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What is significant about this event?
Q. What is the significance (in John 12) of the woman washing Jesus feet with her hair just before he was crucified?
A. From the New King James Version Bible we read the following account of John 12:1-8, with comments added:
John 12, verse 1: "Then, six days before the Passover, [According to Bullinger's notes in his Companion Bible and from interpreting the Old Testament scripture of Daniel 9:26-27, the day Jesus entered the city was the Thursday of the last week of His earthly life.] Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom He had raised from the dead.verse 2: "There they made Him a supper; [ according to Bullinger's notes, this took place on Saturday, the close of the weekly Sabbath] and Martha served, [from the Greek diakoneo, can also mean "minister".] but Lazarus was one of those who sat at the table with Him.
verse 3: " Then Mary took a pound [Greek, litra, about 12 ounces] of very costly oil of spikenard, [a precious oil, rose-red in color made from dried roots and oily stems of the spikenard plant, native to northern India, transported then and now in alabaster boxes to preserve the fragrance. Source: Zondervan's Pictorial Bible Dictionary, 1967 ed.] anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil.
verses 4-5: " But one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, who would betray Him said, "Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii [ the Greek equivalent of a worker's wages for about a year] and given to the poor?"
We noted earlier that Martha served or "ministered" to Christ's physical needs on this first of three recorded meals which He attended during the same week. Her serving was honorable and commendable. But you asked "what is the significance of the woman washing Jesus' feet with her hair?" This woman was named Mary, as we have seen. She was more "spiritually perceptive" than her sister, Martha. Mary was more interested in what Jesus had to say and made it her practice to sit at His feet so she could hear every word He spoke in her presence. (Compare Luke 10:38-42). By acquiring expensive spikenard, anointing His feet and wiping them with her hair, she displayed devoted and affectionate humility to one she loved deeply and sincerely. And surely, what she did that night has been memorialized through the ages as a lasting tribute to her. Interestingly, Jesus, three full nights later, during the Last Supper, wrapped a towel around His waist and in a spirit of humility, just like His dear friend Mary, washed all of the apostles' feet, including His betrayer, Judas Iscariot. Our Heavenly Father places a high premium on humility and love. Both are spiritually significant to our Christian development. Other Recommended Bible Study Materials:
Answer Given By: Tommy West |
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