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Good morning. It’s Saturday, March 21st, aka National Common Courtesy Day.

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📖 Verse Of The Day

— Matthew 2:11

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🧠 Devotional

How many wise men were there?

If you said three, you’re like most people. But the Bible doesn’t actually tell us how many there were.

Here are all the verses that talk about the wise men:

“…Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, ‘Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews?… we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.’” — Matthew 2:1–2 (NIV)

“Then Herod called the Magi secretly… ‘Go and search carefully for the child…’” — Matthew 2:7–8 (NIV)

“…the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was… When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.” — Matthew 2:9–10 (NIV)

“On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him… Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.” — Matthew 2:11 (NIV)

“…having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.” — Matthew 2:12 (NIV)

Notice this: the Bible always calls them “Magi,” which is plural, but it never gives a number.

In these verses, wise men from the east follow a star to find Jesus. They first go to King Herod, who tells them to search for the child. The star leads them to Jesus, and when they find Him, they bow down, worship Him, and give Him gifts. Afterward, God warns them in a dream not to go back to Herod, so they return home a different way.

So why does it seem like common knowledge that there were three wise men? We hear it in songs like “We Three Kings,” and we see three in almost every nativity scene.

The reason is because of the three gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh, and because the Bible only ever refers to them as “Magi,” which is plural, but never gives a number.

There may have been three wise men, but the Bible never says that. And it’s important to know exactly what Scripture says, not just what we’ve always heard.