The King Nobody Wanted | Page 4

back to their flocks they prayed and gave thanks to God.
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Meanwhile, the little family in the stable were gathered in silence around the manger. Mary, the mother, said never a word, but her thoughts were busy with the tale the shepherds had told about her little child.
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The shepherds were not the only people to see strange lights in the sky. Many miles away, three men saw a new star. They were Wise Men, and they knew all the stars, but this one they had never seen before.
It was not only a new star, but a moving star. Like a bright fingertip in the heavens, it seemed to beckon them on. The Wise Men were rich and important, and thought nothing of a journey. At once they made ready and set out to see where the star would lead them. For many days they traveled across the desert, and at last they came to Jerusalem.
Although they were not Jews, they had heard that a Messiah was expected someday in Palestine. When they saw that the star had brought them to Jerusalem, they decided that the Messiah must have come.
"We are strangers here," they said to each other. "We had better ask our way."
King Herod was in Jerusalem just then, and the Wise Men went to his palace. Since they were rich and famous, they had no trouble getting in to see the king.
They bowed down respectfully before the king, and Herod received them with courtesy. Then the Wise Men asked:
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"Where is the newborn King of the Jews? We have seen his star in the east. We have come to worship him, but we do not know where he is."
Herod was surprised, and then he was angry. A new king of the Jews? Why, Herod himself was the king of the Jews! However, he hid his feelings, and answered,
"I will find out what you want to know."
He left the Wise Men, and hurried off to consult with his advisers.
"The Messiah!" he shouted. "Where do they say the Messiah will be born?"
Solemnly he was told:
"In Bethlehem. An ancient book of the Holy Scriptures tells us that out of Bethlehem shall come a governor to rule the people of Israel."
Fear and jealousy boiled up in Herod. But a king must control his feelings, and Herod was old and wise. When he had called his three visitors to him, he was as smooth and polite as ever. He told them that they would find the child in Bethlehem.
"Go there," Herod said, "and look for him carefully. And when you have found him come and tell me, for I too want to go and worship him."
The Wise Men thanked the king, and set out for Bethlehem. Soon they arrived at the place where Joseph and Mary were staying with the baby. It was very different from Herod's palace.
There the three Wise Men fell down on their knees as they would before a king. They opened their treasures and put their gifts in front of the baby. One brought gold. The others brought sweet-smelling ointments, frankincense and myrrh.
"Hail, Messiah!" they murmured in adoration. "Hail, Christ! Hail, King of the Jews!"
When they were once more outside on the road, one of them spoke:
"I think," he said, "that it would be well for us not to see anything of Herod again. I had a dream...."
The others agreed with him quickly. They had had a dream too.
"God sent that dream to warn us that Herod is dangerous," they said. "Herod means to harm the child. Let us find some other road back home."
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The days went by, and soon the baby was given his name. He was to be called Jesus.
One day, when Jesus was about six weeks old, Joseph said to Mary:
"Now that we have a child, we must go up to the Temple in Jerusalem and give an offering to the Lord. We cannot afford a lamb. But we can at least take pigeons or a pair of turtledoves."
So Joseph and Mary left Bethlehem, and carried Jesus with them to Jerusalem, five miles away.
An old man came up to them in the Temple.
"My name is Simeon," he said. "I have been waiting for you a long time. All my life I have been waiting to see the Messiah. And now the day has come."
He took Jesus from his mother's arms, and as he held the baby he began to pray.
"Lord, let me now die in peace," he prayed. "For I have seen the Messiah, the Saviour of all nations and the glory of the Jewish people."
Simeon turned back to Joseph and Mary, who were looking at him in wonder.
"Mary," he said, "this child of yours is going to break your heart. He will make enemies, and cause great trouble in this country. He will suffer,