Jesus himself recognized the value of such praise; that is, he recognized the value of the gratuitous or opulent gesture. When Judas Iscariot, for instance, rebuked Mary of Bethany for pouring expensive oil on Jesus’ feet, and wiping that oil with her hair, instead of selling it and giving the proceeds to the needy, shortly before Jesus was to die, Jesus said to Judas, “Leave her alone. It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.”