11-27-2021, 05:49 PM
Luke offers no context for this next story. However, we know that Jesus has been limiting His ministry to Galilee, so this is somewhere in that province. Luke uses a word to designate a town big enough to have proper walls around it. It was big enough for a wealthy Pharisee and at least one prostitute, but small enough that they knew who each other was.
Jesus had just raised someone from death and reaffirmed His affiliation with John the Baptist. Given the details in the story, it is likely the Pharisee expected to ask Jesus about His miracles and teaching, with enough of his kind there to make Jesus the target of some inquiry. Jesus was quite willing to face this kind of thing. They reclined around the table in typical Hebrew fashion.
Meanwhile, the prostitute had no doubt heard Jesus' teaching and saw His miracles, too, but in her mind it signaled that this was her sole opportunity to repent to someone who might accept her, since He was known to be gentle with other social outcasts. In the bigger, fancier homes in those days, there would be a rather fancy formal dining room. There would be a central raised platform for the table and cushions. Around the outside edges of this room was likely a series of curtains, and the servers would use this space to pass bringing food and drink, and wait for some signal to bring more when required. Meanwhile, the public could also hang out in this shaded space to gawk at the big shots.
So it's no surprise this scorned woman could slip into this area and come to Jesus' feet. She brought with her a fancy sealed container filled with expensive ointment, most likely a gift from one of her clients. They were relatively small, thin and elegant, and the neck was slender; one snapped it off to open. She engaged in a shameless ritual of worship. She wept enough to wash His feet and wipe them with her hair. She then kissed and anointed them with this fancy ointment that would have filled the whole place with a strong perfumed scent.
The host thought to himself how embarrassing this was, just having this woman in his house. This Jesus must not be much of a prophet if He didn't know what kind of creature she was. By his strict rules, Jesus should not have permitted her to even get close to Him.
Jesus was supposed to be the guest of honor, so for Him to speak up was permitted, especially to address His host. Usually it would have been a toast or something similar. Still, Jesus acted as if He had to get permission to speak in the company of His elders. So the host called Him "rabbi" and encouraged Him. Jesus proposed a test case. This is common among rabbis to get at some analysis, to test someone or to solicit a wise ruling on something. Treating each other as judges was a common rabbinical protocol.
Jesus told of a certain investor who had two debtors that had come to him seeking terms of bankruptcy. One owed 500 denarii (roughly two year's wages for a common laborer), and the other only a tenth of that. This creditor followed the higher moral code of Moses and forgave them both. This was admirable in polite company, of course. Then Jesus asked which of the two debtors would feel more obliged to the creditor? The host didn't have to think long; it was obvious. The one who owed the most would feel the strongest affection. Good answer.
Then Jesus lowered the boom. This host invited Jesus on the pretense of being the guest of honor. Yet he never even bothered with the most basic courtesies. There was no water provided so Jesus could wash His own feet, much less a slave to handle it. So this woman did the Pharisee a favor by handling this task with her tears and her hair. There was no ritual greeting at the doorway when Jesus showed up, but this woman had been kissing His feet since before she started washing them. Nor had the host given Jesus the courtesy of anointing Him with the common lightly scented oil to make sure His sweaty body didn't ruin anyone's appetite. Yet this woman extravagantly anointed His feet with something terribly expensive.
It's not like the woman was there mocking, proud of her sins. She was there worshiping because she knew her sins. She was honestly seeking forgiveness, and she got it. For all the fake love she had dished out in her life so far, this was the one time she was genuinely, passionately devoted to a worthy man, paying a lot for the privilege of worshiping at His feet. So He turned and said to her that her sins were forgiven. We can be sure she restrained herself from doing a happy dance right there.
Left unsaid was how little affection the Pharisee host had for Jesus. He felt himself to be in a position to judge Jesus, quite unlike this woman. And this was also his attitude toward the Father, believing as Pharisees did that God owed them. So the other guests wondered to themselves just who this strange rabbi was to think He had the authority to forgive sins. Well, it was a rabbi who healed, delivered from demons, and could raise the dead. Could any of them, or all of them together, do any of that?
So He again addressed the woman and told her that her humble commitment to seeking God's favor had redeemed her. This is what the Father seeks from all. He told her to go in shalom, implying that she needed to stay in it by that same faith.
Jesus had just raised someone from death and reaffirmed His affiliation with John the Baptist. Given the details in the story, it is likely the Pharisee expected to ask Jesus about His miracles and teaching, with enough of his kind there to make Jesus the target of some inquiry. Jesus was quite willing to face this kind of thing. They reclined around the table in typical Hebrew fashion.
Meanwhile, the prostitute had no doubt heard Jesus' teaching and saw His miracles, too, but in her mind it signaled that this was her sole opportunity to repent to someone who might accept her, since He was known to be gentle with other social outcasts. In the bigger, fancier homes in those days, there would be a rather fancy formal dining room. There would be a central raised platform for the table and cushions. Around the outside edges of this room was likely a series of curtains, and the servers would use this space to pass bringing food and drink, and wait for some signal to bring more when required. Meanwhile, the public could also hang out in this shaded space to gawk at the big shots.
So it's no surprise this scorned woman could slip into this area and come to Jesus' feet. She brought with her a fancy sealed container filled with expensive ointment, most likely a gift from one of her clients. They were relatively small, thin and elegant, and the neck was slender; one snapped it off to open. She engaged in a shameless ritual of worship. She wept enough to wash His feet and wipe them with her hair. She then kissed and anointed them with this fancy ointment that would have filled the whole place with a strong perfumed scent.
The host thought to himself how embarrassing this was, just having this woman in his house. This Jesus must not be much of a prophet if He didn't know what kind of creature she was. By his strict rules, Jesus should not have permitted her to even get close to Him.
Jesus was supposed to be the guest of honor, so for Him to speak up was permitted, especially to address His host. Usually it would have been a toast or something similar. Still, Jesus acted as if He had to get permission to speak in the company of His elders. So the host called Him "rabbi" and encouraged Him. Jesus proposed a test case. This is common among rabbis to get at some analysis, to test someone or to solicit a wise ruling on something. Treating each other as judges was a common rabbinical protocol.
Jesus told of a certain investor who had two debtors that had come to him seeking terms of bankruptcy. One owed 500 denarii (roughly two year's wages for a common laborer), and the other only a tenth of that. This creditor followed the higher moral code of Moses and forgave them both. This was admirable in polite company, of course. Then Jesus asked which of the two debtors would feel more obliged to the creditor? The host didn't have to think long; it was obvious. The one who owed the most would feel the strongest affection. Good answer.
Then Jesus lowered the boom. This host invited Jesus on the pretense of being the guest of honor. Yet he never even bothered with the most basic courtesies. There was no water provided so Jesus could wash His own feet, much less a slave to handle it. So this woman did the Pharisee a favor by handling this task with her tears and her hair. There was no ritual greeting at the doorway when Jesus showed up, but this woman had been kissing His feet since before she started washing them. Nor had the host given Jesus the courtesy of anointing Him with the common lightly scented oil to make sure His sweaty body didn't ruin anyone's appetite. Yet this woman extravagantly anointed His feet with something terribly expensive.
It's not like the woman was there mocking, proud of her sins. She was there worshiping because she knew her sins. She was honestly seeking forgiveness, and she got it. For all the fake love she had dished out in her life so far, this was the one time she was genuinely, passionately devoted to a worthy man, paying a lot for the privilege of worshiping at His feet. So He turned and said to her that her sins were forgiven. We can be sure she restrained herself from doing a happy dance right there.
Left unsaid was how little affection the Pharisee host had for Jesus. He felt himself to be in a position to judge Jesus, quite unlike this woman. And this was also his attitude toward the Father, believing as Pharisees did that God owed them. So the other guests wondered to themselves just who this strange rabbi was to think He had the authority to forgive sins. Well, it was a rabbi who healed, delivered from demons, and could raise the dead. Could any of them, or all of them together, do any of that?
So He again addressed the woman and told her that her humble commitment to seeking God's favor had redeemed her. This is what the Father seeks from all. He told her to go in shalom, implying that she needed to stay in it by that same faith.
