Anointing of Jesus feet
- Mary Magdalene or not?
A question was raised whether the woman who anointed Jesus feet in the Gospels is Mary of Magdalene or some other person.
Lets look at the evidence:
|
Matthew 26
Bethany Simon the Leper Unnamed woman Poured on head also Burial rite alabaster jar perfume Towards end |
Mark 14
Bethany Simon the Leper Unnamed woman Poured on head also Burial rite alabaster jar nard Towards end |
Luke 7
North Israel Simon the Pharisee Sinful woman Poured on feet, hair Forgive sins alabaster jar perfume Early in the gospel |
John 12
Bethany Martha, Mary, Lazarus Mary, sister of Lazarus Poured on feet, hair Burial rite pint of pure nard Towards end |
This gives two conclusions:
There is one verse which could have shown whether Mary of Bethany, the sister of Lazarus, was the one who anointed the feet of Jesus the first time or not. This verse is John 11:2
John 11:2
(It was that Mary which anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.)
This verse unfortunately written by John and we do not know whether he is referring to the first time it was done, early in the ministry of Jesus or to the only one John records in the next chapter. Also KJV puts John 11:2 in brackets, implying that it was in some manuscripts but not in others.
Either way John 11:2 is not specific enough to inform the reader whether it is referring to which of the two anointing of Jesus feet it is referring to, since both happened in the past tense for at the time this statement was recorded.
If the John 11:2 is authentic and refers to the first anointing then they are two different events but involving the same Mary of Bethany, the sister of Martha and Lazarus. The first happens in the house of Simon the Pharisee near Galilee and the other at the house of Simon the leper in Bethany where Martha, Mary and Lazarus were hosting a dinner for Jesus.
If John 11:2 is a scribal addition or refers to the second anointing, then they are again two different incidents but possibly involving two different women.
There is no scripture connecting the anointing of Jesus feet with Mary of Magdalene but there is circumstantial evidence since the first incident occurred in North Israel and Magdalene is in North Israel. Mary of Magdalene was with Jesus around that same time and place but so were many other women. It could be that Mary of Bethany went to Magdalene away from her native place and earned money as a prostitute and then was forgiven by Jesus and returned to Bethany but that involves adding out own story to the Gospel which is not the right thing to do.
As far as we are able to confidently say from the scripture is this:
Jesus feet was anointed twice. First by a sinner (possibly Mary of Bethany - John 11:2) and second time definitely by Mary of Bethany.
- The first incident involves a sinful woman in north Israel is not named (Magdalene is in North Israel). It could be any woman that Luke did not want to name and shame but kept the identity a secret probably because that woman or her children were still alive.
- The second incident occurred in South Israel and we can say that it was Mary, the sister of Martha. This was towards the end of Jesus ministry in flesh body.
There is one verse which could have shown whether Mary of Bethany, the sister of Lazarus, was the one who anointed the feet of Jesus the first time or not. This verse is John 11:2
John 11:2
(It was that Mary which anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.)
This verse unfortunately written by John and we do not know whether he is referring to the first time it was done, early in the ministry of Jesus or to the only one John records in the next chapter. Also KJV puts John 11:2 in brackets, implying that it was in some manuscripts but not in others.
Either way John 11:2 is not specific enough to inform the reader whether it is referring to which of the two anointing of Jesus feet it is referring to, since both happened in the past tense for at the time this statement was recorded.
If the John 11:2 is authentic and refers to the first anointing then they are two different events but involving the same Mary of Bethany, the sister of Martha and Lazarus. The first happens in the house of Simon the Pharisee near Galilee and the other at the house of Simon the leper in Bethany where Martha, Mary and Lazarus were hosting a dinner for Jesus.
If John 11:2 is a scribal addition or refers to the second anointing, then they are again two different incidents but possibly involving two different women.
There is no scripture connecting the anointing of Jesus feet with Mary of Magdalene but there is circumstantial evidence since the first incident occurred in North Israel and Magdalene is in North Israel. Mary of Magdalene was with Jesus around that same time and place but so were many other women. It could be that Mary of Bethany went to Magdalene away from her native place and earned money as a prostitute and then was forgiven by Jesus and returned to Bethany but that involves adding out own story to the Gospel which is not the right thing to do.
As far as we are able to confidently say from the scripture is this:
Jesus feet was anointed twice. First by a sinner (possibly Mary of Bethany - John 11:2) and second time definitely by Mary of Bethany.