How Old Was Jesus when the Wise Men Came?

As a kid, we always set up the nativity set as a family. Baby Jesus, Mary, Joseph, the shepherds and animals, and the wise men with their lone camel. But, how old was Jesus when the wise men came, really? Were they actually there on Christmas?

Jesus was 2 years old or younger, but not a newborn as the nativity suggests. We know this because the wise men followed the star to Jerusalem, inquiring after his birth. Herod met with them secretly and they told him when the star appeared; he later targeted boys who were two years of age or less.

How Old Was Jesus When the Wise Men Came

Newborn Jesus, lying in the manger while his parents receive gold, frankincense and myrrh. It’s such a common stereotype that it has spawned endless jokes. You call yourselves wise men? You couldn’t bring some diapers and wipes?

But, scripture shows this commonly held narrative is wrong. The wise men were not present at the nativity.

‘Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”’ Matthew 2:1-2 ESV

The wise men didn’t live nearby. The two prevailing theories are that were Persian (modern day Iran) or Chaldean (modern day Iraq). Regardless of their origin, we can infer that they traveled a great distance.

They could not have been present for the birth. They arrived in Jerusalem, asking about a king they knew had already been born. We can infer that the wise men associated the rising star with his birth, then traveled a great distance to worship him.

When the Wise Men Found Jesus

There are a lot of missing pieces in the text. We can’t know exactly when the wise men found Jesus, because we don’t know how long it took them to reach Jerusalem, how long they searched after meeting with Herod, or how long they stayed in Bethlehem before leaving.

Pinning down an exact event in an ambiguous timeline is essentially impossible.

That said, we do know a few things. First, the maximum plausible age is less than 3. We don’t know how long it took for word to reach Herod that the wise men had tricked him, but the text shows that he targeted all the boys in Bethlehem who could have been the prophesied king.

‘Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men.‘ Matthew 2:16 ESV

Was Jesus a Baby?

Jesus was not a newborn, but he could have been a baby when the wise men arrived. The younger end of the range is harder to pin down. How long did it take them to find him after his birth? Let’s analyze two sections of scripture.

‘And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.’ Matthew 2:11 ESV

The portion of Matthew describes the moment that they did find him. They worshipped him and gave him their kingly gifts. It’s noteworthy that this interaction occurs in a house. Joseph and Mary had an established residence in Bethlehem.

‘And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb. And when the time came for their purification according to the Law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every male who first opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord”) and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the Law of the Lord, “a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.”’ Luke 2:21-24 ESV

This portion of the gospel narrative requires a bit of explaining. Luke references a ritual purification which Leviticus 12 teaches us could not have happened until at least 41 days after delivery. So, Jesus would have been at least six weeks old. Of note, they offered a sacrifice of birds.

‘And if she cannot afford a lamb, then she shall take two turtledoves or two pigeons, one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering. And the priest shall make atonement for her, and she shall be clean.”’ Leviticus 12:8 ESV

Mary and Joseph took Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem, and they offered the sacrifice for poor people. It seems reasonable to infer that this occurred before the wise men gave them such kingly, expensive gifts. Otherwise, why not offer the lamb?

Things The Text Does Not Say

It was interesting to discover that something that I know about the Christmas story is not actually in the Bible. But, scripture does not tell us the number of the wise men, so there could have been more than three. Also, it does not call them kings. Not a great moment for the Christmas carol.

But, I think my childhood memories will recover.