What does wise men refer to?

Answer 1

Wise men: These men were not kings, but Magi, magicians or astrlogers, possibly from Persia whose knowledge of the Hebrew Scriptures could be traced back to the time of Daniel (cf. Daniel 5:11). They had seen His (Jesus') star in the east moving to the west and followed it.

Answer 2

AnswerThe author of Matthew's Gospel was familiar with the Zoroastrian religion of the Persians, and his story of the virgin birth is suggestive of the virgin birth of the Zoroastrian Saoyshant. By having the magi, priests of the Zoroastrian religion, wish to visit Jesus and bring expensive gifts, he was showing that even the priests of this great religion would have wanted to worship Jesus.

In time, the Zoroastrian connection became less important, and they became referred to simply as 'wise men'. This is the translation we see in most modern English Bibles. They are sometimes even referred to as kings, although this is a description that magi would never have accepted. The idea that there were exactly three wise men or kings derives from the number of gifts they were said to have brought.

Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury and leader of the world's Anglicans, has described the story of the three wise men as nothing but a "legend" and says there is little evidence that they existed.