Matthew 26:7

 Matthew 26:7

There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat.

a. NASB 1995: A woman came to Him with an alabaster vial of very costly perfume, and she poured it on His head as He reclined at the table. [NASB95 New American Standard Bible. Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation; All Rights Reserved]

b. YLT: There came to him a woman having an alabaster box of ointment, very precious, and she poured on his head as he is reclining (at meat).  [The Young's Literal Translation was translated by Robert Young, who believed in a strictly literal translation of God's word. This version of the Bible is in the public domain.]

c. Classic Amplified: A woman came up to Him with an alabaster flask of very precious perfume, and she poured it on His head as He reclined at table.  [Amplified Bible, Classic Edition (AMPC) Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation]

d. Peshitta Eastern Text: A woman came up to him with an alabaster vessel of precious perfume, and she poured it upon the head of Jesus, while he was reclining.  [HOLY BIBLE FROM THE ANCIENT EASTERN TEXT. Copyright  Ⓒ 1933 by A.J. Holmon Co.; copyright  Ⓒ renewed 1968 by A.J. Holmon Co.; All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. HarperCollins Publishers, 195 Broadway, New York, NY 10007.]

e. ESV: A woman came up to him with an alabaster flask of very expensive ointment, and she poured it on his head as he reclined at table. [Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001, 2007, 2011, 2016 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved."]

f. Unless otherwise stated, all greek and Hebrew definitions are from Blue Letter Bible

1. “There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat.”

a. There came [Strong: 4334 prosérchomai, pros-er'-khom-ahee; from G4314 and G2064 (including its alternate); to approach, i.e. (literally) come near, visit, or (figuratively) worship, assent to:—(as soon as he) come (unto), come thereunto, consent, draw near, go (near, to, unto).]

b. [unto] him [Strong: 846 autós, ow-tos'; from the particle αὖ aû (perhaps akin to the base of G109 through the idea of a baffling wind) (backward); the reflexive pronoun self, used (alone or in the comparative G1438) of the third person , and (with the proper personal pronoun) of the other persons:—her, it(-self), one, the other, (mine) own, said, (self-), the) same, ((him-, my-, thy- )self, (your-)selves, she, that, their(-s), them(-selves), there(-at, - by, -in, -into, -of, -on, -with), they, (these) things, this (man), those, together, very, which.]

c. [a] woman [Strong: 1135 gynḗ, goo-nay'; probably from the base of G1096; a woman; specially, a wife:—wife, woman.]

d. having [Strong: 2192 échō, ekh'-o; a primary verb; to hold (used in very various applications, literally or figuratively, direct or remote; such as possession; ability, contiuity, relation, or condition):—be (able, × hold, possessed with), accompany, + begin to amend, can(+ -not), × conceive, count, diseased, do + eat, + enjoy, + fear, following, have, hold, keep, + lack, + go to law, lie, + must needs, + of necessity, + need, next, + recover, + reign, + rest, + return, × sick, take for, + tremble, + uncircumcised, use.]

e. [an] alabaster box [Strong: 211 alábastron, al-ab'-as-tron; neuter of ἀλάβαστρος alábastros (of uncertain derivation), the name of a stone; properly, an "alabaster" box, i.e. (by extension) a perfume vase (of any material):—(alabaster) box.]

f. [of] very precious [Strong: 927 barýtimos, bar-oo'-tim-os; from G926 and G5092; highly valuable:—very precious.]

g. ointment [Strong: 3464 mýron, moo'-ron; probably of foreign origin (compare H4753, G4666); "myrrh", i.e. (by implication) perfumed oil:—ointment.]

h. and [Strong: 2532 kaí, kahee; apparently, a primary particle, having a copulative and sometimes also a cumulative force; and, also, even, so then, too, etc.; often used in connection (or composition) with other particles or small words:—and, also, both, but, even, for, if, or, so, that, then, therefore, when, yet.]

i. poured [it] [Strong: 2708 katachéō, kat-akh-eh'-o; from G2596 and cheo (to pour); to pour down (out):—pour.]

j. on [Strong: 1909 epí, ep-ee'; a primary preposition; properly, meaning superimposition (of time, place, order, etc.), as a relation of distribution (with the genitive case), i.e. over, upon, etc.; of rest (with the dative case) at, on, etc.; of direction (with the accusative case) towards, upon, etc.:—about (the times), above, after, against, among, as long as (touching), at, beside, × have charge of, (be-, (where-))fore, in (a place, as much as, the time of, -to), (because) of, (up-)on (behalf of), over, (by, for) the space of, through(-out), (un-)to(-ward), with.]

k. his [Strong: 846 autós, ow-tos'; from the particle αὖ aû (perhaps akin to the base of G109 through the idea of a baffling wind) (backward); the reflexive pronoun self, used (alone or in the comparative G1438) of the third person , and (with the proper personal pronoun) of the other persons:—her, it(-self), one, the other, (mine) own, said, (self-), the) same, ((him-, my-, thy- )self, (your-)selves, she, that, their(-s), them(-selves), there(-at, - by, -in, -into, -of, -on, -with), they, (these) things, this (man), those, together, very, which.]

l. head [Strong: 2776 kephalḗ, kef-al-ay'; from the primary κάπτω káptō (in the sense of seizing); the head (as the part most readily taken hold of), literally or figuratively:—head.]

m. [as he] sat [at meat] [Strong: 345 anakeîmai, an-ak-i'-mahee; from G303 and G2749; to recline (as a corpse or at a meal):—guest, lean, lie, sit (down, at meat), at the table.]

1). Barnes' Notes on the Bible: There came to him a woman - This woman was Mary, the sister of Lazarus and Martha, John 12:3. Having an alabaster box - The "alabaster" is a species of marble, distinguished for being light, and of a beautiful white color, almost transparent. It was much used by the ancients for the purpose of preserving various kinds of ointment in. Of very precious ointment - That is, of ointment of "great value;" that was rare and difficult to be obtained. Mark Mar 14:3 and John Joh 12:3 say that it was ointment of spikenard. In the original it is "nard." It was procured from an herb growing in the Indies, chiefly obtained from the root, though sometimes also from the bark. It was liquid, so as easily to flow when the box or vial was open, and was distinguished particularly for an agreeable smell. See Sol 1:12. The ancients were much in the habit of "anointing or perfuming" their bodies, and the nard was esteemed one of the most precious perfumes. John says there was a "pound" of this, John 12:3. The "pound" in use among the Jews was the Roman, of twelve ounces, answering to our troy weight. That there was a large quantity is further evident from the fact that Judas says it might have been sold for 300 pence (about 9 British pounds), and that the "house" was filled with the odor of the ointment (John). And poured it on his head - They were accustomed chiefly to anoint the head or hair. John says John 12:3 that she poured it on the "feet" of Jesus, and wiped them with her hair. There is, however, no contradiction. She probably poured it "both" on his head and his feet. Matthew and Mark having recorded the former, John, who wrote his gospel in part to record events omitted by them, completes the account by saying that the ointment was also poured on the feet of the Saviour. To pour ointment on the "head" was common. To pour it on the "feet" was an act of distinguished "humility" and of attachment to the Saviour, and therefore deserved to be particularly recorded.