The Festival of the Epiphany of our Lord
Posted on January 6, 2026 by under
Scripture: St. Matthew 2:1-12 (NKJV)
2:1 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, 2 saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”
3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
5 So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:
6 ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not the least among the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.’”
7 Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. 8 And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also.”
9 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. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. 11 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.
12 Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.
Devotion
It might seem overly simple, but the point must be emphasized: They came to worship Him. Herod wanted to know about Jesus’ location, but his plan did not include worship, despite his lying claim to the wise men. The chief priests and scribes knew the answer to Herod’s question and directed Herod to Bethlehem. However, these religious leaders didn’t go to worship Jesus either. It was only the men from the East that were searching for Jesus in order to worship Him!
And let us not too narrowly define their worship as simply the giving of gifts to Jesus. They came, first of all, to receive gifts from Jesus. They are like the woman in Luke 7:36-50. Our Confessions state, “The woman came, believing that she should seek the forgiveness of sins from Christ. This is the highest way of worshiping Christ” (Apology III). These men came seeking the gift of the forgiveness of sins from Christ. They desired that this Child would be their Ruler who would shepherd them.
Where there is true faith which receives Jesus, the fruits of faith follow. Just as in yesterday’s reading John chastised the Pharisees and Sadducees saying, “Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance…,” so also Herod and the religious leaders show their lack of faith, repentance, and the resultant fruits. The wise men first “fall down and worship Him,” receiving His gift of forgiveness, and then give Him gifts of thankfulness.
Collect: O God, Who by the leading of a star didst manifest Thine Only-Begotten Son to the Gentiles: Mercifully grant, that we, who know Thee now by faith, may after this life have the fruition of Thy glorious Godhead; through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
