⁶^eNow when Jesus was in ^fBethany, in the house of Simon the leper, ⁷There came unto him a woman having ^gan alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on ^hhis head, as he sat at meat. ⁸But when ⁱhis disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, To what purpose is this waste? ⁹For this ointment might have been sold for ^jmuch, and given to the poor. ¹⁰When Jesus understood it, he said unto them, Why trouble ye the woman? for she hath wrought a good work upon me. ¹¹For ^kye have the poor always with you; but ^lme ye have not always.

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Footnotes

eTo ver. 13, Mark 14:3–9. To ver. 11, John 12:1–8. Comp. Luke 7:36–50.
fSee ch. 21:17.
hComp. John 12:3. So Luke 7:38.
iComp. John 12:4.
jComp. Mark 14:5. John 12:5.
lSee John 13:33.

Cross references

g Mark 14:3. Luke 7:37.
k Deut. 15:11.

Public Domain

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

Now when Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, 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. And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste? For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor.” But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a beautiful thing to me. For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me.

NIVNew International Version (2011)

While Jesus was in Bethany in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came to him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, which she poured on his head as he was reclining at the table.

When the disciples saw this, they were indignant. “Why this waste?” they asked. “This perfume could have been sold at a high price and the money given to the poor.”

Aware of this, Jesus said to them, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

While Jesus was in Bethany at the house of Simon the leper, a woman approached him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume. She poured it on his head as he was reclining at the table. When the disciples saw it, they were indignant. “Why this waste?” they asked. “This might have been sold for a great deal and given to the poor.”

Aware of this, Jesus said to them, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a noble thing for me. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.

NLTNew Living Translation

Meanwhile, Jesus was in Bethany at the home of Simon, a man who had previously had leprosy. While he was eating, a woman came in with a beautiful alabaster jar of expensive perfume and poured it over his head.

The disciples were indignant when they saw this. “What a waste!” they said. “It could have been sold for a high price and the money given to the poor.”

But Jesus, aware of this, replied, “Why criticize this woman for doing such a good thing to me? You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

Now while Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, a woman came up to him holding an alabaster flask of very expensive perfumed oil, and poured it out on his head while he was reclining at table. And when the disciples saw it they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste? For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor!” But Jesus, knowing this, said to them, “Why do you cause trouble for the woman? For she has done a good deed for me. For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me.