Astrologers, priests, or kings? Uncover history, myths, and hidden symbolism: Why the Magi Still Fascinate Us

Who were the Three Wise Men? Were they kings, priests, astrologers…or something far stranger and more ancient?

The Three Wise Men sit at a strange crossroads of religion, astrology, and ancient mystery.

They appear briefly in the Christian nativity story, yet their influence echoes through art, folklore, ritual, and metaphysical symbolism. The Three Wise Men:

• Follow a star rather than a king
• Arrive from the East, not Rome
• Offer ritual substances, not practical gifts
• Speak once, and then vanish forever

That brevity has made them powerful. Where scripture is silent, culture fills in meaning.

This post explores who the Magi were likely understood to be in their original context, and how later traditions transformed them into the figures we recognize today.

What You’ll Learn in This Post

• Who the Three Wise Men really were—and what the Bible actually says (and doesn’t say) about them
• Why the Magi were likely astrologer-priests, not kings, and how the Zoroastrian priesthood may fit into the story
• How ancient astrology helped to shape the Magi narrative, including why following a star mattered so deeply in the ancient world
• The symbolic roles of Melchior, Caspar, and Balthasar, and what each gift (gold, frankincense, and myrrh) represented culturally and ritually
• The deeper meaning of “three”, including its numerological, theological, and archetypal significance
• Why the Magi come from the East, and how direction, light, and wisdom were understood symbolically in antiquity
• How and why the Wise Men later became kings, and what that shift may reveal about power, politics, and theology
• What the Magi archetype still offers today, from spiritual curiosity to ethical resistance and symbolic initiation

A note about this interpretation: Much of what we “know” about the Three Wise Men comes from later tradition, interpretation, and symbolic reading rather than fixed historical record. The theories explored here reflect how ancient audiences may have understood the Magi within their cultural and cosmological context. It’s one lens among many, not a final or definitive answer.

The Only Biblical Source: A Very Sparse Account

So let’s start with the Bible.

The Magi appear in exactly one place in the Christian canon: The Gospel of Matthew, chapter 2.

Matthew tells us:

• They are called magoi (μάγοι)
• They come “from the East”
• They observe a star signaling the birth of a king
• They bring gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh
• They do not stay with Herod
• They leave by another road

Notably absent:

• No number is given
• No names are given
• No crowns are mentioned
• No claim they are kings

Everything else (three, royal status, names, ethnicities) comes later.

What Does “Magi” Actually Mean?

The Greek word magoi didn’t mean “king.” It actually referred to a class of religious specialists associated with Persia and Media.

Historically, magi were:

• Priest-scholars
• Ritual specialists
• Dream interpreters
• Astrologers and astronomer-observers
• Keepers of sacred fire and cosmology

In other words, the Magi were initiates, not rulers.

The Zoroastrian Priesthood Theory

One of the most widely supported historical interpretations links the Magi to Zoroastrianism.

In Zoroastrian tradition:

• Magi were hereditary priests
• They maintained ritual purity
• They studied the stars and cosmic cycles
• They believed in a coming savior figure (Saoshyant)
• Fire and light were sacred symbols of divine order

Persia was east of Judea, and Zoroastrian priests were famous throughout the ancient world for their learning.

To a 1st-century audience, “magi from the East” may very likely have immediately suggested Persian priest-astrologers, not Jewish scholars or Roman elites.

Why Astrology Matters Here (A Lot)

The Magi follow a star. Not a prophecy scroll.

This matters because:

• Astrology was taken seriously in the ancient world
• Planetary conjunctions were read as political and spiritual omens
• Babylonian and Persian scholars were renowned sky-watchers

Modern scholars have proposed several astronomical candidates for the “Star of Bethlehem,” including:

• A Jupiter–Saturn conjunction (7 BCE)
• A nova or comet
• A symbolic rather than literal celestial event

What matters most isn’t even which star…but who knew how to read it. You with me?

The Magi represent cosmic literacy.

When Did They Become “Three”?

The number three is never stated in scripture. It’s believed to be inferred from the fact that they gave three gifts.

By the 3rd–4th centuries:

• Church tradition settled on three Magi
• The number aligned neatly with symbolic completeness
• Art and liturgy reinforced it

The Numerology of Three

Across cultures, the number three signifies:

• Balance and wholeness
• Beginning, middle, end
• Heaven, earth, and the underworld
• Birth, life, death

In Christian theology, three later echoes the Trinity. (But that symbolism developed after the Magi story was written).

Three creates a sacred pattern.

From Wise Men to Kings: A Political Shift

By the early medieval period, the Magi were increasingly described as kings.

Why?

• Psalm 72 speaks of kings bringing gifts
• Isaiah 60 references nations bringing gold and incense
• Christianity was aligning itself with imperial authority

Making the Magi kings:

• Elevated Christ’s status
• Demonstrated global submission
• Reinforced hierarchy

The shift was symbolic, not historical.

Naming the Magi: Melchior, Caspar, and Balthasar

These familiar names appear centuries later, solidifying in medieval Europe.

Melchior: Gold

Often portrayed as:

• Elderly
• European
• Kingly

Gold symbolizes:

• Sovereignty
• Divine authority
• Solar power
• Incorruptibility

Caspar: Frankincense

Often shown as:

• Middle-aged
• From Arabia or India

Frankincense was:

• Burned in temples
• Used in prayer rituals
• Associated with divinity and ascent

This gift acknowledges sacred presence.

Balthasar: Myrrh

Often depicted as:

• African
• Younger or darker-skinned

Myrrh was:

• Used in embalming
• Associated with death and preservation
• A bitter resin

This gift may foreshadow mortality and sacrifice.

When you look at them together, the gifts trace life’s full arc in a way, from rule to spirit then death.

Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh as Alchemical Substances

These weren’t random luxuries. All three:

• Were traded along sacred routes
• Had ritual, medicinal, and symbolic use
• Were associated with transformation

Substance	Realm	Meaning
Gold	Earth / Sun	Incarnation, kingship
Frankincense	Air / Spirit	Prayer, transcendence
Myrrh	Earth / Death	Mortality, preservation

This triad actually mirrors ancient alchemical thinking long before medieval alchemy formalized it.

Why the Magi Come from the East

In ancient symbolism, the East represented:

• Dawn
• Illumination
• Wisdom
• Origins

The sun rises in the East. Knowledge arrives from the East. To say that the Magi come from the East is to say that illumination recognizes illumination.

Were the Magi Pagan?

Yes—almost certainly. (I mean, loads of theories here, but this is where I lean.)

They weren’t Jewish prophets or Christian converts. They were outsiders who recognized sacred significance before insiders did. This is crucial.

The Magi:

• Read signs rather than scriptures
• Trust the sky over kings
• Refuse to collude with political power

In Matthew’s narrative, they act ethically and independently, all qualities prized in wisdom traditions.

The Magi as Archetypes

Beyond history, the Magi may endure because they symbolize something universal. They are:

• Seekers
• Initiates
• Threshold-crossers

Each represents a mode of knowing:

• Observation (astrology)
• Discernment (gift selection)
• Integrity (refusing Herod)

They arrive, witness, honor, and leave.

There’s no conquest. No conversion. No staying.

Why the Story Ends So Abruptly

After giving their gifts, the Magi simply disappear. This mirrors many initiatory patterns:

• Guidance is temporary
• Teachers depart
• The seeker must continue alone

They aren’t meant to linger.

Why the Magi Still Matter Today

In a modern context, the Magi invite us to consider:

• Non-dogmatic spirituality
• Sacred curiosity
• Ethical resistance to corrupt power
• Reading meaning in the natural world

They remind us that insight can come from the margins, and that wisdom doesn’t always wear a crown.

Following the Star, Not the Throne

The Three Wise Men aren’t important because they arrived with gifts. They’re important because they recognized significance without permission.

They followed light. They honored mystery. They left quietly.

And that may be the deepest magic of all.

References

• Brown, R. E. The Birth of the Messiah. Yale University Press.
• Boyce, M. Zoroastrians: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices. Routledge.
• Vermes, G. The Nativity: History and Legend. Penguin.
• Matthew 2:1–12, New Revised Standard Version.
• Eliade, M. A History of Religious Ideas. University of Chicago Press.
• Beckwith, J. Empires of the Silk Road. Princeton University Press.

Disclaimer
This article is intended for educational, historical, and cultural exploration only. It does not make religious, medical, or spiritual promises, nor does it replace scholarly, theological, or professional guidance. Interpretations of symbolism are presented as cultural and historical perspectives, not factual claims.