Simon the Leper

Background and Family

Very little is known regarding the personal lineage or tribal affiliation of Simon. The biblical text identifies him solely by his residence in Bethany and his condition as a 'leper.' In the first-century Judean context, leprosy (a term used for various skin ailments) rendered an individual ceremonially unclean and necessitated isolation. The fact that Simon is seen hosting Jesus and other guests (Matthew 26:6; Mark 14:3) strongly implies a transformation in his status. Scholarly consensus generally suggests that Simon was one of the many individuals healed by Jesus, allowing him to return to society and offer hospitality to the Teacher who restored him.

Regarding his family, the scriptures are silent. There are no recorded names for his parents, spouse, or children within the specific footprint of the Synoptic Gospels' accounts of this dinner. He appears as a man of some means, capable of hosting a gathering and providing a meal for Jesus and His followers.

Major Life Events

The defining event of Simon's life recorded in Scripture is the dinner held in Jesus' honor. According to the accounts in Matthew and Mark, this occurred while Jesus was in Bethany, just days before the Passover. During the meal, a woman approached Jesus with an alabaster jar containing very expensive perfume made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the oil over Jesus' head, an act that drew criticism from some of the onlookers who viewed it as a waste of resources.

Those present reacted with indignation, asking why the perfume had not been sold for more than three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor (Mark 14:4-5; Matthew 26:8-9). Jesus defended the woman, saying that she had done a beautiful deed, that the poor would always be with them but He would not, and that she had anointed His body in advance for burial. He added that wherever the gospel was preached in all the world, what she had done would also be told in memory of her (Matthew 26:10-13; Mark 14:6-9).

Relationship to Other Biblical Figures

Simon's relationship to Jesus is that of host and guest. Matthew and Mark place the meal in his house at Bethany in the days before the Passover, and name him only as 'Simon the Leper' (Matthew 26:6; Mark 14:3). Scripture records no words of his and no exchange between the two men; his house is the setting in which Jesus receives the anointing and speaks of His burial.

Simon is also framed in relation to the unnamed woman with the alabaster jar. She enters his house while Jesus is reclining at the table, breaks the jar and pours the perfume on Jesus' head. The objection to her act comes from those at the meal rather than from Simon, and Jesus answers it by tying her action to His coming death.

Spiritual Significance

The significance of Simon the Leper lies in the setting his house provides. A man known by a disease that once excluded him from the community hosts Jesus in the last days before the Passover, and his table becomes the place where devotion is offered and defended. The woman's costly gift, criticized as waste by those present, is received by Jesus as a beautiful deed.

Furthermore, the setting of Simon's house provides the context for Jesus to announce the preparation for His burial. In the Synoptic accounts, Jesus defends the woman's actions by stating she has anointed His body beforehand for burial. Simon, as the host, unwittingly provided the stage for one of the final prophetic acts acknowledging Jesus' impending death.