“Magi” (μάγοι) has four general meanings according to G. Delling (TDNT 4:356–58): (1) members of a Persian priestly class; (2) possessors of supernatural knowledge and power; (3) magician; and (4) deceiver or seducer. In the NT the word refers to possessors of secret wisdom, and in our passage it probably connotes astrologers, that is, men who gained special insight into world affairs from their observation of the planets and stars (hence, the common translation “wise men”)
