The Last Supper
The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have Me. Matthew 26:11 · Berean Standard Bible
Jesus says: the poor will always be with you, but I will not always be here. This moment is once-in-a-lifetime.
Jesus is not saying the poor do not matter — He is saying that His physical presence on earth is about to end, and this woman understood the urgency of the moment.
Jesus speaks with tender awareness of how little time He has left with them.
There will always be opportunities to serve the poor, and Jesus expects His followers to take them. But the chance to anoint Him before burial? That window is closing fast.
Jesus cites the perpetual presence of the poor (echoing Deuteronomy 15:11) while noting His own imminent departure, establishing the unique urgency of this moment.
This is not a dismissal of charitable obligation but a recognition of kairos — the unrepeatable nature of this moment before His death. Deuteronomy 15:11 actually commands generosity precisely because poverty persists.
Jesus explains the eschatological urgency that makes this act irreplaceable.
Jesus is not diminishing the poor; He is saying that some moments come only once, and this woman recognized one that the disciples missed.
9This perfume could have been sold at a high price, and the money given to the poor.”
10Aware of this, Jesus asked, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful deed to Me.
11The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have Me.
12By pouring this perfume on Me, she has prepared My body for burial.
13Truly I tell you, wherever this gospel is preached in all the world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.”
Read all of Matthew 26 — Bread broken. Wine poured. A betrayal predicted. The longest night in history begins around a table.
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