^7:36Now one of the Pharisees¹²³ asked Jesus¹²⁴ to have dinner with him, so¹²⁵ he went into the Pharisee’s house and took his place at the table.¹²⁶^7:37Then¹²⁷ when a woman of that town, who was a sinner, learned that Jesus¹²⁸ was dining¹²⁹ at the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster jar¹³⁰ of perfumed oil.¹³¹^7:38As¹³² she stood¹³³ behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. She¹³⁴ wiped them with her hair,¹³⁵ kissed¹³⁶ them,¹³⁷ and anointed¹³⁸ them with the perfumed oil.

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Footnotes

123 See the note on Pharisees in .
124 Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
125 Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate that Jesus’ action was the result of the Pharisee’s invitation.
126 Grk “and reclined at table,” as 1st century middle eastern meals were not eaten while sitting at a table, but while reclining on one’s side on the floor with the head closest to the low table and the feet farthest away.
127 Grk “And behold.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative. The Greek word ἰδού (idou) at the beginning of this statement has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis ( 1).
128 Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
129 Grk “was reclining at table.”
130 A jar made of alabaster stone was normally used for very precious substances like perfumes. It normally had a long neck which was sealed and had to be broken off so the contents could be used.
131 Μύρον (muron) was usually made of myrrh (from which the English word is derived) but here it is used in the sense of ointment or perfumed oil (L&N 6.205). The same phrase occurs at the end of v. 38 and in v. 46. Nard or spikenard is a fragrant oil from the root and spike of the nard plant of northern India. This perfumed oil, if made of something like nard, would have been extremely expensive, costing up to a year’s pay for an average laborer.
132 Grk “And standing.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
133 Grk “standing”; the participle στᾶσα (stasa) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
134 Grk “tears, and she.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
135 Grk “with the hair of her head.”
136 Grk “and kissed,” but καί (kai) has not been translated since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.
137 Grk “kissed his feet,” but this has been replaced by the pronoun “them” in keeping with contemporary English style.
138 The series of verbs in this verse detail the woman’s every move, much as if the onlookers were watching her every step. That she attended the meal is not so surprising, as teachers often ate an open meal where listeners were welcome, but for her to approach Jesus was unusual and took great nerve, especially given her reputation.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee’s house and reclined at table. And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was reclining at table in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment, and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment.

NIVNew International Version (2011)

When one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. A woman in that town who lived a sinful life learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, so she came there with an alabaster jar of perfume. As she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

Then one of the Pharisees invited him to eat with him. He entered the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. And a woman in the town who was a sinner found out that Jesus was reclining at the table in the Pharisee’s house. She brought an alabaster jar of perfume and stood behind him at his feet, weeping, and began to wash his feet with her tears. She wiped his feet with her hair, kissing them and anointing them with the perfume.

NLTNew Living Translation

One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to have dinner with him, so Jesus went to his home and sat down to eat. When a certain immoral woman from that city heard he was eating there, she brought a beautiful alabaster jar filled with expensive perfume. Then she knelt behind him at his feet, weeping. Her tears fell on his feet, and she wiped them off with her hair. Then she kept kissing his feet and putting perfume on them.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

Now one of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he entered into the house of the Pharisee and reclined at the table. And behold, a woman in the town who was a sinner, when she learned that he was dining in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster flask of perfumed oil, and standing behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and was wiping them with the hair of her head and was kissing his feet and anointing them with the perfumed oil.

KJV 1900King James Version

And one of the Pharisees desired him that he would eat with him. And he went into the Pharisee’s house, and sat down to meat. And, behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at meat in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster box of ointment, And stood at his feet behind him weeping, and began to wash his feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment.

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