“Herod … was furious, and gave orders to kill … When the magi saw the star, they were overjoyed.  When they saw the child with his mother Mary, they bowed down and worshiped him … and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.” (Matthew 2:16, 11)

When God does something, is that a good thing or a bad thing?  Depends on where you’re sitting, what you’re trying to protect, and what you’re willing to do to get in on it.

Herod is the puppet-king of the Jews.  Installed and propped up by the Roman occupiers, he was known for his brutality and cruelty.  Given Herod’s proclivity to eliminate anyone he saw as a possible rival, including sons and wives, a Roman author of the time remarked it was better to be Herod’s pig than a member of his family.

One day, these strangers from the East wander into town.  “Where is the one born king of the Jews?” they want to know.  “We have seen his star.”  The guy who sees himself as the King of the Jews plays religious with his guests.  He calls for the chief priests and religion experts to interpret the sacred writings and prophecies for him, and then Herod pleads for the magi to hurry right back when they’ve found this new king and let him know all the details, especially exactly where the little fellow is.

Herod sits on a throne he thinks of as “mine,” but he is wrong about that.  He knows what he wants to protect: King Herod!  And he’s willing to do anything – act religious or murderous – not to get in on anything, but to put a full, hard stop to it.  One suspects if you asked Herod about his experiences of joy, all you’d get is a blank stare.

The magi aren’t Jewish, aren’t from anywhere near Jerusalem or Israel, and appear to be star-watchers or astrologists, an occupation Israel’s Scriptures frowned upon.  Somewhat like Abraham, they are sent off on a journey they weren’t looking to take; unlike Abraham, they at least got a star to steer by.  They seem to lose the trail for a bit, so they figure going to the current king in Jerusalem is a brilliant idea.  Whom better to ask?

It was these guys, not Herod, whom God was guiding.  It was these outsiders who got in on it.  It was these seeming fools who went to the worst possible place to get directions – and got them!  And when they likely would have hustled right back to Herod to share the happy news, God sent a dream to trouble their sleep just enough so that they took a long, long loop around Jerusalem and Herod on their way back home.

We’ve all got some Herod in us: we’ve got our thrones, we’ve got things we’re trying to protect, and when it comes to God, we might be more than a wee bit stand-offish.  And by God’s grace, we’ve all got some magi in us, too.  As always, the question of the season is a simple one: whom do you want to be in the story?  Do you want to resist and refuse the Unspeakable Joy who speaks your name or, like the magi, bow down and worship him?

Any Herod in you, a “throne” you insist on occupying, a “kingdom” you seek to protect at all costs? Any grace-given magi in you?  How might your magi help un-Herod you this season?