Matthew 26:6

‘Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper,'

It would appear probable that Jesus and His disciples had been invited to Simon's house for a meal. Quite probably Simon had been healed of leprosy by Jesus, and his name may well be mentioned as a reminder that as the Coming One Jesus heals the lepers, as is evidenced here by Simon, the one time leper (Matthew 11:5), for Matthew is usually sparing with names. Bethany was also where Mary and Martha, with their brother Lazarus, lived, and John 12:3 in fact tells us that the woman who did this was Mary, and that Martha was in fact assisting by serving at table. Simon's wife would be delighted to have help when feeding such a large party, and it would be typical of Martha to volunteer. Or it may be that Simon was the father of Martha, Mary and Lazarus. But Matthew does not want to take attention away from Jesus, and so he only mentions the former leper. Jesus and His disciples were probably in fact encamped nearby on the Mount of Olives. They had all come together for this meal.