The Story of the Other Wise Man

In Short

This historical Christmas novella follows Artaban, a fourth Magus who sets out alongside the traditional three Wise Men to find the infant King of Israel. Carrying a sapphire, a ruby, and a pearl, Artaban is repeatedly delayed by helpless people who require immediate rescue: a dying Hebrew exile, an infant threatened by Herod’s soldiers, and an enslaved young woman. Spending thirty-three years on his futile search, he uses his sacred gifts to alleviate human suffering. The story has endured as a classic parable because it redefines success, revealing that selfless compassion for the poor is the highest form of worship.

The Story

The narrative opens in ancient Parthia, where Artaban, a priest of the Magi, gathers his noble friends in his blue-and-silver house. Having calculated astrological alignments and ancient prophecies, he believes the promised King of Israel is about to be born. Selling his house and lands, he purchases three magnificent jewels—a sapphire, a ruby, and a pearl—as tribute for the King. He urges his peers to join his quest, but they refuse out of skepticism or worldly ties, leaving him to ride alone to meet his fellow Wise Men at Borsippa.

Riding his swift mare, Vasda, Artaban nears the meeting place when he discovers a dying Hebrew exile lying in a palm grove, struck with marsh fever. Torn between keeping his deadline and saving a human life, Artaban chooses mercy. He nurses the stranger back to health, but the delay causes him to miss his companions, who leave without him. Forced to sell his sapphire to purchase a camel caravan for the desert crossing, he arrives in Bethlehem alone, after Joseph and Mary have already fled to Egypt with their child.

While searching Bethlehem, Artaban enters a modest home where a young mother shelters her infant. Suddenly, Herod’s soldiers sweep into the village to slaughter the newborn boys. Artaban steps into the doorway and bribes the bloodthirsty captain with his second jewel, the radiant ruby, to spare the infant's life. Though he mourns that he has again spent a sacred gift meant for God on a mortal man, the grateful mother prays for his blessing.

Artaban spends the next thirty-three years wandering through Egypt and Israel. He searches through crowded slums, dark prisons, and miserable hovels, using his skills as a physician to heal the sick and feed the destitute. His third gift, the flawless pearl, remains hidden in his breast, kept close to his heart.

At last, white-haired, frail, and exhausted, Artaban arrives in Jerusalem during the Passover. The city is in a turmoil, as a man named Jesus of Nazareth is being led to his execution. Recognizing that this may be the King he has sought for a lifetime, Artaban rushes to offer his final jewel as a ransom. On his way to the Damascus gate, he encounters a terrified young girl being dragged off by soldiers to be sold as a slave to pay her deceased father's debts. Compelled by love, he hands her the precious pearl to buy her freedom.

As the skies darken and an earthquake shakes the city, a falling roof tile strikes Artaban on the temple. Dying in the arms of the freed girl, he hears a soft voice from above. In his final breath, Artaban laments that he never saw his King or ministered to Him, but the divine voice replies that whatever he did for the least of humanity, he did for the King. A quiet joy illuminates his face as he passes away, his long journey completed.

How It Unfolds

The sign appears Artaban gathers his fellow Parthian Magi to share his discovery of the prophecies and the planetary conjunction signaling the birth of the Messiah. After his friends decline to join his long journey, Artaban witnesses the birth of a radiant new star in the night sky and sets out alone on his swift horse.

A life saved in the palm grove Rushing across the plains to meet the other three Wise Men at the Temple of the Seven Spheres, Artaban finds a dying Hebrew exile stricken with fever in a dark date-palm grove. He stops to nurse the stranger back to health, missing his deadline and forcing his companions to journey to Israel without him.

The sacrifice in Bethlehem Artaban sells his sapphire to fund a desert caravan, reaching Bethlehem only to find that the holy family has fled to Egypt. When Roman soldiers arrive to murder the town's children, Artaban stands in a cottage doorway and bribes the military commander with his ruby to save a mother's infant.

Decades of wandering For thirty-three years, the Magian searches Egypt and Israel, lingering among the poor, the sick, and the imprisoned in Alexandria and Jerusalem. He consults a wise rabbi who teaches him that the true Messiah will be found among the suffering rather than in royal palaces.

The final probation Artaban arrives in Jerusalem as an old man on the day of the Crucifixion, intending to use his final jewel—a luminous pearl—to ransom the King. Instead, he meets a desperate young girl being dragged into slavery and gives her the pearl to secure her freedom.

The King reveals himself As an earthquake strikes the city, Artaban is fatally struck on the head by a falling roof tile. Dying in the street, he hears a gentle voice declaring that his acts of mercy toward the poor were received directly by the King, filling his final moment with peace.

The People

• Artaban: A Parthian priest and nobleman who gives up his wealth and status to follow a holy star. Driven by a deep desire to find and serve the promised King, he faces a lifelong conflict between his lofty spiritual quest and immediate human needs. Through three decades of self-sacrifice, he grows from a seeker of earthly glory into a embodiment of divine love.
• Abgarus: The venerable elder among the Parthian Magi who loves Artaban like a son. Though he considers himself too old to undertake the harsh journey across the desert, he encourages Artaban to follow the light of truth, warning him that those who seek wonderful things must often travel alone.
• The Sick Hebrew: An impoverished exile dying of marsh fever in a palm grove near Babylon. His desperate, trembling grasp on Artaban’s robe forces the Magian to choose between his personal religious ambition and the life of a dying stranger.
• The Bethlehem Mother: A gentle village woman hushing her infant in a stone cottage. She offers Artaban hospitality, and her child's innocent smile touches his heart just before he risks his soul and gives up his ruby to save the boy from Herod’s soldiers.
• The Ransomed Maiden: The daughter of a deceased Parthian merchant who is seized by Macedonian soldiers to be sold into slavery. Her desperate plea for mercy in the streets of Jerusalem prompts Artaban’s final act of generosity, and she holds the dying Magus in her arms as he hears the voice of his King.

In Its Own Voice

Before setting out on his decades-long journey, Artaban presents the fruits of his worldly wealth to his reluctant friends:

"I have sold my house and my possessions, and bought these three jewels—a sapphire, a ruby, and a pearl—to carry them as tribute to the King."

Facing a terrifying choice in Bethlehem, Artaban steps into the doorway of a modest cottage to shield a mother and her child:

"His face was as calm as though he were watching the stars, and in his eyes there burned that steady radiance before which even the half-tamed hunting leopard shrinks, and the fierce blood-hound pauses in his leap."

At the end of his life, having given away his final treasure to free a young slave, the dying Magus addresses the silent voice in his heart:

"Three-and-thirty years have I looked for thee; but I have never seen thy face, nor ministered to thee, my King."

What It's Really About

The story presents a meditation on the true nature of devotion, duty, and spiritual fulfillment. On the surface, Artaban’s life appears to be a tragic series of failures; he misses his companions, loses his treasures, and fails to reach the Messiah before His execution. However, the book argues that true worship is not found in grand ceremonial offerings or rigid adherence to an abstract goal, but in direct, loving service to the vulnerable. By consistently prioritizing human suffering over his own spiritual ambitions, Artaban discovers that his entire life was an act of worship. The narrative suggests that failure in the eyes of the world can be a higher form of success, and that seeking God through love of neighbor is the only path that truly reaches Him.

Why Read It Today

The Story of the Other Wise Man remains a deeply touching piece of classic fiction for anyone who appreciates thoughtful, emotionally resonant fables. It offers a gentle, poetic reading experience, filled with evocative imagery of ancient Persian architecture, sweeping desert vistas, and the quiet dignity of selfless acts. Writing in the late nineteenth century, Van Dyke crafted a narrative that moves with the timeless grace of a parable, making it an ideal short read for the holiday season or quiet contemplation.

Readers who enjoy historical tales with moral weight will appreciate its rich period detail, which draws on ancient Zoroastrian lore, biblical history, and Eastern geography. While modern readers may encounter slightly elevated, archaic prose—characteristic of nineteenth-century religious literature—the story's brevity and clarity prevent it from feeling dense or overly formal. What stays with you long after reading is its poignant redefinition of a successful life: a comforting reminder that the moments where we feel derailed by the needs of others may actually be the very purpose of our journey.