The Grift of the Magi

By Philip Pfanstiel
copyright 2022
(#1 in a series of at least 13 articles exploring the enigma of the 10 Lost Tribes of Israel)

There is a fascinating, if not enigmatic story, in the 2nd Chapter of the book of Matthew.  This story, in all its misunderstood ways, has become a key element of the Christmas or Nativity story: the visit by the three wise men and their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh for the baby Jesus.

   Actually, it may be more of a cypher that opens up the hundreds of unfulfilled prophecies in the Bible, highlights the faithfulness of God, and reveals the identity and location of the 10 Lost Tribes of Israel.  Biblically speaking these tribes, led by the two Birthright tribes of Joseph (Ephraim and Manasseh) were known as the House of Israel.

   The picture the pieces paint in this article is largely circumstantial.  But as we’ll see here, and in the future, the circumstantial evidence becomes overwhelming and is joined by more substantial evidence once the frame is in place. In much the same way that rebar holds and provides structure to concrete.

   To begin this unboxing the first thing to note from the passage is that it never says “three” wise men or magi.   There is reason to suspect, starting with Herod’s reaction in verse 3, that this was a much larger caravan.

   It does say that three types of gifts were brought but it never states the quantity or volume of these gifts.  If it was a larger caravan then the value of these gifts would go up accordingly.

   So where did they come from?  We are only given two hints but they work well at locating their place of origin.  “Magi from the east came to Jerusalem…”  The east gives us the general direction but the term “Magi” is “magos” in Greek and is of Persian origin.  When you get to Persia at this time in history it is ruled by a confederacy known as Parthia.

Much could be written about the “star” that they followed but it most likely was an alignment of stars (see Revelations 12:1) and yet had supernatural elements (Matthew 2:9). For now we’ll stay focused on the from where and who the Magi were.

Parthian Shot

   As you delve into Parthia and its government you find that Parthia had a triumvirate system of government.  These three branches were the king, nobles, and Magi.  These branches have an uncanny resemblance to the modern US government: king (executive), nobles (represent the people) and magi (judges or wise men).

   When there was a vacancy in Parthia the next king was chosen from a pool of candidates by the nobles and magi.  Kings of Parthia would take on the title of Arsaces after the first ruler, Arsaces I.  This is similar to Caesars in Rome who all took their title from Julius Caesar.

   As to the number in the caravan, there are accounts by the Chinese, Josephus and others that made mention of Parthian caravan numbering between 10 to 20 thousand horsemen and dromedaries (camels). There is reason to believe this caravan would have been of similar numbers.

   So a group of judges (magi) exit Parthia and travel into the Roman Empire for reasons we’ll explore shortly.  The conflicts between Parthia and Rome are complicated but suffice to say they fought a lot and were well-matched.  When Rome would invade Parthia (Rome being Rome), Parthia would retreat, draw up soldiers (since it was a confederacy it didn’t have a large standing army), and defeat Rome (Parthia being Parthia) or push them back to the Euphrates (which acted for much of their shared history as the border between these behemoths).

   The most recent conflict lasted 15 years and ended when Herod was put into power of Judea.  So now Rome’s enemy (they were currently in a state of anxious peace) shows up with treasures, thousands of armed guards all escorting a contingent of magi or Parthian judges and asks about a newborn king of the Jews (the people Herod was put in charge of).

   There was a reason that Herod and Jerusalem were in an uproar (verse 3).  Herod’s job was to keep the peace in Judea and keep the peace with Parthia.  Now he was in a situation where both of these were in serious danger of being upset.

   Speaking of the previous conflict if you ever watched Spartacus with Kirk Douglas and were left simmering by the villain’s apparent triumph at the end I now give you resolution.

   Crassus, the Roman leader and “richest man in Rome,” put down the Spartacus revolt and crucified 6,000 slaves who were captured.

   Before I give you absolution, just recall how much of a bad guy (this being a religious article I’ll refrain from profanities) Crassus was.

   Well in 53 BC, less than 20 years after the revolt was suppressed in 71 BC, Crassus led an army of 40,000 into Parthia to gather more fame.  Instead his army was surrounded by 10,000 Parthia cavalry (mostly horse archers), hounded, and eventually slaughtered (20,000 dead, 10,000 captured) becoming one of the worse and most lopsided Roman military defeats in history.

   And did this get Crassus ahead in life?  No, but the Parthian’s got both his head and that of his son.

   Absolution granted.

   Another aside that I find fascinating, the 10,000 men that Parthia captured … while Rome would have killed, crucified or enslaved them, Parthia moved them to an eastern region, gave them wives and had them become loyal subjects.

   There is a different spirit in this Parthian empire and for good reason.

Why did the Parthian Magi come to look for the newborn Jewish king?

   In a future article, I’ll follow the exile of the House of Israel (the 10 tribes led by the Birthright tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh) both east and north and their journey from 720 BC onward. The eastern refugees regrouped around one of their tribes, the Parni, in the same region where Ephraim had been exiled by Assyria.   For now suffice it to say that there is considerable evidence that Parthia was founded by elements from Ephraim with help from Manasseh (who were known as Saka or Scythians at this point in history).

   Another strand I’ll develop is that not only were these tribes exerting power, and staying allies (for the most part) but they heeded the prophets.

   Especially Jeremiah who wrote to them around 640 BC with a message in Jeremiah 3:11-12

   The odd thing about this prophecy written during the reign of Josiah is that it was written 80 AFTER the fall of Samaria in 720 BC, and YET it says “proclaim this message to toward the North.”  God wasn’t speaking to the wind.  He was speaking to remnants of the House of Israel who resided at this time to the north of Judah (but not in the Promised Land).  Many researchers believe that Manasseh and other tribes had escaped through the Caucus mountains and lived north of the Black Sea and became the Saka or Scythians.

   The inhabitants of Samaria, mainly Ephraimites, were exiled east where they joined other tribes that had been removed by the Assyrians 20 years earlier.

   So the tribes, now out of the land, were still listening to the prophets (“still” in that while many in the House of Israel were faithless, there had always been a remnant that had listened – i.e. 7,000 that had not bowed to Baal in the days of Elijah).

Son of David Rule Over House of Israel

   Then Jeremiah gives another prophecy that these tribes heard in their exile in Jeremiah 33:17

“For thus says the LORD: David shall never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel,”

   Two curious things about this prophecy.  1st the House of Israel was in exile at the time of this writing.  2nd David’s dynasty ruled over the House of Judah (which included Benjamin and most Levites) not the House of Israel.   I’ll explore this in another article but it is pertinent now as it may explain the motivation of the Magi.

   It has been suggested by Steven M. Collins and other researchers that these exiled tribes heard this and other prophecies and even in their exile some tried to follow the ways of Yahweh.

   Then when the tribes were released from Assyrian captivity by Persia, and carved out their own empire from the faltering Seleucids, they couldn’t decide on who would lead them (since there were a number of powerful noble clans in the Parthian and Saka confederacy).  It is at this point Collins and others suggest that they turned to the Exilarch.

An Aside – Judah Avenger: The Seleucid king, Antiochus Epiphanes IV who instigated the Maccabean Revolt (from where we get Hanukah or the Feast of Dedication) in 167 BC, died while on campaign against the rebels to the east – The Parthians.  This is another article in the series that will highlight the many times in history that the Birthright Tribes (House of Israel) act as the Avengers of Judah.

   The Dynasty of David (yes, you guessed it – another article) is the most biblically and historically documented dynasty in history and for good reason (Jeremiah 33:17) as its survival and reign is proof of God’s covenant with His servant David (2 Samuel 7).

   Were there any documented descendants in the east (Babylon or Persia) for the Parthians to choose from?

   Short answer: yes.  King Jeconiah was taken into captivity by Babylon but released 37 years later, given his freedom and had many children (II Kings 25:27-30, 2 Chronicles 3:17).  These children were in the east, well known, and would have provided a documented pool of David’s descendants from which Parthian kings were drawn.

   Interestingly this family reappeared after the Parthian Empire fell and is known as the Exilarch in the Jewish community that remained in Sassanid and Arab ruled Persia up until the 12th century AD.

Power in the Names

   “… through Isaac shall your offspring be named.”

   All this is great but one of the most intriguing threads through history has been language and names.

   God prophecies to Abraham that through Isaac should the children of promise be named (Genesis 21:12, Hebrews 11:18).  Later Jacob / Israel is also added (Genesis 48).

   The Parthian dynasty was called the Arsacid and as mentioned their kingly title was Arsaces.

   In Hebrew the vowels are dropped when the language is written and added back in when read.  So Isaac would be written as SC in English.  We’d add the “I” and “aa” back in when reading.

   Over time this convention would lead to such words as Yitzak (Hebrew for Isaac) changing but what would remain the same is the SC, SK, ZK or SX combo.

   And arSaCid contains SC and in order.  Circumstantial but you’ll see this pattern show up a lot throughout history including with their allies the SaKa or Scythians (a Roman word – they called themselves the Saka).  We’ll see this convention in future articles as well when we explore the migrations of the House of Israel.

   Back to Parthia another interesting connection is that a popular king name was Pharaates.  This very well could connect back to the clan of Judah that David was from – Pherez.

Davidic Curse

   Sadly another way we can trace the Davidic Dynasty is through the curse David brought on his family by committing adultery with Bathsheba and killing her husband Uriah to cover it up.

   Nathan, who had just five chapters earlier proclaimed the eternal Davidic dynasty, now pronounces a curse that will plague David’s descendants; “the sword would not depart from his house.” (2 Samuel 12:10). 

   A look at the Parthian dynasty reveals constant fratricide, civil conflicts and palace intrigue and betrayal.  In fact this happened in 38 BC when the new king slaughtered any blood rival he could get his hands on. 

   To ensure the continuation of the dynastic line the Magi and Nobles (collectively known as the Megisthanes) would send potential kings to safety in Rome or Armenia – outside of their own borders for their protection.

   They also kept track of any descendant of David that would have proper claim to the throne of Parthia.

Enter the baby born King of the Jews

   It was not happenstance that the Magi saw the star in the east.  This very well could have been some lost teachings that Daniel (who wrote many messianic prophecies including the triumphal entry that Jesus fulfilled when he road into Jerusalem on a colt on Palm Sunday) passed down to the Magi during Persian rule that made its way to the Parthian Magi.

   So they were keeping track of David’s descendants and watching the stars per Daniel’s instructions.

Jesus called to the House of Israel

He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” – Matthew 15:25

   Judah at the time of Jesus remembered Parthia’s brief rule in 40-37 BC and heard about the greener grass on the other side of the Euphrates.  Combine this with the fact that the Jews knew Parthia was the home of the House of Israel.  Josephus confirms this when he wrote in Antiquities 11:133.  “There are but two tribes in Asia and Europe subject to the Romans, while the ten tribes are beyond Euphrates till now, and are an immense multitude, and not to be estimated by numbers.”

   This was written around 94 AD and states that at that time (“now”) the 10 tribes were an immense multitude and on the other side (Parthia) of the Euphrates.

Jesus, from the house of Judah, frequently spoke of Israel and the house of Israel. He also lived before Josephus so Parthia’s connection to Israel was well known.

   Which made the Magi visit at his birth not something only Jesus would know, but something many others remembered and discussed as well.

   So as he grew in wisdom, stature, and popularity the Jewish desire to make him king … of Parthia was very realistic.  Not only was Parthia RIGHT there, but them being separated Israelite brethren that had David’s descendants as their king, combined with their recent rule (though brief) and a military on par with Rome made the desire to unite with them against Rome a no-brainer.

   So when Jesus, a descendant of David and righteous rabbi, came on the scene it puts Judas and others’ attempts to have Jesus made king of Parthia (the house of Israel) into a more realistic and plausible context.

Summary

   If all these pieces are accurate the following narrative could explain the visit of the Magi.

   The House of Israel had relocated and established the Parthia Empire.  Heeding the prophet Jeremiah they established a kingship built on the Davidic Dynasty.  To ensure a smooth continuation they kept track of David’s descendants both inside and outside of Parthia.

   They were Magi after all (the word from where we get magician) and considered the stars and signs in the heavens quite possibly due to Daniel’s teachings.

   The gifts they brought provided for Jesus at birth, his sojourn in Egypt and quite possibly throughout his life (from 12 to 30) and journeys to Parthia, Wales, Ireland and beyond.  And yes, that is another article.  Until then … Shalom.