The Anointing by a Woman in Bethany (Matthew 26:1–16)

[Stephan Choe]

September 10, 2026

Key Verses 10–13:     “Aware of this, Jesus said to them, ‘Why are you troubling the woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me. When she poured this oil on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial. Truly I tell you, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.’”

 In chapters 26 through 28, the Gospel of Matthew recounts the arrest, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus. The anointing of Jesus, the celebration of the Last Supper, and the prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane took place shortly before his arrest.

Today, we consider the anointing by a woman from Bethany and the betrayal by Judas. We will reflect on whom we wish to resemble: the woman from Bethany or Judas Iscariot.

1. The Plot of the High Priests and Elders (1–5)

After Jesus had finished speaking, he said to his disciples, “You know that the Passover takes place in two days, and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified” (2).

Jesus states that he will be killed on the cross on Good Friday. He will be buried and rise from the dead on Easter Sunday.

I will briefly describe the origin of the Israelite Passover. The Israelites left Egypt in 1445 BC, having previously celebrated the Passover on the 14th of Nisan—according to the Jewish lunar calendar. Nisan was the first month of the year and corresponds roughly to the month of April in the modern calendar. It was God’s will that Christ should die as the true Passover Lamb at the time of the Passover festival.

The high priests and the elders gather at the house of the High Priest, Joseph Caiaphas, and deliberate on how they might arrest and kill Jesus.

In earlier times, the office of High Priest was hereditary and held for life. When Palestine became part of the Roman province of Syria, high priests changed in rapid succession, as the Romans appointed and deposed them at will. Consequently, between 37 BC and AD 67 (prior to the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple), there were no fewer than 28 high priests. On average, a high priest held office for only four years. Caiaphas, however, managed his office so skillfully that he remained High Priest for 18 years (from AD 18 to 36).

The number of Jews participating in the Passover festival was estimated at approximately 2.75 million (<The Jewish War> 6.9.3). During the major Jewish festivals, the Romans routinely stationed troops in Jerusalem to suppress potential unrest. Arresting Jesus on a holy day could have sparked a popular uprising; in such an event, Caiaphas would almost certainly have been removed from office. For this reason, Caiaphas argued against arresting and crucifying Jesus during these festivals (5).

Man proposes, but God disposes! Even though it was not Caiaphas’s intention, God had ordained that Jesus should die and be buried during those days. No one can thwart God’s plan. It is God’s will that Jesus die for the sins of humanity as the true Passover Lamb and rise from the dead.

We know the story of the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt. At that time, the Israelites were slaves in Egypt. Although God had struck the Egyptians with nine different plagues, Pharaoh refused to set the Israelites free. Consequently, God instructed the Israelites to smear the blood of a lamb on their doorposts. God sent out His angel to kill all the firstborn. When the angel saw the blood on the Israelites’ doorposts, he spared them. However, since the Egyptians had not smeared blood on their doorposts, the angel killed all the firstborn of the Egyptians. Pharaoh panicked and immediately allowed the Israelites to leave Egypt. To commemorate this deliverance, the Israelites celebrated the Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month of the year—the day of the full moon according to the Jewish lunar calendar. Jesus Christ came to become the true Passover Lamb and to free all people from the curse of sin.

In the Old Testament, animal sacrifice played a central role in the relationship between the holy God and humanity; the sacrificial animal had to be slaughtered and its blood sprinkled to secure atonement for man, for without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness (Hebrews 9:22).

That is why the Apostle Peter says, "You know that you were not redeemed with perishable silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but that we have been redeemed with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish or spot" (1 Peter 1:19).

We have all sinned and deserve God’s judgment. Therefore, whoever wishes to experience the forgiveness of sins and salvation from the judgment of wrath must believe in the blood of Christ shed for him. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ has inwardly sprinkled us with His blood (1 Peter 1:2).

In this way, all our sins are washed away by the blood of Christ. However, for those who do not accept this grace, there is no possibility of forgiveness. That is why the Apostle Peter says in Acts 4:12: "Salvation is found in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved."

2. The Anointing at Bethany (6–13)

While Jesus was a guest in Bethany at the home of a leper named Simon, a woman approached Him with a jar full of costly ointment and poured it over His head as He sat at the table. When the disciples saw this, they were indignant. Both Mark and John report that the disciples said the perfume could have been sold for more than three hundred silver denarii (Mark 14:5; John 12:5). For this nard oil was a highly prized oil imported from India; It was worth as much as a day laborer’s entire annual income. Such was the precious gift this woman bestowed upon Jesus.

From this story, we realize that the human standard for valuing things is not always the right one. The voice of reason would say, "What a waste!" From a human perspective, that is undoubtedly true. Yet, worlds lie between the economics of human reason and the economics of love. While reason follows the dictates of the mind, love follows the dictates of the heart.

When I was about ten years old, my brother fell in love with the miller’s eldest daughter in our village. In those days, it was rare for a village boy to fall in love with a girl and marry her. Nevertheless, my brother helped the miller with his work day and night—without pay, of course. I admired his devotion to the neighbor’s family at the time. Eventually, he was able to marry the miller’s daughter.

Those who truly love do not calculate. They do not consciously consider the least amount they can give without appearing unreasonable to the beloved. Those who truly love have but one desire: to give everything they can. And even then, they feel it is not enough. Anyone who thinks it suffices to give only what seems appropriate for Christ and His Church is still far from loving Jesus with all their heart.

The disciples saw the woman pour her nard oil over Jesus’ head as He reclined at the table. Then the disciples said, "Why this waste? It could have been sold for a high price and the money given to the poor."

How does Jesus answer His disciples? He says to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? She has done a good deed for me. For you always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me. By pouring the oil on my body, she has done this for my burial. Truly, I say to you: Wherever this gospel is proclaimed throughout the whole world, what she has done will also be told—in memory of her” (10–13).

We do not know whether the woman grasped that Jesus was to die for the sins of humanity. Yet in her anointing, Jesus recognizes the loving hand of God and says: "She has poured the oil on my body for my burial!"

Jesus accepts the woman’s anointing as preparation for his burial and explicitly honors her deed. Furthermore, he declares, "Wherever this gospel is proclaimed throughout the whole world, what she has done will also be told—in memory of her" (13).

Reflecting on her anointing of Jesus allows us to speak about Jesus’ death—and about the high regard he held for this woman’s devotion.

First: Jesus dies as God’s sacrificial lamb for the sins of all people.

Why does Jesus not avoid death, even though he knows full well that the high priests intend to kill him? Should he not flee? No! He does not flee, for he desires to fulfill God’s will and die as the sacrificial lamb. God wills that Jesus die for the sins of humanity. He intends to sacrifice Jesus as His lamb for the sins of humanity, just as John the Baptist proclaimed at Jesus’ baptism, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1:29).

Jesus came to Jerusalem specifically for the Passover festival in order to die as God’s Passover lamb. When he sees the woman anointing him, he recognizes that God is using her to prepare him for his death and burial, and to anoint him for that purpose. For Jesus dies for our sins, is buried, and rises from the dead on the third day, as stated in 1 Corinthians 15:3–5, "For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve."

We are to grasp that Jesus died for our sins and rose from the dead. He is thus God’s sacrificial lamb—for me, for you, and for all people. It is unfathomable yet true that God loved us so much that He gave His Son, Jesus Christ, for our redemption. Through this great divine sacrifice, we are freed from the burden of all sin! And our hearts are deeply touched by God’s love. That is why we are filled with joy and gratitude.

Every person dies eventually, as the Bible says, "It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment" (Hebrews 9:27).

After physical death, therefore, everyone must answer before God’s judgment. Sadly, all people have sinned. If we were to stand before the divine judgment without Jesus, we would have no chance of being declared innocent. But now we have the wonderful opportunity to escape God’s judgment because Jesus Christ died for our guilt, was buried, and rose from the dead. Jesus has already taken God’s punishment upon Himself in our place. Through faith in Jesus’ sacrificial death, we can therefore be redeemed from sin. In short: Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection serve our redemption. That is why Jesus says to us, “Truly, truly, I say to you: Whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life” (John 5:24).

On the basis of this Gospel, we can say, “Even though I walk through the dark valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff comfort me” (Ps 23:4).

And: “But in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am certain that neither death nor life, neither angels nor powers nor authorities, neither things present nor things to come, neither height nor depth nor any other creature can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom 8:37–38).

Secondly, Jesus highly values our devotion to the Gospel.

The woman pours her expensive nard oil over Jesus’ head. The disciples criticize her action as a waste. They are well aware of the need for humanitarian aid. Unfortunately, they do not recognize the value of devotion to the Gospel. They perceive only the visible world, not the invisible, spiritual realm.

Jesus then explains to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. For you always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me. In pouring this oil on my body, she has done it for my burial. Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her” (10–13).

Jesus explains to his disciples that her anointing signifies her devotion to his burial and to the Gospel. In doing so, he teaches us that devotion to the Gospel is of inestimable value. Of course, Jesus also highly values humanitarian aid for the needy. Yet, ultimately, he did not come as a “Bread King,” but as the Redeemer from the power of sin and death.

Jesus deeply appreciates the devotion shown by those who dedicate themselves to spreading the Gospel. Spreading the Gospel does not necessarily make us materially wealthy; anyone wishing to become truly affluent should go into business or acquire corporate shares. Of course, we are permitted to become wealthy, too.

However, through spreading the Gospel, we can become rich in a spiritual sense. We should realize that faith in the Gospel has made us spiritual millionaires, for we have received eternal life and the Kingdom of God. In Jesus Christ, we are truly rich! And that is not all: by sharing the Gospel, we can make others rich as well. It may be that some have devoted themselves to the Gospel and are therefore relatively poor. In the eyes of many, such people appear foolish. Yet our God holds them in high regard, for they are children of God and heirs of the Kingdom of God. Therefore, we should not lose heart, but rather work fearlessly for the Gospel.

3. The Betrayal by Judas (14–16)

Matthew introduces us to one of the Twelve for whom money is more important than heavenly treasures. Judas Iscariot goes to the chief priests and agrees to betray Jesus for thirty pieces of silver. Thirty pieces of silver is roughly equivalent to a day laborer's monthly wage. His betrayal stands in stark contrast to the devotion of a woman. She poured precious nard oil—worth about 300 pieces of silver—entirely over Jesus’ head and anointed Him. Judas Iscariot, on the other hand, sold Jesus for 30 pieces of silver!

How should we conduct ourselves toward Jesus?

How should we conduct ourselves toward Jesus? Should we betray Him for 30 pieces of silver? Or should we dedicate our 300 pieces of silver to Jesus and love Him?

We must guard against being blinded by the love of money! Instead, we should accept Jesus Christ as the Son of God and the Christ, and love Him with all our hearts. With grateful hearts, we should devote ourselves to proclaiming the Gospel. God blesses our efforts. Amen!