Matthew 26:11 - Printer Friendly

ESV: For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me.

NIV: The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me.

NASB: For you always have the poor with you; but you do not always have Me.

CSB: You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.

NLT: You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.

KJV: For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always.

NKJV: For you have the poor with you always, but Me you do not have always.

John 12:1–11 seems to describe this same event. It is clear that Judas is one of the disciples who objected to this anointing of Jesus with expensive oil. His motive was selfish. He wanted some of the money that would have been gained from selling the oil for himself. He was a thief.

Other disciples, though, may have had more noble motives. They were deeply aware of the devastating poverty all around them in Israel. They were also aware of their responsibility to help care for their poor friends and neighbors. Maybe the perfumed oil that now filled their nostrils should have been sold to raise money for the poor and hurting. It's not unthinkable for them to wonder what other good might have been done with such a valuable resource.

In this case, Jesus even corrects those with good motives. His response is not harsh, but it is instructive. He tells them they will always have the poor with them—they will never lack opportunities to help those in need. This woman, though, has not wasted a bottle of expensive oil on just anyone. She has anointed the Messiah, the Son of God, the King, the one who will soon be crucified to pay for the sins of humanity. This is not merely a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, it's a once-in-history chance for this woman to honor God.

Jesus emphasizes that He will not be with them long. To worship the king in this way while the king is briefly present is a beautiful thing, Jesus has said. More than that, Jesus will show that this woman has contributed to what Jesus will experience in the coming week. She has begun to prepare Him for the burial to follow His death.

Matthew 26:6–16 finds Jesus and the disciples in Bethany at the home of a man identified as "Simon the leper." A woman, likely Mary the sister of Lazarus, opens a bottle of extremely expensive ointment and anoints Jesus' head as He reclines at the table during dinner. The disciples think the ointment should have been sold and the money given to the poor, but Jesus insists she has done a beautiful thing that will prepare Him for burial. Judas then offers to turn Jesus over to the chief priests. They pay him 30 silver pieces, a price ironically associated with the cost of a common slave.

The Jewish religious leaders further their plots to arrest and kill Jesus, finding a willing traitor in Judas Iscariot. A woman anoints Christ with oil during a dinner at Bethany. Next, Jesus and the disciples hold the Passover meal in an upper room where Jesus predicts His arrests and introduces the sacrament of communion. Then Jesus prays in unimaginable agony in the garden of Gethsemane before being betrayed by Judas and captured. The disciples scatter. Before the high priest, Jesus explicitly claims to be divine. They convict Him of blasphemy and sentence Him to death. As this happens, Peter denies knowing Jesus and runs away in shame.

After a long series of teaching (Matthew 24—25), Matthew 26 begins with Jesus saying He will be delivered up for death. Christ is anointed at a dinner in Bethany and Judas agrees to turn Him over to the chief priests. Jesus holds a Passover meal with the disciples, predicts an act of treachery, and introduces the sacrament of communion. He tells the disciples they will run in fear and that Peter will deny Him, which happens just as prophesied. Christ prays in great sorrow in a garden and is then arrested and taken away and unfairly sentenced to death. After this, Jesus will be taken to the Roman governor, where Jewish leadership will press for Him to be executed as an insurgent.

The Gospel of Matthew clearly shows the influence of its writer's background, and his effort to reach a specific audience. Matthew was one of Jesus' twelve disciples, a Jewish man, and a former tax collector. This profession would have required literacy, and Matthew may have transcribed some of Jesus' words as they were spoken. This book is filled with references to the Old Testament, demonstrating to Israel that Jesus is the Promised One. Matthew also includes many references to coins, likely due to his former profession. Matthew records extensive accounts of Jesus' teaching, more than the other three Gospels.