Plot or Prophecy?
About 50 years ago, Dr. Hugh Schonfield wrote The Passover Plot—a book that purports
to prove that Jesus attempted to make prophecy come true but it all went
horribly wrong. Scholars have since debunked
his speculations as contradictory to all we know about Jesus’ crucifixion in
both history and the Bible.
Recapitulation
After Matthew related Jesus’ Olivet discourse in Matthew 24
and 25, he prepares the reader for the passion and crucifixion of Christ by
looking at the way the people surrounding Him handled Christ’s own prediction
that He would soon die at the hands of the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem.
Prediction
In Matthew 26:1-5,
Jesus had just finished answering questions about the future of Israel and the
world in the light of His message of the coming kingdom of God. He told them that “the Son of Man would be delivered
up to be crucified” at the Passover which was coming in a couple of days! The disciples’ response is not recorded here
but this is the third time He has made this announcement and they always seem
to misunderstand the significance of His words.
Which Mary?
But, Matthew makes a deliberate comparison with the response
of another follower less than a week earlier.
This person was Mary of Bethany—not at all to be confused with Mary of
Magdala—two different towns, two different people.
NOTE: The Magdalene had
once been a woman of evil repute out of whom Jesus had cast seven demons according
to Luke 8. But in Luke 7, early in
Christ’s ministry, an unnamed sinful woman wept over Jesus feet and dried them
with her hair while He dined with a Pharisee named Simon. Instead of rebuking this notorious sinner, Jesus
publicly forgave her sins to the shock of the others at the feast. In response, He told the story of two debtors
who had both been forgiven their debt but one had been forgiven of a much
larger debt. He asked which one will
love his creditor the most. The answer
was—the one who was forgiven most. And
so, this woman was showing her love in such a dramatic way because she realized
the extent of her forgiveness. If we
become complacent about what Christ has done for us, our love for Him will
begin to fade. In the very next chapter (and
verse) Magdalene and others are mentioned as followers and supporters of
Jesus. Many have concluded the Magdalene
was this unnamed woman of Chapter 7 though it cannot be proven beyond doubt.
By the way, Magdalene indicates she was from the
village of Magdala (meaning tower) located north of Galilee.
Now in Matthew
26:6-13, we have another unnamed woman anointing Jesus head with
“spikenard” a very expensive component of the anointing oil used on the altar
of incense in the temple. This seems to be a nearly identical event
with that related in Mark 14 and John 12.
In John 12, we learn that this is specifically Mary of Bethany. Bethany is near Jerusalem in Judea—a long way
from Galilee. Both Matthew and Mark tell
us that it took place at the home of Simon “the leper.” This may be part of the reason the two
anointings are confused. They both take
place at the home of a man named Simon. But
it is highly unlikely that a leper would have been accepted as a Pharisee. John’s account doesn’t mention Simon but does
tell us that Lazarus is in attendance along with his sisters Mary and
Martha. John, one chapter earlier, had
told how Lazarus had been raised from the dead and that Mary his sister was the
one who later had anointed Jesus.
Jesus’ Anointing
So, the dinner mentioned in Matthew 26 was held at Simon the
leper’s home in Bethany just before Jesus entered Jerusalem for His triumphal
entry. Lazarus and his sisters and Jesus
and His disciples had all been invited.
And so Mary of Bethany anointed both his head and his feet and Jesus did
not give a speech about her forgiveness but about her sacrificial gift to
prepare Him for burial and that she would be remembered for what she did
–wherever the gospel was preached—a very different scenario from the unnamed
woman early in Jesus’ ministry—perhaps Mary Magdalene.
Jewish scholars and historians tell us that such anointings
were commonly done for important visiting rabbis whom the host wished to
honor. It was viewed by many as
ostentatious and close to flattery. But
Jesus could not be flattered.
Mary’s Sacrifice and Judas’ Blood Money
The significance of Matthew’s flashback is that he compares
Mary’s sacrificial deed with that of Judas’ selfish plot presented in Matthew 26:14-25. We don’t really know exactly when Judas
initially approached the Jewish leaders but likely it was during the Passover
week after the Sanhedrin’s initial plan to wait until after the week was
over. That plan in Matthew 26:3 showed some fear of the people who believed Jesus was
at least a prophet and welcomed Him as a savior as He rode into town on the
back of a donkey. But Judas’ offer to
betray Jesus for money changed their plans to wait. They could now safely arrest Him at night
which would also help hide their perversion of justice. Matthew records that Judas received thirty
pieces of silver for betraying Jesus while Mary poured out her spikenard worth
300 denarii—perhaps 10 times the value of Judas’ cheap betrayal. John 12 tells us (looking back) that Judas
was a thief and used to embezzle the disciple’s funds entrusted to him.
Unlike John, Matthew does not mention that Judas was the
indignant one when Mary poured out her oil on Jesus’ head—rather it was “the
disciples.” Judas was perhaps the vocal
one but Matthew (and Jesus) knew that the disciples were all feeling the same
way. Jesus had to intervene and tell
them to leave her alone. How often it is that family and friends try to stop
the extravagance of a loved one who wishes to invest in the kingdom! What would Jesus say to that?
What About the Poor?
Jesus’ response about “always having the poor with you” has
been stretched by some to supposedly mean that Jesus was coldhearted toward the
poor or that His words were incorrectly reported. But the truth is that our number one priority
as followers of Jesus is not the poor—it is Jesus and His message. And for Judas, this was just a smokescreen
anyway. If Mary had sold the spikenard
and given the money to the beggars of Jerusalem, would Judas have
applauded? And the disciples? They might have felt “shown up.” As it is,
her extravagance shows most of us up. Of
course, caring for the poor is an important component of who we are to be but
the kingdom of heaven is far more than giving another day on earth to a
beggar. Otherwise, the Red Cross might
be seen as the premier agency of the Church.
But rather our priority is the message of eternal life by means of the Bread
of Life.
Betrayal Prophesied
The opening scene of the Passover meal in Matthew 26:17-25, has Jesus saying that
“My time is at hand.” This Passover was
His time to be crucified. And as they
ate, the first thing Matthew records Him saying is that “one of you will betray
me.” The shocked disciples may have had
to suppress the temptation to leave Jesus as they heard Him announce His
upcoming death and perhaps that is why, one by one, they wondered if something
they had done or thought was a betrayal.
Jesus answered enigmatically that it would be someone with whom He had
eaten—fellowshipped—shared hospitality—who would betray Him.
Judas’ Unbelief and Mary’s Utter Belief
Furthermore, although His death was prophesied in Scripture,
this is not to say that God caused Judas to sin. The one who betrayed Him was responsible. Not because of fate, but as Jesus told Judas
in verse 25, “You have said so.” Judas
chose to betray the Lord while Mary chose to anoint the Lord. Judas wanted a few coins. Mary wanted to spend all she had for the King
of kings—the one Who raised her brother from the dead Who was the resurrection
and the life. Perhaps, she didn’t want
Jesus rising from the dead reeking of corruption like her brother Lazarus. But in any case, she was demonstrating her
utter faith in Jesus’ coming resurrection.
Judas demonstrated his utter disbelief.
The Passover Plot Foreknown as the Prophetic Plan
Behind all this drama we also see God’s infinite
foreknowledge from eternity of what would take place—that one would betray His
Son. But God also took advantage of this
evil so that Jesus’ death might be the means of salvation for all who would
believe. The Passover plot was used to
further the prophetic plan.
Jesus also knows us—through and through. He doesn’t pre-program us to do evil but He
does know what we will do—and He still loves us—and forgives us. Do we understand the price He paid? Do we believe?
© 2018 Eric Thimell
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