Word Pictures in the New Testament - David Cox

Word Pictures in the NT [Luke: Chapter 7]
justify their own rejection of Jesus.
7:35 {Of all her children} (\apo pant•n t•n tekn•n aut•s\). Here
Mt 11:19 has "by her works" (\apo t•n erg•n aut•s\). Aleph has
\erg•n\ here. The use of "children" personifies wisdom as in Pr
8; 9.
7:36 {That he would eat with him} (\hina phag•i met' autou\).
Second aorist active subjunctive. The use of \hina\ after
\er•ta•\ (see also Lu 16:27) is on the border between the pure
object clause and the indirect question (Robertson, _Grammar_, p.
1046) and the pure final clause. Luke has two other instances of
Pharisees who invited Jesus to meals (11:37; 14:1) and he alone
gives them. This is the Gospel of Hospitality (Ragg). Jesus would
dine with a Pharisee or with a publican (Lu 5:29; Mr 2:15; Mt
9:10) and even invited himself to be the guest of Zaccheus (Lu
9:5). This Pharisee was not as hostile as the leaders in
Jerusalem. It is not necessary to think this Pharisee had any
sinister motive in his invitation though he was not overly
friendly (Plummer).
7:37 {A woman which was in the city, a sinner} (\gun• h•tis en
t•i polei hamart•los\). Probably in Capernaum. The use of \h•tis\
means "Who was of such a character as to be" (cf. 8:3) and so
more than merely the relative \h•\, who, that is, "who was a
sinner in the city," a woman of the town, in other words, and
known to be such. \Hamart•los\, from \hamartan•\, to sin, means
devoted to sin and uses the same form for feminine and masculine.
It is false and unjust to Mary Magdalene, introduced as a new
character in Lu 8:2, to identify this woman with her. Luke
would have no motive in concealing her name here and the life of
a courtesan would be incompatible with the sevenfold possession
of demons. Still worse is it to identify this courtesan not only
with Mary Magdalene, but also with Mary of Bethany simply because
it is a Simon who gives there a feast to Jesus when Mary of
Bethany does a beautiful deed somewhat like this one here (Mr
14:3-9; Mt 26:6-13; Joh 12:2-8). Certainly Luke knew full well
the real character of Mary of Bethany (10:38-42) so beautifully
pictured by him. But a falsehood, once started, seems to have
more lives than the cat's proverbial nine. The very name
Magdalene has come to mean a repentant courtesan. But we can at
least refuse to countenance such a slander on Mary Magdalene and
on Mary of Bethany. This sinful woman had undoubtedly repented
and changed her life and wished to show her gratitude to Jesus
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