativity story—that is, the account of Jesus’ birth—is that three wise men, also known as the three kings or the three Magi, came to visit the newly born Jesus while he was lying in a manger in a barn (stable). However, despite how famous this scene is, it is actually full of issues that contradict that original account from the Bible. What do we really know about these men who visited Jesus after his birth?

Were there really three?

Perhaps the most well-known issue with this common Nativity scene is the number of men who visited Jesus. The idea that there were three of them does not actually come from the Bible. In fact, the Bible simply does not say how many of them there were.

The idea that there were three of them comes from the number of gifts that they gave Joseph and Mary after Jesus was born. They gave them frankincense, gold and myrrh. Frankincense is a type of aromatic product from tree resin, as is myrrh.

This is the only time that the number three appears in the account. It appears that the idea that there were three wise men comes entirely from the presence of these three gifts. There could well have been many more of them. In fact, Eastern Christian tradition holds that there were twelve men.

Who were these ‘wise men’?

Although commonly referred to as ‘wise men,’ the Bible uses the Greek word ‘magi’ (μάγοι). This actually refers to astrologers. It comes from the name for the ancient class of priests in the Zoroastrian religion of the Medes and the Persians. They engaged extensively in astrology. This word eventually came to refer to astrologers in general.

The idea of them being ‘wise men’ appears to come from the fact that the wise men, or advisors, of kings in some ancient societies were astrologers. For example, the advisors of the kings of Babylon were usually astrologers or other magic-practicing priests. Because of this, the concept of ‘wise men’ came to be associated among Bible translators with the word that should more accurately be translated ‘astrologers.’

In some traditions, these astrologers are even called ‘kings.’ What is the basis for that? This comes from later embellishments of the story. The Hebrew Scriptures, or Old Testament, has several prophecies which refer to kings honoring the Messiah. It appears that this led to these astrologers being interpreted as kings, in fulfillment of those prophecies.

Did the three wise men really visit Jesus in the barn?

A classic part of the Nativity is the scene of these men presenting their gifts to Jesus’ parents while Jesus himself was a newborn in a manger, having only just been born in the barn. However, the evidence from the Bible shows that this cannot have been the case.

The Bible’s account of the men visiting Jesus is found at Matthew 2:11, which says:

“And when they went into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and falling down, they did obeisance to him” (καὶ ἐλθόντες εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν εἶδον τὸ παιδίον μετὰ Μαρίας τῆς μητρὸς αὐτοῦ[ ] Ματθ. 2,11).

Notice that it says that they entered the ‘house.’ It does not say that they entered the stable.

Therefore, Jesus and his parents had found a proper place to stay by this point. Jesus was certainly not still lying in the manger when this happened. Furthermore, the account calls Jesus a ‘child’ here, so he was probably at least a few months old. He was not a newborn, despite the popular depiction of the Nativity.