Paragraph 7:44–47

In this paragraph Jesus compared debts to sins. He also implied that the woman was like the man in the story who owed much money. Jesus was like the lender. The lender forgave the man his debt, and Jesus forgave the woman’s sins. The woman loved Jesus very much because he had forgiven her for many sins. Simon was like the man who borrowed only a little money. He did not love Jesus as much, because he thought that he did not need much forgiveness from Jesus.

7:44a

And turning toward the woman, He said to Simon: Jesus turned to look at the woman who had come and anointed him. He was looking at the woman while he spoke to Simon about her.

Do you see this woman?: This is a rhetorical question. Jesus did not expect an answer. He was directing Simon’s attention toward the woman and asking him to consider her actions. So there are two ways to translate this:

• As a question. For example:

Have you noticed this woman? (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
Do you see what this woman has done?

• As a polite command. For example:

Think about what this woman has just done.
-or-
Look at this woman kneeling here. (New Living Translation (2004))

7:44b

In 7:44a Jesus directed Simon’s attention toward the woman, and he seemed ready to speak to Simon about her. However, here in 7:44b Jesus first spoke about how Simon had treated him. If this is confusing in your language, consider whether you may need more transition. For example:

44aConsider this woman 44b⌊and think about yourself⌋
-or-

44aDo you see this woman? 44b⌊In contrast to her⌋

When I entered your house: The phrase When I entered your house implies that Jesus came as a guest to the Pharisee’s house. In Jewish culture it was important for a host to be very polite to a guest. In some languages there may be an idiom that fits here. For example:

I came under your roof as your guest.

In the Greek text, the word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as your is emphatic. If you have a way to emphasize this word in your language, consider doing that here. Some examples from English are:

It is your house that I came into.
-or-
You ⌊are the one⌋ who invited me to your home.
-or-
As for you, you are my host, and I am here in your home.

7:44c

you did not give Me water for My feet: It was a common Jewish custom to give a guest a bowl or basin of water so that he could wash the dust off his feet. In the homes of rich people, the servants would wash the feet of the guests, especially the guest whom they were honoring. However, Simon did not give Jesus water to wash his feet, and he did not provide a servant to wash them.

If it is not a custom in your culture to provide water to wash a guest’s feet, you may want to explain this custom in a footnote. For example:

In Jewish culture, it was common to provide water for the guests to wash their feet. This was especially important if the guests had been walking on dusty roads.

7:44d

but she wet My feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair: In contrast to Simon, the woman acted more humbly than a servant. A servant would have washed Jesus’ feet with water and dried them with a towel. The woman used her tears to wash his feet, and she used her hair to dry them.

General Comment on 7:44b–d

When In the Greek text and in most English versions, no conjunctions are used to connect 7:44b and 7:44c. Consider how to connect them in your language. The Berean Standard Bible says When. Some further examples in English are:

When I came into your house, you gave me no water… (New Century Version)
-or-
I came into your home, and you gave me no water… (Good News Translation)
-or-
I came into your house, but you did not give me any water for my feet. Yet/however, she wet my feet…

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