Hi everyone. Welcome back to the logical. Bible study podcast. Thanks again for tuning in today. We're doing an exegesis on John chapter 12. That's the passage. You'll hear at mass today, so let's jump straight into it. John chapter 12 verses 1 to 11 Six days before the Passover. Jesus went to Bethany where Lazarus was whom. He had raised from the dead, they gave a dinner for him there. Martha, waited on them and Lazarus was among those at table, Mary brought in a pound
of very costly. Ointment pure nard, and with it, anointed the feet of Jesus wiping them with her hair. The house was full of the scent of the ointment then Judas Iscariot one of his disciples, the man who was to betray him said why wasn't this ointment sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor. He said this not because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief, he was in charge of the common fund and used to help himself to the
contributions. So Jesus said, leave her alone. She had to keep this sent for the day of my burial. You have the poor with, you always, you will not always have me. Meanwhile, a large number of Jews heard that he was there and came not only account of Jesus, but also to see Lazarus whom he had raised from the dead. Then the chief priests decided to kill Lazarus as well.
Since it was on his account that many of the Jews were leaving them and believing in Jesus. So, what's the context of this passage while? Just before this, in John's gospel, the Sanhedrin have come together and they have plotted to kill Jesus. They've decided the time has come, they're going to kill Jesus.
When he comes into Jerusalem, Jesus has gone into Efrain and the rest of the Jews have gone up to Jerusalem to get ready for the Passover. So verse 1, it's six days before the Passover, we learn six days before the Passover. If we add it all up and we work out the timelines. Means that this particular event that we're talking about today happens on the Saturday evening before Jesus final week. So this is the day before Palm Sunday to be specific.
We think we can narrow down the date here. This is March 28, 33 ad Saturday night on March 28, 33 ad now. It's a bit confusing because in some years, you'll hear this reading after Palm Sunday, but it actually would have taken place on the night before Palm Sunday. We know that because the very next pass. Yeah. The very next passage in the Gospel of John is Jesus entering on Palm Sunday.
So verse 1, Jesus came to Bethany and that's very short walk from Jerusalem. It's just on the outskirts of Jerusalem, where Lazarus was whom Jesus had raised from the dead. So Jesus apparently spends bit of time with Mary Martha and Lazarus there, his good friends each night for the final week of his life. So in the final week of his life from this Saturday on words, Jesus does stuff in Jerusalem during the day but then he comes home to Bethany and stays with Mary Martha and Lazarus at
nighttime. That's the arrangement for the next few days. Verse 2. They gave her dinner for him there, so they're welcoming him to their area. Remember, they see Jesus close friends. And in particular, these people have always had faith in him and they believe him to be the Messiah. Now based on the mark, and Matthew account of this same story. It appears that this scene here actually, is not taking place in
their home. It's taking place in the house of Simon. The leper, who also lives in Bethany with Martha. Assisting. So what's actually going on here? Is there, not in Merriam Arthur's house there in, Simon the lepers house, but Martha is helping to prepare the meal. So Martha weights on them and she's Martha is often, you know, given a bad reputation. She is depicted as a Busybody.
But in this case, she's doing the normal custom that women would do in that culture, when they're hosting a dinner, she is preparing a meal and she's waiting on them. Lazarus was among those at table. So he's been recently raised from the dead and he's a close friend of Jesus. And obviously, he wants to thank Jesus and spend a bit of time with him. Verse 3. Mary, who's the other sister brought in a pound of very costly or internment?
So very costly orange mint. That's an understatement, we later. Learn that. What she's got here is worth three hundred. Denarii one denarii is one day's worth of wages.
So what she brings in is 300 days worth of wages in this special ointment, this is probably the most expensive thing that Mary Martha and Lazarus have and she's coming to use it. All right now and the substance it's in there is called Pure nard and that's actually a spice that was imported from From India, very expensive. Basically, it's usually used as anointing oil for bodies, just after they've died, they would anoint people with this
particular spice called nard. And she anointed the feet of Jesus. Now, it appears that this isn't, although people would wash their feet and the the hosts would wash the feet of the guests. It appears that that's not what she's doing here because John specifically uses the word anointing so it's not the normal washing of feet before dinner. This is a special kind of anointing that Mary chooses to do deliberately as all see why she does that shortly.
Now, according to Mark and Matthews version of this story, his head is also anointed at this particular point. Which would back up the theory that she's not just washing his feet as part of the normal custom, she's doing a special anointing here. She then wiped his feet with her hair. So Mary could have used a cloth or a towel to dry his feet, which would be the normal protocol but Mary uses herself. So this is indicating her deep desire to serve, Jesus as the Messiah and the King.
She personally wants to give herself and to serve him herself. So this is probably the same scene as the anointing and Mark 14, and Matthew 26, although, in that case, the woman isn't named, so it's the unnamed woman of Matthew 14. Sorry, Mark, 14, and Matthew 26. It's the same scene, but we don't want to confuse this scene with one in Luke. So in Luke chapter 7. So early in Jesus ministry, there's a scene at the house of Simon. The Pharisee, not Simon the
leper here. It's a different Simon. Simon the Pharisee You see in Luke chapter 7, there's a sinful woman who cries and wipes Jesus feet with her tears. That is not the same scene as this one. So it's a different woman in Luke chapter, 7 who cries on his feet. Just keep that in mind. So the house becomes full of the scent of the ointment. Why does John mentioned that? It seems like an insignificant
detail will firstly. It probably signifies Mary's overflowing generosity and also it's a word for fragrance. The word. That's used for fragrance or scent is usually used in reference to liturgical sacrifices. Offered to God. So, this whole house is becoming filled with kind of like a liturgical ointment. Perhaps it's supposed to signify that it's getting ready for Jesus, sacrifice to God, that he himself was going to do on the cross. So it's almost like a liturgical seen.
Perhaps also, Scholars note, this is a strong indication that an eyewitness, wrote those words because how else would they know about the the smell of the ointment. Verse for Judas, Iscariot the man who is to betray Jesus. So John here, mentions he's foreshadowing. The role that Judas is going to play in a couple of days. And he does that by highlighting Judas of selfishness his. So he's already setting up the kind of man, that Judas is his
quite selfish. We don't know a whole lot about Judas. He doesn't appear heaps in the gospels, but we do know from this particular scene that he's quite a selfish person who loves money. So, Judas speaks up. He says, why wasn't this ointment? Sold for three hundred denarii and then the money given to the poor, that's actually a fair question. For most people to ask in this situation. However, John tells us that the reason John asks is not actually out of concern for the poor,
it's for something else. Now in verse 6, we learn of this common fund that the disciples have so the disciples and Jesus being part of a traveling Ministry, they had a collective box or a bag that they had with all the donations, so it has money in it and Judas is in charge of this Collective money. The ministry would use this money to get supplies.
Followers and Disciples of Jesus could give donations to the common fund and then the disciples would spend it on food as required, so that they could keep doing Ministry. Basically, Judas is in charge of this common fund and John now tells us Judas said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, he was in charge of the common fund and used to help himself to the contributions.
So in other words, Judas wants them to have sold the ointment so that then they could get money. And then Judas himself, could steal the money and pretend that it had been given to the poor. So he's quite selfish. And as we know, it's giudices Love of Money that eventually leads him to betray Jesus because he accepts the bribe of money. And in exchange for betraying Jesus. So that's what Judas says. Let's sell and give it to the poor verse 7.
Jesus says, leave her alone. So Jesus Jesus does not agree with Judas. He says, Mary has in fact on the right thing. Jesus goes on she had to keep this send for the day of my burial. Now this phrase could mean a couple of different things. Most translations have it this way where she had to keep this sent for the day of my burial. And in that case, Kees de is in the sense of General time. So Jesus isn't saying I'm dying today but he's saying it's around about the time of my
death. So in that case, apparently both Jesus and Mary perceived that Jesus was to die soon and what Mary is doing here is she is anointing him in advance of his death. She knows his death is coming. So she's anointing him with this burial oil in preparation for his death later on after Jesus does die. Brings a huge amount of similar ointment to anoint Jesus after his death and that's in 19:39. But other translations have this verse, as let her keep this for the day of my burial.
So that would be like a future tense. And in that case, she's not trying to anoint him right now in this scene. But rather she's just washing his feet in the normal way that's Fit For A King. Like she's instead of washing his feet with water. She's washing his feet with oil, that's possible. But I think the way most translations have it as she had to keep this sent for the day of my burial as in.
She is actually anointing him. In this case, that makes more sense of the language John users. And also the fact that Matthew and Mark say his head was anointed at this point. It does suggest that he's at Intel. She is intending to anoint him in this scene. Verse 8, Jesus goes on, you have the poor with you always, but you will not always have me. Some are found that to be quite a disturbing phrase, Jesus. You will always have the poor with you.
In fact that's a quote from Deuteronomy 15. So it's the teaching of God in the Old Testament as well. Deuteronomy 15:11 says the land will never lack for needy persons So what is Jesus saying here? While he certainly not discouraging giving money to the poor because elsewhere He commands that his disciples do that. So here he's just making a comparison. He's saying that there will always be poor in the land who need money. But on the other hand Jesus will only be with them a short time
not forever. So Jesus is saying that he is much more precious and important than everything else. So it's right for the disciples attention to be focused on him. For the time being while he's still with him because he is the most important thing and spending time with him is the most important thing. And that's fairly similar to
something else. Jesus have said in this same house of, well, not necessarily in this house because they're not in mirror in Martha's house, but something else that he is said to Mary, and Martha in Bethany. Remember when Jesus says, Martha is busy about many things but Mary has chosen the better part by listening at the feet of her
master. So it's a Similar kind of teaching the most important thing we can do amongst all the good things we can do. The most important thing is spending time and attention on Jesus. The focus needs to be on Jesus himself, not other things. So that's the end of that same verse nine. Meanwhile, a large number of Jews and the Jews here is referring to the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem who have already played that. They're going to kill him.
They heard that he was there and came not only account, not only on account of Jesus, but also to see Lazarus whom he had raised from the dead. So apparently a whole lot of the Jewish leaders from Jerusalem. Now, make the short trip over to Bethenny because Jesus isn't appearing in Jerusalem in. Anymore. But they hear that he's in Bethany. So they pretend that the going there to hear and learn from Jesus, that's their pretense.
But in fact, they've already decided that they have rejected him and that they're going to kill him. Now they're here to to see him. And they're also to see Lazarus because they've worked out that Lazarus might be a threat to them as well. Verse 10, the chief, priests decide to kill Lazarus, as well. Now, that's pretty, ironic since Lazarus has already been killed once. Well, he, he died once shortly before this Now, what's going on here? Why?
Well, why would the Jewish leaders want to kill Lazarus? If they think that he has been raised from the dead? Well, firstly, it's possible that they do believe he's been raised from the dead and in that case they just don't like what the consequences are. They don't like, what it's resulted in, but it's more likely that they just don't believe that. He's been resurrected from the
dead at all. As far as we know, the Jewish leaders never actually got to kill Lazarus and that's a good thing but they certainly planning to here and John now tells us why they want to kill Lazarus. Since it was on his account that many of the Jews were leaving them and believing in Jesus. So many of the common Jewish people in Jerusalem were listening to Jesus, and they're worried that, that could lead to a Messianic revolt.
And then, the Romans would come in and Destroy Jerusalem and the Jewish leaders don't want that. And they've worked Doubt that one of the main reasons people are turning to Jesus and starting this big Groundswell of Messianic expectations. Is because of the miracle, he did with Lazarus, so they figured that the best way to solve this problem is to get Lazarus out of the picture, get him to stop spreading the word about Jesus, so that lets kill Lazarus.
That's their plan. Notice, we also have a clear statement that not only of the Jews following Jesus, but they're also leaving the Jewish leaders. John chapter, Verse 10. He says it was on the account of Lazarus that many of the Jews were leaving them and believing in Jesus. So the Jewish leaders are losing followers as a result of Jesus. And that's yet another reason why they want Jesus and Lazarus out of the picture.
That's the end of the passage. So, that's the scene in the house of Bethany where Jesus is Anointed by Mary. Now, the very next thing that happens Jesus stays in Bethany overnight. And then the next time we hear from Jesus in, John, it's the triumphal entry. The next day, it's Palm Sunday and Jesus comes into Jerusalem. Now, where do we find this? In the catechism of the Catholic church. Or in other words, how does the Catholic Church understand this passage?
And how does it develop, theology? We only have one reference to it and that's in paragraph 2449. So that's in the section about how Christians should have a love for the poor. And you can probably predict what part of the passage that's going to focus on.
So I'll read out this entire paragraph because it takes a really interesting and makes a really interesting application of what Jesus says about Paul. All people in John, chapter 12 here, beginning with the Old Testament, all kinds of juridical measures such as the Jubilee year of forgiveness, of deaths, prohibition of loans, at interest and the keeping of collateral the obligation to tithe the daily payment of the day. Laborer the right tickling Vines
and Fields all answer. The exaltation of Deuteronomy for the poor will never cease out of the land. Therefore I command. You you shall open wide your hand to your brother. To the needy and to the poor in the land. Jesus makes these words his own quote the poor you will always have with you but you do not always have me unquote in so do in so doing he does not soften the vehemence of the former oracle's against buying the poor for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals.
But rather invites us to recognize his own presence in the poor who are his brethren. When her mother approached her for caring for the poor and the sick at home st. Rose of Lima said to her. When we serve the poor and the sick, we serve Jesus, we must not fail to help our neighbors because in them, we serve Jesus. So the Catholic Church tells us that in a sense when Jesus, he is says, you will not always have the poor, but you will always have me.
He is in a sense identifying himself with the poor, so that whenever we serve the poor, we Actually are serving Jesus as well. So that's a really interesting connection from the passage. So, I'll put that full catechism reference in the show notes as well. If you're enjoying this podcast, please share it around.
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