Were there three kings when Jesus Christ was born?

Answer 1

No. First of all, the original text used in Matthew is magoi or, in Latin, magi (sing: magus). The magoi were priests of the Zoroastrian god, Ahura Mazda ("Wise Lord"). The term "wise men" tends to be used in English translations, while tradition and nativity plays sometimes portray them as kings. The nativity is also described in Luke, but there is no mention of priests or of kings. Matthew was portraying the priests of this great religion as regarding the birth of a Jewish Messiah as a momentous event and, by having them wish to worship him, was probably demonstrating that Jesus had dominion over even the Zoroastrians. John Shelby Spong (A Bishop Rethinks the Birth of Jesus) says that Matthew was clearly writing Christian midrash.

Answer 2

The Magi were not kings at all but actually magicians or astrologers from the east, possibly from Persia where Daniel the prophet lived during the Babylonian Captivity approximately 586 years before Jesus was born.

We do not know how many of these Magi visited Jesus, but the idea of three men come from the number of gifts that are named in Matthew, which was gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

Answer 3

No. Matthew originally wrote of the magi, not kings, or even wise men. The magi were priests of the Zoroastrian religion, and Matthew may have been trying to show that even the priests of this great religion would want to worship Jesus. John Shelby Spong (A Bishop Rethinks the Birth of Jesus) says that among people he knows in New Testament circles, the universal assumption is that Matthew's magi (or kings) were not actual people.

Answer 4

Yes.