A well of water

Salvation Pictures in John

Chapter 4

I’m going through the Gospel According to John, seeing how Jesus spoke to people, and seeking to answer the question, How did he describe his offer of and our need for salvation? You can read the introduction here. Today it is John 4.

1-42 Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well
4-6  And he must needs go through Samaria. Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour.

7, 9  There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink.
Then 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.
You talking to me? Jews and Samaritans didn’t get along, so she is understandably shocked that he even spoke to her.

10  Jesus 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.
This is really cool. He ignores her question, overlooks her animosity, and gets straight to the point – "You should be asking me for a drink." He appeals to her curiosity, if you knew, and speaks to her need, living water.

11-12  The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle?
"Now, where are you going to get living water?" She is not impressed yet, but she in interested.

13-14  Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But 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.
Jesus continues with the water picture and compares the water from this well Jacob dug to the water he offers: “Take a drink from this ancient and respectable well and you will be refreshed, but you’ll get thirsty again. Take a drink from the water I’m offering and you will never thirst again. In fact you will have a well inside of you, a well springing up into everlasting life.” What a beautiful picture!

15  The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.
She is interested now! But she still doesn’t quite understand. Jesus is speaking about spiritual things, eternal things, and all she can focus on is the physical and temporal.

16-18  Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband, and come hither.
The woman answered and said, I have no husband. 
Jesus said unto her, Thou hast well said, I have no husband: For thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly.
And then Jesus goes and ruins it by talking about her husband. He had her interested and talking to him and then he hits a nerve. On purpose. Is he saying that in order to be saved she has to have her husband on board? No. She had said, “Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not.” He is showing her her thirst: she is living in sin and he wants her to confess her sin, to own it so she can forsake it - you can’t drink living water if you are still drinking stagnant water.

19-24  The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet. Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.
Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. But 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. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
She tries to dodge the personal issue by raising a theological question, one that divided Jews and Samaritans, “Where is the proper place to worship?” Jesus answers her question. Isn’t this cool? She had a hard time understanding living water and here he is giving her deep spiritual truth! Ah, but there is a slight rebuke – ye worship ye know not what. He keeps poking her sores!

25-26  The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things.
Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he.
She is stung by his rebuke and responds, "Well, I know that Messiah is coming." And this is really cool, Jesus tells this Samaritan woman, "I am Messiah."
It is hard to capture the force of what Jesus says to her. She says, “I know Messiah is coming,” he answers, “I am the one who is speaking to you.” Wow! Isn’t it amazing the things Jesus reveals to the hungry, seeking heart!

Jesus meets a woman and talks to her about water. He offers her living water, that is, spring water, as opposed to dead, stagnant water contained in ponds, pools, tanks, or cisterns. Salvation is like water: refreshing, satisfying, life giving; take a drink of his water and you will have a spring inside of you, bubbling up into everlasting life. Beautiful.


There flows from Calvary a stream
For every sinner’s pain,
And he that drinketh, Jesus said,
Shall never thirst again.

What! never thirst again?
No, never thirst again;
What! never thirst again?
No, never thirst again,
For he that drinketh, Jesus said,
Shall never, never thirst again.
What! Never Thirst Again? by May Agnew Stephens (1865-1935)