Luke 7:37

Syriac Peshitta (NT Only)

ܘܰܐܢ݈ܬ݁ܬ݂ܳܐ ܚܰܛܳܝܬ݁ܳܐ ܐܺܝܬ݂ ܗ݈ܘܳܬ݂ ܒ݁ܰܡܕ݂ܺܝܢ݈ܬ݁ܳܐ ܗܳܝ ܘܟ݂ܰܕ݂ ܝܶܕ݂ܥܰܬ݂ ܕ݁ܰܒ݂ܒ݂ܰܝܬ݁ܶܗ ܕ݁ܰܦ݂ܪܺܝܫܳܐ ܗܰܘ ܣܡܺܝܟ݂ ܢܶܣܒ݁ܰܬ݂ ܫܳܛܺܝܦ݂ܬ݁ܳܐ ܕ݁ܒ݂ܶܣܡܳܐ ܀

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

which: Luke 7:34, Luke 7:39, Luke 5:30, Luke 5:32, Luke 18:13, Luke 19:7, Matthew 21:31, John 9:24, John 9:31, Romans 5:8, 1 Timothy 1:9, 1 Timothy 1:15, 1 Peter 4:18

an: Matthew 26:7, Mark 14:3, John 11:2, John 12:2, John 12:3

Reciprocal: Esther 2:12 - six months Matthew 21:32 - the publicans Luke 7:44 - Seest 1 Corinthians 13:7 - hopeth

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And behold, a woman in the city,.... Not Mary Magdalene, spoken of in Luke 8:2 under another character; and is a different person, who had not been taken notice of by the evangelist before; nor Mary the sister of Lazarus, who is said to anoint the feet of Christ, and wipe them with her hair, John 12:3. The character given of this woman, does not seem so well to agree with her; at least, the fact here recorded, cannot be the same with that; for this was in Galilee, and that in Bethany; this in the house of Simon the Pharisee, that in the house of Lazarus; this was some time before Christ's death, and after this he went a circuit through every city and village, that was but six days before his death, and after which he never went from those parts; nor is this account the same with the history, recorded in Matthew 26:6 for that fact was done in Bethany also, this in Galilee; that in the house of Simon: the leper, this in the house of Simon the Pharisee; that was but two days before the death of Christ, this a considerable time before; the ointment that woman poured, was poured upon his head, this upon his feet: who this woman was, is not certain, nor in what city she dwelt; it seems to be the same in which the Pharisee's house was; and was no doubt one of the cities of Galilee, as Naim, Capernaum, or some other at no great distance from these:

which was a sinner; a notorious sinner, one that was known by all to have been a person of a wicked, life and conversation; a lewd woman, a vile prostitute, an harlot, commonly reputed so: the Arabic word here used, signifies both a sinner and a whore k; and so the word, sinners, seems to be used elsewhere by Luke; see Luke 15:1 compared with Matthew 21:31. Some think she was a Gentile, Gentiles being reckoned by the Jews sinners, and the worst of sinners; but this does not appear:

when she knew that Jesus sat at meat in the Pharisee's house; having observed it herself, that he was invited by him, and went with him, or being informed of it by others,

brought an alabaster box of ointment: ointment was used to be put in vessels made of "alabaster", which kept it pure and incorrupt; and this stone was found about Damascus, l so that there might be plenty of it in Judea; at least it might be easily had, and such boxes might be common; and as this woman appears to have been a lewd person, she might have this box of ointment by her to anoint herself with, that she might recommend herself to her gallants. The historian m reports, that

"Venus gave to Phaon an alabaster box with ointment, with which Phaon, being anointed, became the most beautiful of men, and the women of Mitylene were taken with the love of him.''

If this box had been provided with such a view; it was now used to another and different purpose.

k Vid. Castell. Lex. Heptaglott. col. 1195. l Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 36. c. 8. m Aelian. var. Hist. l. 12. c. 8.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

In the city - What city is meant is unknown. Some have supposed it was Nain; some Capernaum; some Magdala; and some Jerusalem.

Which was a sinner - Who was depraved or wicked. This woman, it seems, was known to be a sinner - perhaps an abandoned woman or a prostitute. It is certain that she had much to be forgiven, and she had probably passed her life in crime. There is no evidence that this was the woman commonly called Mary Magdalene.

An alabaster-box ... - See the notes at Mark 14:3.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 37. A woman - which was a sinner — Many suppose that this woman had been a notorious public prostitute; but this is taking the subject by the very worst handle. My own opinion is, that she had been a mere heathen who dwelt in this city, (probably Capernaum,) who, through the ministry of Christ, had been before this converted to God, and came now to give this public testimony of her gratitude to her gracious deliverer from the darkness and guilt of sin. I am inclined to think that the original word, αμαρτωλος, is used for heathen or Gentile in several places of the sacred writings. I am fully persuaded that this is its meaning in Matthew 9:10-11; Matthew 9:13; Matthew 11:19; and Matthew 26:45. The Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners, i.e. is delivered into the hands of the heathens, viz. the Romans, who alone could put him to death. See Mark 2:15-17; Mark 14:41. I think also it has this meaning in Luke 6:32-34; Luke 15:1-2; Luke 15:7; Luke 15:10; Luke 19:7; John 9:31. I think no other sense can be justly assigned to it in Galatians 2:15: We who are Jews by nature, and not sinners of the Gentiles. We Jews, who have had the benefit of a Divine revelation, know that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Christ, (Galatians 2:16), which other nations, who were heathens, not having a Divine revelation, could not know. It is, I think, likely that the grand subject of the self-righteous Pharisee's complaint was her being a heathen. As those who were touched by such contracted a legal defilement, he could not believe that Christ was a conscientious observer of the law, seeing he permitted her to touch him, knowing who she was; or, if he did not know that she was a heathen, it was a proof that he was no prophet, Luke 7:39, and consequently had not the discernment of spirits which prophets were supposed to possess. As the Jews had a law which forbade all iniquity, and they who embraced it being according to its requisitions and their profession saints; and as the Gentiles had no law to restrain evil, nor made any profession of holiness, the term αμαρτωλοι, or sinners, was first with peculiar propriety applied to them, and afterwards to all others, who, though they professed to be under the law, yet lived as Gentiles without the law. Many suppose this person to be the same as Mary Magdalene, but of this there is no solid proof.

Brought an alabaster box — Mark 14:3.