The story of the Three Wise Men has been embellished over the years. The Bible does not give a number for them, though they are called “men” and so there were at least two. Three gifts are mentioned in Matthew (gold, frankincense, myrrh) so that became the accepted number of wise men.
Matthew calls them Magi, which was used of members of a caste of priests and wise men among the Medes, Persians and Babylonians. Their education focused on astrology and magic. The book of Daniel says the young Hebrew prophet was given this kind of education by the Babylonians (Daniel 1:20).
In later years tradition transformed the Magi into kings. Then they became kings of different nationalities or races. It was a way of highlighting that the entire world was coming to honor the Christ Child. By the seventh century the Magi were given the names Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthasar. Whoever they were, they were honored to be among the first to see Jesus and have an inkling of who he was.
One hundred years ago, a Presbyterian pastor named Henry van Dyke did some further research. He was educated at Princeton Seminary so he must have been pretty smart. He says he found the name of a fourth wise man, Artaban. Artaban missed out on fame because he got waylaid.
He started okay – he sold everything he had to purchase three precious jewels as gifts for the baby king: a blue sapphire, a red ruby and a pearl. He then rode his horse to Babylon to meet up with the other wise men. As he approached the walls of Babylon at night, he was startled to see a form lying on the road. Artaban dismounted and found the man was half-dead. He gave him some water and bandaged his wounds.
The man thanked him and wished him success on his journey. But when Artaban finally arrived at the staging point, the other wise men had already left. So he sold his sapphire and bought a train of camels to make it across the desert on his own. After journeying 800 miles he reached Bethlehem. He eagerly searched for the holy child, but the streets were deserted. A young mother told him that other wise men had visited a short time before him and given gifts to the child of Mary and Joseph. Then the family had disappeared. The wise men left, too.
As they spoke, there was a loud noise in the street. Soldiers were descending on the village and killing all the children. Artaban put himself in the doorway as soldiers approached. He asked to see their commander, and when he came to the door he handed him a red ruby, saying, “Leave this house alone.” And they did.
For over 30 years Artaban searched for the savior of the world. He passed through many countries. He found no one to worship, but many to help. He fed the hungry, clothed the naked, healed the sick. Worn and weary, he finally arrived at Jerusalem. It was the season of Passover. It was always a busy holiday in the capital, but this time it seemed particularly tumultuous. He asked someone what was going on, and was told everyone was going to Golgotha to see an execution. A man named Jesus of Nazareth was being killed for claiming to be the Messiah, the king of the Jews.
Artaban followed the crowd outside the city walls. At the entrance of a guardhouse he saw a young girl being dragged by soldiers. She broke away from them and threw herself at Artaban’s feet, pleading with him to help her. The soldiers had seized her to sell as a slave. Artaban was the only one who could help her.
He took the pearl, his last jewel, and placed it in her hand, saying, “This is your ransom. It is the last of the treasures which I kept for the king.” As he spoke, the sky darkened and the ground shook. Buildings began to sway and stones fell into the street. A heavy tile, shaken from a roof, fell and struck Artaban on the head.
The young girl held him in her arms and she thought she heard a voice in the breeze but she couldn’t make out any of the words. The old man’s lips moved as if to answer. “Not so, my Lord! For when did I see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and gave you a drink? When did I see you a stranger and take you in? When did I see you sick or in prison and come to you? For 33 years I have looked for you, but I have never seen your face or ministered to you, my good King.”
Artaban stopped talking and the quiet voice came again. And now the girl heard it say, “Truly I say to you, whatever you did for the least of these, you did for me.” With that, the Fourth Wise Man knew he had found his King.
________
This illustration adapts other people’s material which I can no longer locate. The original short story by Henry van Dyke is called “The Story of the Other Wise Man” and was initially published in 1895.
*
[Original illustration at this number was deleted for being obsolete]