Luke 7:37-39

7:37 Then ¹  when a woman of that town, who was a sinner, learned that Jesus ²  was dining ³  at the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster jar ⁴  of perfumed oil. ⁵  7:38 As ⁶  she stood ⁷  behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. She ⁸  wiped them with her hair, ⁹  kissed ¹⁰  them, ¹¹  and anointed ¹²  them with the perfumed oil. 7:39 Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, ¹³  he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, ¹⁴  he would know who and what kind of woman ¹⁵  this is who is touching him, that she is a sinner.”

Luke 7:44-46

7:44 Then, ¹⁶  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, ¹⁷  but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 7:45 You gave me no kiss of greeting, ¹⁸  but from the time I entered she has not stopped kissing my feet. 7:46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet ¹⁹  with perfumed oil.

Luke 19:4-10

19:4 So ²⁰  he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree ²¹  to see him, because Jesus ²²  was going to pass that way. 19:5 And when Jesus came to that place, he looked up ²³  and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down quickly, ²⁴  because I must ²⁵  stay at your house today.” ²⁶  19:6 So he came down quickly ²⁷  and welcomed Jesus ²⁸  joyfully. ²⁹  19:7 And when the people ³⁰  saw it, they all complained, ³¹  “He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.” ³²  19:8 But Zacchaeus stopped and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, half of my possessions I now give ³³  to the poor, and if ³⁴  I have cheated anyone of anything, I am paying back four times as much!” 19:9 Then ³⁵  Jesus said to him, “Today salvation ³⁶  has come to this household, ³⁷  because he too is a son of Abraham! ³⁸  19:10 For the Son of Man came ³⁹  to seek and to save the lost.”

Romans 8:24

8:24 For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope, because who hopes for what he sees?

[7:37]  ¹ tn 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 (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[7:37]  ² tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:37]  ³ tn Grk “was reclining at table.”

[7:37]  ⁴ sn 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.

[7:37]  ⁵ tn 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.

[7:38]  ⁶ tn 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.

[7:38]  ⁷ tn Grk “standing”; the participle στᾶσα (stasa) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[7:38]  ⁸ tn 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.

[7:38]  ⁹ tn Grk “with the hair of her head.”

[7:38]  ¹⁰ tn 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.

[7:38]  ¹¹ tn Grk “kissed his feet,” but this has been replaced by the pronoun “them” in keeping with contemporary English style.

[7:38]  ¹² sn 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.

[7:39]  ¹³ tn The word “this” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects were frequently omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

[7:39]  ¹⁴ tn This is a good example of a second class (contrary to fact) Greek conditional sentence. The Pharisee said, in effect, “If this man were a prophet (but he is not)…”

[7:39]  ¹⁵ sn The Pharisees believed in a form of separationism that would have prevented them from any kind of association with such a sinful woman.

[7:44]  ¹⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[7:44]  ¹⁷ sn It is discussed whether these acts in vv. 44-46 were required by the host. Most think they were not, but this makes the woman’s acts of respect all the more amazing.

[7:45]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “no kiss.” This refers to a formalized kiss of greeting, standard in that culture. To convey this to the modern reader, the words “of greeting” have been supplied to qualify what kind of kiss is meant.

[7:46]  ¹⁹ sn This event is not equivalent to the anointing of Jesus that takes place in the last week of his life (Matt 26:6-13; Mark 14:3-9; John 12:1-8). That woman was not a sinner, and Jesus was eating in the home of Simon the leper, who, as a leper, could never be a Pharisee.

[19:4]  ²⁰ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of Zacchaeus not being able to see over the crowd.

[19:4]  ²¹ sn A sycamore tree would have large branches near the ground like an oak tree and would be fairly easy to climb. These trees reach a height of some 50 ft (about 15 m).

[19:4]  ²² tn Grk “that one”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[19:5]  ²³ tc Most mss (A [D] W [Ψ] ˹³ 33^vid Ï latt) read “Jesus looking up, saw him and said.” The words “saw him and” are not in א B L T Θ Ë¹ 579 1241 2542 pc co. Both the testimony for the omission and the natural tendency toward scribal expansion argue for the shorter reading here.

[19:5]  ²⁴ tn Grk “hastening, come down.” σπεύσας (speusa") has been translated as a participle of manner.

[19:5]  ²⁵ sn I must stay. Jesus revealed the necessity of his associating with people like Zacchaeus (5:31-32). This act of fellowship indicated acceptance.

[19:5]  ²⁶ sn On today here and in v. 9, see the note on today in 2:11.

[19:6]  ²⁷ tn Grk “hastening, he came down.” σπεύσας (speusas) has been translated as a participle of manner.

[19:6]  ²⁸ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[19:6]  ²⁹ tn The participle χαίρων (cairwn) has been taken as indicating manner.

[19:7]  ³⁰ tn Grk “they”; the referent is unspecified but is probably the crowd in general, who would have no great love for a man like Zacchaeus who had enriched himself many times over at their expense.

[19:7]  ³¹ tn This term is used only twice in the NT, both times in Luke (here and 15:2) and has negative connotations both times (BDAG 227 s.v. διαγογγύζω). The participle λέγοντες (legonte") is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

[19:7]  ³² sn Being the guest of a man who is a sinner was a common complaint about Jesus: Luke 5:31-32; 7:37-50; 15:1-2.

[19:8]  ³³ sn Zacchaeus was a penitent man who resolved on the spot to act differently in the face of Jesus’ acceptance of him. In resolving to give half his possessions to the poor, Zacchaeus was not defending himself against the crowd’s charges and claiming to be righteous. Rather as a result of this meeting with Jesus, he was a changed individual. So Jesus could speak of salvation coming that day (v. 9) and of the lost being saved (v. 10).

[19:8]  ³⁴ tn This is a first class condition in the Greek text. It virtually confesses fraud.

[19:9]  ³⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative

[19:9]  ³⁶ sn This is one of the few uses of the specific term salvation in Luke (1:69, 71, 77), though the concept runs throughout the Gospel.

[19:9]  ³⁷ sn The household is not a reference to the building, but to the people who lived within it (L&N 10.8).

[19:9]  ³⁸ sn Zacchaeus was personally affirmed by Jesus as a descendant (son) of Abraham and a member of God’s family.

[19:10]  ³⁹ sn The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost is Jesus’ mission succinctly defined. See Luke 15:1-32.