Why were the Wise Men Wise?

Where Is He?

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him." 

Mt.2:1,2

Always intriguing, is the account of the men referred to as Wise Men or Magi in the passage cited above. We do not know much about these men (IT DOES NOT SAY THERE WERE THREE OF THEM)but being listed as Magi (Magus), these were  philosophers, priests, or astronomers of the day. They lived chiefly in Persia and Arabia and were the learned men of the Eastern nations devoted to astronomy, religion, and to medicine. They were held in high esteem by the Persian court, were admitted as counselors, and followed the camps in war to give advice. Daniel the prophet was such a person in both the Babylonian and Persian Courts some 167 years before Jesus. If indeed they came from this region, then they traveled many miles from the Far East to the Middle East and at great expense to find Jesus.

Jesus was born in Bethlehem, which is just six miles from Jerusalem. At the time of Jesus’ birth, all kinds of spiritual activity was taking place in Jerusalem. All of the major religious leaders of the world were in Jerusalem, but none of them were seeking Jesus. Herod, self and Roman proclaimed "King of the Jews," wasn't even aware of Jesus until the Magi came.  Many others of noted prominence were there at the time Jesus was born, many traveling to their homelands for the taxation, yet none were aware of Jesus. No one even noticed "His star" except the Magi. Why? Because the Wise Men were looking for Jesus. They were willing to make a four to five-month trip across a hot desert to find Jesus. So noted was the event to them and the occurrence of the celestial dance, that they were willing to do whatever it took to find him and as the text states "worship Him."

Jesus said that the Kingdom of Heaven is like a pearl that is so valuable we will sell everything we have to get it (Mt.13:46). It seems the Wise Men from the East understood this long before Jesus ever spoke the parable. They were willing to give up everything they had to come and worship Jesus, who at the time of their arrival was only a toddler. They were willing to give up the comforts of their homes for a long, tough journey because they WANTED to worship him.

If these men thought it worthy of note, that even the heavens pointed to Jesus to come and find Him, then shouldn't we take note of this too? I find it interesting at how virtual strangers would give up so much to go find someone they didn't even know, because they knew He was "born King of the Jews."

What would you give up in order to come worship Jesus?  What holds you back from seeking  a relationship with Jesus so valuable that it’s worth giving up everything for?  Maybe it is time for you to start your journey.

Jim

"I just assumed you would like it"

Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered unauthorized fire before the LORD, which he had not commanded them. And fire came out from before the LORD and consumed them, and they died before the LORD

Lev 10:1,2

This is one of the most impacting statements in the Old Testament, where you have evidently people whom God chose working in the Tabernacle that He commanded them to build, then striking them dead in the midst of it.  Kind of reminds you of that same feeling you got when you sassed your parents and you knew what was coming next.   So let's dig a little deeper into this story to see more of the details behind it, and to see if we can see why God reacted so strongly to what they had done.

Nadab and Abihu, were the two eldest sons of Aaron the High Priest (Ex.24:9-11), and the nephews of Moses himself. In Ex.28-29 we see where Aaron and his sons were chosen to be the "priestly" tribe, meaning that their job was the are of the Tabernacle and implementation what God had specified should go on within its structure. Exodus and Leviticus as books are devoted to describing all of the articles (down to the underwear) that the priests were to wear, all of the implements to be built and used, and all of the acts to go on within it. Leviticus 6:12 tells us that the fire on the altar of burnt offering was not allowed to go out, because the first fire that would come upon the altar and its sacrifice would come from God Himself (9:24). As a result, with the fire kept burning thereafter, all of the offerings made thereon, would be "hallowed" with fire that came from God. And, God was VERY specific, to the point that there were things they were told to do and if they did not do it the way it was prescribed by God - they would die!  This then brings us to our story in Leviticus 9 and 10, where we see Nadab and Abihu going about their duties, but in 10:1-3 we have the incident of what is called "strange fire." Let's take a closer look:

• Strange Fire - this term is translated differently in various versions. The older versions use the word strange, the newer versions use the term unauthorized.  What this tells us is that the word's definition is somewhat dependent on the context in which it is used. 
• Fire to be used within the Tabernacle structure for the purposes of either sacrifice or upon the Altar of Incense, was to come from the altar of Burnt Offering. 
• The fact that the fire of the first offering upon the altar would come from God Himself (see above) and was to be kept continually maintained and now allowed to go out from that fire, sanctified and made holy the fire and its contents.
• Fire taken from another source, not obtained from the fire from God as described above, would have been considered profane, unholy, or as the versions put it, "unauthorized."
• To put anything on the fire (i.e. add to it) other than what God said should be done with that fire,  would make it profane, unholy, or "unauthorized."
• The use of such "unauthorized" fire by Nadab and Abihu were punished with death by fire from God.(Lev.10:1-2; Num.3:4; 26:61) because what God had prescribed they did not heed or do. There is a comment in the passage that is overlooked - "and laid incense upon it."  Where did they get that instruction?  God had given them clear instructions on what and how to do on every facet of worship and work within the Tabernacle, yet, there is no instruction for what they do here. And what they did made what was holy - unholy.  Is what God said that important?

Why then is this such a big deal? Why doesn't God just reprimand them instead of striking them dead? Isn't God being harsh and domineering here?  These are all of the questions that go through our minds, because frankly we all find ourselves in this situation and would hope that God wouldn't do this to us. Yet, compare this story with Romans 1 where we are told that people do this sort of thing all the time. We want to do it our way instead of God's way. We presume that God wouldn't mind. The very end of the Bible in the Revelation, we are told not to add to or take away from what God has said.  Why?  This story tells us why. 

Let's put this another way. If your car had been in an accident and you took it to be repaired - you tell the people doing the work to paint it back like it was. To match the colors to the original blue and restore the car to its original condition. But when you come to get the car back...all of the car except the damaged part is the original color. That part was painted blue with rainbow stripes. You're appalled and ask why. The painter says, "Well, I just thought it would look better." You ask, "Who told you to do that?"  The painter says, "No one, I just assumed you would like it."  Now, what do you think is the rest of that story?

The next question is obvious. What will we tell God, when He comes back?

Jim

Impressive new mosaic uncovered in Lod
16 Nov 2015
​While building the visitor center for the Lod Mosaic, which was discovered previously and is considered one of the most spectacular in the country, another impressive mosaic was discovered at the site.
Uncovering the mosaic

Uncovering the mosaic
Copyright: Assaf Peretz, courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority.
​(Communicated by the Israel Antiquities Authority spokesperson)

An impressive mosaic revealed in archaeological excavations by the Israel Antiquities Authority in Lod will be open for the first time this week, specifically for visits by the public, in cooperation with the Lod municipality.

In June–November 2014 a team of archaeologists from the Israel Antiquities Authority directed a large excavation in the Neve Yerek neighborhood of Lod, in an area where a breathtaking mosaic that served as the living room floor in a villa some 1,700 years ago was previously exposed. The aim of the excavation was to prepare the ground for construction of a visitor center, to which the beautiful mosaic will be returned when it completes a series of exhibitions in museums around the world. Important artifacts were discovered in the new excavation, the most notable of which is another colorful mosaic (11 × 13 m) that was the courtyard pavement of the magnificent villa that had the famous mosaic in its living room.

According to Dr. Amir Gorzalczany, excavation director on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority, "The villa we found was part of a neighborhood of affluent houses that stood here during the Roman and Byzantine periods. At that time Lod was called Diospolis and was the district capital, until it was replaced by Ramla after the Muslim conquest. The building was used for a very long time”.

Detail of the mosaic. Photo: Assaf Peretz, courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority
The northern part of the complex, where the “Shelby White and Leon Levy Lod Mosaic Center" will be constructed, was exposed when the Israel Antiquities Authority was inspecting development work being carried out in the early 1990s prior to the construction of Highway 90. The mosaic, which was discovered and excavated at that time by the late Miriam Avissar, is among the most beautiful in the country, and has been exhibited in recent years in some of the world’s leading museums, including the Metropolitan, the Louvre and the State Hermitage etc. It is currently on display at the Cini Gallery in Venice, Italy, and in the future it will be housed in the main building to be erected in Lod.
The southern part of the complex was exposed in the current excavations. Among other things, it includes a large magnificent courtyard that is paved with a mosaic and surrounded by porticos (stoas-covered galleries open to the courtyard) whose ceiling was supported by columns. According to Dr. Gorzalczany, “The eastern part of the complex could not be completely exposed because it extends beneath modern buildings in the neighborhood”.
The scenes in this mosaic depict hunting and hunted animals, fish, flowers in baskets, vases and birds.
Dr. Gorzalczany added, “The quality of the images portrayed in the mosaic indicates a highly developed artistic ability”.
Numerous fragments of frescoes (wall paintings prepared on wet plaster) reflect the decoration and the meticulous and luxurious design, which are in the best tradition of the well-born of the period. In light of the new discoveries, this part of the villa will also be incorporated in the visitor center.
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Modi’in: Where the Maccabees Lived

Have excavations uncovered the hometown of the Maccabees, heroes of Hanukkah’s Maccabean revolt?

Robin Ngo   •  12/01/2015

This Bible History Daily feature was originally published in March 2014. It has been updated.—Ed.

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Where is Modi’in, hometown of the Maccabees? Excavations conducted at Umm el-‘Umdan within the modern Israeli city of Modi’in have uncovered evidence of an ancient Jewish village. Pictured is a Herodian-period synagogue, beneath which lies a structure dated to the time of the Maccabean revolt—when the Maccabees led a rebellion against the Seleucid king. Photo: Skyview.

Modi’in was the hometown of the Maccabees, theheroes of the Maccabean revolt against the Seleucid king who ruled over Judea. Have excavations conducted within the modern Israeli city of Modi’in—20 miles northwest of Jerusalem—finally exposed the Jewish village that the Maccabees called home? The finds discovered at the site of Umm el-‘Umdan in modern Modi’in are described in “Modi’in: Hometown of the Maccabees” by Shlomit Weksler-Bdolah and Alexander Onn in the March/April 2014 issue ofBiblical Archaeology Review.

When King Antiochus IV Epiphanes desecrated the Temple and forbade circumcision and Sabbath observance, the Maccabees led a successful rebellion in the 160s B.C.E.—the Maccabean revolt—that is still celebrated in the festival of Hanukkah. In the November/December 2008 issue of BAR, Andrea M. Berlin and Geoffrey B. Waywell describe the Maccabean revolt:

The [Maccabean revolt was] led by Mattathias’s eldest son, Judas, known as the Hammer because of his military prowess. When he was killed, he was succeeded by his brother Jonathan, who assumed the office of high priest as well as the political leadership, but he was soon captured and murdered. Jonathan was succeeded by his brother Simon, who likewise assumed the office of high priest, although the Maccabees were not of a high priestly family.

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Read Shlomit Weksler-Bdolah and Alexander Onn’s coauthored article on excavations near the Western Wall in Jerusalem and explore the latest finds in the Biblical world’s most vibrant city in the free eBook Jerusalem Archaeology: Exposing the Biblical City.
 

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Excavations conducted in the past decade at Umm el-‘Umdan (Arabic for “Mother of Columns”) by authors Shlomit Weksler-Bdolah and Alexander Onn (recently deceased) revealed a previously unknown synagogue—featuring eight imposing columns—likely built during the reign of King Herod. But what about earlier? What was at Umm el-‘Umdan during the time of the Maccabees and the Maccabean revolt?

Directly beneath the Herodian synagogue lies a smaller synagogue constructed during the Hasmonean period, and beneath this was a structure securely dated to the end of the third or beginning of the second century B.C.E. According to the excavators, this structure must have been contemporaneous to the time of the Maccabees and the Maccabean revolt. While this Early Hellenistic building influenced the location and shape of the two synagogues built atop it in subsequent centuries, the excavators believe that there is not enough information at the time to conclude that the Early Hellenistic building was also a synagogue.

For more evidence confirming Umm el-‘Umdan’s Jewish identity in antiquity as well as a discussion of the linguistic relationship between the Hebrew name Modi’in and the Arabic name Umm el-‘Umdan, see “Modi’in: Hometown of the Maccabees” by Shlomit Weksler-Bdolah and Alexander Onn in the March/April 2014 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review.

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BAS Library Members: Read the full article “Modi’in: Hometown of the Maccabees” by Shlomit Weksler-Bdolah and Alexander Onn as it appeared in the March/April 2014 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review.

Ferrell's Travel Blog
Commenting on biblical studies, archaeology, travel and photography

Seal impression of King Hezekiah discovered in Jerusalem
Posted on December 2, 2015 | 6 Comments
First seal impression of an Israelite or Judean king ever exposed in situ in a scientific archaeological excavation


Bulla (seal impression) of King Hezekiah, king of Judah, discovered at the foot of the southern wall of the Temple Mount. (Courtesy of Dr. Eilat Mazar; Photo by Ouria Tadmor)
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem released this highly significant information today.

“
Discovery brings to life the Biblical narratives about King Hezekiah and the activity conducted during his lifetime in Jerusalem’s 1st Temple Period Royal Quarter

Jerusalem, December 2, 2015 — The Ophel excavations at the foot of the southern wall of the Temple Mount, conducted by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem’s Institute of Archaeology under the direction of Dr. Eilat Mazar, have unearthed an impression of the royal seal of King Hezekiah (727–698 BCE).

Measuring 9.7 X 8.6 mm, the oval impression was imprinted on a 3 mm thick soft bulla (piece of inscribed clay) measuring 13 X 12 mm. Around the impression is the depression left by the frame of the ring in which the seal was set.

The impression bears an inscription in ancient Hebrew script:

“לחזקיהו [בן] אחז מלך יהדה”

“Belonging to Hezekiah [son of] Ahaz king of Judah”

and a two-winged sun, with wings turned downward,
flanked by two ankh symbols symbolizing life.

The bulla originally sealed a document written on a papyrus rolled and tied with thin cords, which left their mark on the reverse of the bulla. This bulla came to light, together with many pottery sherds and other finds such as figurines and seals, in Area A of the excavations (2009 season), supervised by Hagai Cohen-Klonymus.

The bulla was discovered in a refuse dump dated to the time of King Hezekiah or shortly after, and originated in the Royal Building that stood next to it and appears to have been used to store foodstuffs. This building, one of a series of structures that also included a gatehouse and towers, was constructed in the second half of the 10th century BCE (the time of King Solomon) as part of the fortifications of the Ophel — the new governmental quarter that was built in the area that connects the City of David with the Temple Mount.

The bulla was found together with 33 additional bullae imprinted from other seals, some bearing Hebrew names, their reverse showing marks of coarse fabric and thick cords that probably sealed sacks containing foodstuffs.

Dr. Eilat Mazar said: “Although seal impressions bearing King Hezekiah’s name have already been known from the antiquities market since the middle of the 1990s, some with a winged scarab (dung beetle) symbol and others with a winged sun, this is the first time that a seal impression of an Israelite or Judean king has ever come to light in a scientific archaeological excavation.”

A third-generation archaeologist working at the Hebrew University’s Institute of Archaeology, Dr. Mazar directs excavations on the City of David’s summit and in the Ophel to the south of the Temple Mount’s southern wall. Among her many archaeological finds over the years, in 2013 she revealed to the world an ancient golden treasure discovered at the Ophel (see http://new.huji.ac.il/en/article/18251).

A video about this discovery is available online at http://www.keytodavidscity.com.

The renewed Ophel excavations (2009-2013), and the processing of the finds as well as the preservation and preparation of the excavated area for tourists by the Israel Antiquities Authority were made possible through funding provided by Daniel Mintz and Meredith Berkman (New York).The excavation site is situated within the Ophel Archaeological Park, which is part of the National Park Around the Walls of Jerusalem under the auspices of the Israel Nature and Parks Authority.

The seal impression was found during the wet-sifting of earth layers from the excavation in the Emek-Zurim wet-sifting facility, directed by Dr. Gabriel Barkai and Zachi Dvira, under the auspices of the Nature and Parks Authority and the Ir David Foundation. The bulla was discovered by Efrat Greenwald, a member of the Ophel expedition, who supervised the wet-sifting of the excavation material. Reut Ben-Aryeh, who prepared the Hebrew bullae from the Ophel excavations for publication, was the first to identify it as a seal impression of King Hezekiah. Students and alumni of Herbert W. Armstrong College from Edmond, Oklahoma participated in the excavation.

King Hezekiah is described favorably in the Bible (2 Kings, Isaiah, 2 Chronicles) as well as in the chronicles of the Assyrian kings— Sargon II and his son Sennacherib—who ruled during his time. Hezekiah is depicted as both a resourceful and daring king, who centralized power in his hands. Although he was an Assyrian vassal, he successfully maintained the independent standing of the Judean Kingdom and its capital Jerusalem, which he enhanced economically, religiously, and diplomatically.

The Bible relates of Hezekiah that “there was none like him among all the kings of Judah after him, nor among those before him” (2 Kings 18:5).

The symbols on the seal impression from the Ophel suggest that they were made late in his life, when both the Royal administrative authority and the King’s personal symbols changed from the winged scarab (dung beetle)—the symbol of power and rule that had been familiar throughout the Ancient Near East, to that of the winged sun—a motif that proclaimed God’s protection, which gave the regime its legitimacy and power, also widespread throughout the Ancient Near East and used by the Assyrian Kings.

This change most likely reflected both the Assyrian influence and Hezekiah’s desire to emphasize his political sovereignty, and Hezekiah’s own profound awareness of the powerful patronage given his reign by the God of Israel. While the changed Royal administrative symbol imprinted on the King’s jars used the motif of a sun with wings extended to the sides, Hezekiah’s personal changed symbol had a sun with sheltering wings turned down and a life-symbol at the end of each wing. This special addition of the symbol of life may support the assumption that the change on the King’s personal seal was made after Hezekiah had recovered from the life-threatening illness of shehin (II Kings 20:1-8), when the life-symbol became especially significant for him (ca. 704 BCE).

The discovery of King Hezekiah’s Royal Seal impression in the Ophel excavations vividly brings to life the Biblical narratives about King Hezekiah and the activity conducted during his lifetime in Jerusalem’s Royal Quarter.

The full research about King Hezekiah’s bulla is included in the first volume of the Ophel Excavations 2009–2013 Final Reports, published today with the support of the David Berg Foundation.


The Ophel excavations at the foot of the southern wall of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, conducted by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem’s Institute of Archaeology under the direction of Dr. Eilat Mazar. (Photo courtesy of Andrew Shiva)
The Institute of Archaeology, the birthplace of Israeli archaeology, is an independent research and teaching unit within the Hebrew University’s Faculty of Humanities. Academic programs include studies for B.A., M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in prehistoric, biblical, and classical archaeology, Civilizations of the Ancient Near East and Computerized Archaeology. In addition to its role as a teaching and training institution, the Institute is involved in major archaeological endeavors and interdisciplinary research programs. Its excavations at major prehistoric and historic sites have shaped many of the current paradigms in Israeli archaeology and contributed to a better understanding of past human behavior. For more information, visit http://archaeology.huji.ac.il.

The Hebrew University of Jerusalem is Israel’s leading academic and research institution, producing one-third of all civilian research in Israel. For more information, visit http://new.huji.ac.il/en.

”
Thanks to Dov Smith, Assistant Spokesman–International, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem