Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Matthew 26:7

"there came unto him a woman having an alabaster cruse of exceeding precious ointment, and she poured it upon his head, as he sat at meat." — Matthew 26:7 (ASV)

This is the second time Jesus was anointed, the first time being recorded in Lk 7:36–50 (on Bethany, see comment on 21:1–2). Matthew sets the scene in the home of “Simon the Leper,” who was presumably cured—or else all there were violating Mosaic law. The action of the woman was not unprecedented: a distinguished rabbi might have been so honored. The evangelists stress the cost of the “perfume”; John suggests that it was worth approximately a year’s salary for a working man . This perfume was possibly from the nard plant (native to India); it was extracted from the thin-necked alabaster flask by snapping off the neck.