Reference: Mary, Sister of Lazarus and Martha
Morish
The three are spoken of as those whom Jesus loved. They resided at Bethany, where they were privileged to welcome the Lord Jesus as a guest. On one of these visits Mary took her place at the feet of the Lord, feasting upon the words that fell from His lips. Martha wanted her help, but the Lord declared that one thing was needful, and Mary had chosen that good part, which should not be taken away from her. Lu 10:38-42. The heart of Mary was riven at the death of Lazarus. Word had been sent to the Lord that he was sick, and yet He had not come. When Jesus arrived Mary exclaimed, as Martha had done previously, "Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died:" but Mary said it at the feet of the Lord. Jesus wept, and Mary thus learned His sympathy, and had a fresh taste of the good part which death could not take from her. To Martha Jesus said that she should have her brother back, and should see the power of death broken by the One who was "the resurrection and the life;" but Mary had Himself. Joh 11:1-44.
Afterwards, when they made the Lord a supper, a few days before He suffered, Mary, in full appreciation of her Lord, anointed His head and His feet with costly ointment. Judas and others were indignant at what they called 'waste,' but the Lord defended Mary's action, and said He was being anointed for His burial: this act should be told of her in the whole world. Nothing was too costly to be spent upon such a Lord. Joh 12:1-8: cf. Mt 26:6-13; Mr 14:3-9. It should be noted that this is not the same event as that recorded in Lu 7:36-50.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
Now when Jesus was at Bethany [Note: This was a small village less than two miles east of Jerusalem], in the house of Simon, the man [who probably had been healed] of an infectious skin disease, a woman with an alabaster [i.e., stone] jar of very expensive perfume came to Him and poured it on His head as He reclined at the dinner table. [Note: See Matt. 23:6] read more. But when His disciples saw this they were very upset and said, "What is the reason for such waste? For this perfume could have been sold for a large sum of money and given to poor people." But Jesus was aware [of what they were up to], so said, "Why are you bothering this woman? For she has done a kind deed to me. You will always have poor people with you, but you will not always have me. For in the act of pouring this perfume on my body she was preparing it for my burial. Truly I tell you, wherever this Gospel [message] is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done [for me] will [also] be told about, as a memorial of her [kindness to me]."
And while Jesus was in Bethany [Note: This was a small village fewer than two miles east of Jerusalem], sitting at the dinner table in the house of Simon, the man with an infectious skin disease [Note: This man had probably been healed by now], a woman with an alabaster [i.e., stone] jar of very expensive perfume came to Him, broke the jar and poured the perfume on His head. But some [of the disciples. See Matt. 26:8] were upset among themselves, saying, "What is the reason for wasting this perfume? read more. It might have been sold for a large sum of money and the money given to poor people. [Note: The amount indicated here was equivalent to days of a farm laborer's pay, or over $20,000 in 1994]. And they complained about her [doing this]. But Jesus said, "Let her alone. Why are you bothering this woman? For she has done a kind deed to me. You will always have poor people with you, and you can do something good for them whenever you want to, but you will not always have me with you. She has done what she could. She has applied this aromatic oil to my body in anticipation of my burial. For truly I tell you, wherever the Gospel message will be preached throughout the whole world, what this woman has done [for me] will [also] be told about as a memorial of her [kindness to me]."
Then one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have a meal with him. So, He went to the Pharisee's house and reclined at the [dinner] table. [Note: Matt. 23:6]. And when a sinful woman from the town learned that He was having dinner at the Pharisee's house, she brought an alabaster [i.e., stone] jar of liquid perfume, read more. and stood behind Jesus, at His feet, crying. She began wetting His feet with her tears and wiping them dry with the hair of her head. Then she kissed His feet and poured the perfume on them. Now when the Pharisee who had invited Jesus saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would have known who touched him and what kind of a woman she was --- a sinner." Then Jesus said to him, "Simon [See verse 43], I have something to say to you." And he replied, "Teacher, [go ahead and] say it." [Jesus then gave this parable]: A certain moneylender had two men who owed him money; one owed him five hundred coins [Note: The total amount was days of a farm laborer's pay, or about $35,000 in 1994], and the other man [owed him] fifty coins [Note: About $3,500 in 1994]. When these two men did not have [the money] to repay him, the moneylender canceled [the debts of] both of them. Now which of them will love him more?" Simon answered, "The one who had the largest debt canceled, I suppose." Jesus said to him, "You are right." Then Jesus turned to the woman [who had just poured the perfume on Him] and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I came into your house and you did not give me any water for [washing] my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them dry with her hair. You did not give me a kiss [of greeting], but from the time I came in [to your house] she has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not pour [aromatic] oil on my head, but she poured perfume on my feet. For this reason, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven, for she has loved much. [Note: This suggests that her forgiveness was the result of her loving, but the point Jesus makes better fits the idea that her forgiveness produced love]. But the person who is forgiven of little [i.e., of only a few sins], loves [only] a little bit." Then Jesus said to the woman, "Your sins are forgiven." And those who were reclining at the [dinner] table with Him began saying among themselves, "Who is this person who can even forgive sins?" Then Jesus said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you [i.e., from condemnation]. Go [away] in peace."
Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a certain village [i.e., Bethany. See John 11:1], and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. And she had a sister named Mary who was also sitting at the Lord's feet, listening to what He said. read more. But Martha was preoccupied with all the preparations [i.e., for entertaining her beloved guest] and came up to Jesus and said, "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Ask her to help me." But the Lord answered her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about [so] many things. But only one thing is [really] needful. For Mary has made the better choice, which will not be taken away from her."
Now a certain man named Lazarus, from Bethany, became sick. Bethany was the town where Mary and her sister Martha lived. [See 11:18]. This was the Mary who had poured the perfume on the Lord and wiped His feet with her hair [See Matt. 26:6-13], whose brother Lazarus was sick. read more. So, the sisters sent [someone] to Him, saying, "Look, Lord, the person you love [i.e., your dear friend, Lazarus] is sick." But when Jesus heard this, He said, "This illness will not result in [his] death, but was intended to bring honor to God, so that the Son of God would be honored by it." Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister [Mary] and [her brother] Lazarus. So, when He heard that Lazarus was sick, He stayed where He was [i.e., on the east side of the Jordan River. See 10:40] for two [more] days. Then, after this, He said to His disciples, "Let us go [back] to Judea again." The disciples replied to Him, "The Jews [there] have just been trying to stone you, and you are going back again?" Jesus answered, "Are there not twelve hours in a day? [i.e., hours of daylight]. If a person walks during daylight, he will not stumble because he can see [by] the sun's light. But if he walks at night he [might] stumble, because there is no light [to see by]. [Note: These words have a figurative meaning as Jesus is speaking about His mission in life]. After saying these things He said to His disciples, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going to wake him up." But the disciples said to Him, "Lord, if he is [only] asleep, he will get well." Now Jesus had been talking about Lazarus' death, but the disciples thought He was referring to normal sleep. So, Jesus said plainly, "Lazarus is dead.
miles northeast of Jerusalem, near Samaria]. And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there [when he died], so that [now] you will believe [i.e., when you see him miraculously raised up]. But let us go to him [now]." read more. Then Thomas, which means, "The Twin," said to his fellow disciples, "Let us go too, so we can die with Him." [i.e., by being stoned to death with Jesus. See 11:8]. So, when Jesus arrived, He found out that Lazarus had already been in his grave [i.e., a cave-like tomb] for four days. Now Bethany was close to Jerusalem, [being] fewer than two miles away, and many of Martha and Mary's Jewish friends had come to comfort them over [the loss of] their brother. So, when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went [out to the edge of town. See verse 30] to meet Him, but Mary [just] sat at home [i.e., probably grief-stricken]. Then Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if [only] you had been here, my brother would not have died. And I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask Him for." Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again [from the dead]." Martha replied to Him, "I know that he will rise again at the resurrection on the last day [i.e., the judgment day]." Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life; the person who believes in me will live on, even though he dies [physically]. And whoever goes on living and believing in me, will never die [spiritually]. Do you believe this?" Martha answered Him, "Yes, Lord, I have [already] believed that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world." After saying this, she left and called her sister Mary and said to her privately, "The Teacher is here and is asking for you." And when Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to Jesus. (Now Jesus had not yet arrived in town, but was still at the place where Martha had met Him [i.e., probably on the road near the edge of town]). When Martha's Jewish friends, who had been comforting her at her house, saw Mary getting up quickly and leaving, they followed her, thinking she was going to the grave site to mourn. So, when Mary arrived at where Jesus was and saw Him, she fell down at His feet and said, "Lord, if [only] you had been here, my brother would not have died." When Jesus saw her and her Jewish friends, who had come with her, crying, He felt distressed in His spirit and [visibly] troubled [Note: This last word means to shake with emotion, and seems to have been caused by His deep sympathy for these grieving people], and said, "Where have they laid his body?" They answered Him, "Lord, come and see." Jesus shed tears. [Some of] the Jewish friends then said, "Look how [much] he loved him!" [See verse 3]. But others of them said, "Could not this man, who restored sight to a blind person, have kept Lazarus from dying?" So, Jesus again felt distressed within Himself [as He] went to the grave site, which was a cave with a stone [slab] across its entrance. Jesus said, "You people, take the stone away." [But] Martha, the dead man's sister, said to Jesus, "Lord, his body is decomposing by now, for he has been dead four days." Jesus replied to her, "Did I not tell you that you would see God's glory [i.e., a miraculous resurrection. See verses 22-27] if you believed?" So, they removed the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, "Father, thank you for hearing me. [Note: Jesus had already prayed for and been assured of Lazarus' resurrection]. I know that you always hear me, but I said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so they would believe that you sent me." And after He had said this, He called out in a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!" [Immediately] the man who had died came out [of the cave] with his hands and feet [still] wrapped in bandages, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to his Jewish friends, "Unwrap him and let him go."
So, six days before the Passover Festival [began], Jesus went to Bethany, where Lazarus lived. He was the man Jesus [had] raised from the dead. There Mary and Martha prepared a meal for Jesus. Martha served it while Lazarus was among those who reclined at the table with Him. [Note: See Matt. 23:6]. read more. Then Mary took about a pint of expensive, aromatic perfume; [it was] genuine nard [Note: This was a sweet-smelling herb] and poured [some of] it on Jesus' feet and wiped them with her hair. The [whole] house was filled with the fragrant scent of the perfume. But one of Jesus' disciples named Judas Iscariot, who later turned Him over [i.e., to the Jewish authorities], said, "Why was this perfume not sold for a large sum of money [Note: The amount here was equivalent to three hundred days of a farm laborer's pay, or over $20,000 in 1994] and [then] the money given to poor people?" Now he did not say this because he cared about poor people, but because he was in charge of the money bag, and being a thief, he used to steal from it. So, Jesus said, "Leave her alone. Let her keep [the rest of] it for [use on] the day of my burial. For you will always have poor people among you, but you will not always have me."