After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, 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.”
When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written:
“‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
    are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for out of you will come a ruler
    who will shepherd my people Israel.’”
Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.”
After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and 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. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him.

• Matthew 2:1-11a

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
“Glory to God in the highest heaven,
    and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

• Luke 2:13-15

“[Verse 1: All]
We three kings of orient are
Bearing gifts we traverse afar
Field and fountain
Moor and mountain
Following yonder star

[Refrain: All]
O star of wonder, star of night
Star with royal beauty bright
Westward leading, still proceeding
Guide us to thy perfect light

[Verse 2: Melchior]
Born a King on Bethlehem’s plain
Gold I bring to crown Him again
King for ever, ceasing never
Over us all to reign <Refrain>

[Verse 3: Casper]
Frankincense to offer have I
Incense owns a Deity nigh
Prayer and praising, all men raising
Worship Him, God most high <Refrain>

[Verse 4: Balthazar]
Myrrh is mine its bitter perfume
Breathes a life of gathering gloom
Sorrowing, sighing, bleeding, dying
Sealed in the stone cold tomb <Refrain>

[Verse 5: All]
Glorious now behold Him arise
King and God and Sacrifice!
Al-le-lu-ia, al-le-lu-ia
Heaven to earth replies <Refrain>

• John Henry Hopkins Jr., We Three Kings

Caroling was such an important part of Christmas.  I was probably caroling before I could read.  I remember walking from house to house with other members of the youth group and even before I was old enough for youth group.  No one invited us in for cocoa and cookies.  All of that was waiting back at the church.

From 2021 through 2023, I dissected carols during the Advent Season for quizzes.  I plan to do so this year, but maybe in yet another different vein, and the carols that I choose will be some that I have not yet used.

The next carol for 2025 is We Three Kings.  This Carol combines tradition and myth with Scripture, starting with the title of the Carol.  Matthew mentions three gifts.  He never mentions how many Magi.  This again is a very long Carol, five verses

In looking at all five verses, there is a lot here, but not all biblically accurate.  I will ask questions based on most of the verses, in my usual fashion.

The Questions:

?	Questions	Bible References	Answers
1	Where were the magi from?	Matthew 2:1	From the east – Carol states orient, which usually refers to the far east, but at the time it was written, that might have been satisfactory.
2	Were these visitors identified by anything other than magi?	Matthew 2:1-12	No.  The concept of “king” comes from the fact that they gave Jesus gold, a kingly gift.
3	The carol says that the star was “still proceeding.”  Did they ever lose sight of the star?	Matthew 2:9	After they saw King Herod, the star “rose” and stopped over where the child was.  We might infer that they talked to Herod due to having lost sight of the star, but the star arising probably means it was not always visible.
4	Where is it prophesied that a king will reign forever?	N/A	Isaiah 9:7 and Luke 1:33
5	What was the frankincense used for?	Exodus 30:34	A main ingredient in the incense used by the priests in worship.
6	Myrrh is mentioned four times in the New Testament.  Here in Matthew as a gift.  As goods marketed by Babylon in Revelation. Mixed with wine for Jesus to drink, but He refused.  And what other use? Bonus: Who brought it?	John 19:39	In preparation for Jesus’ burial, brought by Nicodemus
7	Considering what the Magi did, what is the significance of the alleluias?	Matthew 2:11	The Magi bowed down and worshipped the baby Jesus.
8	What is meant by King and God and Sacrifice in the last verse?	N/A	Gold – gift for a king, Frankincense – used by the priest, and Myrrh – used to prepare the body for burial

As for the three kings (Magi), they may not have been kings.  They gave rich gifts.

It was near 500AD when the “three kings” were given names. Melchior is a Persian name.  Casper (or Gaspar) is an Indian name. Balthazar (or Balthassar) is Arabian.

I like the idea that regardless of the number of Magi, they may have come from the school that was founded by the prophet Daniel.

The prophecy that is thought to point to the star that these Magi followed was in Numbers 24:17. “I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel. He will crush the foreheads of Moab, the skulls of all the people of Sheth.”

Bible References:

?	Questions	Bible References	Answers
1	Where were the magi from?	Matthew 2:1	From the east – Carol states orient, which usually refers to the far east, but at the time it was written, that might have been satisfactory.
2	Were these visitors identified by anything other than magi?	Matthew 2:1-12	No.  The concept of “king” comes from the fact that they gave Jesus gold, a kingly gift.
3	The carol says that the star was “still proceeding.”  Did they ever lose sight of the star?	Matthew 2:9	After they saw King Herod, the star “rose” and stopped over where the child was.  We might infer that they talked to Herod due to having lost sight of the star, but the star arising probably means it was not always visible.
4	Where is it prophesied that a king will reign forever?	N/A	Isaiah 9:7 and Luke 1:33
5	What was the frankincense used for?	Exodus 30:34	A main ingredient in the incense used by the priests in worship.
6	Myrrh is mentioned four times in the New Testament.  Here in Matthew as a gift.  As goods marketed by Babylon in Revelation. Mixed with wine for Jesus to drink, but He refused.  And what other use? Bonus: Who brought it?	John 19:39	In preparation for Jesus’ burial, brought by Nicodemus
7	Considering what the Magi did, what is the significance of the alleluias?	Matthew 2:11	The Magi bowed down and worshipped the baby Jesus.
8	What is meant by King and God and Sacrifice in the last verse?	N/A	Gold – gift for a king, Frankincense – used by the priest, and Myrrh – used to prepare the body for burial

When I was young and part of the caroling, I would get bored.  As the older boys also got bored, they would sing an alternate version of We Three Kings.  It is a little “sick.”  The third verse is grammatically incorrect, but here goes:

We Three Kings of orient are
Trying to light a loaded cigar
It was loaded.  It exploded
BANG!

We Two Kings of orient are
Trying to light a loaded cigar
It was loaded.  It exploded
BANG!

We One King of orient are
Trying to light a loaded cigar
It was loaded.  It exploded
BANG!

Silent Night!

I guess this gets filed under an old Christmas tradition that has been passed on.

But on a serious note, in poetic form, the carol speaks of the significance of the three gifts.  Jesus was prophet, priest, and King.  Jesus was the Lamb that was slain.  From those aspects, this is an important carol, and the middle verses should not be skipped due to time constraints.

   …

   …

   …

The Answers:

?	Questions	Bible References	Answers
1	Where were the magi from?	Matthew 2:1	From the east – Carol states orient, which usually refers to the far east, but at the time it was written, that might have been satisfactory.
2	Were these visitors identified by anything other than magi?	Matthew 2:1-12	No.  The concept of “king” comes from the fact that they gave Jesus gold, a kingly gift.
3	The carol says that the star was “still proceeding.”  Did they ever lose sight of the star?	Matthew 2:9	After they saw King Herod, the star “rose” and stopped over where the child was.  We might infer that they talked to Herod due to having lost sight of the star, but the star arising probably means it was not always visible.
4	Where is it prophesied that a king will reign forever?	N/A	Isaiah 9:7 and Luke 1:33
5	What was the frankincense used for?	Exodus 30:34	A main ingredient in the incense used by the priests in worship.
6	Myrrh is mentioned four times in the New Testament.  Here in Matthew as a gift.  As goods marketed by Babylon in Revelation. Mixed with wine for Jesus to drink, but He refused.  And what other use? Bonus: Who brought it?	John 19:39	In preparation for Jesus’ burial, brought by Nicodemus
7	Considering what the Magi did, what is the significance of the alleluias?	Matthew 2:11	The Magi bowed down and worshipped the baby Jesus.
8	What is meant by King and God and Sacrifice in the last verse?	N/A	Gold – gift for a king, Frankincense – used by the priest, and Myrrh – used to prepare the body for burial

And here is Tommee Profitt with Colton Dixon and Hollyn singing We Three Kings.

Here is The Hound + The Fox, with Tim Foust singing, We Three Kings.

Here is a different version.  This is We Are Messengers singing We Three Kings.  I did not know it could be an Irish Jig.

Here is Mannheim Steamroller performing, We Three Kings.

While this carol describes the three gifts and the meaning of them, however obscurely poetic, the meat being the three middle verses in the middle are usually omitted from caroling due to time constraints.

And that is a pity.

If you like these Saturday morning Bible quizzes, but you think you missed a few, you can use this LINK. I have set up a page off the home page for links to these Saturday morning posts. I will continue to modify the page as I add more.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.