The Eye and Wheel of Providence, Chapter 19
CHAP. XIX. How the ſteps and goings of Men are ordered by Gods Providence. A large Diſcourſe on the journey of the Wiſe men that came from the Eaſt to Jeruſalem at the birth of Chriſt. Some Objections anſwered.
2. IN the next place I ſhall ſhew how the ſteps and goings of Men are ordered and guided by Gods Providence: Mans going are of the Lord, ſaith Solomon, Prov. 20.24. And David ſaith, The ſteps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, Pſal. 37.23. And here we may obſerve the great Providence of God in guiding the Wiſe men that came from the Eaſt to Jeruſalem at the Birth of Chriſt, in the dayes of Herod the King; wherein we may conſider,
1. Who, or what they be that came.
2. Whence they came.
3. Whither, or to what place they came.
4. Wherefore they came.
5. What moved them to come, or conducted them along.
1. Who or what they be that came. St Matthew ſaith, They were Wiſe men; concerning which divers think diverſly: 1. Some ſay, they were Maiefici & incantatores, Inchanters and Southſayers; ſo Auſtin, Hierom, Martyr, as Chemnitius noteth; and ſo the word is uſed and taken in divers places of Scripture,Chemnit. Harmon Evang. Magi genus ſapientum & doctorum habebantur in Perſis, nec quiſquam Rex Perſarum eſſe poteſt, qui nòn ante Magorum diſciplinam ſcientiamque perceperint. Cicer. l. 1. de divinat. as Dan. 2.2. Acts 8.9. Acts 13.8. But, 2. Others are better conceited of them, and think they were not onelyonly great men, but alſo might be good men in their kind, and they ſay they were in great eſteem among the Medes and Perſians, and Councellors of the State, and that out of them they choſe their Kings. And Strabo ſaith, That theſe Magi among the Perſians, were ſuch as the Gymnoſophiſts among the Indians, the Chaldeans among the Romans, and Moſes himſelf among the Hebrews, ſuch as gave excellent documents and inſtructions to their Diſciples; and it is probable enough, that when the Perſian Monarchy was tranſlated to the Grecians, they alſo fell from following the Court to follow their ſtudies, and betook themſelves, ſome to Philoſophy, ſome to Aſtronomy, ſome to Divinity.Nòn à Magica arte, ſed à magnitudine ſcientiae. Lyra. Dr Boys. Herodot. Strabo. Juſt. Martyr. Yea Lyra ſaith, They were called Magi, not from the Art Magick, but from the greatneſs of their knowledge. And Dr Boys ſaith, That Magus was in thoſe dayes a more honourable title than Magnus.
2. The ſecond thing is, Whence they came, viz. ab oriente, from the Eaſt; whither, from Media, as Herodotus thinketh, or Perſia, as Strabo, or Arabia deſerta, as Juſtin Martyr, I will neither diſpute, nor determine, but content my ſelf with what the Evangeliſt layes down, viz. That they came out of the Eaſt. Theſe Wiſe men out of the Eaſt, and Pilate out of the Weſt confeſſing Chriſt, do confute and condemn the Jews denying him; yea they are a plain type and teſtimony of the calling of the Gentiles, and caſting off the Jews, as Mat. 8.11, 12. Mat. 21.33. ad f…nem. Acts 13.46. This confuteth the Friarly fable, and Popiſh tale, that theſe ſhould be three Kings of Colen, Melchior, Jaſpar and Balthaſar; whereas Colen is not in the Eaſt, but in the Weſt.
Object. But they ſay not that they lived there, but only came and died, and were buried there, and that one of them came from Colen, the ſecond from Tharſis, the third from certain Iſlands, and all met at one inſtant before the gates of Jeruſalem.
Resp. Believe it he that will: for my part I ſay with Hierom, Quod de Scripturis authoritatem nòn habet pari facilitate rejicitur quâ accipitur; that which hath not its authority from the Scriptures, is as eaſily rejected as received; Et ideò quod ibi nòn lego nòn credo, and what I do not read there I do not believe.
Object. But they have Scripture for it, Pſal. 72.9, 10, 11. The Kings of Tarſhiſh and the Iſles ſhall bring preſents, the Kings of Sheba and Seba ſhall offer gifts, &c.
Reſp. The place proveth nothing but the calling of the Gentiles, and the ſubmiſſion of all Kings and Countreys to the Scepter of Chriſt, as the common conſent of Interpreters carry it, yea the ſcituation of the places plainly prove it could not be a particular Prophecy and Prediction of theſe perſons, for Sheba is not Eaſt, but South from Ieruſalem, Matth. 12.42
3. Conſider we the place whither they came, viz. to Ieruſalem, and divers reaſons may be rendered of their coming thither.
1. This was the Metropolis and royal City; and therefore they might eaſily ſuppoſe that here they were moſt likely to hear news of this new King. Beſides, this being the place appointed for Sacrifices, and they purpoſing to offer unto him, thought here it muſt be done. In a word, thither the Star directed them, and therefore thither they came.
2. Perhaps they might have heard that here was the Law, and the Prophets, and Oracles of God kept, and here were the Colledges of the Scribes who were to expound and interpret them.
3. It might pleaſe God to cauſe the Starre to bring them firſt thither, that by their diligence he might condemn the Iews negligence and ſluggiſhneſſe;Veritas illuxit magis infidelitas obcoecavit Magiſtros: & carnalis Iſrael nòn intelligit quod legit, nec vidit quod oſtendit, & utitur paginis quarum nòn credit eloquiis. Aug. Serm. 6. de Epiph. Illuminatio Magorum Gentilium magnum teſtimonium coecitatis Judaeorum. Gregor. they coming to ſeek in a ſtrange Countrey, him whom they would not acknowledge in their own; therefore the truth inlightned theſe Magi, when infidelity blinded their inſtructors: The carnal Iſrael doth not underſtand what he readeth, nor ſee what he ſheweth, turning over thoſe pages whoſe words written in them he believeth not; God making the Iewes but as it were the Library-keepers for the Gentiles; and ſo Auſtin compareth them to poſts with a hand, or marks in the high-way directing others, but not moving or ſtirring themſelves. And Gregory hath a like ſaying, The illumination of thoſe Gentiles is a great teſtimony of the Iews blindneſſe; of whom St Iohn ſaith, He came to his own, but his own received him not, Joh. 1.11.
Object. But ſome body may ſay perhaps, That theſe wiſe men were none of the wiſeſt to go to Jeruſalem to acquaint Herod with ſuch a meſſage; they might eaſily conceive they ſhould be but unwelcome gueſts to him, bringing news of the birth of a new King.
Chriſtus firmabat quos attrahebat, & ideò nòn timebant Regem praeſentem, dum conſiderabant Regem futurum. Chryſoſt.Reſp. Chryſoſtome anſwereth this Objection, ſaying, Chriſt ſtrengthned thoſe whom he drew thither; and therefore they feared not the King that was preſent, while they conſidered of the King that was to come. He ſaith alſo, That they ſhewed themſelves prepared and provided for Martyrdom, and to ſuffer for Chriſt, even before they had ſo much as ſeen him.
4. Conſider we wherefore they came, it was to ſeek Chriſt, that they might worſhip him. They were (doubtleſſe) very much diſcouraged, when they found him not in Ieruſalem, but Gods Providence much appeareth in bringing them thither.
1. By letting them underſtand by the anſwer of Herod from the Scribes out of the Prophet Michah, that they had not loſt their labour, but ſhould at Bethlehem find him whom they ſought.
2. By ſhewing them the Starre again, which appeared not all the while they were at Jeruſalem, which leadeth them directly to the houſe where the Babe lay; and being come thither, they are preſently admitted into his preſence, do their duties and preſent their gifts unto him, as the manner of the Perſians was to approach to their Princes, and ſurely they offered him the beſt things and choiceſt commodities that their countrey afforded, as Gen. 43.11. 1 Reg. 10.2. This may be collected from the phraſe uſed, viz. the opening of their treaſures, as Deut. 28.12. Pſal. 17.14. not profering to him, or preſenting him with what came next to hand, but with the moſt coſtly commodities they could come by, or their Countreys would yeeld;Si ſolum aurum obtuliſſent, videri poſſent voluiſſe matris paupertati ſubvenire; ſed quia addunt thus & myrrham, aliquid certè ſubeſt myſterii. Bern. and Perſia not being farre from Arabia Foelix, might have the beſt and pureſt gold, as alſo frankincenſe and myrrhe. Some think it pleaſed God to ſend theſe Magi to offer theſe gifts to furniſh Joſeph and Mary for proviſion to flie into Aegypt, and means to ſuſtain themſelves and the Childe there; they bring gold to ſupply Maries neceſſities; frankincenſe to ſweeten the ſtable, and myrrhe to comfort the new born Babe.
5. What moved them to come, or conducted them along, viz. a ſtrange Starre which they had ſeen in their own Countrey. But of this I have already ſpoken at large, Chap. 10. and therefore ſhall ſay no more touching it here. How long theſe Magi ſtayed with Mary, the Scripture is ſilent; but it's very probable, that being come ſo farre, they would learn as much as they might about the Conception and Birth of the Babe; eſpecially being praeadmoniſhed by Herod ſo to do, and which ſurely they did accordingly, not doubting, but that the news would be very gratefull to him; but behold the providence of God herein; the very night before this return, they are admoniſhed to ſhape their courſe another way, becauſe Herod meant no good, but hurt to the Child, which dream of theirs might further admoniſh them, that this was to be ſome extraordinary Childe, as alſo by thus providing for him and them, that Herod might neither lay hands, nor ſo much as ſet his eyes at all upon him, or any more upon them, manifeſting to them what a faithfull keeper he is of his faithfull ones. Whither they had this notice immediately by an Oracle from God, as Hebr. 8.5. Luke 2.26. or mediately by ſome Angel, as Acts 10.3.Scientia iſta vel ad Evangelium conceſſa fuit, ut Chriſto edito nemo exindè nativitatem alicujus de Coelo interpretetur: ideò juſſi ſunt ire in ſua, ſed alia nòn quâ venerunt viâ, i. e. ne in priſtina ſecta incederent. Poſt Evangelium nuſquàm invenies Chaldaeos, aut Incantatores, aut Magos, niſi punitos: Nòn poteſt Regna Coelorum ſperare, cujus digitus aut radius abutitur Coelo. Tertul. Scultet. part. 1. c. 35. it's no great matter. Tertullian by their being admoniſhed to return another way, ſaith, They were enjoyned to give over the ſtudy and practice of thoſe unlawfull Arts, which he ſaith, were no more permitted, but alwayes puniſhed under the Goſpel.