For ye have the poor with you always, and whensoever ye will ye may do them good: but me ye have not always.
Parallel translations
- WEB For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you want to, you can do them good; but you will not always have me.
- BSB The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them whenever you want. But you will not always have Me.
- NKJV For you have the poor with you always, and whenever you wish you may do them good; but Me you do not have always.
- NASB For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you want, you can do good to them; but you do not always have Me.
- NLT You will always have the poor among you, and you can help them whenever you want to. But you will not always have me.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Jesus says the poor are always present to be helped, but he will not always be with them. There is a unique, passing moment to honor him in person.
Overview
Echoing Deuteronomy 15:11, Jesus affirms ongoing care for the poor while noting the singular occasion of his bodily presence before the cross. He is not dismissing the poor but recognizing a once-for-all moment. His words point to his imminent death and departure, making the woman's timely act of devotion uniquely fitting.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Deut 15:11For the poor shall never cease out of the land: therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt open thine hand wide unto thy brother, to thy poor, and to thy needy, in thy land.
- Matt 26:11For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always.
- 1 Jn 3:16–19Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
- Jas 2:14–16What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?
- Phlm 1:7For we have great joy and consolation in thy love, because the bowels of the saints are refreshed by thee, brother.
- Matt 25:35–45For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
- John 13:33Little children, yet a little while I am with you. Ye shall seek me: and as I said unto the Jews, Whither I go, ye cannot come; so now I say to you.
- John 17:11And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.
- Acts 3:21Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.
- John 16:5But now I go my way to him that sent me; and none of you asketh me, Whither goest thou?
- John 12:7–8Then said Jesus, Let her alone: against the day of my burying hath she kept this.
- John 16:28I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father.
- 2 Cor 9:13–14Whiles by the experiment of this ministration they glorify God for your professed subjection unto the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal distribution unto them, and unto all men;
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Mark drives urgently to the cross, showing Jesus the Son of God as the suffering Servant who 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'
How Mark 14:7 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.