Holy Perfume
The Fragrance of Hearts Poured Out
Isaiah 53:5; Mark 14:4-9; Matthew 27:33-34
Extravagant fragrance fills the room. The conversation halts around the dinner table as all eyes turn toward Mary, the sister of Lazarus. Some gasp as she pours out a year’s wages of costly perfume—spikenard, a gift fit for royalty. And indeed, it is a King who receives this honor. Mary’s tears express her overwhelming devotion. They mingle with the precious oil that anoints the head and feet of Jesus. In humility, Mary kneels and wipes the overflow with her own hair. Perhaps she completes the spontaneous ceremony with a reverent kiss on the feet where cruel nails will soon pierce.
“As Mary remembered the foretelling nature of the Magi gifts, did she now feel the full weight of myrrh’s meaning from her Jewish heritage and Scripture?”
As the aroma spreads among the dinner guests of Passover week, did another Mary, his mother, recall the gifts the Magi brought to her child so many years ago? As they placed them before Jesus, the significance of gold for royalty and frankincense as priestly incense were plain. But the offering of myrrh, though a regal gift, felt out of place for a child. It invoked the somber image of burial instead of a celebration of birth. As Mary remembered the foretelling nature of the Magi gifts, did she feel the full weight of myrrh’s meaning from her Jewish heritage and Scripture?
A Pleasing Aroma
The first mention of myrrh in the Bible declares it the principal ingredient in the preparation of holy anointing oil. God commanded that this oil consecrate every part of the Tabernacle, including the tent, the ark, the utensils for worship, and all the priests. (Exodus 30:22-33) Permeating the entire holy place, it reflected the “pleasing aroma” which rose up to God from the acceptable worship and sacrificial offerings for sin.
Looking more closely at myrrh, reveals an interesting comparison with events to come. To release myrrh’s fragrance the plant must be bruised. Resin seeps out from the injured stems and gathers into light yellow orbs. These golden drops dry to dark red (or even black). The visible results of wounding this ancient medicinal plant seem familiar when recalling the description of the Savior by the prophet Isaiah:
“But he was pierced because of our rebellion, crushed because of our iniquities; punishment for our peace was on him, and we are healed by his wounds.” (Isaiah 53:5)
The Passion Week wounds of Jesus will begin with the drops of blood he sweats in Gethsemane’s anguish and culminate with his sword-pierced side on the cross. The life of kingly gold will fall in red drops until the black finish of death.
A Bitter Scent Rebuked
Jesus represents both priest and sacrifice. At the Bethany dinner, the tabernacle scent affirms his worthiness. He will perfectly fulfill the demands of the law in pleasing obedience to God the Father. As sweet holiness fills the room from Mary’s anointing, a bitter counterpoint seeps in and foreshadows the betrayal to come.
“But some were expressing indignation to one another: ‘Why has this perfume been wasted? For this perfume might have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and given to the poor.’ And they began to scold her.” (Mark 14:4-5)
Wasted…on the Son of God? He who created the plants of costly perfume sits among them. The one who formed these men from dust and prepares to sacrifice himself on their behalf bears the insult. While Mary demonstrates humble devotion and gives her most precious possession, others reveal their blindness and greed.
In response, Jesus defends and commends Mary:
“Jesus replied, ‘Leave her alone. Why are you bothering her? She has done a noble thing for me. You always have the poor with you, and you can do what is good for them whenever you want, but you do not always have me. She has done what she could; she has anointed my body in advance for burial. Truly I tell you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.’" (Mark 14:6-9)
She has done a noble thing. The word “noble” here means beautiful, virtuous, praiseworthy. She has done what she could. What praise for Mary! What an exhortation for us! Her love gift offers affirmation and comfort for what her Savior will soon face. Jesus honors her by connecting her act of worship to the very gospel message itself. Her pouring out will set an example for believers in every generation to come.
A Counterfeit Conquered
Days after the Bethany dinner, the prophetic myrrh makes another appearance in the final hours of the passion of Jesus.
“When they came to a place called Golgotha (which means Place of the Skull), they gave him wine mixed with gall to drink. But when he tasted it, he refused to drink it.” (Matthew 27:33-34)
“But even in the last moments of weakness and suffering, Christ refuses Satan’s mocking counterfeit. He will not mix the wine of the new covenant with the poison of the serpent.”
To help deaden the pain during crucifixion, criminals were offered a mixture of wine and myrrh, called “gall.” (Mark 15:23) The Hebrew root for gall means “bitter” or “the poison of a serpent.” Once again, the evil challenger to God’s Anointed slithers into view. He presses a final temptation upon the Lamb of God to compromise his obedience. But even in the last moments of weakness and suffering, Christ refuses Satan’s mocking counterfeit. He will not mix the wine of the new covenant with the poison of the serpent. For love of the Father and the world—for us—he will bear the full agony.
The sweet scent of God’s holiness and grace triumph over the stench of sin and death. Through generations of expectation, the temple sacrifices raised the aroma of repentance and devotion. Before the imminent death of Christ, a royal fragrance offered in humility, foretold the coming defeat over sin’s decay. Finally, Jesus rejected the final temptation of compromise, and the perfume of holy obedience won the victory for us all.
What places in your life need more of the fragrance of Jesus?
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