μάγοι

mágos

wise men

A practitioner of special knowledge or arts, often associated with the interpretation of dreams, signs, or astrology, especially among the Medean or Persian priestly caste (Magians). In wider Hellenistic contexts, also one reputed for magical skill or esoteric wisdom, whether legitimate or spurious. In the New Testament, especially used of Persian or Babylonian 'wise men' who visit the infant Jesus (Matthew 2). Semantic range includes 'magus' in the sense of learned expert or priest, and 'sorcerer' in a pejorative or negative context.

G3097

Matthew 2:1 · Word #15

Lexicon G3097

Lemmaμάγος
Transliterationmágos
Strong'sG3097
DefinitionA practitioner of special knowledge or arts, often associated with the interpretation of dreams, signs, or astrology, especially among the Medean or Persian priestly caste (Magians). In wider Hellenistic contexts, also one reputed for magical skill or esoteric wisdom, whether legitimate or spurious. In the New Testament, especially used of Persian or Babylonian 'wise men' who visit the infant Jesus (Matthew 2). Semantic range includes 'magus' in the sense of learned expert or priest, and 'sorcerer' in a pejorative or negative context.

Morphology N NOM M PL All morphology codes

Part of Speech N — Noun — A person, place, thing, or idea
Case NOM — Nominative — The subject of the sentence
Gender M — Masculine — Grammatical masculine
Number PL — Plural — More than one

Common Translation

Phrasewise men
Literalmagi

Lexical Info

Lemmaμάγος
Strong'sG3097

SIBI-P1 Translation G3097-01

Magian priests

Morphological NotesNoun, nominative masculine plural (Gr,N,,,,,NMP); subject form, referring to multiple male practitioners.
Rendering Rationale"Magian" preserves the Persian priestly-caste sense of μάγος rooted in esoteric knowledge and ritual practice, rather than the later generalized "magician." The nominative masculine plural is reflected in the plural form "priests."

View full lexicon entry for G3097 →

SILEX v2

← Back to Matthew 2:1