"Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, saying, Where is He that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen His star in the east, and are come to worship Him. … Then Herod … sent them to Bethlehem … they departed; and lo, the star, which they saw 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 exceeding great joy" (Matthew 2:1-10).

Matthew's gospel alone gives us the account of "His star" at the time of the birth of Jesus. Many possibilities have been suggested over the centuries about what star or astronomical phenomenon could have been the Star of Bethlehem. It obviously was a very unique and distinct star in the sky that drew the attention of the wise men and propelled them to make a long, perhaps even dangerous, journey to see and worship the new-born King.

There have been three prominent ideas put forth by scholars as to what this star was. Some believe it could have been a comet which lit up the sky. However, there were no known bright comets at the time of Christ's birth. Besides, comets were then regarded as omens of evil and catastrophes.

Another popular theory was put forth by the renowned German astronomer Johannes Kepler (1571-1630) that the Star of Bethlehem was a conjunction, or gathering of planets in the night sky. Since planets orbit the sun at different speeds and distances, they occasionally approach each other closely. However, even during the triple conjunction noted by Kepler on June 1, September 27, and December 10 in 7 BC (the approximate year of Christ's birth), Jupiter and Saturn were clearly discernible as two separate stars, being separated by one full degree—a distance of two full moon diameters. Thus, the conjunction theory falls short of the "single" star referred to in the Biblical account. Another argument against a conjunction of planets being the Star of Bethlehem is that they are not that uncommon. Therefore, it is highly improbable that God would have used conjunctions as a sign of the unique, never-to-be-repeated birth of His Son, or that the wise men would have regarded this alignment as out of the ordinary.

The third proposed explanation for "His star" is a nova, ("new star"), or supernova. These are not new stars, but rather already-existing stars that explode, producing up to 100 million times as much light as our sun. However, historical records do not reveal a star of this type around the time of the Lord's birth. These, too, are not unique stars in that they have been seen in the sky every so often.

In spite of the explanations given above, it is more probable that the Star of Bethlehem cannot be naturally explained, but was rather another of the miracles surrounding the birth of Jesus. Remember that the angel Gabriel visited the virgin Mary with the news that she had been chosen as the vessel to bear God's Son, Jesus, who would be the Saviour of the world. Also, Mary and Joseph journeyed to pay their taxes to Bethlehem, where Jesus was then born, a fulfillment of the prophecy from Micah 5:2, "But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall He come forth unto Me that is to be ruler in Israel." Then, angels announced the birth of the Saviour to shepherds at the outskirts of Bethlehem. It seems only fitting that God would place a special miracle star in the sky to announce the birth of His Son—"His star"—a sign which the Magi had been anticipating.

The magi were very confident observational astronomers, and teachers of kings and people in divine wisdom. They were devout ministers and prophets of their day. It is believed that they belonged to the Babylonian profession of magi or wise men. These wise men were not wizards or soothsayers who practiced the detestable art of astrology. It is likely they learned much from the Jews taken captive in Babylon and were looking for the star predicted by Balaam in Numbers 24:17—"There shall come a star out of Jacob"—who would rule the world. Perhaps they also learned of Daniel's prophecy of seventy weeks (Daniel 9:24-27) which foretold the time of Christ's first coming into the world. This, coupled with their knowledge of God's message of redemption in the stars, led them to recognize "His star" among the multitude of stars in the sky.

It is no wonder that when the star stood still over Bethlehem marking the end of their journey to the Saviour of men that the wise men "rejoiced with exceeding great joy." Everyone who bows before the Lord Jesus in repentance and faith and worship as personal Saviour shares in that "exceeding great joy."

All men need to be wise today and "Seek the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near" (Isaiah 55:6). Believe on Jesus who became a man to die for sinners, for you, while it is still the day of salvation.