Gospel of St. John
Bethany and Jerusalem – 12:1-11
Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead with a multitude of witnesses from Jerusalem. The chief priests and Pharisees sought a way to kill Jesus and he went to Ephraim, a city between the central cities of Judah and the valley of the Jordan. Six days before the Passover, he returns to Bethany on his way to Jerusalem.
“Then Jesus six days before the Passover came to Bethany, where Lazarus was which had been dead, whom he raised from the dead. There they made him a supper; and Martha served: but Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with him. Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair: and the house was filled with the odour of the ointment. Then saith one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, which should betray him, Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence, and given to the poor? This he said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was put therein.” The supper was not to celebrate Lazarus’ raising from the dead. It was to honor Jesus and became much more before the supper was over. It provided the chief priests an instrument through which they would ultimately seize and crucify Jesus. As the true Pascal Lamb, Jesus was heading to Jerusalem to be sacrificed. We learn from the other Gospels that the dinner was held in the house of Simon, the leper Jesus healed. Even so, Martha, with her drive to take care of details, served the supper.
Jesus normally avoided the limelight. After healing the daughter of Jairus, he withdrew. After raising the widow’s son at Nain, he retired. But this supper was different. Jesus wept with Mary at Lazarus’ death and now he shares their joy as well. Some people think our form throughout eternity will be as disembodied ghosts. Here we see Lazarus raised from the dead and eating. Jesus ate after his resurrection to prove He was real. We don’t know what to expect physically, but we can expect to eat.
Matthew and Mark tell us that Mary anointed Jesus’ head. John mentions only his feet because that is the appropriate place for all Jesus’ disciples – at his feet. Furthermore she wiped his feet with her hair. The 15th verse of the 11th chapter of 1st Corinthians tells us that having long hair is a glory to a woman. Mary used her glory to wipe the feet of Jesus. The ointment was incredibly expensive and aromatic. It cost over a year’s pay for a laborer. Mary performed this act silently but the aroma drew everyone’s attention. Judas Iscariot was particularly incensed. His attack on an act of devotion is still prevalent today. We are still too quick to judge how other churches show their devotion.
People have tried to attribute a wide variety of motivations to Judas’ betrayal of Christ. Some say, he was just doing what Jesus wanted him to do. Some say, he was just trying to force Jesus into becoming the earthly Messiah that would drive out the Romans and infidels. This passage clearly states his motive. He did not care for the poor. He was a thief. He carried the money for the company of the disciples. He complained that Mary wasted 300 pence and yet he sold Jesus to the Sanhedrin for 30 pieces of silver. There is disagreement among scholars about which silver pieces were used, but it is obvious Judas wanted the money in his bag. The crowd noticed that Judas was not as dedicated to Jesus as Mary and found in him an instrument with which to destroy Jesus.
“Then said Jesus, Let her alone: against the day of my burying hath she kept this. For the poor always ye have with you; but me ye have not always. Much people of the Jews therefore knew that he was there: and they came not for Jesus’ sake only, but that they might see Lazarus also, whom he had raised from the dead. But the chief priests consulted that they might put Lazarus also to death; Because that by reason of him many of the Jews went away, and believed on Jesus.” Jesus was eager to defend Mary and gave the disciples another opportunity to learn of his impending fate. Many people came from Jerusalem. Some came to see Jesus. Some came to see Lazarus. Some came to report back to the chief priests. But many went away and believed on Jesus. The chief priests even considered putting Lazarus to death to curtail Jesus’ influence on the people.
The Raising of Lazarus – 11:12-19
“On the next day much people that were come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord. And Jesus, when he had found a young ass, sat thereon; as it is written, Fear not daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh, sitting on an ass’s colt.” Jesus actions are now being driven by what is necessary to fulfill Prophecies. In Genesis (49:9-11) Jacob declared, “The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be. Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass’s colt unto the choice vine.” This implies that Judah will lose their status as a nation when Shiloh (he who is to be sent) comes. It also ties the ass’s colt to the choice vine – Jesus.
The four Gospels tell different versions of how Jesus got the ass he rode into the city. They may appear to be contradictions, but it is not necessarily so. John simply says he “found” it. He could have found it by knowing where it would be tied and sending the disciples to retrieve it. He sat upon it and fulfilled the prophecy of Zachariah (9:9) that the King would come sitting on an ass’s colt.
Daniel (9:24-27) predicts that reconciliation for sin will occur after 69 hebnomads (7 years each) which translates into four hundred and eighty-three years. Thus scriptures predicted that Judaism would not be replaced until he “who is to be sent” arrives. They predict when that will occur. They predict how he will arrive.
You will notice that Jesus accepted this triumphal entry into Jerusalem as predicted. He publically acknowledged that He is the Messiah. The Jewish leadership finally has the evidence they need to provoke the Romans to execute him. And yet, he came riding on the colt of an ass, bedecked with the garments of his disciples. He acknowledged no need for the glory of men. Only the glory of God was on his mind. The crowds received their Prince with cries of “Hosanna” which means “save now.” It was a cry of triumph not a petition for help.
“These things understood not his disciples at the first: but when Jesus was glorified, then remembered they that these things were written of him, and that they had done these things unto him. The people there, that was with him when he called Lazarus out of his grave and raised him from the dead, bare record. For this cause the people also met him, for that they heard that he had done this miracle. The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, Perceive ye how ye prevail nothing? Behold the world is gone after him.” When John describes the disciples as failing to understand what was happening, he is including himself. Such honesty is common to Holy Scripture and adds credibility to both covenants. The disciples did not fail to believe. They failed to understand that Christ would be put to death in spite of his ability to control all things. They did not remember all the things they were told; nor the significance of all the things that were done to Christ until He was glorified at the Ascension.
Many people were with Jesus when he raised Lazarus out of his grave. They who witnessed it reported it in Jerusalem. It satisfied all the requirements of Jewish law to be accepted as fact. Furthermore, those people came to meet him as he approached Jerusalem. This shows the guilt of the Jewish leadership for rejecting Him when His credentials were so unimpeachable.
According to John, the Pharisees asked Jesus, “Do you not realize you are accomplishing nothing.” St. Luke tells us that the Pharisees told Jesus, “Master, rebuke thy disciples.” They wished to constrain the reception for fear they were losing their control over the people. Jesus responded, “If these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.” Prophecies were being fulfilled. Nothing was going to change the destiny laid out before them.
St. Luke talks about Jesus weeping when he came near the city. This is to acknowledge that the Messiah has come and the city will know it not. For Jesus, this is not a triumphant entry. He knows that when the multitudes realize he is not going to fulfill their expectations of ruling the world, His crucifixion will be unavoidable.