The Gospel of John
Sisters in Christ
The Moody Church
Lesson 9
as presented by Mary Whelchel
John 4:1 – 26
Jesus and the Woman of Samaria
1Now when Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more
disciples than John 2(although Jesus himself did not baptize, but only his disciples), 3he left Judea and
departed again for Galilee. 4 And he had to pass through Samaria. 5So he came to a town of Samaria
called Sychar, near the field that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6Jacob’s well was there; so Jesus,
wearied as he was from his journey, was sitting beside the well. It was about the sixth hour.
7A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, "Give me a drink." 8(For his
disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.) 9The Samaritan woman said to him, "How is it that
you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?" (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.)
10Jesus answered her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, 'Give me a drink,'
you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water." 11The woman said to him, "Sir,
you have nothing to draw water with, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? 12 Are
you greater than our father Jacob? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and his
livestock." 13Jesus said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14but whoever
drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will
become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." 15The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this
water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water."
16Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here." 17The woman answered him, "I have no
husband." Jesus said to her, "You are right in saying, 'I have no husband'; 18for you have had five
husbands, and the one you now have is not your husband. What you have said is true." 19The woman said
to him, "Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. 20Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that
in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship." 21Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe me, the
hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 22You
worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23But the hour
is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the
Father is seeking such people to worship him. 24God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship
in spirit and truth." 25The woman said to him, "I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ).
When he comes, he will tell us all things." 26Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am he."
Why does John include this story of Jesus’ meeting with this insignificant woman in his Gospel?
His purpose is not to document Jesus’ comings and goings, to give a chronological report of
Jesus’ travels and miracles and teachings. His purpose for writing his Gospel is:
John 20:30-31: Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which
are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the
Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
He wants the Jews and Gentiles to know that Jesus was not just another man, not a hoax or a
phony. He was indeed the longed looked-for Messiah.
“The Old Testament, written over a one-thousand-year period, contains nearly three hundred
references to the coming Messiah. All of these were fulfilled in Jesus Christ, and they establish a
solid confirmation of His credentials as the Messiah.” (Josh McDowell, The New Evidence That
Demands a Verdict)
A few examples:
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God promised the Savior would be a descendant of Abraham, of Jacob, of Judah, of
Jesse, and of David. Jesus’ lineage met every one of these requirements.
The Messiah had to be born in a specific place: Bethlehem. Jesus was.
The Messiah had to be born of a virgin. He was.
He would be heralded by a forerunner. He was
He would minister in Galilee. He did.
He would perform miracles. He did.
He would be betrayed be someone close to him. He was.
He would be executed with wicked men. He was.
The Apostle John knew that the evidence was clear—Jesus was the Messiah prophesied in the
Old Testament. He includes this story of Jesus’ encounter with the woman at the well because it
is in accord with his reason for writing the Gospel. Jesus revealed to this woman that he was
Messiah, and it was the first time he presented it clearly, and it was to a most unlikely non-Jew!
Why reveal such a monumental, all-important truth to this woman at this time?
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Because God doesn’t show partiality; he doesn’t prefer religious leaders over sinful
people.
God’s love knows no limits; it reaches out to all races, gender, ethnicity, and religious
tradition.
He didn’t reveal this to Nicodemus—not in so many words. Consider the contrast between
Nicodemus and this woman.
Nicodemus
--He was a devoutly religious Jew
--He was a learned Theologian
--He recognized Jesus as a teacher sent by God
--He was wealthy
--He was a member of the elite of Israel
Woman at the Well
--She was an immoral Samaritan
--She was an uneducated peasant woman
--She had no clue who he was
--She was poor
--She was an outcast among outcasts
Yet, Jesus chose to reveal his complete true identity for the first time to this woman. How do
you think the disciples felt when they came back from their shopping and saw and heard what
Jesus had done?
Jesus meets this woman as he travels back to Galilee, leaving behind the controversy about him
baptizing more people than John the Baptist. He did not want a public rivalry to develop
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between his followers and those of John. It wasn’t time for his confrontation with the Jewish
leaders. That is yet three years away in God’s plan.
He “had to” pass through Samaria. He did not literally, geographically, have to pass through
Samaria. There were other routes that Jews took to avoid Samaria. But the Lord was compelled
to pass through. John frequently used the verb “had to” to speak of Jesus fulfilling the mission
his Father gave him. So, in order to do the Father’s will, Jesus “had to” pass through Samaria.
Why did the Jews and Samaritans hate
each other? Why did Jews “have no
dealings with Samaritans”?
This bitter rivalry had been going on
for centuries. It happened when the
kingdom of Israel was divided into two
kingdoms—Judah and Israel—after the
reign of Solomon. The Southern
Kingdom, Judah, had Jerusalem as its
capital. The Northern Kingdom, Israel,
chose Samaria as their capital. The
Northern Kingdom was defeated by
Assyria in 722 BC and many Jews were
deported and pagan people were
brought in. This mixture of Jews and
Gentiles eventually became the people
know as the Samaritans.
The Samarians accepted only the first
five books of the OT, ignoring the
writings of the prophets and the
Psalms. They rejected anything that
spoke of Jerusalem. Their central place
of worship was Mount Gerizim, not the
temple in Jerusalem.
The Jews were hostile to the
Samaritans because they had erroneous
religious practices and because they
denied much of the Word of God. This
rivalry was so deep that most religious
Jews never traveled through Samaria.
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Jesus came to Sychar, near the field that Jacob had given to Joseph. This was and is a sacred
piece of real estate. Nearly two thousand years after Jacob dug the well, it was still providing
water to God’s people, and on this occasion, to Jesus. The well was considered sacred by people
who traced their roots back to Jacob. The well is still there and is still providing water.
The disciples went shopping for food while Jesus rested by the well. It was the sixth hour, or
about noon, so it was hot and he was tired. It was customary for any rabbi’s followers to not
only learn from their rabbi, but to serve him and take care of his physical needs.
The woman comes in the heat of the day, probably to avoid other women who came in the cool
of the evening or early in the morning. Normally the women would come as a group; it was their
social encounter each day, no doubt a time to talk and gossip and have a little fellowship amidst
their hard work. But this woman came at the wrong time, and she came all by herself.
When Jesus asked her for a drink, she was surprised that a Jew would ask her for anything, much
less food or drink. The Jews had business dealings with Samaritans; after all, the disciples went
to the Samaritan town of Sychar to buy food. But what they never did was share meals with
them; they did not share eating utensils, particularly glasses or cups, because the Samaritans
were considered to be unclean.
So, Jesus breaks all kinds of social rules when he asks her for a drink. He has no cup; he would
have to drink from her cup. She is shocked.
“To a Jew this was an amazing story. Here was the S on of God, ired and weary and
thirsty. Here was the holiest of men, listening with understanding to a sorry story. Here
was Jesus breaking through the barriers of nationality and orthodox Jewish custom. Here
is the beginning of the universality of the gospel; here is God so loving the world, not in
theory, but in action.” (William Barclay)
Jesus immediately uses this opportunity to turn the tables and talk about her thirst, not his.
(Verse 10) How brilliantly Jesus talks to this woman and gets her to talk to him about the very
deepest need of her soul. He begins with a request, followed by a discussion of something
common to them both—water—and uses that imagery to talk about new birth.
The OT uses the metaphor of living water to describe the spiritual cleansing and new life that
comes when you’re born again.
Jeremiah 2:13: For my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the
fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can
hold no water.
Isaiah 12:3: With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.
Isaiah 55:1: Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money,
come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.
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Revelation 21:6: And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the
beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life
without payment.”
She is skeptical, but obviously she would love to have water that would quench her thirst forever,
no more hot trips to this well everyday. She doesn’t get what Jesus is talking about—eternal
water to quench her spiritual thirst. Like the crowd in Galilee who didn’t get it when Jesus said
he was the bread of life who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world. They said,
“Sir, give us this bread always.” John 6:34.
Our physical needs will trump our spiritual needs most of the time. We are so focused on what
we need physically that we miss how spiritually bankrupt we are!
So, Jesus has to make things clear to her, to bring her to a point of recognizing her sin and
repenting. There is no salvation without repentance, and she is not there yet. She’s still focusing
on her physical need for water.
Very cleverly, he causes her to confront her sin. Instead of accusing her, he gets her to tell her
story of having no husband. It is a truth, but not the whole truth. Jesus knows the whole truth
and confronts her with it by agreeing with her! Amazing way Jesus had with people. Compare
the way he deals with her with the way he dealt with the money-changers in the temple!
Note that Jesus does not call the man she is living with her husband. By so doing, he rejects the
idea that merely living together constitutes marriage.
After Jesus confronts her with her immoral lifestyle, she ventures into theological territory. Is
she trying to change the subject? Is she trying to impress Jesus with her biblical expertise?
Whatever, Jesus stays on topic, and informs her that the Samaritans are wrong in where they
worship, but that whole issue is going to go away soon. Under the new covenant the place of
worship will not be an issue, but rather the nature of worship.
True worshipers will worship in spirit and in truth. What does this mean? Spirit does not refer
here to the Holy Spirit, but to the human spirit. Worship has to be more than external
ceremonies and rituals. It has to be from the heart. And it must be totally in line with the Truth
of God’s word. At this time neither the Samaritans nor the Jews worshiped in spirit and in truth.
The Jews had more truth, but they had no spirit. It was all formal ritual. The Samaritans had no
truth, their theology was wrong.
Both groups focused on external factors. But now, with the arrival of the Messiah, they must
worship acceptably, for God is seeking those who will worship in spirit and in truth.
Philippians 3:3: For we are the real circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and
glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh.
Hebrews 12:28-29: Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be
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shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our
God is a consuming fire.
This woman knows that a Messiah is coming, and she now brings up this reference. Was she
beginning to get it? Has Jesus so impressed her that now she’s thinking, “Could this be the
One?”
And wonder of wonders, Jesus confirms that she is talking to the Messiah. Can you put yourself
in her shoes? Can you even begin to imagine how this one statement changes her life?
Jesus had avoided telling the Pharisees and the Jews that he is the looked-for Messiah. They
were expecting the Messiah to be a political figure who would deliver them from Rome. This
woman knows nothing about Jesus until he meets her at the well. She has not seen him do one
miracle, nor has she even heard about all he has done. All she has is this one conversation with
this incredible Man, and now she is face-to-face with Messiah.
The original translation is “I who speak to you am.” There is no “he” in the original. So, Jesus
connects himself with the great I am’s of Scripture, with Jehovah. John repeatedly refers to
Jesus as I am:
John 6:35: Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. . .”
John 8:12: I am the light of the world
John 10:7, 9: I am the door of the sheep
John 11:25: I am the resurrection and the life
John 14:6: I am the way, and the truth, and the life.
John 15:1, 5: I am the true vine
Twenty-three times in this Gospel Jesus says, “I am.”
You cannot simply believe Jesus was a good man, a prophet, a teacher. He either is who he said
he was, or he is a deceiver, a liar, or a lunatic. He made no bones about who he was. The
question is, Have you received him?
Map of Israel the Time of Jesus
in
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