John 4:1-42

1 When therefore the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John,

2 (Though Jesus himself baptized not, but his disciples,)

3 He left Judea, and departed again into Galilee.

4 And he must needs go through Samaria.

5 Then he cometh to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground, that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.

6 Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore being wearied with [his] journey, sat thus on the well: [and] it was about the sixth hour.

7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith to her, Give me to drink.

8 (For his disciples had gone to the city to buy provisions.)

9 Then saith the woman of Samaria to him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, who am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.

10 Jesus answered and said to her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldst have asked him, and he would have given thee living water.

11 The woman saith to him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water?

12 Art thou greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank of it himself, and his children, and his cattle?

13 Jesus answered and said to her, Whoever drinketh of this water, shall thirst again:

14 But whoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him, shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him, shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

15 The woman saith to him, Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, neither come hither to draw.

16 Jesus saith to her, Go, call thy husband, and come hither.

17 The woman answered and said, I have no husband. Jesus said to her, Thou hast well said, I have no husband:

18 For thou hast had five husbands, and he whom thou now hast, is not thy husband: in that thou hast spoken truth.

19 The woman saith to him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet.

20 Our fathers worshiped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.

21 Jesus saith to her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.

22 Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship, for salvation is from the Jews.

23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.

24 God [is] a Spirit: and they that worship him, must worship [him] in spirit and in truth.

25 The woman saith to him, I know that Messiah cometh, who is called Christ; when he is come, he will tell us all things.

26 Jesus saith to her, I that speak to thee am [he].

27 And upon this came his disciples, and marveled that he talked with the woman: yet no man said, What seekest thou? or, Why talkest thou with her?

28 The woman then left her waterpot, and went into the city, and saith to the men,

29 Come, see a man who hath told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?

30 Then they went out of the city, and came to him.

31 In the mean while his disciples prayed him, saying, Master, eat.

32 But he said to them, I have food to eat that ye know not of.

33 Therefore said the disciples one to another, Hath any man brought him [aught] to eat?

34 Jesus saith to them, My food is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.

35 Say not ye, There are yet four months, and [then] cometh harvest? behold, I say to you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.

36 And he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit to life eternal: that both he that soweth, and he that reapeth, may rejoice together.

37 And herein is that saying true, One soweth, and another reapeth.

38 I sent you to reap that on which ye bestowed no labor: other men labored, and ye have entered into their labors.

39 And many of the Samaritans of that city believed on him for the saying of the woman, who testified, He told me all that ever I did.

40 So when the Samaritans had come to him, they besought him that he would tarry with them: and he abode there two days.

41 And many more believed, because of his own word;

42 And said to the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard [him] ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world.

John 4:1-42 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO 1 JOHN 4

In this chapter the apostle cautions against seducing spirits; advises to try them, and gives rules by which they may be known, and by which they are distinguished from others; and then returns to his favourite subject, brotherly love. He exhorts the saints not to believe every man that came with a doctrine to them, but to try them, since there were many false teachers in the world; and gives a rule by which they may be tried and judged, as that whatever teacher owns Christ to be come in the flesh is of God, but he that does not is not of God, but is the spirit of antichrist that should come, and was in the world, 1Jo 4:1,2, but, for the comfort of those to whom he writes, he observes, that they were of God, and had overcome these false teachers, through the mighty power of the divine Spirit in them, who is greater than Satan, and all his emissaries, 1Jo 4:4. He distinguishes between seducing spirits, and faithful ministers of the word; the former are of the world, speak of worldly things, and worldly men hear them; but the latter are of God, and they that have any spiritual knowledge of God hear them; but such as are not of God do not heal them, by which may he known the spirit of truth from the spirit of error, 1Jo 4:5,6. And then the apostle returns to his former exhortation to brotherly love, which he enforces by the following reasons, because it is of God, a fruit of his Spirit and grace, and because it is an evidence of being born of God, and of having a true knowledge of him; whereas he that is destitute of it does not know him, seeing God is love, 1Jo 4:7,8, and having affirmed that God is love, he proves it, by the mission of his Son, to be a propitiation for the sins of such that did not love him, and that they might live through him; wherefore he argues, that if God had such a love to men, so undeserving of it, then the saints ought to love one another, 1Jo 4:9-11. Other arguments follow, engaging to it, as that God is invisible; and if he is to be loved, then certainly his people, who are visible; and that such who love one another, God dwells in them, and his love is perfected in them; and that he dwells in them is known by the gift of his Spirit to them, 1Jo 4:12,13, and that God the Father so loved the world, as to send his Son to be the Saviour of it, before asserted, is confirmed by the apostles, who were eyewitnesses of it; who also declare, that whoever confesses the sonship of Christ, God dwells in him, and he in God; and who had an assurance of the love of God to them, who is love itself; so that he that dwells in God, and God in him, dwells in love, 1Jo 4:14-16. And great are the advantages arising from hence, for hereby the saints' love to God is made perfect; they have boldness in the day of judgment, since as he is, so are they in this world, and fear is cast out by it, 1Jo 4:17,18, but lest too much should be thought to be ascribed to love, that is said to be owing to the love of God to them, which is prior to theirs to him, and the reason of it, 1Jo 4:19. And the chapter is closed with observing the contradiction there is between a profession of love to God, and hatred of the brethren, seeing God, who is invisible, cannot be loved, if brethren that are seen are hated; and also the commandment, that he that loves God should love his brother also, 1Jo 4:20,21.