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The story of the other wise man

“Truly, I say unto you, whenever you did this for one of the least of these brothers (and sisters) of mine you did it unto me.”. — Matthew 25:40

I

According to Christian tradition, there were three wise men that visited the baby Jesus when he was born in Bethlehem. They were named as Melchior, Gaspar, and Balthazar. However, all these details were not mentioned in the Biblical writings. But according to the famous writer Henry Van Dyke, in his historical novel The Story of the Other Wise Man, there was a fourth wise man. And this is what I would like to share with you as we celebrate this advent and Christmas season.

II

The story of the other wise man began in the city of Ecbana in the mountains of Persia. On that particular evening, Artaban, the magi of Ecbana, was busy preparing for his journey. But his friends either looked at him with pity, or laughed at him for his crazy ideas. But he said, “Look! According to the Hebrew Scriptures and I read, ‘There shall come a star of Jacob, and a scepter shall arise out of Israel’, and furthermore, it says, ‘Know, therefore, and understand that from the going forth of the commandment to restore Jerusalem to the coming of the Anointed One, the time shall be seven and three scores and two weeks’”

Artaban continued, “It has been shown to me and to my three companions – Melchior, Gaspar, and Balthazar. We have searched the ancient tablets of Chaldea, and computed the time. It falls in this year. We have studied the sky, and in the spring of this year, we saw two of the greatest planets draw near together in the sign of fish, which is the house of the Hebrews. We also saw a new star there, which shone one night and then vanished. Now, again the two great planets are meeting. Tonight is there conjunction. My three brothers are watching by the ancient Temple of the City of Babylon, and I am watching here. If the star shines again, they will wait for me for ten days at the Temple, and then, we will set together for Jerusalem, to see and worship the Promised One, who shall be born to be the King of Israel. I believe that sign will come. I’m now ready for the journey. I have sold my possessions, and bought these three jewels – a sapphire, a ruby, and a pearl to carry them as a tribute to the King. And I ask you to go with me on the pilgrimage, that we may have joy together in finding the Prince who is worthy to be served.”

But Artaban’s friends looked at him with strange and alien eyes. There was a veil of doubt and mistrust in their faces. Then, one by one, they made their excuses and slowly left Artaban’s house.

As the night deepened, Artaban patiently watched the sky, until he saw Jupiter and Saturn rolled together like drops of fire about to blend into one. “It is the sign!” he said, “The King is coming, and I will go to meet him!”

III

Days and nights, Artaban crossed rivers, mountains and plains. He traversed fertile lands and desolate valleys. Artaban’s horse named Vasda was almost spent, and Artaban would gladly have gone to a nearby city to find rest and refreshment for himself and for his horse. But he knew that it was three hours more before he could arrive at the Temple, and he must reach the place by midnight, because his friends were waiting for him.

So, he did not stop, but rode steadily across the fields. As he passed a grove of palm trees, the horse smelled some danger. The horse gave a quick breath of anxiety before a dark object in the shadow of the last palm tree. Artaban dismounted and found a man lying across the road. His humble dress, and the line of his face showed that he was probably one of the Hebrews still living in the city of Babylon. A ghostly sigh came from the man’s lips. The bony fingers gripped the hem of Artaban’s robes and held him fast.

But Artaban’s heart leaped to his throat, not with fear but with a dumb resentment at the importunity of this blind delay. How could he stay in the darkness to minister to a dying stranger? What claim had this unknown fragment of human life upon his compassion or his service? If he would linger for an hour, he could hardly reach the Temple at the appointed time. His companions would think he had given up his journey. They would go without him, and he would lose his quest.

But if he would go on now, the man would surely die. If Artaban would stay, life might be restored. His spirit throbbed and fluttered with the urgency of the crisis. Should he risk the great reward of his faith for the sake of a single deed of charity? Should he turn aside, if only for a moment, from following the star, only to give a cup of water to a poor, perishing Hebrew?

God of truth and purity”, he prayed, “direct me to the holy path, the way of wisdom which you alone know.” Then, he turned back to the sick man. He carried him to a little mount at the foot of the palm tree. With little remedies he always carried in his girdle, Artaban poured the medicine slowly between the colorless lips of the dying man. He stayed for an hour beside the sick man, waiting for any sign of recovery.

At last, the man’s strength returned. He sat up and looked at Artaban. “Who are you?” he asked, “And why did you seek me here to bring back to life?” “I am Artaban, the magi of the City of Ecbana, and I am going to Jerusalem in search of the One who is to be born King of the Jews, a great prince and deliverer of all people. I dare not delay any longer upon my journey, for the caravan that has been waiting for me may depart without me. But see, here is all that I left for bread and wine, and here is a potion of healing herbs. When your strength is restored, you can find your fellow Hebrews among the houses of Babylon.”

The Jew raised his trembling hand solemnly to the heavens, and said, “Now, may the God of Abraham and Isaac, and Jacob bless and prosper your journey. I have nothing to give you, but only this: That I can tell you where the Messiah must be sought. For our prophets have said that he should not be born in Jerusalem but in Bethlehem of Judah. Go to Bethlehem, and may the Lord give you safety.”

It was already long past midnight. Artaban rode haste, and swiftly he reached the Temple. But now, his friends could not be found. Instead, a piece of papyrus caught his attention, and when he read it, it said, “We have waited past midnight, and can delay no longer. We go in search for the King. Follow us across the desert.”

Artaban sat down on the ground, and covered his face in despair. “How can I cross the desert,” he said, “with no food, and with a very tired horse? Well, I must return to a nearby city, sell my sapphire, and buy a train of camels, and provisions for the journey. I would never be able to overtake my friends. Only the Merciful God knows whether I shall lose the sight of the King, because I tarried to show mercy.”

IV

Days and nights Artaban crossed the dreary desert and arid, inhospitable mountain ranges. Through heat and cold, the magi moved steadily onward until he arrived in Bethlehem. Artaban, the other wise man, drew near and weary, but full of hope, bearing his ruby and his pearl to offer to the King. “For now, at last,” he said, “I shall surely find him, though I be alone. This is the place that the Hebrew man told me that the prophets had spoken, and here I shall behold the rising of the great light. I must inquire about the visit of my friends, and to what house the star directed them, and to whom they presented their gifts.”

The streets of the village seemed to be deserted, and Artaban wondered where all the people had gone. From a nearby cottage, he heard the sound of a young mother hushing her baby to rest. The young mother told Artaban about the strangers from the Far East, who appeared in the village three days ago, and how they said that a star had guided them to the place where Joseph of Nazareth was lodging with his wife and her new born child, and how they had paid reverence to the child and given him many precious gifts.

The young mother continued saying, “But the travelers disappeared again, as suddenly as they had come. We were afraid at the strangeness of their visit. We could not understand it. Joseph and his wife took the child and fled away that same night secretly, and it was whispered that they were going to Egypt. Ever since, there has been a spell upon the village. Something evil hangs over it. They say that Roman soldiers are coming from Jerusalem to impose a new tax on us. So the men had driven the flocks and herds to the hills to escape it.”

Now, as the young mother offered food to the weary magi, there was a sudden noise of confusion in the streets of the village. A shrieking and wailing of women’s voices and desperate cries were heard: “The soldiers, the soldiers of Herod! They are killing our children!”

The young mother’s face grew white with terror. She clasped her child to her bosom and covered him with her robe, lest he would be awakened and would cry.

But as the soldiers came hurrying down the streets with bloody hands and dripping swords, Artaban quickly stood in the doorway of the house. And as the captain of the soldiers approach the house, Artaban said in a low voice, “I am alone in this house, and I am waiting to give this jewel to the prudent captain, who will leave me in peace.” As the captain took the ruby from the hands of the magi, “March on!” he shouted to his men, “there is no child here, the house is empty!”

As the soldiers left, the magi turned his face to the East and prayed, “O God of truth, please forgive me of my sin! I lied to save the life of a child. And two of my gifts for you are all gone. I have spent for people that which is meant for you. Shall I be worthy to see the face of the King?”

The voice of the young mother weeping for joy behind him said very gently, “Because you have saved the life of my little one, may the Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you, and give you peace.”

V

Now, years had swiftly passed by, but we still see Artaban, moving among the crowds of people in populous Egypt, looking for the household that had come down from Bethlehem. Now, we see him taking advice from a Hebrew rabbi in an obscure house in Alexandria. The rabbi said to Artaban, “Remember, my son, the King whom you are seeking is not to be found in a palace, nor among the rich and powerful. Those who seek him would look for him among the poor and the lowly, the oppressed and the sorrowful.”

After that memorable counsel with the Hebrew rabbi, we see Artaban again and again traveling from place to place, searching among the people of dispersion, the poor and oppressed. During his lonely search, he fed the hungry, clothed the naked, healed the sick, comforted the captives, and found many people to help.

Now, thirty-three years of Artaban’s life had passed, and yet he was still a pilgrim, seeking after his king. Worn and weary, and ready to die, but still looking for the King, he had come for the last time to Jerusalem.

It was the season of the Passover. The city was full of strangers from various places. Then suddenly, the people were rushing outside the city. Artaban accosted one person and inquired from him the cause of the tumult. The man said, “We are going to the place called Golgotha, outside the city walls, there is going to be an execution. Have you heard what happened? Two famous robbers are to be crucified and with them, another one called Jesus of Nazareth, a man who has done many wonderful works among the people. So they love him greatly. But the priests and the elders have said that he must die, because he claimed himself to be the Son of God. And Pilate has sent him to the cross, because he said that he claimed to be the King of the Jews.”

Artaban’s heart unsteadily beat with the excitement of old age. And he murmured to himself, “The ways of God are stranger than the thoughts of men, and it may be that I shall find the King at last, in the hands of his enemies, and I shall come in time to offer my pearl for his ransom before he would die.”

So, the old man, Artaban, followed the crowd with slow and painful steps towards the hill of Golgotha. But suddenly, a troop of Macedonian soldiers came down the streets dragging a young woman with torn dress and disheveled hair. As the magi paused to look, the young woman broke suddenly and threw herself at the mercy of the old man. “Have pity on me!” she cried, “Save me for the sake of the God of purity! Save me from worse than death!” Artaban trembled.

It was the old conflict in his soul, which had come to him in the palm grove of Babylon and at the cottage in Bethlehem – the conflict between the expectancy of faith and the impulse of love. Twice, the gift, which he consecrated to the worship of religion, had been drawn to the service of humanity. This was now the third trial, the final irrevocable choice. Was it his great opportunity, or his last temptation? Artaban could not tell. But one thing was clear in the darkness of his mind. One thing only was sure to his divided heart – to rescue this helpless woman would be a true deed of love. And, is it not love the light of the soul?

Artaban took the pearl from his bosom, and gave it to the woman and said, “This is your ransom, my daughter! It is the last of my treasures which I kept for the King.” As Artaban spoke, the walls of the houses rocked to and fro. Earthquake! Houses crumbled, and the soldiers fled in terror. Artaban and the young woman he had ransomed crouched helplessly beside the wall. But as the earthquake continued, a heavy tile from a nearby house fell and struck the old man in his temple. He lay breathless and pale, with his gray head resting on the young woman’s shoulder. As the woman bent over him, fearing he was dead, there came a voice through the twilight, very small and still, but the tumult of the earthquake drowned the words. The woman turned to see who had spoken, but she saw nothing.

Then, the old man’s lips began to move, as if in answer, and the woman heard him say in Persian tongue, “Not so, my Lord, when did I ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you anything to drink? When did I ever see you sick or in prison, and visited you? For thirty three years, I have been looking for you, but I have never seen your face, nor ministered to you, my King!”

And then, the sweet voice came again. And again, the young woman heard it, very faint and far away. But now, it seemed as if she understood the words, “Truly, truly, I say unto you, in as much as you have done it to the least of these my brothers and sisters, you have done it unto me.”

A calm radiance of wonder and joy lighted the pale face of Artaban, like the first ray of dawn. A long breath exhaled gently from his lips, and went to the land beyond. His journey was ended. His treasures were accepted. The other wise man also had found the King! #

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