# Who Were the Wise Men? Names, Gifts and Meaning What Matthew actually says about the wise men, what later tradition added, and what gold, frankincense and myrrh mean. Source: Pray.com — https://www.pray.com/articles/who-were-the-wise-men Author: PRAY.COM Category: Faith & Wisdom Published: 2026-11-11 Last revised: 2026-11-11 --- **The wise men were visitors from the east who followed a star to find the young Jesus, and the Bible gives them no names, no number and no title of king.** Searches for three wise men names turn up Melchior, Caspar and Balthasar, which come from later Christian tradition and not from Scripture. What Matthew does give us is a short, vivid story: a star, a worried king, a house in Bethlehem and three gifts. This guide walks through that story, sorts what the Bible says from what tradition added and explains what the gifts mean. Pastor Jack Graham tells the story in “The Three Wise Men,” an episode of Bible in a Year with Jack Graham on [Pray.com](https://www.pray.com/) that you can play above. He introduces the visit as the story of “visitors from afar who arrived many months after Jesus’ birth.” All Scripture below is from the World English Bible (WEB). ## What does the Bible say about the wise men? Matthew is the only Gospel that tells the story. It opens with a question that the wise men bring to Jerusalem. > > “Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of King Herod, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, ‘Where is he who is born King of the Jews? For we saw his star in the east, and have come to worship him.’” > > > > — Matthew 2:1-2, WEB Matthew says they came from “the east” and that they saw a star. That is the whole description. The Greek word behind “wise men” is *magoi*, a word for learned men, often linked with studying the stars. Graham suggests that they were “most likely from Babylon,” and he ties them to “the lasting impact of God’s people, specifically the prophet Daniel.” That is a reasonable reading of the setting, though Matthew does not say it outright. ## Were there three wise men, and were they kings? The Bible does not say there were three. The number comes from the three gifts the visitors brought, and the group may have been larger. Matthew also never calls them kings. Later tradition did, partly because of how it read passages such as Psalm 72 and Isaiah 60, which picture kings bringing gifts to the Lord. > > “The kings of Tarshish and of the islands will bring tribute. The kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts. Yes, all kings shall fall down before him. All nations shall serve him.” > > > > — Psalm 72:10-11, WEB Those verses are real prophecy, and they help explain why the church came to picture kings at the manger. Matthew simply calls them wise men. ## What were the three wise men’s names? In the Western church, a later tradition named them Melchior, Caspar and Balthasar. Spelling varies, and the names are first recorded centuries after the Gospels, so treat them as a beloved custom and nothing more. Other churches have kept different names and even different numbers. None of this appears in the Bible, and none of it changes the point of the story, which is who they came to worship. ## Why did Herod fear them? Herod ruled as king of the Jews, and a rumor about a new king was a threat to him. Matthew reports his reaction in one line. > > “When King Herod heard it, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.” > > > > — Matthew 2:3, WEB Graham describes Herod as a ruler who “was not looking for or interested in another king.” The chief priests and scribes knew exactly where to look in Scripture, and they named Bethlehem. Their answer came straight from the prophet Micah. > > “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, being small among the clans of Judah, out of you one will come out to me who is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings out are from of old, from ancient times.” > > > > — Micah 5:2, WEB The strange part is who went and who stayed. The men from far away traveled to worship. The people who knew the prophecy by heart stayed home. ## When did the wise men visit Jesus? Not on the night of his birth. The shepherds came to the manger, and the wise men came later. Matthew places them in a house, and he calls Jesus a young child, not a newborn. Graham frames it the same way, with visitors who came “many months after Jesus’ birth.” That is why the manger scene with wise men on Christmas Eve is a blend of two moments. Many churches mark the visit at Epiphany on January 6. > > “They came into the house and saw the young child with Mary, his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Opening their treasures, they offered to him gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.” > > > > — Matthew 2:11, WEB ## What do the gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh mean? Matthew lists the gifts without explaining them. Christians have long read them as a picture of who Jesus is. Graham says plainly, “These treasures are deeply symbolic.” His summary is the one most churches teach: “The gold spoke to Christ’s royalty.” Gold is the gift for a king. Frankincense, which was burned in worship, points to his divinity. Myrrh, a spice used in burial, points ahead to his death. Graham puts it this way: the “frankincense signaled the divinity of the child, and the myrrh foreshadowed the Messiah’s death.” Isaiah had pictured a day when nations would bring such treasures to the light of God. > > “Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.” > > > > — Isaiah 60:3, WEB It is a good reminder that the first people outside Israel to worship Jesus arrived with gifts that fit a king, a God and a Savior. Graham calls the visit “a reminder that Jesus came not only for the Jews,” and the wise men are the first sign of that wide welcome. ## What was the star of Bethlehem? Matthew says the star led them until it “stood over where the young child was.” Long before, Balaam had spoken of a star coming from Jacob. > > “I see him, but not now. I see him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob. A scepter will rise out of Israel.” > > > > — Numbers 24:17, WEB People have suggested comets, conjunctions of planets and a miracle in the sky. The Bible does not settle it. For a closer look at the theories, read [Pray.com](https://www.pray.com/)’s guide, [What Was the Star of Bethlehem?](https://www.pray.com/articles/star-of-bethlehem) ## What happened after the wise men left? God warned them not to go back to Herod, and he warned Joseph to leave. > > “Being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they went back to their own country another way.” > > > > — Matthew 2:12, WEB Graham’s summary of the moment is brief: “they didn’t return to Herod because God warned them in a dream.” Joseph took Mary and Jesus to Egypt, and Matthew says that fulfilled what the prophet Hosea wrote. > “‘Out of Egypt I called my son.’” ([Matthew 2:15](https://www.pray.com/bible/web/matthew-2/#v15), WEB) Herod’s fury was real, and it fell on the children of Bethlehem. The story holds sorrow and worship together, and it does not tidy either one. ## What the wise men teach us The wise men looked, traveled and worshiped. Strangers to Israel, they still found their way to the child. After giving their best, they went home by another road. Their story fits a December of busy lists, because it asks a quiet question: what would you bring if you were sure you were about to meet the King? This week, try one small thing. Read [Matthew 2:1-12](/bible/web/matthew-2/#v1) aloud in one sitting. Then write down a gift you could give Jesus this Christmas, such as time, forgiveness or a debt you have been holding. For more on the birth story, see [Christmas Bible Verses About the Birth of Jesus](https://www.pray.com/articles/christmas-bible-verses). ## A prayer for the wise men’s kind of worship *Lord Jesus, you are the King the wise men came to find. Teach me to look for you with the same patience, and to bring you my best. Keep me from the fear that tried to stop them. When I am tired of the journey, lead me by your light, and let me leave this Christmas more trusting than I came. Amen.* ## More to read and hear on [Pray.com](https://www.pray.com/) - [The Three Wise Men | Bible in a Year with Jack Graham](https://www.pray.com/series/bible-in-a-year-with-jack-graham/19e8907a-e9ac-4ac0-9c6b-6738d3f479b5/) - [Bible in a Year with Jack Graham](https://www.pray.com/series/bible-in-a-year-with-jack-graham/) - [What Was the Star of Bethlehem?](https://www.pray.com/articles/star-of-bethlehem) - [Christmas Bible Verses About the Birth of Jesus](https://www.pray.com/articles/christmas-bible-verses) *AI-assisted from **[Pray.com](https://www.pray.com/)** episode transcripts, then reviewed and approved by Ryan Beck.*