Why Did the Magi Bring Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh?
Medicinal uses of frankincense may help explain the gifts of the magi
Were the gifts of the magi meant to save Jesus from the pain of arthritis? It’s possible, according to researchers at Cardiff University in Wales who have been studying the medical uses of frankincense.
Since the early days of Christianity, Biblical scholars and theologians have offered varying interpretations of the meaning and significance of the gold, frankincense and myrrh that the magi presented to Jesus, according to the Gospel of Matthew (2:11). These valuable items were standard gifts to honor a king or deity in the ancient world: gold as a precious metal, frankincense as perfume or incense, and myrrh as anointing oil. In fact, these same three items were apparently among the gifts, recorded in ancient inscriptions, that King Seleucus II Callinicus offered to the god Apollo at the temple in Miletus in 243 B.C.E. The Book of Isaiah, when describing Jerusalem’s glorious restoration, tells of nations and kings who will come and “bring gold and frankincense and shall proclaim the praise of the Lord” (Isaiah 60:6). Although Matthew’s gospel does not include the names or number of the magi, many believe that the number of the gifts is what led to the tradition of the Three Wise Men.
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The traditional gifts of the magi—gold, frankincense and myrrh—may have had symbolic as well as practical value. Researchers believe the medicinal uses of frankincense were known to the author of Matthew’s gospel.
In addition to the honor and status implied by the value of the gifts of the magi, scholars think that these three were chosen for their special spiritual symbolism about Jesus himself—gold representing his kingship, frankincense a symbol of his priestly role, and myrrh a prefiguring of his death and embalming—an interpretation made popular in the well-known Christmas carol “We Three Kings.”
Still others have suggested that the gifts of the magi were a bit more practical—even medicinal in nature. Researchers at Cardiff University have demonstrated that frankincense has an active ingredient that can help relieve arthritis by inhibiting the inflammation that breaks down cartilage tissue and causes arthritis pain. The new study validates traditional uses of frankincense as an herbal remedy to treat arthritis in communities of North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, where the trees that produce this aromatic resin grow. Did the magi “from the East” know of frankincense’s healing properties when they presented it to young Jesus?
Based on Strata, “The Magi’s Gifts—Tribute or Treatment?” Biblical Archaeology Review, January/February 2012.
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This Bible History Daily feature was originally published in December 2011.
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Frankincense and Other Resins Were Used in Roman Burials Across Britain
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Gold, frankincense and myrrh were ‘literally’ expensive gifts befitting a person of high rank. They are also ‘symbolic’. However, there were no doubt ‘many’ Magi who traveled to see Jesus in a group for safety and practical purposes. Thus, there were ‘many’ gifts presented to Jesus’ parents. However, once Herod’s plot was revealed to them, they immediately packed up only those few small items of value that they could easily hide on their trip and conveniently barter with for provisions and shelter in Egypt. So, they logically only took the gold, frankincense, myrrh the Magi gifted them. They would also have taken any wages Joseph had managed to save while working in Bethlehem over the past six months. This was a purely practical choice. To take more items would attract attention and possibly robbers.
Later when Mary told the birth narrative to those interested, she only mentioned these three gifts as these were the only three she and Joseph took with them. All the other gifts were of little value to a family trying to save the life of their only child. The names of the Magi attached to these three gift have a difficult provenance. The oldest source we have concerning the three men being Kings was written around 200A.D. However, this title may have been attached to these men by the public as they were extremely wealthy with political connections. By example, an English commoner automatically gives the title of Governor out of respect to a person he sees as being of a high rank. A manuscript written in 500A.D. was discovered in Alexandra Egypt which ascribed the traditional names to each of the Magi. However, recently a ‘very’ early first century coin was excavated in Afghanistan that clearly shows King Azes II of Bactria riding a horse and following a star. So, it may be that some of the men that arrived to pay their respects to the family ‘were’ in fact Kings of small nations, territories and tribes. Herod gave himself the title ‘Herod the Great’ and the Roman Senate gave him the title ‘King of Judah’. But in fact he was not a King in the truest sense in that Judah was a vassal state of the Roman Empire and Herod answered to Caesar. After his death, his two sons received the title Tetrarch meaning ‘ruler of a quarter’ as each ruled only a portion of the Judean territory.
I was fascinated by the point about the practical value of these gifts, especially considering the Holy Family’s subsequent flight to Egypt. If the gold and resins served as financial capital for their “exile,” it makes me wonder about the ancient equivalents of residency and identification for foreigners in that era. In a modern context, we have clear protocols for staying in a foreign country, like the ones detailed at https://e-residence.com/it/nie-spain-online/madrid/ for those moving to Spain, but how did a migrant family from Judea legally navigate the Roman-Egyptian bureaucracy back then? Was there any formal “foreigner registration” they would have needed to fund with the Magi’s gold to stay safely?