While worth is truly an intrinsic quality, the value of something, in one sense, can also be determined by external factors. Both by what the owner is willing to sell it for, and also what a purchaser is willing to pay. To some degree, it’s in the eye of the beholder. Countless times I have seen things for sale on Facebook marketplace at outrageous prices with the caption, “No low-balls, I know what I’ve got.” To which everyone reading the ad thinks they are out of their minds for wanting such a price!
We see an interesting picture of these concepts lived out in the lives of Jesus’ followers in the days leading up to His crucifixion. At the outset of Mark 14, we see a woman with incredibly lavish devotion who is willing to come and offer a great sacrifice for the Lord because she sees His worth. Busting open her alabaster flask, she “wastes” 300 denarii worth of pure nard on his head. A denarius was a day’s wage for a laborer, so this woman has just dumped nearly a year’s wages upon the Lord Jesus in her love for Him. Scholar James Edwards points out that Mark’s sandwiching of this smaller narrative makes it the key to understanding the whole chapter.[1]
The offended disciples conclude that this devotion was a waste! This should’ve been sold and given to the poor! The Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary offers a helpful note when they bring out the account of Jesus’ feeding of the 5,000, pointing out that in that instance the disciples exclaim that it would have cost 200 denarii to feed the crowd.[2] Presumably then, this woman’s sacrifice could have easily fed somewhere between 5,000 and 10,000 people if you include women and children in the count. Certainly, it could have helped the poor, but she saw the worth of Jesus and was willing to offer a great sacrifice on His behalf. Was such worship truly a waste? Edwards comments powerfully on this when he concludes that in their complaint, “they demean Jesus as well, whom they regard as unworthy of such extravagance.”[3]
In the next scene, Judas determines to betray the Lord Jesus, and we know from Matthew’s account that his betrayal profited him 30 silver coins (Matt. 26:15). When converted this would equal around 120 denarii.[4] For less than half of the woman’s costly worship, Judas is willing to have the Lord Jesus handed over to the Jewish authorities. After traveling for three years with Him, being a part of His inner 12 guys, seeing Him constantly giving His life for the needs of other people, he determines that he is worth the same as a slave who was accidentally killed (see Ex. 21:32).
Following this, Jesus goes to pray, and his inner circle of three disciples can’t stay awake to pray with Him. His soul is sorrowful unto death (Mk. 14:34) while their flesh is sleepy (Mk. 14:37-42). Jesus humbly submits Himself to the Father’s will, Judas and the crowd arrive, and Jesus is taken captive. Besides one quick swipe at a man’s ear, there is no defense or help for Jesus from His friends. Truly, as Mark summarizes, “they all left him and fled” (Mk. 14:50).
At this time of year, the Jews would commemorate God’s deliverance of His people from Egypt with the Passover which would then follow with the feast of unleavened bread. The feast according to Edwards would commemorate, “the hasty departure of the Israelites from Egypt when there was no time to allow dough to rise.”[5] This grand feast that is supposed to reflect on the quick and mighty deliverance of God, now turns to a quick and horrible betrayal of God’s Son. Jesus is left utterly alone without any of His disciples and as if it couldn’t get any worse, we then see Peter’s explicit betrayal of Jesus (Mk. 14:66-72). Peter wasn’t willing to bear any cost, let alone a cross, for following Jesus at this time. Any association with Jesus was cast aside. All the disciples were gone. But this whole time that Jesus was utterly abandoned He smelled good. A waste?
How much do we value the Lord Jesus? Would we measure out a tiny bit of nard from the alabaster flask, or would we break it open “wasting” all of it? Do we see His worth? How much would it cost for us to betray the Lord? What price-tag would He bring? How much would it cost for us to deny Him, just the concerns and labels of a servant girl? Is Jesus as valuable to us as we say He is? If He was willing to die for us, giving His very life, what might we do in return?
[1] James R. Edwards, The Gospel according to Mark, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI; Leicester, England: Eerdmans; Apollos, 2002), 411.
[2] Clinton E. Arnold, Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2002), 285.
[3] James R. Edwards, The Gospel according to Mark, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI; Leicester, England: Eerdmans; Apollos, 2002), 414.
[4] Clinton E. Arnold, Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2002), 162–163.
[5] James R. Edwards, The Gospel according to Mark, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI; Leicester, England: Eerdmans; Apollos, 2002), 411.