From the street the woman could
have heard the chatter inside, but the pounding of her heart might have drowned it
out as she passed a couple staff servants. As one of the new drudges, they
would not have questioned her arrival. Probably she concealed the perfume box
she carried. If she thought of filling one of the empty basins at the door and
grabbing a towel, the thought would have vanished when she peered into the
dining room.
There he was! It had to be him. The
reality of his nearness was so great she cried. Maybe not quietly.
All eyes turned as she lurched
across the room. The mortified host draws in a breath and closes his eyes.
"Note to self: fire that woman
tomorrow."
If some of Jesus disciples were
there they would have been puzzled, too; but they were used to being puzzled by
now.
By the time the host opened his
eyes, the woman had cast off any semblance of propriety. Crouching at Jesus'
feet, she let her tears fall on them and wrapped her hair around them. Worse than
that! She kissed them and doused them with that expensive perfume.
The host, a master at recovery,
collected his wits and smirked. The pretender had just made a fatal mistake. What
self-respecting Messiah would tolerate such vulgar behavior from the likes
of…her?
She must have heard Jesus talking –
talking about one person forgiven much and another forgiven little. Did she see
any connection between it and her? Did the words, “This woman…” startle her?
Did she feel lightheaded when Jesus explained that her actions were a response to forgiveness already given? Did she
discover him looking at her – smiling? Did she swoon?
Would
such a scene cause as much, or maybe more wonder than any miracle?
These thoughts are drawn from Luke 7:36-50
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