Changes

|1  

|1  

|Then Jesus six days before the passover came to Bethany, where Lazarus was which had been dead, whom he raised from the dead.

|Then Jesus six days before the passover came to Bethany, where Lazarus was which had been dead, whom he raised from the dead.

|

|Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus raised from the dead.

|

|

|-

|-

|2  

|2  

|There they made him a supper; and Martha served: but Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with him.

|There they made him a supper; and Martha served: but Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with him.

|

|They made supper for Him there, and Martha was serving the dinner, while Lazarus was one of those reclining with Him.

|

|

|-

|-

|3  

|3  

|Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair: and the house was filled with the odour of the ointment.

|Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair: and the house was filled with the odour of the ointment.

|

|So Mary took twelve ounces of very expensive perfume, made of pure Nard, and anointed Jesus' feet, and wiped His feet with her hair. The house was filled with the scent of the perfume.

|

|The unit mentioned here is a "litra," which is roughly equivalent in modern measurements to about 12 ounces, or three quarters of a pound.

|-

|-

|4  

|4  

|Then saith one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, which should betray him,

|Then saith one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, which should betray him,

|

|Then Judas Iscariot, one of His disciples who was planning to betray Him, said,

|

|

|-

|-

|5  

|5  

|Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence, and given to the poor?

|Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence, and given to the poor?

|

|"Why wasn't this perfume sold for a year's wages and given to the poor?"

|

|Monetary conversions are notoriously difficult and constantly changing, so if I were to place an exact monetary value on 300 denarii (the exact amount listed), that value would be wrong and outdated next month. Thus, I used a "cultural equivalent." In the first century, the average soldier was paid 1 gold aureus per month. One aureus was worth 25 silver denarii, meaning the average solder was paid 300 denarii per year in wages. Thus, 300 denarii was roughly one year's wages for the average soldier, which is probably the lower end of the average working man's wages. So "a year's wages" seems a fairly stable, reliable equivalent.

|-

|-

|6  

|6  

|This he said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was put therein.

|This he said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was put therein.

|

|He did not say this because he cared about the poor, but because

|

|

|-

|-

|

|

|}

|}

==Chapter 13==

==Chapter 13==