Have you known that astrologers were the only who recognized the time of Jesus Christ's birth?

"After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, 'Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.'" (Matthew 2:1-2)

Why were not the members of the God's chosen people able to recognize the time of Messiah's long expected arrival?' Had not they had the holy scriptures of the Old Testament? Had not they had the prophetic schools? How is it possible that it was done by foreigners, eastern wise men, and not by the members of the chosen people of Israel?

Sad is the truth that people of Israel were prepared to recognize their Savior in Christ neither in His birth, in His life, nor even in His death: "He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him." (John 1:11)

Israelites were too much haughty and self-righteous, too much satisfied with themselves and with their righteousness to be aware of the need for God. Burdened with observing their religious customs, they did not have time to get to know God's character and to realize, in light of His face, their sinfulness and the need for spiritual salvation. They were too haughty to humiliate themselves with confession that all their justice was like a dirty garment and that they needed the Redeemer from sin and guilt. Therefore they interpreted the Biblical prophecies in correspondence with their unconverted heart. They could not realize their spiritual importance because they were not aware of their spiritual needs. They considered that the promised Savior will come to save Israel from Roman yoke. They attributed the prophecies about glory of Christ's second coming to His first coming. The Holy Spirit could not cooperate with such haughty and ambitious hearts, so it could not reveal to them the real interpretation of the prophecies about the Messiah.

But, somewhere on the East, there was a group of wise men who were not burdened with religious formalism and fanaticism, and The Holy Spirit was able to cooperate with them. They realized that they can not satisfy the thirst of their souls with empty philosophizing. And in their hearts a desire for something more exalting and better was waking. They studied scriptures of different origins and asked different questions: "Is there a possibility to get out from the destiny inscribed in the stars?" "How to raise above one's own destiny?"

The holy scriptures of the Old Testament came to their hands. They dwelled especially at every verse that could have connection with astrology. And then, their attention was kept by verses which they could not understand, but were felt by them as representing the secret of a fulfillment of all their hopes:

"I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel. He will crush the foreheads of Moab, the skulls of all the sons of Sheth." (Numbers 24:17)

"The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned. ... For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." (Isaiah 9:2.6)

"He will judge your people in righteousness, your afflicted ones with justice. The mountains will bring prosperity to the people, the hills the fruit of righteousness. He will defend the afflicted among the people and save the children of the needy; he will crush the oppressor. He will endure as long as the sun, as long as the moon, through all generations. All kings will bow down to him and all nations will serve him. For he will deliver the needy who cry out, the afflicted who have no one to help. He will take pity on the weak and the needy and save the needy from death. He will rescue them from oppression and violence, for precious is their blood in his sight. May his name endure forever; may it continue as long as the sun." (Psalm 72:2-5.11-14.17)

"Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel" (Isaiah 7:14)

The wise men were deeply moved with unexpected knowledge about the promised Savior, the Star of Jacob, the Light that was going to shine in the land of mortal shade, ... They read with surprise the exalted principles of the Old Testament scriptures:

"You shall not take vengeance." (Leviticus 19:18)

"Do not say, 'I will repay evil'." (Proverbs 20:22)

"Do not say, 'I will do to him as he has done to me; I will pay the man back for what he has done'." (Proverbs 24:29)

"Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles." (Proverbs 24:17)

"If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; if he is thirsty, give him water to drink." (Proverbs 25:21)

They were moved by the purity God invited the chosen people to live with:

"And that you seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which you use to go a whoring: That you may remember, and do all my commandments, and be holy unto your God." (Numbers 15:39-40)

They were astounded at the tenderness and care whereby God was interested for the welfare of its people:

"When you build a new house, you shall make a parapet for your roof, that you may not bring the guilt of blood upon your house, if any one fall from it." (Deuteronomy 22:8)

"When you beat the olives from your trees, do not go over the branches a second time. Leave what remains for the alien, the fatherless and the widow. When you harvest the grapes in your vineyard, do not go over the vines again. Leave what remains for the alien, the fatherless and the widow." (Deuteronomy 24:20-21)

"If you enter your neighbor's vineyard, you may eat all the grapes you want, but do not put any in your basket. If you enter your neighbor's grainfield, you may pick kernels with your hands, but you must not put a sickle to his standing grain." (Deuteronomy 23:24-25)

"If a man has recently married, he must not be sent to war or have any other duty laid on him. For one year he is to be free to stay at home and bring happiness to the wife he has married." (Deuteronomy 24:5)

Differently from the Eastern religions, where God is recognized through an experience and feelings, the wise men had come to unbelievable cognition:

"'He defended the cause of the poor and needy, and so all went well. Is that not what it means to know me?' declares the Lord." (Jeremiah 22:16)

God's goodness, such as never revealed in any other religion, flashed in their hearts as their consolation and hope: "The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust." (Psalm 103:8-14)

But the rest of the verses, which were speaking about astrology, seriously worried them:

"Keep on, then, with your magic spells and with your many sorceries, which you have labored at since childhood. Perhaps you will succeed, perhaps you will cause terror. All the counsel you have received has only worn you out! Let your astrologers come forward, those stargazers who make predictions month by month, let them save you from what is coming upon you. Surely they are like stubble; the fire will burn them up. They cannot even save themselves from the power of the flame." (Isaiah 47:12-14)

Every way to come to the truth, familiar to them, the Bible rejected:

"Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord, and because of these detestable practices the Lord your God will drive out those nations before you. You must be blameless before the Lord your God. The nations you will dispossess listen to those who practice sorcery or divination. But as for you, the Lord your God has not permitted you to do so." (Deuteronomy 18:10-14)

"Why God does not let his people listen to such forms of revelations?" asked themselves the wise men.

Whom should they listen to then?

The following biblical verses gave them the answer:

"The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers. You must listen to him." (Deuteronomy 18:15)

Maybe He could give them the answers to the questions astrology had failed to answer. Maybe He can free them from slavery of destiny and realize in them an exalted character?

They found the answer in the Holy Scriptures:

"On that day the deaf shall hear the words of a scroll, and out of their gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind shall see. The meek shall obtain fresh joy in the Lord, and the neediest people shall exult in the Holy One of Israel." (Isaiah 29:18-19)

God will send a Messiah who will free those enslaved by sin, and they will, being attracted by God's love, leave after their Saviour by the path of righteousness prepared for them by Him.

"Gather together and come; assemble, you fugitives from the nations. Ignorant are those who carry about idols of wood, who pray to gods that cannot save. Was it not I, the Lord? And there is no God apart from me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none but me. Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other." (Isaiah 45:20-23)

"What they were to do in order that God look at and give mercy upon them?", the wise men from the East wondered. "Does it really suffice just to look at his goodness and to be saved? Is His goodness really so great that we will not wish sin at all if we are moved by it? Is it perhaps yet necessary for us to offer some sacrifice themselves for the sake of our salvation, except the sacrificing the sin itself?"

In the Holy Scriptures they found an almost incredible answer:

"You have not brought me sheep for burnt offerings, nor honored me with your sacrifices. I have not burdened you with grain offerings nor wearied you with demands for incense. You have not bought any fragrant calamus for me, or lavished on me the fat of your sacrifices. But you have burdened me with your sins and wearied me with your offenses. I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more." (Isaiah 43:23-25)

God had not shown a readiness to save them because of their goodness, but because He Himself is a good and merciful God.

"With what shall I come before the Lord and bow down before the exalted God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." (Micah 6:6-8)

"See, he is puffed up; his desires are not upright - but the righteous will live by his faith." (Habakkuk 2:4)

They understood that God forgives sin to people out of His pure Mercy, but, a new question imposed upon them: How can God remain righteous if he forgive sins to them being culprits? Who will pay the price of their lawlessness, was the last question confusing them. In the book of prophet Isaiah they read and found the answer that the Messiah Himself would take on Himself the guilt of their sins:

"He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. By oppression and judgment he was taken away. And who can speak of his descendants? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken. He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it was the Lord's will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand. After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities. Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors." (Isaiah 53:3-12)

If that wonderful Savior really exist, astrological science will not be really needed any more. Although they had already got to know the character of the promised Messiah, the wise men wished to get to know personally the Maker of universe and the Savior of the fallen mankind, and to pay to him the homage He was worthy of.

But how to get to Him?

Where did He dwell?

According to God's mercy, Israel was a people chosen to carry the joyous news about man's salvation to all the mankind.

According to the Holy Scriptures the place of Messiah's birth was the tribe of Judah: "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times." (Micah 5:2)

And the time of His birth?

In the chapter 9 of Book of Daniel we find the biblical prophecy about the time of Messiah's unction (baptism), of executing (on the cross of Calvary), and of rejection by the Jews.

"Seventy 'sevens' are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy. Know and understand this: From the issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven 'sevens,' and sixty-two 'sevens.' It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble. After the sixty-two 'sevens,' the Anointed One will be cut off and will have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. He will confirm a covenant with many for one 'seven.' In the middle of the 'seven' he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on a wing of the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him." (Daniel 9:24-27)

(In analyzing this prophecy we shall take a day as a year, according to Ezekiel 4:6.)

With the decree about the building of ruined Jerusalem the prophetic time started which consisted of 70 weeks (or 490 years). The rebuilding of town had been lasting for 7 weeks (or 49 years). Until beginning of the Savior's service one week (or seven years) left. By the middle of the last week (or after three and a half years) "he will put an end to sacrifice and offering". Then it will be abolished ceremonial offering of sacrifices which points to Savior's sacrifice, because it will be fulfilled itself in reality. At the end of week, i.e. three and a half year later, by stoning Stephen, the Jews have finally discarded the role of being a chosen people, given to them by God. Since then The Gospel is being preached to pagans.

The decree about the rebuilding of Jerusalem was brought by the king Artaxerxes , in the year 457 BC. If we add to that year 69 weeks or 483 years, we get the time of the beginning of Savior's service, i.e. the time of His baptism, and this is 27th year BC. However, the eastern wise men sought the year of Savior's birth. How could they find it out?

In his 12th year of life a Jew would become "a son of law", and in his 30th, according to scriptures of the Old Testament, he would become ready to take on himself such great responsibilities that would correspond to Savior's undertaking. If we distract 30 years of His life from 27 AD (when Messiah was to be anointed for service), we will get 4 AD. And that is exactly the year of Jesus' birth.

"After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, 'Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.' When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. When he had called together all the people's chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. 'In Bethlehem in Judea,' they replied, 'for this is what the prophet has written: 'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.' Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.' After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh." (Matthew 2:1-11)

What phenomenon is representing the star which was followed by the group of astrologers? Is it often happening to astrologers? Was it maybe a flying saucer? According to Biblical sources we can conclude that it was a group of angels, which encouraged the wise men and showed them the way that was to be followed. Flock of angels was visible because it was enlightened with God's glory.

"And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.' Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.'" (Luke 2:6)

The group of eastern wise men - astrologers came to bow down before Jesus, because they realized, searching the Holy Scriptures, that He was the promised one who came to rescue man from the dark destiny and to have led him into life which will be devoted to God's glory.

Are we ourselves willing to follow the path which was started 2000 years ago by the group of astrologers?

If we decide to, trough God's word, get to know wonderful Savior Jesus Christ, we will be followed by group of angels, maybe invisible to our eyes, and they will show us the way we should go.

"When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you. Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory. Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." (Psalm 73:21-26)