Mark 14:3
And while he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he was reclining at table, a woman came with an alabaster flask of ointment of pure nard, very costly, and she broke the flask and poured it over his head.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This page isn't yet indexed by search engines.
The crucial detail often missed is how the woman broke the alabaster flask. This wasn't just pouring; it signified an act of complete and irreversible surrender, destroying the vessel to release every last drop of the precious, costly perfume, leaving nothing for herself.
The chief priests and scribes are plotting to arrest and kill Jesus, but they plan to wait until after the Passover festival to avoid public outcry. Meanwhile, Jesus is at a dinner in Bethany hosted by Simon the leper, where Mary, Lazarus's sister, anoints Jesus' head with a very expensive perfume, an act that sparks anger and confusion among some of Jesus' disciples.
Imagine pouring out something incredibly valuable, not for display, but for one person. This woman’s act was exactly that – a profound expression of love that went beyond mere economics.
The sheer value of the ointment is emphasized: "very precious." Commentators estimate it was worth a year's wages for a laborer! Yet, this woman didn't hesitate. She broke the alabaster flask, signifying that the entire contents were meant for Jesus, with nothing held back.
This wasn't just a gift; it was a sacrifice. The disciples saw it as a 'waste,' but Jesus saw it as a 'good work.'
The True Measure of Value
Jesus declared this woman's act was 'beforehand for the burying.' This wasn't just a spontaneous act of adoration; it was divinely appointed.
The disciples were indignant, seeing the ointment as a waste that could have helped the poor. But Jesus countered with a profound revelation: this act was not about waste, but about witness. He declared that she had 'done what she could' and had 'anointed my body beforehand for the burying.'
Foreshadowing and Remembrance
Understand the original words
lepros · Greek Noun/Adjective
A term for a leper or one who was formerly afflicted with a serious skin disease, denoting someone ritually unclean according to the Mosaic Law.
nardos · Greek Noun
A fragrant, expensive aromatic oil, often imported from India, used in antiquity for perfumery, medicine, and anointing bodies for burial.
This intimate act of devotion by Mary, occurring just days before Jesus' crucifixion, highlights His impending death and burial. It also reveals the stark contrast between selfless love and the plotting of His enemies, who are focused on His demise.
c. AD 30, the Saturday before Palm Sunday— this verse
Mary anoints Jesus in Bethany
Jesus is at a dinner in Bethany, hosted by Simon the leper. Mary, the sister of Lazarus and Martha, anoints Jesus' head with expensive spikenard ointment, an act some disciples criticize as wasteful.
c. AD 30, two days before Passover
Jewish leaders plot Jesus' death
The chief priests and scribes meet and solidify their plan to arrest and kill Jesus, but decide to avoid doing so during the Passover festival to prevent public unrest.
c. AD 30, early Passover week
Jesus enters Jerusalem triumphantly
Jesus makes His triumphal entry into Jerusalem, drawing large crowds who hail Him as king, which heightens the anxiety of the religious leaders.
c. AD 30, shortly before Passover
Judas agrees to betray Jesus
Judas Iscariot, one of Jesus' disciples, makes a pact with the chief priests to betray Jesus for a sum of money, likely motivated by greed.
This passage identifies the woman as Mary, sister of Lazarus and Martha, and highlights the immense value of the ointment and her action of anointing Jesus' feet.
Matthew 26:7This parallel account emphasizes the disciples' indignant reaction to the perceived waste and Jesus' defense of the woman's action as a beautiful, preparatory act.
Exodus 30:22-33This Old Testament passage details the sacred anointing oil used for consecrating priests and holy objects, showing the deep significance of anointing in Israel's worship.
1 Samuel 16:1This passage shows Samuel anointing David as king, illustrating the practice of anointing as a sign of divine appointment and God's choosing.
John 11:2This verse names Mary as the one who anointed the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped his feet with her hair, connecting this event to the raising of her brother Lazarus.
calvinMark 14:1-9: "After two days was the feast of the passover, and of unleavened bread: and the chief priests and the scribes sought how they might take him by craft, and put him to death."
- And it happened when Jesus had finished all these discourses, he said to his disciples, 2. You know that after two days is the passover; and the Son of man is betrayed to be crucified. 3. Then were assembled the chief priests, and scribes, and elders of the people, in the palace of the high priest, who was c…
meyerMark 14:3: "And being in Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he sat at meat, there came a woman having an alabaster box of ointment of spikenard very precious; and she brake the box, and poured it on his head."
Mark 14:3-9 .[160] See on Matthew 26:6-13 . Comp. John 12:1-8 , who also has the peculiar expression πιστικῆς , either directly from Mark, or from the form of tradition from which Mark also adopted it. Luke has at Mark 7:36 ff. a history of an anointing, but a different one. μύρο…
The crucial detail often missed is how the woman broke the alabaster flask. This wasn't just pouring; it signified an act of complete and irreversible surrender, destroying the vessel to release every last drop of the precious, costly perfume, leaving nothing for herself.
The chief priests and scribes are plotting to arrest and kill Jesus, but they plan to wait until after the Passover festival to avoid public outcry. Meanwhile, Jesus is at a dinner in Bethany hosted by Simon the leper, where Mary, Lazarus's sister, anoints Jesus' head with a very expensive perfume, an act that sparks anger and confusion among some of Jesus' disciples.
The chief priests and scribes are plotting to arrest and kill Jesus, but they plan to wait until after the Passover festival to avoid public outcry. Meanwhile, Jesus is at a dinner in Bethany hosted by Simon the leper, where Mary, Lazarus's sister, anoints Jesus' head with a very expensive perfume, an act that sparks anger and confusion among some of Jesus' disciples.
Get the original Greek and Hebrew, verse-by-verse context, and related passages inside the app.
Ask a follow-up
Ask Sola things like:
Live chat about Mark 14:3 is available in the Sola app.
"And while he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he was reclining at table, a woman came with an alabaster flask of ointment of pure nard, very costly, and she broke the flask and poured it over his head." — The crucial detail often missed is how the woman broke the alabaster flask. This wasn't just pouring; it signified an act of complete and irreversible surrender, destroying the vessel to release ev…
