Session 6 John 4:11-26
JOHN 4:11-26
MEMORY VERSE: JOHN 4:14
We are thirsty. Advertisers play to that thirst, promising us their product will give us what we are missing. Social media feeds our thirst as well, knowing what will cause us to keep scrolling through the endless feeds. People throughout history have had that same thirst, looking for something that will quench it—anything. Jesus encountered a woman thirsting as well and helped her find the water for which she longed.
(In PSG, p. 55)
Jesus didn’t have to travel this road. Many Jews crossed to the east side of the Jordan River instead of going through Samaria. They avoided contact with the despised Samaritans whenever possible.
But Jesus had a different agenda. He had a divine appointment with a woman who certainly didn’t expect her life to change that day. Because of her, Jesus deliberately traveled through the Samaritan town of Sychar. Sychar is identified with Shechem, the original capital of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. Many scholars accept the site as modern Nablus or Askar, close to Shechem.
Jacob traveled to Paddan-aram, where he met Rachel near a different well. On his way back to Shechem, Jacob purchased a plot of land and likely dug the well mentioned in John’s account (Gen. 33:18-20). Years later, Jacob gave this property to his son Joseph. An ancient well identified as Jacob’s Well exists today and is located within an Orthodox monastery.
Although weary from his journey, Jesus was not too tired to fulfill His Messianic purpose to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10). Around noon, He waited by the well while His disciples went to buy food. Into this setting came a Samaritan woman, alone and wary of the strange Jewish man.
When Jesus spoke to her, He broke several customs that surprised her. Men did not speak to unaccompanied women. Jews did not speak with Samaritans. Jewish strangers did not ask for help from a Samaritan woman. As we later discover, she was a woman with a sketchy past, making the encounter increasingly odd. Yet, tradition would not prevent Jesus from reaching out to her.
Jesus’s encounter with the woman at the well, her response to Him, and the subsequent witness to the people of the city provide the primary focus for this session. We will learn how people can be led to see Jesus as the Christ and follow Him. Some of our preconceptions may need to burst along the way as the details of the story emerge. The goal of Jesus’s mission and of our study involves making one’s way past cultural barriers to see lives transformed through the gospel of Jesus.
EXPLORE THE TEXT
11 “Sir,” said the woman, “you don’t even have a bucket, and the well is deep. So where do you get this ‘living water’? 12 You aren’t greater than our father Jacob, are you? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and livestock.”
Like patients reacting to doctor’s probes, people with painful issues often shy away from dealing with uncomfortable problems. As Jesus engaged in conversation with a Samaritan woman about physical water, she shifted the focus by responding to Jesus’s comment about living water. Her previous response (see v. 9) may have contained a sense of scorn—or, at least, skepticism. In her past experiences, she had likely suffered the prejudice that Jews showed toward Samaritans. When Jesus offered her living water, though, her tone changed. She addressed Him as Sir. This term translates a word that could also be rendered as “lord” or “master,” but in this context it simply demonstrates respect.
The woman focused on the practical aspects of Jesus’s statement. For example, she observed that Jesus did not have a bucket for drawing water. Such a bucket probably would have been made of animal skins rather than wood. Plus, Jesus would not only need a bucket, but also a long rope. The well was deep, making it even more difficult to get water. Jacob’s Well drops nearly 100 feet with water at the bottom fed by an underground spring.
Jesus’s offer of living water was not intended to come from Jacob’s Well, but the woman did not understand the spiritual allusion. She only saw what was in front of her. Like Nicodemus in John 3, her confusion was fueled by a lack of spiritual discernment.
Hints of derision seeped back into the woman’s attitude as she challenged Jesus’s standing compared to Jacob. Most Samaritans were descendants of foreign groups imported by Assyria after the native populace was taken into exile (2 Kings 17:6,24). Some Samaritans were descended from Jacob as their ancestors were left in the land by Assyrian conquerors. Others were the product of intermarriage between the Hebrew remnant and pagan immigrants. Consequently, orthodox Jews scorned the Samaritans. Yet, this woman asserted a common heritage.
Her claim that Jacob gave us the well suggests she may have been related to Joseph, who had been given that parcel of land along with the well (John 4:5). Another interpretation would view the well as being provided for all residents of this area through the centuries. In any case, the woman’s primary point was the well’s identification with Jacob who drank from it, as well as providing water for his sons and livestock. With His offer, Jesus appeared to claim superiority to Jacob, which in fact He was. Such an idea, though, left the woman skeptical.
13 Jesus said, “Everyone who drinks from this water will get thirsty again. 14 But whoever drinks from the water that I will give him will never get thirsty again. In fact, the water I will give him will become a well of water springing up in him for eternal life.” 15 “Sir,” the woman said to him, “give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and come here to draw water.”
Gently drawing the woman deeper into His analogy, Jesus pointed out that the water from Jacob’s Well was not completely satisfying. Everyone who drinks this kind of water will get thirsty again. The woman was focused on concrete reality, but Jesus wanted her to recognize a deeper need and a greater resource. He was offering water that didn’t satisfy physical thirst for a little while, but living water that quenched spiritual thirst forever.
Unlike the momentary refreshment of cool water on a hot day, Jesus offered the woman something different. Even more, it was available to whoever drinks it. The woman had come to the well during the heat of midday because other women would not be there. She was aware of her reputation around Sychar. But Jesus emphasized that His offer was not based on status or reputation. Anyone could receive it, including her.
What’s more, this water could not be acquired by human effort. It was something Jesus alone could provide. As Jesus said in verse 10, this was a gift of God. The Greek wording in verse 10 implies something given freely. So, even a social outcast could drink and never get thirsty again.
Jesus went further to claim this water would be like a well of water springing up . . . for eternal life. Jacob’s Well was fed by a spring, but it could only sustain physical life. Jesus’s living water supplied eternal life. What Jesus provides is far superior to anything Jacob’s Well had to offer.
Again, the woman addressed Jesus respectfully as Sir. He finally had her attention because this water meant she would no longer have to come here to draw water. She hated the degradation and drudgery of this daily routine. If Jesus could solve this problem, she was eager to accept His offer! She said, “Give me,” seeing that she needed what only He could provide.
People find lasting spiritual satisfaction only in Jesus. Seeking pleasure in worldly ways only leads to temporary highs and lasting lows. Jesus offers the only truly life-giving solution.
(In PSG, p. 58)
16 “Go call your husband,” he told her, “and come back here.” 17 “I don’t have a husband,” she answered. “You have correctly said, ‘I don’t have a husband,’” Jesus said. 18 “For you’ve had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have said is true.”
The woman only understood Jesus’s offer in terms of her physical and emotional issues, but He wanted to address her deeper spiritual needs. Jesus directed her to call your husband and then come back here. On a cultural level, it would have been more appropriate for a stranger to give a gift in the presence of the woman’s husband. However, in this case, Jesus pushed the discussion to highlight the woman’s spiritual poverty. Her marital status and history revealed a more serious problem than temporal thirst.
The woman tried to avoid revealing her shame by simply answering, “I don’t have a husband.” The text does not indicate her tone or body language in this response. Given the context of the passage, though, readers understand that her evasive answer suggests that she was trying to move the conversation in a different direction.
In His divine omniscience, Jesus knew all about the woman already. He quietly commented that she answered correctly when she said she did not have a husband. Jesus was not trying to condemn her. Instead, He was letting her know that He was fully aware of her situation.
Jesus demonstrated this knowledge by pointing out that she had been married to five husbands and was currently living with a man who was not her husband.
We do not know why she moved from husband to husband before living with a sixth man. Many scholars believe she was simply immoral, moving from one relationship to another. However, according to the law, men could divorce wives for any reason, so it is possible that she had been rejected five times by five different men. In addition, since women in that culture relied on men for support, she may have viewed her current situation as a matter of survival. Whatever the specifics, the main point is that Jesus clearly revealed that he knew all about her, even though they had just met.
Of course, Jesus did not obtain this information through normal, human means. He had supernatural insight into this woman’s life. He knew her better than she knew herself. This reminds us of Jesus’s knowledge of Nathanael prior to their meeting (John 1:48). Likewise, this woman could not hide anything from Him.
(In PSG, p. 60)
19 “Sir,” the woman replied, “I see that you are a prophet. 20 Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews say that the place to worship is in Jerusalem.”
Again, the woman did not answer sincerely, trying instead to redirect the conversation to something less painful. Using the honorific Sir, she observed that he was a prophet. Average people believed prophets could divine the future and knew things ordinary persons did not. Jesus must have fit into her understanding of a prophetic figure. Still, she was not willing to discuss her personal situation and fell back on her tactic of debating theological issues instead of confronting personal needs.
Worship location was a major point of contention between the Jews and Samaritans. Following the Assyrian exile, resettled immigrants established pagan altars on various high places, including Mount Gerizim. The woman may have pointed to nearby Gerizim as she mentioned our ancestors worshiping on this mountain.
Gerizim actually had a strong history of Yahweh worship prior to establishment of the temple in Jerusalem (Deut. 11:29; 12:5). Samaritans also built a temple there during the reign of Alexander the Great, but it was destroyed about 150 years before Jesus’s encounter with the woman.
Using the term you Jews, the woman appealed to the two different religious traditions as a basis for her defense. Jerusalem was home to the temple, originally built by Solomon and rebuilt later by Herod. Jews from Galilee, as well as Judea, believed authentic worship focused on the place the Lord had chosen to place His name (1 Kings 8:20; 9:3).
21 Jesus told her, “Believe me, woman, an hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.
Jesus addressed the Samaritan simply as woman. It was not a condescending comment, but rather it was similar to the term He used in addressing His mother (John 2:4; 19:26). Yet, Jesus was firm, declaring that the debate about location was irrelevant. The phrase Jesus told her coupled with believe me form a strong emphasis on what He was about to say. Looking forward to an hour that was coming, Jesus pointed to a day in the near future. Its arrival was sure and imminent, and it would reframe the issue of worship in light of genuine faith.
Jesus was not saying no one would worship the Father either on this mountain or in Jerusalem. Instead, He was probably anticipating the destruction of the temple in AD 70, when the structure that the Jews cherished would suffer the same fate as the Samaritan temple on Gerizim. This made substance more important for worship than geography. He emphasized the “Who” of worship more than the “Where.”
22 You Samaritans worship what you do not know. We worship what we do know, because salvation is from the Jews. 23 But an hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and in truth. Yes, the Father wants such people to worship him.
The woman included Jesus in the phrase “you Jews.” Jesus used a similar phrase you Samaritans to generalize His comment. The Samaritans only accepted the five books of Moses, known as the Torah. Beyond that, they mixed religious and ethnic heritage to create non-canonical religious writings that corrupted historical fact and spiritual truth. Consequently, they did not know what they were worshiping. In contrast, Jesus said the Jews knew God and the Scriptures, even if they didn’t always act like it.
Jesus’s statement that salvation is from the Jews did not mean only Jews would be saved. The preposition from suggests a source rather than results. God chose to send His Word and His Messiah through the people He created as a missionary nation to bear His name to the world.
Jesus again referred to an hour to indicate eschatological anticipation. In fact, it was now here because He was on the scene, ushering in a new era of spirituality. People could now experience a relationship with the Father made possible by the sacrifice of the Son.
True worshipers understood they could worship the Father in all places. What made their worship true was the substance of worship. Instead of going through routines and rituals in selected locations, they worshiped God in Spirit and in truth.
In reality, God was never impressed by the blood of bulls and goats. He was more interested in the obedience and faith behind those sacrifices. Ultimately, only the blood of His Son could atone for human sin (Eph. 2:13; 1 John 1:7). That’s what each sacrifice pointed toward.
24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in Spirit and in truth.”
Describing God as spirit does not limit Him but describes His nature. He is not flesh and bone like His creation. As spirit, God is not confined to time or space or matter like we are. Consequently, He must be worshiped in Spirit and in truth.
To worship God in truth requires more than sincerity. Many pagans worship their gods with complete sincerity, but their worship is not based on truth. God revealed Himself through His Son. Only worship that corresponds with both can be described as in Spirit and in truth.
(In PSG, p. 61)
25 The woman said to him, “I know that the Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” 26 Jesus told her, “I, the one speaking to you, am he.”
The woman was out of answers. She could not argue against the wisdom of Jesus’s words. Yet, despite her lack of scriptural insight, she had a sense of the most important issue. She believed the Messiah was coming. Messiah is the Hebrew word translated Christ in Greek. Her statement was an expression of raw faith. It wasn’t perfect, but it was a start.
She understood that the Messiah would explain everything. We will never know everything about Christ theologically, but we can know Him personally. It is possible that this statement was the beginning of her
faith journey.
Some people falsely say that Jesus never claimed to be the Messiah, but this occasion corrects that error. Jesus simply and directly said I, the one speaking to you, am he. Using terms reflective of God’s self-revelation as “I am,” Jesus declared Himself to be the Messiah (Ex. 3:13-14). The woman need look no further. Her anticipation was realized in the presence of the person before her. All her longing, every painful need, each point of confusion—everything could be satisfied in the Savior.
(In PSG, p. 62)
God the Son
God the Son now dwells in all believers as the living and ever present Lord. (See Colossians 1:27; 1 John 4:14-15.)
Dig deeper into the background and usage of key words or phrases.
Examine Jeremiah 2:13 and 17:13, Zechariah 14:8, John 7:37-39, and Revelation 7:17. How do these passages’ use of the term “living water” give insight into what Jesus told the Samaritan woman? Write a one-sentence summary defining the term based on these passages.