Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; (f) for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, [the same] loveth little.
(f) That is, says Theophylact, she has shown her faith abundantly: and Basil in his "Sermon of Baptism" says, "He that owes much has much forgiven him, that he may love much more". And therefore Christ's saying is so plain in light of this that it is a wonder to see the enemies of the truth so badly distort and misinterpret this place in such a thorough manner in order to establish their meritorious works: for the greater sum a man has forgiven him, the more he loves him that has been so gracious to him. And this woman shows by deeds of love how great the benefit was she had received: and therefore the charity that is here spoken of is not to be taken as the cause of her forgiveness, but as a sign of it: for Christ does not say as the Pharisees did that she was a sinner, but bears her witness that the sins of her past life are forgiven her.