John 4:1-291When therefore the Lord knew how the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John, 2(Though Jesus himself baptized not, but his disciples,) 3He left Judea, and departed again into Galilee. 4And he must needs go through Samaria. 5Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. 6Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour. 7There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. 8(For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.) 9Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. 10Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. 11The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? 12Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle? 13Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: 14But whosoever 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. 15The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw. 16Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband, and come hither. 17The woman answered and said, I have no husband. Jesus said unto her, Thou hast well said, I have no husband: 18For thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly. 19The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet. 20Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. 21Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. 22Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. 23But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. 24God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. 25The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. 26Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he. 27And upon this came his disciples, and marvelled that he talked with the woman: yet no man said, What seekest thou? or, Why talkest thou with her? 28The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way into the city, and saith to the men, 29Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ? (John 4:1‑29)
Long ago, wells in hilly lands were made with great labor, but when carefully walled with stone on the inside, and a low wall built around the top outside, they lasted many years.
One day the Lord Jesus and the disciples were on the way from Judea to Galilee and came to such a well, made by Jacob hundreds of years bore. It was about “the sixth hour”, near noon, and the disciples went on to a town to buy food and Jesus sat at the well to rest.
A woman came with water jugs to get water, and Jesus asked her to give Him a drink. That surprised her, because she saw by His dress or appearance that He was a Jew, who were descended from Jacob’s son, Judah, and did not talk or deal with her people, who were of other sons of Jacob, but long before had rebelled against the king and would not worship God as He had said (1 Kings 12).
But Jesus had come for good to all, though to the Jews first, and He wanted to bless the woman: if she had known Who He was, she would have known it was a favor to her if she could give Him a drink of water. He told her if she knew Who asked her for a drink, she would ask Him for “living water”.
She thought He meant water from the well, and she said, “Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with and the well is deep: from whence hast thou living water? Art thou greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well?”
She did not then know He could have commanded the water of the well to come to Him, since all things obeyed His word, though it is not told He ever used His power for Himself, always for others. He was far greater than Jacob, who was the same as other men.
He did not yet tell her Who he, was but told her more of the “living water.” He said all who drank from that well would thirst again, but He said
“Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst: the water that I shall give him slia:1 be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.”
Wells are supplied by springs in the ground, so the life He would give by the Spirit, she could not see, but it would be in her forever.
But the woman still thought of real water, and that she would not need to carry more, which was a hard task: she said,
“Sir, give me this water that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.”
Jesus wanted her to think of what she needed far more than water for her thirst or for her house; she had sins which would keep her forever from God, except she had new life from Him, He spoke of her life and her wrong ways. It was as a miracle to her that He, a stranger, knew her past life and her sins, and she said, “Sir, I perceive thou art a prophet”. (One whom God had told events).
She knew the promise of the One to come, and said, “I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ. when He is come, He will tell us all things.” Jesus said, “I that speak unto thee am He.”
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