João 4

¹ WhenThis balance is to be kept in doing our duty, that neither by fear are we terrified from going forward, and neither by rashness procure or bring dangers upon ourselves.therefore the Lord knew how the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John,

² (Though Iesus himselfe baptized not: but his disciples)

³ Hee left Iudea, and departed againe into Galile.

⁴ And he must needes goe through Samaria.

⁵ Christ, leaving the proud Pharisees, communicates the treasures of everlasting life with a poor sinful woman and stranger, refuting the gross errors of the Samaritans, and defending the true service of God, which was delivered to the Jews, but yet in such a way that he here calls both Samaritans and Jews back to himself, as one whom only all the fathers, and also all the ceremonies of the law, regarded, and had respect for.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.

⁶ Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with [his] journey, satEven as he was weary, or because he was weary.thus on the well: [and] it was about theIt was almost noon.sixth hour.

⁷ There came a woman of Samaria to drawe water. Iesus sayd vnto her, Giue me drinke.

⁸ For his disciples were gone away into the citie, to buy meate.

⁹ 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 JewsThere is no familiarity nor friendship between the Jews and the Samaritans.have no dealings with the Samaritans.

¹⁰ Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewestBy this word «the» we are shown that Christ speaks of some excellent gift, that is to say, even about himself, whom his Father offered to this woman.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 theeThis everlasting water, that is to say, the exceeding love of God, is called «living» or «of life», to make a difference between it and the water that should be drawn out of a well: and these metaphors are frequently used by the Jews.living water.

¹¹ The woman saide vnto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to drawe with, and the well is deepe: from whence then hast thou that water of life?

¹² Art thou greater then our father Iacob, which gaue vs the well, and hee himselfe dranke thereof, and his sonnes, and his cattell?

¹³ Iesus answered, and said vnto her, Whosoeuer drinketh of this water, shall thirst againe:

¹⁴ But whosoeuer drinketh of the water that I shall giue him, shall neuer be more a thirst: but the water that I shall giue him, shalbe in him a well of water, springing vp into euerlasting life.

¹⁵ The woman said vnto him, Syr, giue me of that water, that I may not thirst, neither come hither to drawe.

¹⁶ Iesus said vnto her, Go, call thine husband, and come hither.

¹⁷ The woman answered, and saide, I haue no husband. Iesus said vnto her, Thou hast well said, I haue no husband.

¹⁸ For thou hast had fiue husbands, and he whom thou nowe hast, is not thine husband: that saidest thou truely.

¹⁹ The woman saide vnto him, Sir, I see that thou art a Prophet.

²⁰ All the religion of superstitious people stands for the most part upon two pillars, but very weak, that is to say, upon the perverted examples of the fathers, and a foolish opinion of outward things: and to refute such errors we have to turn to the word and nature of God.Our fathers worshipped in thisThe name of this mountain is Gerizim, upon which Sanabaletta the Cuthite built a temple with the permission of Alexander of Macedonia, after the victory of Issica: and he made high priest there Manasses his son in law; Josephus, book 11.mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.

²¹ Iesus saide vnto her, Woman, beleeue me, the houre commeth, when ye shall neither in this mountaine, nor at Hierusalem worship ye Father.

²² Ye worship that which ye knowe not: we worship that which we knowe: for saluation is of the Iewes.

²³ But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father inThis word «spirit» is to be taken here as it is set against that commandment which is called carnal in (Heb_7:16), as the commandment is considered in itself: and so he speaks of «truth» not as we set it against a lie, but as we take it in respect of the outward ceremonies of the law, which only shadowed that which Christ indeed performed.spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.

²⁴ God [is] aBy the word «spirit» he means the nature of the Godhead, and not the third person in the Trinity.Spirit: and they that worship him must worship [him] in spirit and in truth.

²⁵ The woman said vnto him, I knowe well that Messias shall come which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell vs all things.

²⁶ Iesus said vnto her, I am he, that speake vnto thee.

²⁷ And vpon that, came his disciples, and marueiled that he talked with a woman: yet no man said vnto him, What askest thou? or why talkest thou with her?

²⁸ The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way into the citie, and said to the men,

²⁹ Come, see a man which hath tolde me all things that euer I did: is not he that Christ?

³⁰ Then they went out of the citie, and came vnto him.

³¹ In the meane while, the disciples prayed him, saying, Master, eate.

³² We may have care of our bodies, but in such a way that we prefer willingly and freely the occasion which is offered us to enlarge the kingdom of God before all necessities of this life, whatever else they may be.But he said unto them, I have meat to eat that ye know not of.

³³ Then said ye disciples betweene themselues, Hath any man brought him meate?

³⁴ Iesus saide vnto them, My meate is that I may doe the will of him that sent me, and finish his worke.

³⁵ When the spiritual corn is ripe, we must not linger, for so the children of this world would condemn us.Say not ye, There are yet four months, and [then] cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.

³⁶ The doctrine of the prophets was as it were a sowing time, and the doctrine of the gospel, as the harvest: and there is an excellent agreement between them both, and the ministers of them both.And he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal: that both he that soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together.

³⁷ And herein is thatThat proverb.saying true, One soweth, and another reapeth.

³⁸ I sent you to reape that, whereon ye bestowed no labour: other men laboured, and ye are entred into their labours.

³⁹ The Samaritans most joyfully embrace that which the Jews most stubbornly rejected.And many of the Samaritans of that city believed on him for the saying of the woman, which testified, He told me all that ever I did.

⁴⁰ Then when the Samaritans were come vnto him, they besought him, that he woulde tarie with them: and he abode there two dayes.

⁴¹ And many moe beleeued because of his owne word.

⁴² And they said vnto the woman, Nowe we beleeue, not because of thy saying: for we haue heard him our selues, and knowe that this is in deede that Christ the Sauiour of the world.

⁴³ The despisers of Christ deprive themselves of his benefit: yet Christ prepares a place for himself.Now after two days he departed thence, and went intoInto the towns and villages of Galilee, for he would not live in his country of Nazareth, because they despised him, and where (as the other evangelists write) the efficacy of his benefits was hindered because of their being incredibly stiffnecked.Galilee.

⁴⁴ For Iesus himselfe had testified, that a Prophet hath none honour in his owne countrey.

⁴⁵ Then when he was come into Galile, the Galileans receiued him, which had seene all the things that he did at Hierusalem at the feast: for they went also vnto the feast.

⁴⁶ Although Christ is absent in body, yet he works mightily in the believers by his word.So Jesus came again into Cana of Galilee, where he made the water wine. And there was a certainSome of Herod's royal attendants, for though Herod was not a king, but a Tetrarch, yet he was a king in all respects (or at least the people called him a king) except that he lacked the title of king.nobleman, whose son was sick at Capernaum.

⁴⁷ When he heard that Iesus was come out of Iudea into Galile, he went vnto him, and besought him that he would goe downe, and heale his sonne: for he was euen ready to die.

⁴⁸ Then saide Iesus vnto him, Except ye see signes and wonders, ye will not beleeue.

⁴⁹ The ruler said vnto him, Syr, goe downe before my sonne dye.

⁵⁰ Iesus said vnto him, Go thy way, thy sonne liueth: and the man beleeued the worde that Iesus had spoken vnto him, and went his way.

⁵¹ And as he was nowe going downe, his seruants met him, saying, Thy sonne liueth.

⁵² Then enquired he of them the houre when he began to amend; they said vnto him, Yesterday the seuenth houre the feuer left him.

⁵³ Then the father knew, that it was the same houre in the which Iesus had said vnto him, Thy sonne liueth; he beleeued, & all his houshold.

⁵⁴ This second miracle did Iesus againe, after he was come out of Iudea into Galile.