John 4 NIV

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Jesus Talks With a Samaritan Woman

1 Now Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that he was gaining and baptizing more disciples than John— 

2 although in fact it was not Jesus who baptized, but his disciples. 

3 So he left Judea and went back once more to Galilee.

4 Now he had to go through Samaria. 

5 So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 

6 Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon.

7 When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?”

8 (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)

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

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.”

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 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. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty 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. 

20 Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.”

21 “Woman,”Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.

22 You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews.

23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.

24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

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

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

The Disciples Rejoin Jesus

27 Just then his disciples returned 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. Could this be the Messiah?” 

30 They came out of the town and made their way toward him.

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

32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat 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 of him who sent me and to finish his work.

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.

36 Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together.

37 Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ 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 believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” 

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.”

Jesus Heals an Official’s Son

43 After the two days he left for Galilee. 

44 (Now Jesus himself had pointed out that a prophet has no honor in his own country.) 

45 When he arrived in Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him. They had seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the Passover Festival, for they also had been there.

46 Once more he visited Cana in Galilee, where he had turned the water into wine. And there was a certain royal official whose son lay sick at Capernaum. 

47 When this man heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and begged him to come and heal his son, who was close to death.

48 “Unless you people see signs and wonders,”Jesus told him, “you will never believe.”

49 The royal official said, “Sir, come down before my child dies.”

50 “Go,”Jesus replied, “your son will live.”

The man took Jesus at his word and departed. 

51 While he was still on the way, his servants met him with the news that his boy was living. 

52 When he inquired as to the time when his son got better, they said to him, “Yesterday, at one in the afternoon, the fever left him.”

53 Then the father realized that this was the exact time at which Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live.”So he and his whole household believed.

54 This was the second sign Jesus performed after coming from Judea to Galilee.

In John 4, Jesus travels through Samaria and stops at Jacob’s well, where He meets a Samaritan woman drawing water. Although Jews and Samaritans normally avoided one another, Jesus speaks to her with compassion and asks her for a drink. He then teaches her about the “living water” that gives eternal life, explaining that whoever comes to Him will never truly thirst again.

As the conversation continues, Jesus reveals knowledge about the woman’s personal life, showing that He knows her heart completely. The woman begins to realize that Jesus is a prophet, and they discuss true worship. Jesus explains that the time has come when true worshipers will worship the Father “in spirit and truth,” not only in a specific location or tradition.

Jesus then clearly reveals that He is the promised Messiah. The woman leaves her water jar and goes into the town to tell others about Him. Many Samaritans come to see Jesus because of her testimony, and after hearing Him themselves, they believe that He is truly the Savior of the world. This part of the chapter shows that Jesus came for all people, regardless of background.

In the final section of the chapter, Jesus returns to Galilee, where a royal official asks Him to heal his dying son. Jesus tells the man that his son will live, and the official believes His word before seeing the miracle. On his way home, he learns that his son was healed at the exact moment Jesus spoke. This miracle reveals the power and authority of Jesus and teaches the importance of faith and trust in Him.

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.”

In this conversation with the Samaritan woman, Jesus speaks about more than physical water. He introduces “living water,” which represents the spiritual life and eternal hope that come from God.

Physical water satisfies thirst for a moment,
but the living water of Jesus satisfies the soul.

Jesus teaches that every human heart longs for something deeper than earthly things can provide. Through faith in Him, people receive spiritual renewal, peace, grace, and a restored relationship with God.

The phrase “gift of God” reminds us that salvation and eternal life are not earned by human effort alone. They are given freely through God’s grace.

John 4:10 reminds us that Jesus alone gives the living water that brings lasting hope and spiritual life.

Jesus said,
🌿 “But whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

Jesus speaks about a spiritual thirst that only He can satisfy.
The “living water” represents the life, grace, and salvation that come through faith in Him and through the work of the Holy Spirit.

The world offers temporary satisfaction,
but Jesus offers eternal life and lasting peace.

When a person believes in Jesus, God begins a spiritual work within them. Like a spring continually flowing, His presence brings renewal, strength, hope, and relationship with God.

This verse does not mean life will have no struggles. Rather, it means that the deepest need of the soul can be fulfilled through God’s grace and eternal promise.

John 4:14 reminds us that true and lasting life is found not in the world alone, but in Jesus Christ, who gives living water to the soul.

Jesus said,
🌿 “God is spirit, and His worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

In this verse, Jesus teaches that true worship is not limited to a physical place, ritual, or outward appearance alone. God desires sincere worship that comes from the heart and is grounded in truth.

To worship “in spirit” means worshiping with a genuine heart, faith, and relationship with God.
To worship “in truth” means worshiping according to the truth revealed by God through His Word and through Jesus Christ.

Because God is spirit, His presence is not confined to one temple or location. Through Jesus, people can come to God directly in prayer, faith, and worship.

This verse teaches that worship is more than songs or religious activity. It is a daily life turned toward God with sincerity, humility, and faith.

John 4:24 reminds us that God seeks worship that is real, faithful, and centered on truth through Jesus Christ.

Jesus said,
🌿 “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to finish His work.”

Jesus explains that His true fulfillment comes from obeying God and completing the mission given to Him. He then speaks about a spiritual harvest, referring to people who are ready to receive the message of God.

Jesus teaches that God is continually working in the hearts of people.
Just as farmers prepare for harvest, believers are called to participate in God’s work.

When Jesus says,
“Open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest,”
He is showing that many people are spiritually searching for truth, hope, and salvation.

In these verses, Jesus also explains that some plant and others reap. This means God’s work often happens through many people over time. One person may share truth, another may encourage faith, and another may witness the results.

The disciples were invited to join the work God had already begun. In the same way, believers today are called to share grace, truth, and the message of Jesus with others.

John 4:34–38 reminds us that living for God’s purpose brings lasting fulfillment, and that God invites people to take part in His work of bringing hope and spiritual life to the world.