The woman who anointed Jesus feet Luke 7:36-50
Just about every second Saturday, a man called Ken who was especially given to neatness went to the barbershop for a haircut. He liked this particular barber but this barber had a way of really getting under his skin. And this one Saturday he told the barber he was flying to Ottawa for a week. The barber asked what airline are you going on and Ken replied "WestJet" and the barber yelled, "WestJet? Are you crazy?! Their food is awful and you’ll never be able to relax because their planes shake so much when they’re taking off and landing!"
After a moment of silence, the barber politely asked, "So, what hotel are you staying at?" And Ken said, "The Chateau Laurier" and the barber yelled again, "Why on earth are you staying there? That hotel is not only infested with cockroaches but the mattresses are as hard as a rock!"
Then after another moment of silence, Ken said, "Oh, and guess what else I’m going to do!?" "What?" asked the barber? "I’m going to see the Prime Minister!" The barber literally screamed, "You’ll never get near the Prime Minister! No one ever gets to see the Prime Minister up close!"
Well, two weeks later Ken was back and he said the plane and the hotel were great and the barber was really surprised and then he asked if he got to see the Prime Minister and Ken stretched his arms about two feet and said, "I not only got to see the Prime Minister but I was only this far away from him and then he spoke to me personally." "No way," said the barber. "What did he say to you?" He said "Where’d you get that awful haircut?"
“And one of the Pharisees desired Him that He would eat with him. And He went into the Pharisee's house, and sat down to meat.
37 And, behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at meat in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster box of ointment, 38 and stood at His feet behind Him weeping, and began to wash His feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head, and kissed His feet, and anointed them with the ointment.
39 Now when the Pharisee which had bidden Him saw it, he spake within himself, saying, this man, if He were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman this is that toucheth Him: for she is a sinner.
40 And Jesus answering said unto him, “Simon, I have somewhat to say unto thee.” And he saith, “Master, say on.”
41 “There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. 42 And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most?”
43 Simon answered and said, “I suppose that he, to whom he forgave most.” And He said unto him, “thou hast rightly judged.” 44 And He turned to the woman, and said unto Simon, “seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house, thou gavest me no water for my feet: but she hath washed my feet with tears, and wiped them with the hairs of her head. 45 Thou gavest me no kiss: but this woman since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss my feet. 46 My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment. 47 Wherefore I say unto thee, her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.” 48 And He said unto her, “thy sins are forgiven.”
49 And they that sat at meat with Him began to say within themselves, “who is this that forgiveth sins also?” 50 And He said to the woman, “thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace.”
This is the first account where Jesus is having dinner in a Pharisees home and the second one is found in Luke 14. I always wondered why would Jesus bother going to a Pharisees home knowing how hypocritical these men were and how they used their religion to make money and control people. They had also been Jesus’ critics from day one and Jesus knew that these Pharisees combined with the other religious groups; the Sadducees and Herodian’s would one day not only arrange for but also pay for His crucifixion.
So, He had every reason in the world to stay away but I think He accepted this invitation and others like it because it was His desire to reach into every part of society whether they were receptive of His message or not.
And then we also need to consider that this was very early in His ministry and there was still a considerable amount of agreement between Jesus and the Pharisees. After all, He agreed with them theologically a lot more than He agreed with the Herodian’s who compromised with Rome or with the Sadducees who were theological liberals.
So, He accepted this invitation and I think it’s easy to assume that this particular Pharisee was wealthy from the standpoint that he had a home that was large enough to feed and accommodate so many people.
It’s also interesting to note that both times Jesus was invited to a Pharisees home that He came in after everyone else was seated. I don’t think He was perpetually late but I think He was told that the meal was at one time when everyone else was invited a half an hour earlier and that way everyone would have their appointed seats but when He got there He had to sit where they wanted Him to and in this situation; it was right beside the host.
We aren’t even sure why He was invited. This Pharisee was named Simon and he certainly wasn’t a believer but he may have invited Jesus after he heard Him speak and wanted to find out who He was and what gave Him such a powerful influence over others. He also might have wanted the opportunity for both he and his friends to question and evaluate Jesus during the meal or maybe he was hoping to expose Jesus as some kind of false teacher or even just use this opportunity to demonstrate his social skills by inviting and entertaining someone who was as well-known as He was. We thing we know for sure, he certainly didn’t invite Him because He felt Jesus had something important to say to him.
So, knowing all this Jesus went and in those days when a guest would come to the house they were received with a kiss on both cheeks by the host at the doorway.
When I was first saved I used to attend a charismatic church and some of the men who attended used to use Paul’s exhortation to greet one another with a holy kiss but I think it was just an excuse to kiss all the good looking girls. But listen, in the Biblical culture it was men who kissed the men while the women kissed the women and as much as I like men; I think it’s a good idea if we all stick to shaking hands.
And then after they were met and kissed at the doorway; the guest would be offered a seat by the door and then either a servant or even the host himself would take a bowl of water and wash the dust off their feet and then dry them with a fresh towel. And then the guest’s head was anointed with perfumed olive oil. In a very warm and dry climate where people walked everywhere and no one wore deodorant, this would be a very refreshing gesture not only for the guest but also for those who had to sit beside them. And the whole idea was to make the guest feel not only welcome but as comfortable as possible.
And there are many ways we do this today. I was reading about Joan River’s funeral where every seat had her personal perfume sprayed on it before the service and that way everyone would remember her presence during her funeral.
When we first moved into our condominium development there were two ladies who served as the welcoming committee and they came to visit one night not only to welcome us to the neighborhood but also answer any questions we had about the development; and they also brought us some special cake to express their warm wishes.
Or, when you go to a high class hotel, they put expensive chocolates on your pillow for you to enjoy before you go to sleep; which I always thought was strange because I soon as I had a chocolate I had to get up and brush my teeth.
The last wedding we were at; they had little potted plants at each sitting for the guests to take home and these were to remind you of the bride and groom. At other weddings I’ve received a picture of the couple, a little bag of mints and various other things and all these gifts were to express the fact that the host was grateful for both my time and my presence.
But when Jesus arrived at this meal He was simply brought in and shown to His seat; and everyone who was already seated could see how rude the host was acting towards Him.
Now, if someone came who you either didn’t want at your party or if someone showed up unannounced or even if it was someone you felt you had to invite but didn’t really want there; then you might not go out of your way to welcome them but not washing their feet was the equivalent of saying, “Don’t forget to wash the dishes before you leave.”
This was rude and it would be like extending your hand to shake someone else’s only to have them subtly refuse to extend their hand in return. They might smile as they refuse, but you know – and they know – that their refusal was intended as an insult.
So, here was Simon who obviously invited Jesus but didn’t do anything to welcome Him or express his appreciation for His being there and it makes me wonder; if he was afraid of what his friends would think if he had showed any gesture of respect toward Jesus. Well, if Jesus’ arrival and the way He was treated didn’t catch everyone’s attention then the woman who walked in soon after certainly would have.
In verse 37 it says, “And, behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at meat in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster box of ointment, 38 And stood at His feet behind Him weeping, and began to wash His feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head, and kissed His feet, and anointed them with the ointment.”
Let me say here that each of the four gospels have an account of the washing of Jesus’ feet by a woman. We find it in Matthew 26:6-13, in Mark 14:3-9, in John 12:1-8 and here in the book of Luke. The accounts of Matthew, Mark and John all deal with the same incident but the one in Luke is unique and this particular anointing is only recorded in this gospel.
We assume that this woman would have been was among the uninvited guests who would normally be seated in the outer room observing the events of the banquet. You see, back then, they’d have these semi-public meals in the sense that everyone who was invited would sit around a large table where they’d eat and carry on conversations and enjoy whatever entertainment was provided but if you weren’t invited you were still allowed to attend and watch as these people ate and enjoy whatever entertainment was provided. These non-invited guests were welcome to observe but they had to be quiet and if they were lucky they might be allowed to help themselves to whatever was leftover.
It’s kind of like a celebrity roast where everyone’s sitting there enjoying their meal while speakers get up and roast the guest of honor and everyone who’s watching the roast on TV are the uninvited guests.
So, they’re all sitting there and they’re either eating or preparing to eat when this woman who was known as a prostitute walked into the area where everyone was eating. And everyone who was sitting at the table would have been shocked; that someone so sinful would even be there and everything in the room would have come to a standstill. I mean, the music would have stopped playing, the servants would have stop serving and all the conversation would be silent and you could hear a pin drop as she walked across the room towards Jesus.
I imagine she didn’t look at anybody or say anything but simply made her way across the room and when she got to Jesus He would have been half lying on a pillow and she came up behind Him and knelt to clean the dirt off His feet and when she did this she began to cry because she was so overwhelmed by who He was and the fact that she knew He had come to save sinners like her; and when she began to cry her tears fell on His feet and when she saw that; she realized she had nothing to dry them off with; so, she untied her hair and used it to dry His feet and then she took an alabaster jar of sweet smelling oil, broke it open and poured it on his feet. And what she was doing was the work of a slave but it was so much more than a slave because she was doing this out of love and gratitude.
And when we look at her actions what we see is a humble, self-depreciating kind of love that will go to any extreme to express itself to Jesus and yet, Simon and his friends were absolutely horrified that Jesus would even let someone with her background touch Him.
Now, I hate to say it but listen; we are more like the Pharisee than we are like this woman! We are not like her. We are not outcasts from society. We don’t have a bad reputation. In fact, most of us have a very good reputation. We don’t smoke, we don’t drink, we don’t steal, we don’t cheat; we are respected members of society. We are like Simon the Pharisee. We see our sins as being so small compared to the rest of society. We are like Simon!
I mean, think about it. We have our small sins, don’t we? We have sins of attitude or little sins like gossip or even a lack of love. None of us would claim to be perfect but none of us are like this woman either. And all that may be true in our own eyes, but that’s not the way God sees us. You see, God doesn’t see small sins, medium-sized sins, large and extra-large sins but God sees sinners who need to be forgiven.
But listen, everyone around this table and even those who were standing in the courtyard were absolutely shocked not only because of what she was doing but because Jesus was allowing her to do it.
And when Simon saw this; it says, he said to himself in verse 39, "If this man were a prophet He would know who is touching Him and what manner of woman she is - that she is a sinner."
And listen, Simon knew who she was and what she did and he quickly jumped to the conclusion that if Jesus was a real prophet then He would have known as well and He wouldn’t have let her touch Him with a stick. And if Jesus knew what she was and didn’t stop her from touching Him then as far as Simon was concerned then Jesus was guilty of condoning her life of immorality. And he probably said to himself, “Ha! I’ve got you! Because no matter how anyone looks at this situation. You look bad.”
Well, Jesus not only knew what Simon was thinking but He also knew more about her than Simon did because when Simon looked at her; all he could see was her past and as far as he was concerned; she was simply someone everyone stayed away from in public. But Jesus saw her, He saw a repentant sinner who was looking for a way to express her love and appreciation for all He meant to her.
I want you to notice a couple of things in this passage. Verse 37 begins with these words, “And, behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner” or another way it’s translated is, “When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town…So, it doesn’t say, “who is living a sinful life” but who had lived a sinful life.” You see; its past tense. And the assumption is; that she had heard Jesus preach and had repented of her sin; had been born again and was living like it.
And when Jesus spoke about her to Simon He said in verse 47 “Wherefore I say unto thee, her sins, which are many, are or have been forgiven. “ And I think it’s safe to conclude that Jesus had not only met her before but had forgiven her and she wanted to express her appreciation for His forgiveness.
Jesus knew what was going on in Simon’s mind and we know this because He responds to what he was thinking in verse 40 where it says, “And Jesus answering said unto him, Simon, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And he saith, Master, say on.” Listen, Jesus answered him even though he hadn’t said anything out loud. And the interesting thing is, that Simon doesn’t seem to notice that Jesus was responding to his thoughts.
He hears everything, all the time! I heard about a family driving home from church and the father said, “What a boring sermon, I could have done better myself.” And the wife said, “Did you see the dress that woman who sang had on?” The daughter said, “I hate going to Sunday school, all those kids are so lame.” And then the little boy said, “I don’t know what you’re all complaining about. It wasn’t a bad show for a dime.”
And then it says that Jesus told him a parable and when He does this we might wonder why doesn’t He just say what He wants to say and let the chips fall where they may? I think Jesus was as concerned with Simon and his friends as He was with this woman and He wanted to say something that would leave them thinking long after He was gone. And so, rather than just making a statement He told them a parable.
The Greek word for parable is made up of two other Greek words. The first is para, which means, “alongside,” and the second word is ballo, which means, “to throw.” So, a parable is “something thrown alongside something else.”
Jesus used 46 parables in the gospels and they make up approximately 35 percent of what He had to say. There are only one or two parables in the Old Testament but they’re used frequently in the books of Matthew, Mark and Luke but listen, they are entirely absent in both the Gospel of John and in the rest of the New Testament.
Parables are a unique kind of story that are given to help us understand something that’s unknown by using something that is known. And many of these parables have a double meaning. First, there is the literal meaning, which can be obvious to everyone but then second, there is the truth that its teaching and this truth is only apparent to the believer. So, some will understand it while others will simply be entertained.
I heard about a small, country church where the pastor called a special meeting of the congregation to approve the purchase of a brand new chandelier. After some discussion pro and con, one member stood up and said, "Buying a new chandelier may seem like a good idea to some of you, but I’m against it for three reasons. First of all, it’s too expensive and we can’t afford it. Second, there isn’t anybody around here who knows how to play one. And third, what this church really needs is a new light fixture."
So, Jesus used parables to not only to amplify and illustrate what He had to say but He also used them to get those who were listening to think. And for some these parables were obvious while for others the meaning went completely over their heads. Some got it while others simply enjoyed the story but missed the point altogether.
It’s amazing to hear non-Christians discussing the things we see so clearly in the Bible because even though many of them are very intelligent in other areas of life; as soon as they turn to the scripture they start babbling like idiots by arguing over Old Testament law or some miniscule portion of scripture that doesn’t make sense to them while completely ignoring the issue of salvation.
And when they’re confronted with the gospel they start to list the failures of the institutional church or they’ll give you a list of all the Christians they’ve known who in their estimation were nothing more than hypocrites. And when they find out you’re a Baptist they’ll talk about all the things they heard that we don’t do. They’ll talk about almost anything but the gospel itself. They don’t want to talk about the holiness of God, the sinfulness of man or God’s provision of salvation. They want to talk about what they don’t like about Christians but they don’t want to talk about Jesus.
And when we tell them how much God loves them they’ll accuse God of being unfair and it won’t be because of His righteous judgment but because they say there’s so many people living in the far-flung corners of the world who’ve never heard the gospel. So, they hear but they don’t understand.
When I run into people like that I like to tell them about my experience in the food business and how I knew some of the major food suppliers of institutional food in Ontario and one of them was a drunk, another was immoral and a third was a crook. And then I ask if knowing about these men will stop them from eating?
If we don’t let a few hypocrites keep us away from good food then why should a few bad apples keep us away from the source of eternal life.
I remember a few years ago there was a series of books that came out on the Second Coming and Sally had really enjoyed them but we had an unsaved friend at the time who read the same books and he thought they were great but he had no interest in the gospel whatsoever.
So, Jesus used parables and they consist of images and characters which were taken from everyday life and they were used to create a miniature play or a drama to illustrate what it was He was trying to communicate. And these parables appealed to the young and old, the rich and the poor, and to the learned and unlearned as well. And often when Jesus was teaching the multitudes we even see the religious leaders in the crowd and they’re all sitting in the front row. Why? Because everyone loved to hear Jesus teach and preach.
He uses these illustrations or parables to reach the heart of his listeners through their imagination. These word-pictures challenged their minds and moved their hearts to respond to God's love and truth. Jesus was like a skillful artist, painting lively pictures using short and simple words. After all, a good picture can speak more loudly and clearly than many words.
His parables often involved some element of surprise or an unexpected twist and we’re often taken off guard by the progression of the story. I mean, what money lender would tell two people who couldn’t pay him back not to worry about their loans? Or what shepherd would leave ninety-nine sheep and then go into the mountains to look for one that was lost? Or who would hire men at different times of the day and then pay everyone the same amount in the end.
Jesus told his disciples that not everyone would understand his parables. In Luke 8:10 He said, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God; but for others they are in parables, so that seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not hear” And what He was saying was, there are some who are open to the truth and the truth will make absolute sense to them but at the same time others will listen and might enjoy what they here but they won’t get it. Listen, God can only reveal the secrets of the kingdom to those who humbly acknowledge their need to know God and His truth.
He used parables in many situations like in private conversations with His disciples, in public sermons, when He was performing miracles and especially in situations like this where He was primarily addressing unbelievers.
Most of His parables were designed to present a single point. One important but often overlooked feature is that they all call for a response on the part of the hearer. Parables have been described as earthly stories with heavenly meaning.
So, Jesus didn’t just use these parables to fill out His messages but He used them to illustrate what He was saying and to illuminate the minds of those who were really listening.
We’re great when it comes to sharing information, but we’ve lost the art of telling stories. Listen, stories are told on television, in newspapers, in comics, in theatres and in every other form of entertainment but we have lost the art of teaching the way Jesus did because He was constantly drawing people in with His stories, parables, analogies, examples and repetitions.
So, here is the one He used here and it’s only two verses long. It begins in verse 41. It says, “There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. 42 And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most?”
Let me put that in our language and say that someone owed a loan shark $50,000 while someone else owed him $5000 and neither one of them had any money to pay him back. So this loan shark said, “Hey, I’m in a good mood today. So, why don’t I just cancel both of your debts.” And then Jesus asked, “Which of the two who were forgiven their debts would love this loan shark more?"
Or suppose I owed the bank $100,000 for my mortgage and you owed $10,000 on your credit card and both of us were called to bank by the manager and we were told we had to pay our bills today but as soon as the bank manager heard we were both broke; he said, “Oh, don’t worry about it. We’ve already made a few billion this year; so, why don’t we just cancel your debts.” So, which of us would be more grateful? Well, I’d have ninety thousand more reasons to be grateful than you would.
So, you see the absurdity of this parable. Business people don’t forgive debts because they’re in business to make money but this parable teaches the principle of forgiveness. Where there’s greater debt, there’s greater appreciation, and where there’s lesser debt, there’s lesser appreciation.
And Jesus concludes by saying to Simon, “Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most?” And in verse 43 “Simon answered and said, I suppose that he, to whom he forgave most. And He said unto him, thou hast rightly judged.” And then notice verse 44 because something unusual happens. It says, “44 And He turned to the woman, and said unto Simon, seest thou this woman?”
And notice all through the dinner, Jesus was facing Simon and talking to him while she was anointing and kissing His feet but as soon as Jesus knew Simon had rejected Him by the things he was saying in his head; Jesus turned His back on Simon and faced the woman, even though He was still addressing Simon. And by His actions Jesus was rejecting Simon while demonstrating His acceptance of this woman.
And He began by asking a powerful question which we tend to miss when He asked, “Do you see this woman?” Well, the answer was, no. Simon didn’t see anything but her past. He saw her as someone who led a sinful disgusting life and as far as he was concerned no one should ever have anything to do with anyone like her. He shunned her because she was sinful and as far as he was concerned Jesus should have done the same. But Jesus rebuked him by showing that in every respect this woman has outdone Simon by her acts of love and devotion.
So, no, Simon didn’t see her and as far as he was concerned she had no right to be there and she wasn’t even welcome.
And then Jesus said in verse 44, “I entered into thine house, thou gavest me no water for my feet: but she hath washed my feet with tears, and wiped them with the hairs of her head. 45 Thou gavest me no kiss: but this woman since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss my feet. 46 My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment. 47 Wherefore I say unto thee, her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little. 48 And He said unto her, thy sins are forgiven.”
When Jesus said to Simon in verse 47, “He who has been forgiven little, the same loves little.” This was a rather scathing comment because Simon didn’t feel any need for forgiveness and he also felt very little love for those who did.
And Jesus’ comments to Simon were a real slap in his face because He said, you didn’t show Me any honor, you didn’t show Me any respect and you certainly didn’t demonstrate any basic friendliness. You didn’t do anything but insult Me with your lack of manners but this woman who you look down on was not only head and shoulders above you in the way she treated Me but now she’s saved and her sins are forgiven.
In verse 50, Jesus said to her, "Your faith has saved you, go in peace.” Listen, it wasn’t the fact that she humbled herself, washed His feet or anointed Him with oil but it was the fact that she believed in Jesus that He saved her. Ephesian 2:8 and 9 says, "For by grace are you saved through faith, that not of yourselves, it is a gift of God not of works lest any man should boast." It was her faith that saved her and not her works but her works were motivated by her faith.
And I believe Jesus was trying to tell Simon that he might have been a “high class” sinner but he had the same problem as this “low class” sinner because both of them were lost; it was only a matter of degrees. She may have owed a greater debt but the fact is both of them owed a debt that neither one could pay.
And some of us who’ve been in the church all our lives might feel as though we’re head and shoulders above those who were saved off the streets, but the fact is; we’ve all been saved from hell and when we get to heaven I don’t think there’s going to be any class structure based on the quantity of our lives previous to salvation because none of us have anything to brag about.
Listen, the Bible describes us all as sinful.
Romans 3:23 all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. That means there is not and never has been nor ever will be anybody on earth with the exception of Jesus who has not sinned and come short of the glory of God.
Isaiah 64:6 all my righteousness is as filthy rags. So, if anyone thinks they can stand in the presence of God and display their good works then they’re in for a surprise because all God sees is filth. We were born in sin and even though our sin nature might have been tamed or controlled so that there are things we no longer do; there’s still sin in our heart.
Rom 7:18 says, in my flesh dwells no good thing. Nothing! Jeremiah 10:17 the heart is deceitful and desperately wicked. And this doesn’t just refer to a few of us; it refers to all of us.
Listen, we are all sinners and none of us are saved and on our way to heaven until we confess our sin and receive His forgiveness by His grace.
J.B. Philips wrote, “The gospel message is meant to grip the mind, stab the conscience, warm the heart, save the soul, and sanctify the life. It makes drunks sober, crooked people straight and perverted people pure. It’s a message sufficient to transform the life of all who believe.”
Listen, the gospel is a message with purpose and its purpose is not to comfort people in sin or even to challenge them to live above sin but it’s a message to save people from sin.
