Salome

Biblical Record

Among the canonical books, the name Salome appears only twice, both times in the Gospel of Mark. The Greek name "Salome" is generally understood to be related to the Hebrew shalom (peace).

• At the cross: According to Mark 15:40-41, the women who watched the crucifixion from afar included Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the less and of Joses, and Salome. Mark describes them as women who had followed Jesus and ministered to him when he was in Galilee.
• At the empty tomb: According to Mark 16:1-8, when the Sabbath was past, Salome, together with Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James, bought spices to anoint the body of Jesus. When they went to the tomb very early the next morning, a young man clothed in a white garment told them that Jesus had risen, and they fled from the tomb in great amazement.

Significance within Scripture

Salome belongs to the company of women disciples who remained near the cross and the tomb even after the male disciples had scattered. The Gospel of Mark portrays these women as eyewitnesses of Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection. Scripture records no words or actions specific to Salome herself.

Interpretation and Debate

• Mother of the sons of Zebedee: Matthew 27:56, which records the same scene as Mark, names "the mother of Zebedee's children" in place of Salome. For this reason, the view that Salome was the mother of James and John has been widespread since antiquity. Those who hold this view also identify Salome with the woman in Matthew 20:20-21 who asked that her two sons might sit at Jesus' right hand and left. Neither the Gospel of Matthew nor the Gospel of Mark, however, explicitly states that the two are the same person.
• The view that she was Jesus' aunt: John 19:25 lists those standing by the cross as Jesus' mother, "his mother's sister," Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene. Some scholars identify "his mother's sister" with Salome. On this reading, James and John would be Jesus' cousins on his mother's side. This view, however, is only an inference drawn from harmonizing several texts, and many scholars reject it.
• Distinction from the daughter of Herodias: The "daughter of Herodias" who demanded the head of John the Baptist (Mark 6:22; Matthew 14:6) is not named in Scripture. The name Salome for her comes from the writings of Josephus, and she is a different person from the Salome of this article. The subject is treated in detail in the article Herodias and Salome.
• Extracanonical accounts: A woman named Salome is also known to appear in extracanonical writings such as the Gospel of Thomas and the Protoevangelium of James. In medieval Western tradition she was sometimes called "Mary Salome." These accounts are not found in the biblical text.

In Korean Churches

In Easter sermons in Korean churches, Salome is mentioned as one of the women who came to the tomb early in the morning. Sermons on Matthew 20 sometimes refer to "the mother of Zebedee's children" as Salome. Because of the shared name, she is also frequently confused with the daughter of Herodias, so Bible study materials and similar resources sometimes explain the distinction between the two.