<p>12:3 <i>Then Mary</i>- RV &quot;Mary therefore&quot;. In gratitude for the resurrection of Lazarus, &ldquo;Mary therefore&rdquo; anointed the Lord &lsquo;for his burial&rsquo;. It was as if she perceived that the resurrection of Lazarus was only possible on account of the resurrection of Jesus which was soon to come. But after the Lord's death, her faith in His resurrection seems to have taken a nose dive. Mary's response to &lsquo;the gardener&rsquo; reveals that despite it being the third day after the crucifixion, Mary Magdalene wasn&rsquo;t apparently open to the possibility that the Lord had risen. Yet surely she had heard Him specifically, categorically predict His death and resurrection. One can only conclude that she was so consumed by the feelings of the moment that she like us failed to make that crucial translation of knowledge into felt and real faith. As with us as we sit through Bible studies and revel in our own perception of Scripture, her so fine and correct understanding was suddenly without power when reality called.</p><p><i>Took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair- </i>Peter&rsquo;s letters are packed with allusions back to the Gospels. When he writes that to us, the Lord Jesus should be &ldquo;precious&rdquo; (1 Pet. 2:7), he surely has in mind how Mary had anointed the Lord with her &ldquo;very precious ointment&rdquo; (Jn. 12:3 RV). He bids us to be like Mary, to perceive &ldquo;the preciousness&rdquo; (RV) of Jesus, and to respond by giving up our most precious things, mentally or materially, in our worshipful response to Him.</p><p>The question arises as to why Mary anointed the Lord&rsquo;s feet, when anointing is nearly always of the head. The only time the foot of anything was anointed was in Ex. 40:11, when the pedestal&nbsp;/ &ldquo;foot&rdquo; of the laver was anointed in order to consecrate it. This pedestal was made from the brass mirrors donated by repentant prostitutes (Ex. 38:8 = 1 Sam. 2:22). In this there is the connection. Mary the repentant whore wanted to likewise donate way she had to the true tabernacle and laver, which she perceived to be the Lord Jesus. Her equivalent of brass mirrors was her pound of spikenard. And it could be that she had been baptized at her conversion, and saw the Lord as her laver. And this was her response- to pour all her wealth into Him. She anointed him for His death- for she perceived that it was through death that the Lord would fulfil all the OT types of the laver etc.&nbsp;</p><p><i>And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil-</i> Yet every one of the 11 OT references to a house being filled refers to the temple being filled with the Shekinah glory (1 Kings 8:10,11; 2 Chron. 5:13,14; 7:1,2; Is. 6:4; Ez. 10:3,4; 43:5; 44:4). John&rsquo;s sensitive use of language&nbsp;is surely seeking to draw a parallel. She was glorifying the Name by her gift, senseless as it may have seemed in the eyes of less spiritual people. There is a definite connection between spikenard and what incense was made from. What may seem to have no practical achievement in the eyes of men can truly be a sweet smelling savour to God. We need to remember this at times in bearing with our brethren&rsquo;s efforts for Him. To judge them in a utilitarian way is to fall into the same error as the disciples did. The efforts of others are described later in the NT in the same language- the same word for &ldquo;odour&rdquo; occurs in Phil. 4:18 to describe the labour of believers which is &ldquo;well pleasing to God&rdquo;. The way Mary anoints the Lord with spikenard is surely to be connected with how earlier she had washed His feet with her tears. The spikenard was &ldquo;precious&rdquo; (Jn. 12:3 RV), not only in its value materially, but in the way Mary used it in some kind of parallel to her tears. She perceived the preciousness of her tears, her repentance, her grateful love for her Lord. And any tears we may shed in gratitude of forgiveness are likewise so precious in His sight &nbsp;</p>