3 Prophetic Gifts From the Magi

When the magi came to visit Jesus, Scripture tells us that they came bearing three gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. These gifts were not just ordinary, random gifts. Far from it actually! While these gifts would aid in provision and health, as well as be a blessing to Jesus’ family, these gifts were also, in fact, prophetic, pointing to Christ as King, Priest, and Savior. 

“When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.” ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭2‬:‭9‬-‭11

The gifts the magi brought show they knew exactly who they were going to see. They knew the prophecies, they knew that who they were waiting for had finally arrived. They knew that the child, Jesus (Yeshua), was born to be their King, High Priest, and Savior. They selected those specific gifts in response to the miracle unfolding before them and walked out their faith.

Let’s take a deeper look at the gifts presented to Jesus.

The gift of gold from the magi signified the kingship of Christ. 

Gold, much like today, represented wealth, stability, and power. Gold most definitely would have been a gift worthy of Jesus, the future King of kings they were meeting for the first time. To understand the depth of what gold fully represented, and therefore, the layers to this gift, HELPS Word Studies from Discovery Bible tells us that gold was “used also as a symbol of profound purchasing power (‘potential acquisition’).” And as we know, that this small child would go on to give His very life and pour out His powerful blood to purchase you and me, His beloved bride.

“knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.” 1 Peter‬ ‭1‬:‭18‬-‭19

And as if all of that wasn’t enough, we know that Christ is not merely a king, He is the King. The King of kings.

And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.” Revelation 19:16

The gift of frankincense from the magi signified the priesthood of Christ. 

In the Old Testament, frankincense was traditionally burned in the temple as an offering to God. 

“He shall bring it to Aaron’s sons, the priests, one of whom shall take from it his handful of fine flour and oil with all the frankincense. And the priest shall burn it as a memorial on the altar, an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the Lord.” Leviticus‬ ‭2‬:‭2‬

Frankincense was burned as incense to the Lord and was used in priestly duties. As we know, Jesus was not just any priest among priests, He is our One true High Priest.

“Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews‬ ‭4‬:‭14‬-‭16

The gift of myrrh from the magi signified the death of Christ.

Myrrh, among other uses, was commonly used for anointing and embalming. Yeah, not your average gift for a young family celebrating the birth of their firstborn son. But Jesus was not just any child. He was the Son of God sent to earth for the purpose of redeeming all of humanity, (who were doomed to death and separation from God), by living a sinless life and then dying a most horrific death for them. Simply put, Jesus was born to die, and the magi knew that. They knew it because they knew and believed the prophecies of the coming Messiah and what He would do for them and everyone after them. It is through the sinless life of Christ and His death in our place that we receive eternal life.

Isaiah prophesied this about the coming Messiah:

“Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, And He shall divide the spoil with the strong, Because He poured out His soul unto death, And He was numbered with the transgressors, And He bore the sin of many, And made intercession for the transgressors.” ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭53‬:‭12‬

And Paul tells us this about our Messiah who came:

“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” Romans‬ ‭3‬:‭23‬-‭26‬ ‭

So the next time we see a nativity scene, with that precious baby swaddled in the manger, may we remember, that tiny boy entered this world to redeem and deliver you and me before we ever chose to love and accept Him in return. He willingly came to die. Our King. Our High Priest. Our Savior. 

“For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Isaiah‬ ‭9‬:‭6‬

And as if that wasn’t beautiful enough, Isaiah has one more prophecy that just amazes me. He speaks to Israel of a future time when there will be no violence, no devastation, no destruction, when there will be no more mourning, when they will not even have the need for the light of the sun or the moon because they will have the Lord and He will be their everlasting light. In this prophetic chapter, Isaiah says this:

“The multitude of camels shall cover your land, The dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; All those from Sheba shall come; They shall bring gold and incense, And they shall proclaim the praises of the Lord.” ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭60‬:‭6‬ 

Gifts will once again be presented to the Lord. Specifically, gold and frankincense. Sound familiar? Gold will be given again to our King who reigns forever and frankincense will be presented again to our true eternal High Priest. And the missing gift, myrrh, is missing for a reason. That gift is no longer needed because our Savior, Jesus, died once for all. 

“Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans‬ ‭6‬:‭8‬-‭11

As we celebrate Jesus' birth this year, may we remember to celebrate His life in all its glorious entirety. That baby would grow to be our King, High Priest, and Savior. He entered this world to die on an old rugged cross that should have been ours. He rose again so that we could live. He reunited us with our Father and made our bodies His temple so that we would never have to live a moment more than our choosing separated from Him. He is why we have life here on this earth, and forever in heaven with Him. A miracle indeed!

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