We Three Kings

We Three Kings

We three kings of Orient are; Bearing gifts we traverse afar, Field and fountain, moor and mountain, Following yonder star. 

O star of wonder, star of night, Star with royal beauty bright, Westward leading, still proceeding, Guide us to thy perfect light. 

Born a King on Bethlehem's plain, Gold I bring to crowm Him again, King forever, ceasing never, Over us all to reign. 

Frankincense to offer have I;  Incense owns a Deity nigh; Prayer and praising all men raising, Worship Him, God on high.

Myrrh is mine; its bitter perfume Breathes a life of gathering gloom: Sorrowing, sighing, bleeding, dying, Sealed in the stone-cold tomb. 

Glorious now behold Him arise, King and God and Sacrifice; Alleluia, alleluia! Earth to heaven replies. 

Like others of the carols we have inspected, this one tells the entire gospel story. Look again at the words of the song and see if you can detect not only the Lord's birth, but also his life, his death and resurrection.

Much of the detailed language in the carols comes from a mixture of scripture, legend, and tradition. That is true in this song and noticed immediately that scripture doesn't actually tell us how many there were making the trip from the east.  We are not told they are all kings, nor are we told their names.  They are identified as "magi" in many translations. So little is the information about these eastern visitors, only speculation determines their government position, their religious position, and their wealth position. 

Here is what we do know. They brought gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.  Here are a couple of ways to see these gifts, first in relation to the newborn Christ-child:

Gold foretells his kingship. Frankincense speaks of the purity of his life. Myrrh, a spice used in the embalming process, was a prediction of his sacrificial death.  

The gifts in relation to us:

Gold represents our treasure, given to Him, which is the gift of our hearts. Frankincense signifies our holy lives of obedience to Him.  Myrrh speaks of our death to sin and self and our new lives in Christ.

Read again the words of the song, and see the gifts of the magi. Then it's a good time to think of the gift of our lives to the living Christ. 

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