In brief
The sinful woman of Luke 7 is a woman of the town, known for her sinful life, whose name the Bible does not give. During a meal at the house of Simon the Pharisee, she stands at the feet of Jesus, wets them with her tears, wipes them with her hair, kisses them and anoints them with perfume. Jesus defends her act with the parable of the two debtors, declares her sins forgiven and tells her that her faith has saved her and that she may go in peace.
What does the name The Sinful Woman of Luke 7 mean?
The Bible does not name this woman: Luke presents her only as a woman in the town who lived a sinful life (Luke 7:37). The text does not allow us to identify her with Mary Magdalene, introduced just afterward (Luke 8:2), nor with Mary of Bethany, who anoints Jesus in another account (John 12:1-8).
The story of The Sinful Woman of Luke 7
A meal at a Pharisee's house
Luke 7:36-37A Pharisee named Simon invites Jesus to eat with him. A sinful woman of the town learns that Jesus is at the table in that house. She comes uninvited, carrying an alabaster jar of perfume, and enters a place where everyone knows her reputation.
Tears and perfume
Luke 7:38She stands behind Jesus, at his feet, weeping. Her tears wet the Lord's feet; she wipes them with her hair, kisses them and anoints them with perfume. She does not say a word in the whole account: her humility, her repentance and her love are expressed through her actions.
Simon's silent judgment
Luke 7:39-43Simon thinks to himself that if Jesus were a prophet, he would know that this woman is a sinner. Jesus answers his thought with a parable: a lender cancels the debts of two debtors, one owing five hundred denarii, the other fifty. Which of them will love him more? Simon answers: the one who was forgiven more.
Do you see this woman?
Luke 7:44-47Jesus turns toward her and compares her welcome with Simon's, who gave him no water for his feet, no kiss and no oil. She has done all of this with her tears and her perfume. He concludes that her many sins have been forgiven, as her great love shows, while the one who has been forgiven little loves little.
Your faith has saved you, go in peace
Luke 7:48-50Jesus tells the woman that her sins are forgiven. The other guests ask among themselves who this is who even forgives sins. Jesus sends her away with a word of salvation and peace. The woman everyone judged leaves forgiven, saved by her faith in him.
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What The Sinful Woman of Luke 7 teaches us
- No past is too heavy to keep someone from coming to the feet of Jesus in repentance.
- Love for the Lord grows when we grasp the immensity of the forgiveness we have received.
- The gaze of Jesus sees a person where others see only a reputation.
- Salvation is received by faith in Jesus, who alone has the authority to forgive sins.
- Thinking of oneself as barely a sinner, like Simon, leads to loving little and judging others.
Key verses
Tears, hair, kisses and perfume: without a word, this woman expresses a repentance and a love that the Pharisee failed to show his guest.
The one who is forgiven little loves little. Jesus ties love to forgiveness: whoever recognizes the size of the debt cancelled loves the liberator all the more.
Jesus' closing word shows that the woman is saved by faith, and that she leaves with the peace of God.
Bible verses to meditate on
Frequently asked questions
Who was the sinful woman of Luke 7?
Luke gives neither her name nor the details of her sins. He says only that she was known in the town as a sinner. The Bible does not allow us to identify her with Mary Magdalene: that tradition appeared much later and rests on no verse. What the text records is her faith and her love for Jesus.
Is she the same woman who anoints Jesus at Bethany?
No, according to the texts. In Luke 7, the scene takes place in Galilee at the house of Simon the Pharisee, in the middle of Jesus' ministry. In Mark 14 and John 12, the anointing takes place at Bethany, a few days before Passover, and John names Mary, the sister of Lazarus. These are two distinct accounts.
What does she loved much mean?
Through the parable of the two debtors, Jesus shows that the woman's love flows from the forgiveness she received: the one who is forgiven a large debt loves more. Her love shows that she has been forgiven. Jesus then specifies that it is her faith that saved her (Luke 7:50), not the merit of her actions.