John 4
Disciples’ Literal New Testament
Jesus Goes To Galilee
4 So when Jesus knew[a] that the Pharisees heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John 2 (although Jesus Himself was not baptizing, but His disciples), 3 He left Judea and went again[b] toward Galilee. 4 And He had-to go through Samaria.
On The Way, Jesus Stops At a Well In Samaria
5 So He comes into a city of Samaria being called Sychar, near the place which Jacob gave to his son Joseph. 6 Now a spring of Jacob was there. So Jesus, having become weary from the journey, was sitting thus[c] at the spring. The hour was about the sixth[d].
He Talks With a Woman At The Well, And Tells Her He Is The Awaited Messiah
7 A woman of Samaria comes to draw water. Jesus says to her, “Give Me water to drink”. 8 For His disciples had gone into the city in order that they might buy food. 9 So the Samaritan woman says to Him, “How is it You, being a Jew, are asking something to drink from me, being a Samaritan woman?” For Jews do not use-things-together-with[e] Samaritans. 10 Jesus responded and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and Who the One saying to you ‘Give Me water to drink’ is— you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water”. 11 The woman says to Him, “Sir, You have no bucket and the well is deep. From where then do You have the living water? 12 You are not greater than our father Jacob, are You, who gave us the well, and himself drank from it, and his sons, and his animals?” 13 Jesus responded and said to her, “Everyone drinking from this water will thirst again. 14 But whoever should drink from the water which I will give him— he will never thirst, ever. On the contrary, the water which I will give him will become a spring of water in him, bubbling-up to eternal life”. 15 The woman says to Him, “Sir, give me this water in order that I may not be thirsting, nor coming here to draw it”. 16 He says to her, “Go, call your husband and come here”. 17 The woman responded and said to Him, “I do not have a husband”. Jesus says to her, “You said rightly that ‘I do not have a husband’. 18 For you had five husbands. And now he whom you have is not your husband. You have spoken this as a true thing”. 19 The woman says to Him, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. 20 Our fathers worshiped on this[f] mountain, and you[g] Jews say that the place where one must worship is in Jerusalem”. 21 Jesus says to her, “Believe Me, woman, that an hour is coming when you[h] Samaritans will give-worship to the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22 You Samaritans worship what you do not know. We Jews worship what we know, because salvation is from the Jews. 23 But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will give-worship to the Father in spirit and truth. For indeed the Father is seeking such ones to be the ones worshiping Him. 24 God is spirit, and the ones worshiping Him must worship in spirit and truth”. 25 The woman says to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming— the One being called Christ. When that One comes, He will declare all things to us”. 26 Jesus says to her, “I, the One speaking to you, am He”.
The Disciples Marvel That He Was Speaking With a Woman
27 And at this point His disciples came, and they were marveling that He was speaking with a woman. Yet no one said, “What are you seeking?” or, “Why are You speaking with her?” 28 So the woman left her waterpot, and went into the city. And she says to the people, 29 “Come, see a man Who told me everything that I did. This One is not the Christ, is He?” 30 They went out of the city, and were coming to Him.
Jesus Explains: I Came To Do God’s Will. The Harvest Is Ripe
31 In the meantime the disciples were asking Him, saying, “Rabbi, eat”. 32 But the One said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about”. 33 So the disciples were saying to one another, “Someone did not bring Him something to eat, did he?” 34 Jesus says to them, “My food is that I may do the will of the One having sent Me, and accomplish His work. 35 Do you not say that ‘There are still[i] four months, and the harvest comes’? Behold, I say to you— lift-up your eyes and look-at the fields, that[j] they are white for harvest[k]. Already 36 the one reaping is receiving wages, and is gathering fruit for life eternal, so that the one sowing and the one reaping may rejoice together. 37 For in this case the saying is true, that ‘One is the one sowing and another[l] is the one reaping. 38 I sent you out to be reaping what you have not[m] labored-for. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor”.
Many Samaritans Believe His Message After Hearing His Words
39 And many of the Samaritans from that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman testifying that “He told me everything which I did”. 40 Therefore when the Samaritans came to Him, they were asking Him to stay with them. And He stayed there for two days. 41 And many more believed because of His word. 42 And they were saying to the woman that “We are no longer believing because of your speaking. For we ourselves have heard, and we know that this One is truly the Savior of the world”. 43 And after the two days, He went forth from there to Galilee. 44 For Jesus Himself testified that a prophet does not have honor in his own homeland.
Arriving In Galilee, a Royal Jew Believes After Jesus Heals His Son
45 So when He came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed Him, having seen all that He did in Jerusalem at the Feast. For they also went to the Feast. 46 So He came again to Cana of Galilee, where He made the water wine. And there was a certain royal one whose son was sick in Capernaum. 47 This one, having heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, went to Him, and was asking that He come down and heal his son. For he was about to die. 48 So Jesus said to him, “Unless you[n] people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe”. 49 The royal one says to Him, “Master, come down before my child dies”. 50 Jesus says to him, “Go, your son lives”. The man believed the word which Jesus spoke to him, and was going. 51 Now while he was already going down, his slaves met him, saying that his boy lives. 52 So he inquired from them the hour at which he got better. So they said to him that “The fever left him yesterday at the seventh[o] hour”. 53 Then the father knew that it was at that hour at which Jesus said to him, “Your son lives”. And he believed[p], he and his whole household. 54 Now this again was a second[q] sign Jesus did, having come from Judea to Galilee.
Footnotes
- John 4:1 Or, learned.
- John 4:3 Or, back.
- John 4:6 That is, wearied.
- John 4:6 That is, noon Jewish time; or, 6 p.m. Roman time.
- John 4:9 Or, make-use-of-vessels-with; or more broadly, socially-associate-with.
- John 4:20 This well was at the foot of Mount Gerizim, where the Samaritans worshiped.
- John 4:20 This word is plural.
- John 4:21 This word is plural.
- John 4:35 That is, do you not expect a delay between sowing and harvesting?
- John 4:35 Or, because.
- John 4:35 white for harvest. Already the one. Or, already white for harvest. The one.
- John 4:37 Jesus and the woman are both reaping. They entered into a harvest prepared by others.
- John 4:38 Jews and those connected with them throughout the world were already prepared for reaping, anticipating the Messiah.
- John 4:48 This word is plural.
- John 4:52 That is, 1 p.m. Jewish time, meaning these slaves met the official that evening after sundown (which begins the next day); or, 7 p.m. Roman time, meaning the official spent the night due to the late hour and met these slaves the next day.
- John 4:53 Note how this proves what Jesus said in v 48, and stands in contrast to v 41-42.
- John 4:54 That is, second in Galilee or Cana; or, second manifesting His glory, due to the special nature of both (see 2:11); or, second of the seven John records in this book.
John 4
Expanded Bible
Jesus and a Samaritan Woman
4 The Pharisees [C a religious party which strictly observed OT laws and later customs] heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more ·followers [disciples] than John, 2 although Jesus himself did not baptize people, but his ·followers [disciples] did. 3 Jesus knew that the Pharisees had heard about him, so he left Judea [C the southern region of Israel] and went back to Galilee [C the northern region of Israel; Mark 1:14]. 4 But on the way he had to go through the country of Samaria [C the central region occupied by a people disliked because they were only partly Jewish].
5 In Samaria Jesus came to the town called Sychar [C perhaps Shechem or a village near it; compare Gen. 33:18–19; 48:22], which is near the ·field [plot of ground] Jacob gave to his son Joseph. 6 Jacob’s well was there. Jesus was tired from ·his long trip [L the journey], so he sat down beside the well. It was about ·twelve o’clock noon [L the sixth hour; C hours were counted from dawn, about 6 AM]. 7 When a Samaritan woman came to the well to ·get some [draw] water, Jesus said to her, “·Please give [L Give] me a drink.” 8 (This happened while Jesus’ ·followers [disciples] were in town buying some food.)
9 The Samaritan woman said, “·I am surprised [L How is it…?] that you ask me for a drink, since you are a ·Jewish man [L a Jew] and I am a Samaritan woman.” (Jewish people ·are not friends [do not share things; have no dealings] with Samaritans.)
10 Jesus ·said [answered; replied], “If you only knew the ·free gift [L gift] of God and who it is that is asking you ·for water [L “Give me a drink”], you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” [C “Living water” in Greek can mean fresh running water, but Jesus means “water which gives eternal life”; the woman misunderstands this play on words.]
11 The woman said, “Sir, where will you get this living water? The well is very deep, and you have ·nothing to get water with [L no bucket]. 12 Are you greater than Jacob, our father [C a patriarch recognized by both Jews and Samaritans], who gave us this well and drank from it himself along with his sons and ·flocks [or livestock]?”
13 Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again [C because physical water only temporarily satisfies thirst], 14 but whoever drinks the water I give will never be thirsty [C because spiritual renewal/eternal life is forever]. [L But; Indeed] The water I give will become a spring of water gushing up inside that person, giving eternal life [Is. 12:3; 49:10; 55:1–3; Rev. 7:16].”
15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so I will never be thirsty again and will not have to come back here to ·get [draw] more water.” [C Her response indicates she does not understand.]
16 Jesus told her, “Go ·get [call] your husband and come back here.”
17 The woman answered, “I have no husband.”
Jesus said to her, “You are right to say you have no husband. 18 ·Really [For] you have had five husbands, and the man you ·live with [L have] now is not your husband. You told the truth.”
19 The woman said to him, “Sir, I can see that you are a prophet. 20 Our ·ancestors [forefathers; L fathers] worshiped on this mountain [C the Samaritans worshiped on Mount Gerizim near Shechem], but you [C plural, referring to the Jews] say that Jerusalem [C Mount Zion, the location of the temple] is the place where people must worship.”
21 Jesus said to her, “Believe me, woman [C a respectful form of address in that culture; 2:4]. The ·time [L hour; C the time of salvation established by the death and resurrection of Christ; see 2:4] is coming when neither in Jerusalem nor on this mountain will you ·actually worship [L worship] the Father. 22 You Samaritans worship something you don’t understand. We [C Jews] understand what we worship, because salvation comes from the Jews [C because the Messiah who brings salvation comes through the Jews]. 23 [L But] The ·time [L hour; see 4:21] is coming when the true worshipers will worship the Father in ·spirit [or the Spirit] and truth, and that time ·is here already [has now come; is now here]. You see, the Father too is actively seeking such people to worship him. 24 God is ·spirit [Spirit], and those who worship him must worship in ·spirit [Spirit] and truth.”
25 The woman said to him, “I know that the Messiah is coming.” (Messiah is the One called Christ [C both Hebrew Mashiach and Greek Christos mean “Anointed One”; see 1:41].) “When ·the Messiah [L that one] comes, he will ·explain [report; announce] everything to us.”
26 Then Jesus said to her, “I am he—I, the one talking to you.”
27 Just then his ·followers [disciples] came back from town and were surprised to see him talking with a woman [C some Jews thought it a waste of time for rabbis to teach women]. But none of them asked, “What do you want?” or “Why are you talking with her?”
28 Then the woman left her water jar and went back to town. She said to the people, 29 “Come and see a man who told me everything I ever did. Do you think he might be the ·Christ [Messiah]?” 30 So the people left the town and ·went to see Jesus [L were coming toward him].
31 Meanwhile, his ·followers [disciples] were ·begging [urging] him, “·Teacher [L Rabbi], eat something.”
32 But Jesus answered, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about [Deut. 8:3].”
33 So the ·followers [disciples] asked ·themselves [each other], “·Did somebody already bring him food [L No one brought him anything to eat, did they]?”
34 Jesus said to them, “My food is to do ·what the One who sent me wants me to do [L the will of the One who sent me] and to ·finish [complete] his work. 35 ·You have a saying [L Do you not say…?], ‘Four more months till harvest.’ ·But [Look; T Behold] I tell you, ·open your eyes and look at [L lift up your eyes and see] the fields ·ready [ripe; L white] for harvest now. 36 Already, the one who ·harvests [reaps] is ·being paid [L receiving wages] and is gathering ·crops [fruit] for eternal life. So the one who ·plants [sows] and the one who ·harvests [reaps] ·celebrate [rejoice] ·at the same time [together]. 37 [L For] ·Here [in this case] the saying is true, ‘One person ·plants [sows], and another ·harvests [reaps].’ 38 I sent you to ·harvest a crop that [reap what] you did not ·work [labor; toil] on. Others did the ·work [labor; toil], and you ·get to finish up [reap the benefits of; L have entered into] their work.”
39 Many of the Samaritans in that town believed in Jesus because of ·what the woman said [L the word of the woman who testified]: “He told me everything I ever did.” 40 When the Samaritans came to Jesus, they ·begged [urged; asked] him to stay with them, so he stayed there two more days. 41 And many more believed because of ·the things he said [L his word].
42 They said to the woman, “·First we believed in Jesus [L It is no longer] because of what you said, but now we believe because we heard him ourselves. We know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”
Jesus Heals an Officer’s Son(A)
43 Two days later, Jesus left [L from there] and went to Galilee [C the northern region of Israel]. 44 (Jesus had ·said [testified; witnessed] before that a prophet ·is not respected [L has no honor] in his own ·country [or hometown; C probably a reference to Galilee, but some think Judea].) 45 When [L therefore] Jesus arrived in Galilee, the ·people there [L Galileans] ·welcomed [received] him. They had seen all the things he did at the Passover Feast in Jerusalem, because they had been there, too.
46 Jesus went again to visit Cana in Galilee where he had changed the water into wine [2:1–11]. One of the king’s important officers lived in the city of Capernaum, and his son was sick. 47 When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went to Jesus and ·begged [urged; asked] him to come to Capernaum and heal his son, because his son was almost dead. 48 Jesus said to him, “·You people must see signs and miracles before you will believe in me [L Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe; 2:23–25; 6:26].”
49 The [royal] officer said, “Sir, ·come [L come down] before my child dies.”
50 Jesus ·answered [said to him], “Go. Your son will live.”
The man believed what Jesus told him [C he did not need “signs” and miracles] and went home. 51 On the way the man’s ·servants [slaves; bond-servants] came and met him and told him, “Your son is alive.”
52 [L So/Then] The man asked, “What ·time [hour] did my son begin to get well?”
They answered, “Yesterday at ·one o’clock [L the seventh hour; C hours were counted from dawn, about 6 AM] the fever left him.”
53 [L So/Then] The father knew that ·one o’clock was the exact time that [L in that hour] Jesus had said, “Your son will live.” So the man and all ·the people who lived in his house [his household] believed in Jesus.
54 That was the second ·miracle [L sign; C the first sign was turning water into wine; 2:1–11] Jesus did after coming from Judea to Galilee.
Disciples' Literal New Testament: Serving Modern Disciples by More Fully Reflecting the Writing Style of the Ancient Disciples, Copyright © 2011 Michael J. Magill. All Rights Reserved. Published by Reyma Publishing
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.