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Biblical Magi

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Adoration of the Magi by Bartolomé Esteban Murillo.

"Three Kings", or "Three Wise Men", redirects here. For other uses, see Three Kings (disambiguation) and Wise men.

The Magi ( /?mæd?a?/;[1] Greek: μ?γοι, magoi), also referred to as the (Three) Wise Men, (Three) Kings, or Kings from the East, were, according to Christian beliefs, a group of distinguished foreigners who visited Jesus after his birth, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. They are regular figures in traditional accounts of the nativity celebrations of Christmas and are an important part of the Christian tradition.

The Gospel of Matthew,[2] the only one of the four Canonical gospels to mention the Magi, states that they came "from the east" to worship the Christ, "born King of the Jews." Although the account does not tell how many they were, the three gifts led to a widespread assumption that they were three as well.[3][4] In the East, the magi traditionally number twelve.[4] Their identification as kings in later Christian writings is probably linked to Psalms 72:11, “May all kings fall down before him”.