Chizuk Emunah (Pt 2) Under the Microscope: Chapter 23

Matthew 26:6, 7, "Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper, there came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head." In Mark 14:3, the narrative is given in the following words, "And being in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper, there came a woman having an alabaster box of ointment of spikenard, very precious, and she brake the box and poured it on his head." In Luke 7:37, 38, however, the version is far different; "And behold a woman brought an alabaster box of ointment, and stood at his feet behind him, and anointed them with ointment." Then Jesus said to Simon, the master of the house (ver. 46), "my head with oil thou didst not anoint, but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment."

In John 12:3. the story is narrated thus: "Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus." These extracts, from the several books of the New Testament, are curious specimens of the want of agreement between the several authors, who of necessity would have been in perfect unanimity, had they been under the influence of Divine inspiration. 

First, let me say that this issue applies even more to the Tanakh than it does to the New Testament. A quick search for "contradictions" between the Kings and Chronicles books shows how easy it is to find these difficulties if you are reading the passages uncharitably.

In the book of 1 Kings Chapter 4 verse 26 we are told that Solomon had 40,000 horses. 2 Chronicles Chapter 9 verse 25 states that he had 4,000 horses. Solomon had 3,300 foremen according to 1 Kings Chapter 5 verse 16 , and 3,600 according to 2 Chronicles Chapter 2 verse 2 . The two pillars were 18 cubits high as described in 1 Kings Chapter 7 verse 15 . This was of course wrong. According to 2 Chronicles Chapter 3 verse 15 they were 35 cubits high. Solomon's molten sea held 16,000 gallons (1 Kings Chapter 7 verse 26) or 24,000 gallons (2 Chronicles Chapter 4 verse 5) . And either 420 talents of gold were brought from Ophir for use in the temple construction (1 Kings Chapter 9 verse 28) or 450 talents (2 Chronicles Chapter 8 verse 18) . Solomon had 550 overseers (1 Kings Chapter 9 verse 23) or only 250 (2 Chronicles Chapter 8 verse 10) . When he began to reign Jehoiakim was either 18 and reigned 3 months after which time his uncle took the throne (2 Kings Chapter 24 verse 8) or 8 and reigned 3 months and 10 days and then his brother began to rule (2 Chronicles Chapter 36 verse 9) . Ahaziah was either 22 when he came to the throne (2 Kings Chapter 8 verse 26) or 42 (2 Chronicles Chapter 22 verse 2) .

Ok, so what is going on here with the New Testament passages? We have a story that is covered in all 4 Gospels: Jesus being anointed at Bethany. Here are the passages in their entirety:

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. In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done it to prepare me for burial. Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.” (Matthew 26:6-13)

And while he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he was reclining at table, a woman came with an alabaster flask of ointment of pure nard, very costly, and she broke the flask and poured it over his head. There were some who said to themselves indignantly, “Why was the ointment wasted like that? For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and given to the poor.” And they scolded her. But Jesus said, “Leave her alone. Why do you trouble her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you want, you can do good for them. But you will not always have me. She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for burial. And truly, I say to you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in memory of her.” (Mark 14:3-9)

One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee's house and reclined at the 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. Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner.” And Jesus answering said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he answered, “Say it, Teacher.” “A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?” Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.” And he said to him, “You have judged rightly.” Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.” And he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this, who even forgives sins?” And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” (Luke 7:36-50)

Six days before the Passover, Jesus therefore came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. So they gave a dinner for him there. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those reclining with him at table. Mary therefore took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was about to betray him), said, “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it. Jesus said, “Leave her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of my burial. For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me.” (John 12:1-8)

The difference between the accounts is more than just Jesus having his feet anointed vs. having his head anointed. Take Luke and John for example. In Luke, they are at the house of one of the Pharisees, and this strange woman who was probably a prostitute bursts in and pours oil on the feet of Jesus. Contrast that to John's account, where they are at the house of Martha, having a dinner with Lazarus, who Jesus had just raised from the dead. Here, it is Mary who is anointing the feet of Jesus. Luke's account differs so much from Matthew, Mark, and John, that it is very unlikely that they are the same event. As John records in his Gospel, Jesus did not walk openly among the Pharisees after bringing Lazarus back to life. He would not have stayed at the house of a Pharisee at that time.

As for Matthew, Mark, and John, they do seem to be talking about the same event. Yes, the Pharisee is known as Simon, but Josephus notes that Simon was an extremely common name, so no help there. Still, we have this issue with Matthew, Luke, and John, talking about the same event. Did Mary anoint the feet or head of Jesus? Alabaster perfumes in those days were stored in sealed jars, which had to be broken in order to release the perfume. There was plenty of perfume to do both, and there is no indication in any of the accounts that she anointed only the head of Jesus or only the feet of Jesus. The accounts would have emphasized different lessons from this event.
For more on this, take a look at J.P. Holding's article on Tektonics.
http://www.tektonics.org/af/femanoint.php

Michael Licona gives one of the best treatments of the Bible contradictions challenge. One of the greatest Greco-Roman biographers, Plutarch, recorded the lives of dozens of famous Romans, and often these lives had overlapping material. Often, we see the same events play out in dozens of different ways, depending on whose biography it is. Yet, this is the same biographer telling each person's story. The Romans did not consider these differences to be contradictions or errors. They thought of it as part of the literary genre.