Meanwhile, Jesus was in Bethany at the home of Simon, a man who had previously had leprosy. While he was eating, a woman came in with a beautiful alabaster jar of expensive perfume and poured it over his head. Matthw 26:6-7.
At the beginning of what we call Holy Week, Jesus was visiting in Bethany on the outskirts of Jerusalem. It’s where Jesus’ good friends, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus, lived. Lazarus is the person that Jesus called out of the tomb. At this moment Jesus was visiting in the home of Simon the leper. You could say that Jesus was surrounded by people who loved him and knew firsthand the healing and freedom that Jesus brought to others.
It seems appropriate that a nameless woman (in Matthew) brings a very expensive jar of ointment which she begins to “wastefully” pour over Jesus’ head. Everything about this gesture is extravagant and poignant. Some estimates say that it would have taken a year of work to purchase this jar. And no one, in their right mind, would “pour” such an ointment out. It would have been dabbed or even given to a charity to bless others.
But when you’re calculating the value of love, no such cautions applies. And they certainly did not apply in this case. Jesus said that she was “anointing my body for burial.” This gesture was the last, best thing that she could do for Jesus. Whether she understood the significance of this occasion, the text does not say, but Jesus did.
The story of the anointing is pervasive with ideas of generosity, overwhelming gratitude, wasteful love, deepest sorrow, and touching compassion. The event is singular and cannot be repeated. This gesture was solely for the benefit of Jesus and could not be repeated.
From the anointing in Bethany, Jesus went to Jerusalem where he was welcomed by throngs of people who did not have a clue about what was just about to happen. It was in Bethany that a wise woman poured out her ointment on Jesus’ head. Surely the only such expensive possession she had to give Jesus.
We can be instructed today, by this woman’s generosity, on the one hand, and by the shallow, impromptu parade that people joined as Jesus arrived in the city. The parade did not cost them anything. Some of that crowd would, later in the week, be shouting “crucify him, crucify him.” Words Hosannah in the highest can turn on a dime and become curses.
The woman who anointed Jesus will forever stand for the person who asks, “What more can I give to Jesus” rather than “How much will it cost me.”
Prayer: O Jesus, the story of the woman anointing you only occupies eight verses, but its weight is incalculable. We are struck by her unfailing love for you that would lead her to, quite possibly, be one of the women standing at the foot of the cross rather than standing on the roadside cheering meaninglessly. We pray to have the heart of the woman. Not asking “how much” but rather “what more.” Please help us. Amen.