Add parallel Print Page Options

22 After these things, Jesus came with his disciples into the land of Judea. He stayed there with them and baptized. 23 John also was baptizing in Enon near Salim, because there was much water there. They came, and were baptized; 24 for John was not yet thrown into prison. 25 Therefore a dispute arose on the part of John’s disciples with some Jews about purification. 26 They came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, he who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified, behold, he baptizes, and everyone is coming to him.”

27 John answered, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven. 28 You yourselves testify that I said, ‘I am not the Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent before him.’ 29 He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. This, my joy, therefore is made full. 30 He must increase, but I must decrease. 31 He who comes from above is above all. He who is from the earth belongs to the earth and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all. 32 What he has seen and heard, of that he testifies; and no one receives his witness. 33 He who has received his witness has set his seal to this, that God is true. 34 For he whom God has sent speaks the words of God; for God gives the Spirit without measure. 35 The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into his hand. 36 One who believes in the Son has eternal life, but one who disobeys[a] the Son won’t see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.”

Therefore when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John (although Jesus himself didn’t baptize, but his disciples), he left Judea and departed into Galilee. He needed to pass through Samaria. So he came to a city of Samaria, called Sychar, near the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son, Joseph. Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being tired from his journey, sat down by the well. It was about the sixth hour.[b] A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.

The Samaritan woman therefore said to him, “How is it that you, being a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.)

10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.”

11 The woman said to him, “Sir, you have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. So where do you get that living water? 12 Are you greater than our father, Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his children and his livestock?”

13 Jesus answered her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again, 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never thirst again; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.”

15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I don’t get thirsty, neither come all the way here to draw.”

16 Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here.”

17 The woman answered, “I have no husband.”

Jesus said to her, “You said well, ‘I have no husband,’ 18 for you have had five husbands; and he whom you now have is not your husband. This you have said truly.”

19 The woman said to him, “Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. 20 Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.”

21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour comes, when neither in this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, will you worship the Father. 22 You worship that which you don’t know. We worship that which we know; for salvation is from the Jews. 23 But the hour comes, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such to be his worshipers. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”

25 The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah comes, he who is called Christ. When he has come, he will declare to us all things.”

26 Jesus said to her, “I am he, the one who speaks to you.” 27 At this, his disciples came. They marveled that he was speaking with a woman; yet no one said, “What are you looking for?” or, “Why do you speak with her?” 28 So the woman left her water pot, went away into the city, and said to the people, 29 “Come, see a man who told me everything that I did. Can this be the Christ?”

30 They went out of the city, and were coming to him. 31 In the meanwhile, the disciples urged him, saying, “Rabbi, eat.”

32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you don’t know about.”

33 The disciples therefore said to one another, “Has anyone brought him something to eat?”

34 Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work. 35 Don’t you say, ‘There are yet four months until the harvest?’ Behold, I tell you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, that they are white for harvest already. 36 He who reaps receives wages and gathers fruit to eternal life; that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. 37 For in this the saying is true, ‘One sows, and another reaps.’ 38 I sent you to reap that for which you haven’t labored. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.”

39 From that city many of the Samaritans believed in him because of the word of the woman, who testified, “He told me everything that I did.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they begged him to stay with them. He stayed there two days. 41 Many more believed because of his word. 42 They said to the woman, “Now we believe, not because of your speaking; for we have heard for ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world.”

Footnotes

  1. 3:36 The same word can be translated “disobeys” or “disbelieves” in this context.
  2. 4:6 noon

John Testifies Again About Jesus

22 After this, Jesus and his disciples went out into the Judean countryside, where he spent some time with them, and baptized.(A) 23 Now John(B) also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because there was plenty of water, and people were coming and being baptized. 24 (This was before John was put in prison.)(C) 25 An argument developed between some of John’s disciples and a certain Jew over the matter of ceremonial washing.(D) 26 They came to John and said to him, “Rabbi,(E) that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan—the one you testified(F) about—look, he is baptizing, and everyone is going to him.”

27 To this John replied, “A person can receive only what is given them from heaven. 28 You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah but am sent ahead of him.’(G) 29 The bride belongs to the bridegroom.(H) The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete.(I) 30 He must become greater; I must become less.”[a]

31 The one who comes from above(J) is above all; the one who is from the earth belongs to the earth, and speaks as one from the earth.(K) The one who comes from heaven is above all. 32 He testifies to what he has seen and heard,(L) but no one accepts his testimony.(M) 33 Whoever has accepted it has certified that God is truthful. 34 For the one whom God has sent(N) speaks the words of God, for God[b] gives the Spirit(O) without limit. 35 The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands.(P) 36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life,(Q) but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.

Jesus Talks With a Samaritan Woman

Now Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that he was gaining and baptizing more disciples than John(R) although in fact it was not Jesus who baptized, but his disciples. So he left Judea(S) and went back once more to Galilee.

Now he had to go through Samaria.(T) So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph.(U) Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon.

When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?”(V) (His disciples had gone into the town(W) to buy food.)

The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan(X) woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.[c])

10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”(Y)

11 “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? 12 Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well(Z) and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?”

13 Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst.(AA) Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water(AB) welling up to eternal life.”(AC)

15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty(AD) and have to keep coming here to draw water.”

16 He told her, “Go, call your husband and come back.”

17 “I have no husband,” she replied.

Jesus said to her, “You are right when you say you have no husband. 18 The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true.”

19 “Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet.(AE) 20 Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain,(AF) but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.”(AG)

21 “Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming(AH) when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.(AI) 22 You Samaritans worship what you do not know;(AJ) we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews.(AK) 23 Yet a time is coming and has now come(AL) when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit(AM) and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24 God is spirit,(AN) and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

25 The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ)(AO) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.”

26 Then Jesus declared, “I, the one speaking to you—I am he.”(AP)

The Disciples Rejoin Jesus

27 Just then his disciples returned(AQ) and were surprised to find him talking with a woman. But no one asked, “What do you want?” or “Why are you talking with her?”

28 Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did.(AR) Could this be the Messiah?”(AS) 30 They came out of the town and made their way toward him.

31 Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi,(AT) eat something.”

32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat(AU) that you know nothing about.”

33 Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?”

34 “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will(AV) of him who sent me and to finish his work.(AW) 35 Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.(AX) 36 Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests(AY) a crop for eternal life,(AZ) so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. 37 Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’(BA) is true. 38 I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”

Many Samaritans Believe

39 Many of the Samaritans from that town(BB) believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.”(BC) 40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. 41 And because of his words many more became believers.

42 They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”(BD)

Footnotes

  1. John 3:30 Some interpreters end the quotation with verse 36.
  2. John 3:34 Greek he
  3. John 4:9 Or do not use dishes Samaritans have used