Easter Week: Mary Washes the Savior's Feet

On the 6th day, Jesus was at the home of Mary and Martha in Bethany for  a feast.  On this day, Mary the sister of Lazarus, washed the feet of Jesus with spikenard, an expensive oil, and her hair.

She knew His time was at hand and this was her last service to the Savior while He was still with her. Like Mary, I wish I could have a moment with the Savior, to touch His feet, and wash His feet even with my hair. 

From April 2009 Ensign Reflections of the Saviors Last Week

John 12:1–9 recounts that Martha served a special dinner to Jesus, some of His disciples, and her brother, Lazarus, who had recently been raised from the dead, before the Master entered Jerusalem for His final week. During the course of the meal, Lazarus’s other sister, Mary, anointed Jesus’s feet. Judas Iscariot rebuked her for wasting the precious ointment in this way, but the Lord commended Mary, connecting this anointing with His coming death and burial. Matthew 26:6–13 and Mark 14:3–9 preserve a similar incident, which they place later in the week at the time Judas agreed with the Jewish leadership to betray the Savior.

In ancient Israel it was common to anoint bodies as part of burial rituals. The Hebrew word Messiah and the Greek word Christ both mean “the anointed one,” reflecting Jesus’s position through these titles. In earlier periods the Israelites also anointed living people to serve either as rightful kings or as high priests.

We, like the disciples, must come to know that Jesus is the Son of God and gain a testimony of what He did for us. As we reflect on the roles He played during the last week of His mortal life, we need to remember that as our Savior He is both a king and a priest.



Resources for the Saviors final week {click here}