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John Chapter
Four
I.
Content of the Chapter
The Son of
God the Savior ---- the Provision of Men’s life
A. He revealed that He is the living water the woman of
B. The
way of drawing the living water:
1. To
confess one’s sin (v.15-18)
2. To worship God in spirit and truth (v. 19-24)
3. To
believe Jesus is Christ (v. 25-26)
C. The result of enjoying the living water:
1. To bear the living witness (v.27-30)
2. To please the Lord (v.31-34)
3. To make that both he who sows and he who reaps rejoice together
(v.35-38)
4. To provide the word of the Lord for more people (v.39-42)
D. Life in the word of the Lord healed the one who
believed (v.43-54)
II.
Verse by Verse commentary
John. 4:1 “Therefore, when the Lord
knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples
than John”
YLT: “When therefore
the Lord knew that the Pharisees heard that Jesus more disciples doth make and
baptize than John,”
Literal
Meaning: “the Pharisees had heard”, it was apparently that the Jewish leaders paid
high attention to the activities of the Lord Jesus, just as they observed John
the Baptist before (see 1:24).
John. 4:2 “(though Jesus Himself did
not baptize, but His disciples),”
YLT: “(though indeed
Jesus himself was not baptizing, but his disciples,)”
Meaning
of Words: “though”: and yet indeed, nevertheless;
Literal
Meaning: probably, the Lord Jesus preached the significance
of the baptism of repentance, and then His disciples baptized those who had
repented. Just like the Apostle Paul who preached the gospels but seldom
baptized others (see 1Cor 1:14-17).
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) What a man “has heard”
is usually not the fact, so we shall not rashly trust in any men’s word.
2) The Lord baptizes with
Holy Spirit and fire instead of water (Matt 3:11).
John. 4:3 “He left Judea and departed
again to
YLT: “he left Judea
and went away again to
Literal
Meaning: “He left Judea”,
there were possibly two reasons of the Lord’s leaving Judea: (1) to avoid intensifying
the Pharisees’ hostility (v.1) for His hour had not yet
come (see 7:6); (2) to avoid the friction between His disciples and John the
Baptist’s disciples (see 3:26).
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) The Lord Jesus left
2) When we do the work
of the Lord, we shall sometimes decide our whereabouts by taking the environmental
factors into consideration.
3) He who is spiritual
should discern the hidden facts (v.1) so that he can take preventive measures
and escape the unnecessary dispute resolutely.
4) When the Jews
rejected the Lord, the Galileans obtained the grace of salvation. Likewise,
when the
5) The previous
chapter unveils the spirit of John the Baptist ---- he gave all the glory of
fulfillments to the Lord, and then his joy was fulfilled (see 3:26-30). This
chapter unveils the spirit of the Lord Jesus ---- He did not esteem his
accomplished works but showed His humbleness and modesty in the withdrawal
(v.1-3).
John. 4:4 “But He needed to go through
YLT: “and it was
behoving him to go through
Meaning
of Words: “need”: ought, should;
The
Background:
from Judea to
Galilee, the Jews usually made a detour around the east side of the
Literal
Meaning: “But He needed to go through
Enlightenment
in the Word: the
whereabouts of the Lord’s workers should be determined by the inside spiritual
burdens.
John. 4:5 “So He came to a city of
YLT: “He cometh,
therefore, to a city of
Meaning of Words: “near”: close by
Literal
Meaning: “Sychar” may refer to a
small village in the east of the city Shechem (see Gen33:18-19) and
it lied in the valley between the
“Near
the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph”, Jacob had bought a
portion of the field outside of the city
Shechem (see Gen 33:19), but apparently the field
was given to Joseph later (see Gen 48:22; Josh 24:32).
John. 4:6 “Now Jacob's well was there.
Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well. It was
about the sixth hour.”
YLT: “and there was
there a well of Jacob. Jesus therefore having been weary from the journeying,
was sitting thus on the well; it was as it were the sixth hour;”
Meaning
of Words: “well”:
fountain; “being wearied”: to feel fatigue, toil; “the sixth hour”: it was recorded according to the Roman measure of time.
And it equaled
to 12 o'clock at noon according to the Jewish measure of time.
Literal
Meaning: “Now Jacob's well was there.” ---- The Scripture particularly recorded the
matter of digging well of both Abraham and Isaac, but it never mentioned Jacob
dug any well. It is traditionally believed that Jacob’s well lied in the foot
of
“Jesus therefore, being wearied from
His journey”, the Lord Jesus
may feel wearied
(see Heb 2:18; 4:15) in his humanity.
Spiritual
Meaning: “Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus
by the well.” ---- It typifies that according to the will
of God the Lord Jesus was eager to save more souls no matter how wearied He
was.
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) Even though the
Lord Jesus is the Son of God, he could still feel wearied and fatigue and sat
thus by the well when he walked on the earth. Therefore, only the Lord Jesus
can sympathize with and comfort us when we feel wearied in the way of our life,
for he had experienced all (see Heb 4:15).
2) When we feel weary
and faint of our minds, we should look upon the Lord (see Heb 12:2-3).
John. 4:7 “A woman of
YLT: “there cometh a
woman out of
Literal Meaning: “A
woman of
Spiritual
Meaning: “Jesus said to her, "Give Me a drink. "” ---- It showed that Christ was
earnest and pressed to save sinners.
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) When the woman of
2) “Give Me a drink.” ---- Through the request, the Lord Jesus
revealed to the woman that He had “the living water” (see v.10). It is just
when we ask for the Lord that he is going to grant us blessings.
John. 4:8 “For His disciples had gone
away into the city to buy food.”
YLT: “for his disciples
were gone away to the city, that they may buy victuals;”
Literal
Meaning: according
to the Jewish measure of time, it was noon of lunch time. But
it was supper time according to the Roman measure of time.
John. 4:9 “Then the woman of
YLT: “the Samaritan
woman therefore saith to him, `How dost thou, being a Jew, ask drink from me,
being a Samaritan woman?' for Jews have no dealing with Samaritans.”
Meaning
of Words: “have dealings with”: together-use,
have something to do with;
The
Background:
Literal
Meaning: “Have no dealings with”: “not use vessels together” ---- Jews generally
believed that all the Samaritans were unclean, so the vessels used by them were
unclean too.
The Jews
did not entirely “have no dealings with Samaritans”, for the disciples of the Lord went away into the city to buy
food (v.8), which had actually proved that they
had already had dealings with each other to a certain degree.
John. 4:10 “Jesus answered and said to
her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you,
"Give Me a drink,' you would have asked Him, and He would have given you
living water."”
YLT: “Jesus answered
and said to her, `If thou hadst known the gift of God, and who it is who is
saying to thee, Give me to drink, thou wouldest have asked him, and he would
have given thee living water.'”
Meaning
of Words: “gift”:
gratuity; “living”: alive, quick
Literal
Meaning: “the gift of God”,
in Greek the word “gift” specially refers to the grace bestowed by
God, which is not employed to denote men’s gift.
“And
who it is who says to you”, “and” may be
interpreted as the epexegetically structure (see 3:5), which means “just is”.
The whole sentence is that “the
gift of God is who it is who says to you, "Give Me a drink, "”, suggesting that He is the gift of God.
“And
He would have given you living water”,
“living water” means the water springing out of a fountain.
Spiritual
Meaning: “living water” typifies that Christ who is
our life (see
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) Christ, the most
precious gift of God, is the gift of gifts and the origin of all gifts.
2) Nothing will
satisfy a man except Christ. If Christ is not the satisfaction of a man, then
nothing will satisfy him. There will be no satisfaction without Christ.
3) “If you knew the gift of God…you would have asked Him”, men have not obtained the gift of God is mostly
on account of his “unknown” ---- he does not know the gift of God at all.
4) It is true that God
has abundant grace, yet men will still not enjoy the grace if they do not “ask
Him”. To ask is a prerequisite of experiencing the grace of God.
5) God is willing to
bestow grace to those who ask Him. Sometimes, and it shall come to pass that
before men call, God will answer (see Is 65:24).
John. 4:11 “The woman said to Him,
"Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do
You get that living water?”
YLT: “The woman saith
to him, `Sir, thou hast not even a vessel to draw with, and the well is deep;
whence, then, hast thou the living water?”
Meaning
of Words: “something to draw with water”: bucket
Spiritual
Meaning: “something to draw with water”, it symbolizes the way of seeking the joy
of life.
“The well is deep”, it symbolizes that the life of men is too
tough to find joy.
John. 4:12 “Are You greater than our
father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his
sons and his livestock?"”
YLT: “Art thou
greater than our father Jacob, who did give us the well, and himself out of it
did drink, and his sons, and his cattle?'”
Meaning
of Words: “livestock”: cattle;
Literal
Meaning: “our father Jacob”,
even though Samaritans were hybrids of the Jews and other races,
they still believed that they were offspring of Joseph (v.5).
Spiritual
Meaning: “our father Jacob
gave us the
well” symbolizes the traditional religion and
culture accumulated and left by our fathers, through which we can deal with many
problems in our life.
Enlightenment
in the Word: this verse reveals a principle that we should get
rid of the traditional conceptions so that we can obtain the full provision of
Him.
John. 4:13 “Jesus answered and said to
her, "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again,”
YLT: “Jesus answered
and said to her, `Every one who is drinking of this water shall thirst again;”
Spiritual
Meaning: “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again”, “this water” symbolizes the physical
enjoyment and earthly entertainment, which can not quench the deep thirst of a
man. No matter how much material or secular “water” one drinks, he must be
thirsty again. The more one drinks such “water”, the thirstier one will be.
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) Even though one can
obtain some satisfaction in his flesh and happiness in his soul from the
secular things, it never quenches his deep thirst in his spirit.
2) If a man has no
hope, he will never lose his hope. If Christians had realized the earthly water
could not relieve one’s thirst, there would be no sense of thirst or despair.
3) All those who are
desirous of earning the prosperity, reputation, glory and wealth in this world
will be hard to avoid suffering from thirsty all the time. If we do not hope to
receive help, comfort or support from the world, we will never be thirsty.
John. 4:14 “but whoever drinks of the
water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give
him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting
life."”
YLT: “but whoever may
drink of the water that I will give him, may not thirst -- to the age; and the
water that I will give him shall become in him a well of water, springing up to
life age-during.'”
Meaning
of Words: “springing
up into”: jump, gush;
Literal
Meaning: “become in him a fountain of water”, “fountain”: well (in the
original). But this well is different from that well (v.6): the former in this chapter
(v.6) is physical and of the soul, and the latter (v.14) is spiritual.
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) Yes, the Lord Jesus is the true joy of our life:
the water bestowed by Him becomes a fountain of water springing up, thus making our life joyful.
2) “Springing up into
everlasting life”, “everlasting life” is objective and abstract, but the “springing
up” of the water of life is subjective and personal. Christians come to know
and experience this life in accordance with the enjoyment of God’s life.
3) Happiness on earth
is limited, and cannot satisfy men truly. But blessings from Christ not only
satisfy men, even that a man is too limited to enjoy the whole blessings of
Him.
4) Happiness on earth
lasts only limited number of years, but joy granted by Christ remains forever.
John. 4:15 “The woman said to Him,
"Sir, give me this water that I may not thirst, nor come here to
draw."”
YLT: “The woman saith
unto him, `Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come hither to
draw.'”
Literal
Meaning: the woman began to be interested in “living
water”.
John. 4:16 “Jesus said to her,
"Go, call your husband, and come here."”
YLT: “Jesus saith to
her, `Go, call thy husband, and come hither;'”
Spiritual
Meaning: when the woman of
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) Everyone (including
the sinner) can imbibe both the material and soulish water, but if a man wants
to drink the spiritual living water he must do with the sin (and ask your spouse
also).
2) “Husband” also
typifies “the law” (see Rom 7:1-4). If a man wants to enjoy the Holy Spirit
(the living water granted by the Lord), he should submit to the light of the
law, know his sin (see Rom 3:20) and confess his sins.
3) One should confess
that he is a sinner and repent to the Lord sincerely, and then he will be truly
saved. When we preach the gospels to others and save one’s spirit, we should
not avoid mentioning the matter of sin.
4) Every time we pray
to the Lord, He also points our sins in his enlightenment, which indicates that
we must do with our sin (see Ps 66:18) if we want our prayers answered. Besides,
it tells us that to have fellowship with the Lord is a good way to be conscious
of and deal with the sin.
5) God is the eternal
husband (see Is 54:5) of men, and the eternal reliance. Anyone who wants to be separated
from God, he will never be satisfied.
John. 4:17 “The woman answered and
said, "I have no husband." Jesus said to her, "You have well
said, "I have no husband,'”
YLT: “the woman answered and said, `I have not a husband.' Jesus saith to
her, `Well didst thou say -- A husband I have not;”
Enlightenment
in the Word: men often speak out a part of the fact and hide the majority of the fact, so men’s true words
are sometimes another form of lies.
John. 4:18 “for you have had five
husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke
truly."”
YLT: “for five
husbands thou hast had, and, now, he whom thou hast is not thy husband; this
hast thou said truly.'”
Literal
Meaning: “for you have had five husbands”, the Jews believed that a woman could divorce her
husband twice, i.e. she could marry third times at least. So if it was the same
custom in
“And the one whom you now have is not your husband”, it means that she
was cohabiting with a man without legally marrying.
Spiritual
Meaning: “husband” typifies the earthly reliance and
joy.
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) Whoever is
satisfied by and trusts in things outside Christ ---- “husbands”, who must be
uncertain and be frequently changed ---- “five”, will definitely unfulfilled
and has no reliance ---- “the
one whom you now have is not your husband”. Since Christ is our only bridegroom and only
husband (see 3:29; Eph 5:31-32), we should trust in Him only and will be
rejoiced forever ---- “will never thirst (see v.14)”.
2) No matter what sin
one hides, it is still naked and laid bare before the Lord, for He is the one
who searches reins and hearts (see Rev 2:23).
John. 4:19 “The woman said to Him,
"Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet.”
YLT: “The woman saith
to him, `Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet;”
Literal
Meaning: the woman found that the Lord Jesus had
superior insight (see 1:49).
John. 4:20 “Our fathers worshiped on
this mountain and you Jews say that in
YLT: “our fathers in
this mountain did worship, and ye -- ye say that in
The Background: the Samaritans
believed that the
Literal Meaning: “Our
fathers worshiped on this mountain”, “this mountain” refers to the
This immoral woman of
Spiritual
Meaning: the way of worship in
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) All the heathen
religions in the world today are unexceptionally worshipping gods by the way inherited
from the fathers ---- they are false but hypocritical religions.
2) If a man pretends
only a form of godliness and talks with others about things of God, but lives a
sinful and random life, he will be actually a religionist who does not fear God
at all.
John. 4:21 “Jesus said to her,
"Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this
mountain, nor in
YLT: “Jesus saith to
her, `Woman, believe me, that there doth come an hour, when neither in this
mountain, nor in
Literal
Meaning: “the hour is coming”, “the hour” refers to the age
of the New Testament. “The
hour is coming” indicates that a
new age is coming and men shall take part in it through believing (v.23).
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) Instead of avoiding the topic of that woman, the
Lord contrarily tell her more spiritual truth after her topic. When we preach
the good tidings to others, we should know how to provide wise feedbacks and
turn their attentions back to the truth.
2) True worship is not focused on places ---- neither on this stray mountain,
nor in the Orthodox Jerusalem. Instead, the reality of Christ in one’s
spirit should be paid attention to ---- “to worship the Father in spirit and truth (v.23)”.
John. 4:22 “You worship what you do not
know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.”
YLT: “ye worship what
ye have not known; we worship what we have known, because the salvation is of
the Jews;”
Literal
Meaning: “You worship what you do not know”, the Samaritans have only the Pentateuch. They worshipped the true God, but they did
not receive most of the revelations of God so that they only knew God
superficially.
“Salvation is of the Jews.” ---- The Jews who were God's elect were
entrusted the oracles of God (see Rom 3:2), and of whom, as according to flesh,
the Christ (see Rom 9:5). Besides, the Jews were the ones who first began to
preach the glad tidings.
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) “You worship what you do not know”, it is an exact commentary of all religions in
the world, for men always worship God according to their natural thoughts and
ideas rather than the revelations of God.
2) We should not please others and not be afraid of
offending others, and otherwise it would be rather hard to save them. We should
learn from the Lord Jesus to speak frankly but truly.
John. 4:23 “But the hour is coming, and
now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth;
for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.”
YLT: “but, there cometh
an hour, and it now is, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in
spirit and truth, for the Father also doth seek such to worship him;”
Meaning of Words: “truth”: verity;
The
Background: in the Old
Testament, God commended the
Literal
Meaning: “to worship the Father in spirit and truth”, men at that time focused on the appearance
and form of worship, disputing the matter of locations and sacrifices but
overlooking the reality of the true worship. Therefore, here the Lord Jesus
mentioned “spirit” which was opposite to the “place” of worship and mentioned “truth”
which was opposite to the “sacrifices” of worship, showing that “spirit” was
the reality of worshiping and “place” and “truth” was the reality of worshiping
“sacrifice”.
“The Father is seeking such to worship
Him.” ---- God is seeking “such men”, so there
is perhaps only a few numbers of men who worships in such a way.
Spiritual
Meaning: the place which God will choose to dwell
there typifies the spirit of men, i.e. the habitation of God today (see Eph
2:22). The sacrifices typify the Christ who is the fulfillment and reality of
the sacrifices which are used to worship God. Therefore, the Lord taught that
woman to worship in spirit and truth, which meant that she could commune with
God in her spirit rather than in a fixed place and through Christ instead of
sacrifices. For Christ, the reality has come (v.25-26), all the shadows and
typifications have passed away.
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) In the age of grace, all of the locations,
sacrifices, ordinances and ceremonies are insignificant, for one shall worship
God only in spirit and truth.
2) The true matter of worship depends on whether
they have the reality of worship, and has nothing to do with the worshiping
place.
3) Worship, a matter of spirit and individuals,
should be devoted to God in the Holy Spirit.
4) The prerequisite of true worship, according to
the definition, is the inside reality and the verity of one’s heart. A
worshiper may prostrate himself in worship, but he is not in spirit and not
before God.
5) A worshiper should not have the single form, but
lacks the reality inside. Conditions of the outside should agree with that of
the inside, and the acts should agree with the heart.
6) Where to worship is a matter of controversy,
which belongs to the sphere of tree of knowledge (see 8:3-5; 9:2-3). We should
switch to the spirit, which belongs to the tree of life (see Gen 2:9, 17).
John. 4:24 “God is Spirit, and those
who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."”
YLT: “God a Spirit,
and those worshipping Him, in spirit and truth it doth behove to worship.'”
Meaning
of Words: “truth”: verity;
Literal
Meaning: “God is Spirit”,
“spirit”, the first word of this sentence in the original, is an emphatic word. Spirit is the reality of the nature
of God. The word of “spirit” indicates that God cannot be restricted by time
and space.
“Those who worship Him must worship in
spirit and truth.” ---- The nature of
God is spirit. To worship God who is spirit, one should worship Him in the
spirit.
“Truth” here refers to the
fact that the divine reality has become the reality and verity (which is
opposite to the hypocrisy of the woman of
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) For God is Spirit, we
should worship
Him in spirit. Emotional
impulse and natural fervency are of no status. For God is truth and loves truth,
we should worship Him in truth. Prayers like essays and worship in the disharmony
of mind and tongue are of none value.
2) We have to use our mind and emotions to know
others when we associate with others, and we have to use our spirit to know God
and commune with Him.
3) Many people want to search God and analyze God
with their mind and thoughts, and yet they consequently obtain nothing from God
and know nothing about God since they have used the wrong faculty.
John. 4:25 “The woman said to Him,
"I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ).”When
He comes, He will tell us all things."”
YLT: “The woman saith
to him, `I have known that Messiah doth come, who is called Christ, when that
one may come, he will tell us all things;'”
Literal
Meaning: “the woman said to Him”, this was the last time that she tried to
avoid the matter.
She wondered the right worshiping place and thought it could not be dealt with
common people and only when Messiah came, He would tell them all things.
“Messiah
is who is called Christ”, “Messiah” is
Hebrew, which means “the anointed”.
“Christ” in Greek is the synonym of “Messiah” in Hebrew.
John. 4:26 “Jesus said to her, "I
who speak to you am He."”
YLT: “Jesus saith to
her, `I am , who am speaking to thee.'”
Literal
Meaning: by these words, the Lord Jesus brought her
to believe He was the Christ, thus enabling her to obtain the eternal life (see
20:31), and she believed (v.29).
John. 4:27 “And at this point His
disciples came, and they marveled that He talked with a woman; yet no one said,
"What do You seek?" or, "Why are You talking with her?"”
YLT: “And upon this
came his disciples, and were wondering that with a woman he was speaking, no
one, however, said, `What seekest thou?' or `Why speakest thou with her?'”
Meaning
of Words: “marvel”: wonder, admire;
Literal
Meaning: “they marveled that He talked with a woman”: according to the Jewish customs then, the
rabbis tried to avoid speaking before women in public. “Speak” is the past
imperfect tense in the original.
"What do You seek?" ---- It was perhaps a question to that
woman.
"Why are You talking with
her?" ---- It was
certainly a question to the Lord Jesus.
John. 4:28 “The woman then left her
water-pot, went her way into the
city, and said to the men,”
YLT: “The woman then
left her water-jug, and went away to the city, and saith to the men,”
Literal
Meaning: “the woman then left her water-pot”, “water-pot” was her
tool of living, so the action of “leaving the water-pot” indicated that the prior
order of her life had changed.
Spiritual
Meaning: “water-pot” typifies the tool of men to seek
the joy of life.
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) All those who obtain joy by drinking the living
water will leave things (left the water-pot) that entangled them before, and
bear witness of the living water.
2) The woman of
3)
Hudson Taylor: “Many people attempted to
be apostles, but I’d rather to be the descendant of the woman of
John. 4:29 “"Come, see a Man who
told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ?"”
YLT: “`Come, see a
man, who told me all things -- as many as I did; is this the Christ?'”
Literal
Meaning: “Could this be the Christ?” ---- In the original it was an uncertain question
which carried a half believing tone. She did not believe perfectly, but this
basic idea made the Spirit work further in her. And finally she was brought to
believe that Jesus is the Christ.
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) Many Christians at the very outset had seemingly
believed the Lord but lacked complete assurance, but they were willing to open
their hearts and finally believed the Lord assuredly.
2) This woman did not even hide her shameful deeds
before and made her disgraceful life known to public, which suggested that the
one who had truly repented would be strongly willing to bear witness of the
Lord. However, if one is unwilling to bear witness of the Lord, he had perhaps
not repented truly.
3) To bear witness of the Lord is to bear witness
of both the past and present experience of oneself (all things that I ever did)
---- this is the powerful impact of one’s witness.
4) It is quite a good way to preach the gospel by
first raising a question of “Christ” and then directing people to the correct
answer.
5) There are two conditions of bearing testimony to
men: (1) have seen one’s sin; (2) have seen the glory of Christ. One could bear
none testimonies if he has not seen the two points above.
John. 4:30 “Then they went out of the
city and came to Him.”
YLT: “They went forth
therefore out of the city, and were coming unto him.”
Enlightenment
in the Word: sometimes,
we sigh and worry that there are no objects to preach the glad tidings and that
no one is interested in the glad tidings. Actually, if Christ has been
perfectly testified by us, He will draw others unto Him.
John. 4:31 “In the meantime His
disciples urged Him, saying, "Rabbi, eat."”
YLT: “And in the
meanwhile his disciples were asking him, saying, `Rabbi, eat;'”
John. 4:32 “But He said to them,
"I have food to eat of which you do not know."”
YLT: “and he said to
them, `I have food to eat that ye have not known.'”
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) A sinner has been fulfilled by receiving the
living water of the Lord. The Savior has been satisfied by doing the will of
God and by making sinners satisfied. To do the will of God and to make sinners
satisfied are the food of the Savior (v.34).
2) Man shall not live by bread alone (Matt 4:4), but
also by food of one’s spirit. Joy and satisfaction obtained by saving one’s
spirit are much better than the increase of one’s physical energy by the physical
food. A man may forget his need of His physical body when he is in perfect joy.
John. 4:33 “Therefore the disciples
said to one another, "Has anyone brought Him anything to eat?"”
YLT: “The disciples
then said one to another, `Did any one bring him anything to eat?'”
Literal
Meaning:
"Has anyone brought Him anything to eat?" ---- It could be seen that the disciples then were still considering the
physical food.
John. 4:34 “Jesus said to them,
"My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work.”
YLT: “Jesus saith to
them, `My food is, that I may do the will of Him who sent me, and may finish
His work;”
Literal
Meaning: it does not mean that the Lord Jesus did not
eat any physical food (see Luke 4:42-43), but emphasizes the important thing in
His life is doing the will of God (see Mark 3:20) rather than meeting His need
in flesh.
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) The word of the Lord Jesus showed us that to do
the will of God is not a heavy burden which requires great efforts, but just as
natural and enjoyable as eating food, and will become entirely full finally.
2) Christians should give priority to do the will
of God rather than to food.
3) “Do the will of Him who sent Me, and to
finish His work”, it refers to the
manifestation of His life and the provision of Christ. The more we give to
others, the more we will be fed by His “food”.
4) Whether we are doing the works of God or ourselves
can be judged from the question that whether we have enjoyment in Spirit or
not. If more works but brings more dryness and poverty, it must be works of us.
For when we do the works of God, we will feel increasingly rich and full.
5) If we served Christ in the principle of His
boundless fullness, there would be much more and wealthier provision. However,
if we served Christ in the principle of men’s limitation, there would be less
and poorer provision.
John. 4:35 “Do you not say, "There
are still four months and then comes the harvest'? Behold, I say to you, lift
up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest!”
YLT: “do not say that
it is yet four months, and the harvest cometh; lo, I say to you, Lift up your
eyes, and see the fields, that they are white unto harvest already.”
Meaning
of Words: “look at”: behold, perceive;
Literal
Meaning: “Do you not say”:
“do you not have such a saying”;
“There
are still four months and then comes the
harvest?” ---- In the original it is a common proverb with a rhythm, which
means crops should be ripe in a certain time, it is fruitless to do anything to
accelerate the ripe date before the harvest.
“Lift up your eyes and look at the fields”, the
Lord Jesus asked the disciples to life up their eyes and look at the fields
nearby, for many Samaritans were coming to them.
“They are already white!” ---- It was time for Samaritans
to receive the salvation, so they should only preach the glad tidings to the Samaritans.
“For harvest”, he who reaps, according to the law
of nature, should wait for a fixed time and reap a harvest, but the disciples
of the Lord may have a harvest just at that time.
Spiritual
Meaning: “lift up your eyes and look at the fields”, “fields” typifies the world (see Matt
13:38).
“They are already white!” ---- “they (the crops)” typifies the men
who are predestined to be of God.
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) It is urgent to reap the spiritual harvest. Preach
the word, and be instant in season out of season (see 1Tim 4:2).
2) To know and hold the present chance is the most essential
thing of doing the work of the Lord.
3) If we are willing to spare some time to
consider what the world really needs (“lift up your eyes and look at the
fields”), the Lord will
enlighten us that there are many souls unsaved around us.
4) Today, the church lacks men who lift up their eyes and look at the fields. Many Christians are unwilling to lift up
their eyes and
look at the fields, so they feel there
seems nothing to do. All those who lift up their eyes and look at the fields
will inevitably find that many things in the church need to be none and a
multitude of people everywhere need to be served.
John. 4:36 “And he who reaps receives
wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who
reaps may rejoice together.”
YLT: “`And he who is
reaping doth receive a reward, and doth gather fruit to life age-during, that
both he who is sowing and he who is reaping may rejoice together;”
Meaning
of Words: “gather”: assembly, gather together; “for”: unto, (so) that;
Literal
Meaning: “he who reaps receives wages”, here it refers to the disciples of the Lord (see
v.38).
“Gathers fruit for eternal life”, it does not mean one can obtain the
eternal life by only gathering fruit faithfully, but means that the effect of his
work may follow with him till the eternal life (see Rev 14:13)
“That both he who sows and he who reaps
may rejoice together”, “he who sows”
refers to the workers before them, and here it specially refers to the Lord
Jesus.
Spiritual
Meaning: “that both he who sows and he who reaps may
rejoice together”, “he who sows” and “he who reaps” both typify the preachers of the glad tidings
---- the former had not received apparent fruit when he preached the glad
tidings, but the latter received the fruit of the glad tidings.
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) Fruit reaped in the spiritual sphere is worthy
of the eternal value.
2) “That both he who sows and he who reaps
may rejoice together”, among the
faithful servants of Christ, there should be not only free from strife, but
partake of their fruit of works with each other also.
3) “That both he who sows and he who reaps
may rejoice together”, it unveils that:
a). to preach the glad tidings is a matter of life, so he who preaches
needs to be grown up. Young Christian will not always reap the fruit of working
immediately.
b).
the fruit of preaching the glad tidings is never the contribution of any
individual, but the achievement cooperated by the whole church.
c). to preach the glad tidings will enable us the
fulfillment of joy.
John. 4:37 “For in this the saying is
true: "One sows and another reaps.'”
YLT: “for in this the
saying is the true one, that one is the sower and another the reaper.”
Enlightenment in the Word: “One sows and another reaps”, it would be better that one should not take complete care of all when he served the Lord in the church.
John. 4:38 “I sent you to reap that for
which you have not labored; others have labored, and you have entered into
their labors."”
YLT: “I sent you to
reap that on which ye have not laboured; others laboured, and ye into their
labour have entered.”
Literal
Meaning: “others have labored”, “others” refers to the men who are sent by God
and preach the words of God among people, i.e. those who sow (see 36-37).
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) Seldom has one been saved on account of a man’s
work, and many people have many times heard the glad tidings before they
receive the Savior. Therefore, one should not be self- complacent for he has brought a man into the
Lord and never boast that God could by him only fulfill the works that could
not be finished by others.
2) On the other side, when we have concentrated on
a certain man or group for a long time, and there is still none fruit. We
should continue praying for Him (or them) rather than faint or lose heart.
Perhaps once the suitable time of God comes, there will be unexpected fruit.
John. 4:39 “And many of the Samaritans
of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified,
"He told me all that I ever did."”
YLT: “And from that
city many believed in him, of the Samaritans, because of the word of the woman
testifying, -- `He told me all things -- as many as I did.'”
Enlightenment in the Word: to bear witness shall
enable others to believe into the Lord Jesus, so we should never make light of the power of bearing
witness in the church.
John. 4:40 “So when the Samaritans had
come to Him, they urged Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days.”
YLT: “When, then, the
Samaritans came unto him, they were asking him to remain with them, and he
remained there two days;”
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) One who abides with and communes with the Lord
will experience more grace of the Lord.
2) One who believes the Lord Jesus
objectively but never experiences the Lord Jesus subjectively will lose many opportunities
of enjoy grace.
John. 4:41 “And many more believed
because of His own word.”
YLT: “and many more
did believe because of his word,”
Enlightenment
in the Word: those
who believe the Lord have various experiences. Some believed because of the testimonies of others (v.39), but more believed because of “the word of the Lord Jesus”. God employs
different ways to bring sinners unto Him.
John. 4:42 “Then they said to the
woman, "Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves
have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the
world."”
YLT: “and said to the
woman -- `No more because of thy speaking do we believe; for we ourselves have
heard and known that this is truly the Saviour of the world -- the Christ.'”
Literal
Meaning: “this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world”, the call of “the Savior of the world” has been only mentioned in the other place
(see 1John 4:14) in the New Testament. Observe that it is the Samaritans that
previously called the Lord “the
Savior of the world”. The words of “the Savior of the world” indicate that: (1) the Lord Jesus not only
taught men and saved men as well; (2) He not only saved the Jews and saved the
whole world as well.
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) Faith is not received indirectly by the reports
or the witnesses of others. Instead, it is based on the living words of Christ.
2) Instead of receiving from others all the
time, we should experience Him personally if we want to know Christ.
John. 4:43 “Now after the two days He
departed from there and went to
YLT: “And after the
two days he went forth thence, and went away to
Literal
Meaning: “after the two days”, the “two days (v. 40)” refers to the two days
when the Lord Jesus lived in the city of
John. 4:44 “For Jesus Himself testified
that a prophet has no honor in his own country.”
YLT: “for Jesus
himself testified that a prophet in his own country shall not have honour;”
Literal
Meaning: “a prophet has no honor in his own country”, in other three gospels, it was mentioned
on the occasion when the Lord Jesus was despised by His own country (see Matt
13:57; Mark 6:4; Luke 4:24). “His own country” apparently referred to the
country
John. 4:45 “So when He came to Galilee,
the Galileans received Him, having seen all the things He did in
YLT: “when then, he
came to Galilee, the Galileans received him, having seen all things that he did
in
Meaning
of Words: “receive”:
accept, take
John. 4:46 “So Jesus came again to Cana
of Galilee where He had made the water wine. And there was a certain nobleman
whose son was sick at
YLT: “Jesus came,
therefore, again to Cana of Galilee, where he made the water wine, and there
was a certain courtier, whose son was ailing in
Meaning
of Words: “nobleman”:
belonging to the sovereign (as land,
dress, or a courtier), king's,
royal;
Spiritual
Meaning:
John. 4:47 “When he heard that Jesus
had come out of Judea into
YLT: “he, having
heard that Jesus is come out of Judea to Galilee, went away unto him, and was
asking him that he may come down and may heal his son, for he was about to die.”
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) How shall they hear without
one who preaches (see
Rom 10:14)? So
it is urgent for Christians to preach the things concerning the
Lord.
2) The Lord pleases us to call
upon Him in the day of trouble (Ps 50:15).
John. 4:48 “Then Jesus said to him,
"Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means
believe."”
YLT: “Jesus then said
unto him, `If signs and wonders ye may not see, ye will not believe.'”
Literal
Meaning: “unless you people see signs and wonders”, “signs”
and “wonders” are actually the same: the former emphasizes
the indications with profound meaning, while the latter emphasizes the wonders
with supernatural phenomenon.
“You will by no means
believe”, “you” refers to all the men except for the nobleman.
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) It can be perceived from the Lord’s word of
reproach that He is not pleased at faith in light of signs. Instead, He prefers
to the faith based on His word (see v.41, 50).
2) If one’s faith is based on signs, but not
on His word merely, there would be problems some day (see 2: 23-25).
3) Men often tend to see first and believe after,
but a true believer shall believe first and see after (see 2 Cor5:7).
John. 4:49 “The nobleman said to Him,
"Sir, come down before my child dies!"”
YLT: “The courtier
saith unto him, `Sir, come down before my child die;'”
Literal
Meaning: the nobleman believed that the Lord Jesus
was able to heal His child, but he did not know that the sovereignty of the
Lord surpasses time and space, so his faith then was not perfect.
John. 4:50 “Jesus said to him, "Go
your way; your son lives." So the man believed the word that Jesus spoke
to him, and he went his way.”
YLT: “Jesus saith to
him, `Be going on; thy son doth live.' And the man believed the word that Jesus
said to him, and was going on,”
Literal
Meaning: “your son lives.”
---- This is a kind of declaration.
“So the
man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and he went his way.” ---- This is an action of faith.
John. 4:51 “And as he was now going
down, his servants met him and told him, saying, "Your son lives!"”
YLT: “and he now
going down, his servants met him, and told, saying -- `Thy child doth live;'”
Literal
Meaning: this is a good example of believing Him
first and witnessing Him afterwards.
John. 4:52 “Then he inquired of them
the hour when he got better. And they said to him, "Yesterday at the
seventh hour the fever left him."”
YLT: “he inquired
then of them the hour in which he became better, and they said to him --
`Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him;'”
Meaning
of Words: “the
seventh hour”: it was the seventh hour according to the Roman measure of time,
and one o’clock p.m. according to the Jewish measure of time.
Literal Meaning: “the
hour when he got better” is a Greek folk
saying, expressing that the patient's condition has been improved, and the
crisis has been over, and recovering is at hand.
John. 4:53 “So the father knew that it
was at the same hour in which Jesus said to him, "Your son lives."
And he himself believed, and his whole household.”
YLT: “then the father
knew that in that hour in which Jesus said to him -- `Thy son doth live,' and
he himself believed, and his whole house;”
Literal
Meaning: “And he himself believed and his whole household”, it did not mean he did not believe the
Lord (v.50), but meant his faith in the Lord increased: (1) from reliance to
obedience (2) From believing shallowly to deeply; (3) from the objective
knowledge to the subjective experience; (4) from an individual to the whole
family.
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) “And he himself believed, and his whole household”, apparently, the Lord pleases that a man
as well as his whole household shall be saved (see Act 11:14;
16:31).
2) The will of God is that the family of
believers shall be jointed into one on Christ, instead of being divided and
broken for the Lord.
3) If we search the words and deeds of the Lord
Jesus carefully, our faith will be definitely increased.
4) In order to confirm out faith onto the
words of the Lord, we should observe earnestly everything concerning Him.
John. 4:54 “This
again is the second sign Jesus did when He had come out of Judea into
YLT: “this again a
second sign did Jesus, having come out of Judea to
Spiritual
Meaning: the two signs by the Lord in
III.
Outlines of the Spiritual Lessons
I. Two “must” in this chapter
A. But
He needed to go through
B.
Those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth. (v.24) ---- There should be true worship.
II. How to Preach the
Gospels to an individual?
A. To
figure out his condition and need ---- why the woman of
B. To honor him ---- to ask her for
water humbly, not proudly (v.3).
C. From
shallow matters to the subject of one’s life ---- from the matter of drinking
water to living water (v.10).
D. To arouse his interest and pursuit
---- to make her feel the urgency of requesting voluntarily (v.13-15)
E. To
make him be conscious of his problems ---- to lead a man to know his sins
(v.16-18)
F. To
correct his false religious notions ---- to enable him to have right knowledge
of God and teach him right truth (v.20-24)
H. To
lead him to believe the Savior of the Lord Jesus ---- You should lead him know
the Lord finally (v.25-26).
III. Factors Restraining
Men from Being Blessed
A. Different
races ---- Jews
have no dealings with Samaritans
(v.9).
B. Keeping
the traditions ---- our
father Jacob who gave us the well (v.12)
C. Unfavorable motivation ---- I may come here to draw (v.15).
D. Immoral behavior ---- the one who has had five husbands and the
one whom you now have is not your husband (v.18)
E. Considering the forms only ---- our fathers worshiped on
this mountain (v.20).
F. Different views ---- the disciples marveled that the
Lord talked
with a woman (v.27).
IV. The Progressive
Knowledge of the woman of Samaria to the Lord
A. He
was a Jew (v.9). ---- They had never met before and had no associations
B. He
was the master (v.11). ---- With an respectful attitude
C. Although
He was great, He could still not compare with their father Jacob (v.12).
D. He was a prophet (v.19). ---- A spokesman of
God
E. Probably, he was the Christ (v.29)
F. He is the true Savior of the world (v.42)
V. Three Conditions of
enjoying the grace of God
A. To “know” the gift of God
(v
B. If one would have “asked” Him, He would have
given (v.10b)
C. To “drink” the water that He shall give (v.14)
VI. The Secular Water
and the Spiritual Water
A. The
secular water:
1. Which is of men’s work ---- a well (v.12)
2. Which relies on the traditions ---- left by the
father Jacob (v.12)
3. Which requires men’s effort ---- to draw water
with a water-pot (v.11)
4. Which presents only transient enjoyment ---- to thirst again (v.13)
B. The
spiritual water:
1. Which is perfectly of the heaven ---- a fountain of water (v.14)
2. Which surpasses the traditions ---- the Lord is greater than Jacob (v.12)
3. Which shall be obtained by spiritual way ---- If you “knew” the gift of God (v.10) ---- it rests on the spiritual
insight
4. Which presents full enjoyment ---- one will become in Him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life (v.14)
VII. How to Know the
Worship Rightly?
A. One should believe that the Lord
Jesus is the foundation of worshiping God. ---- Believe Me (v
B. One
should know God is our Father. ---- Worship the Father (v.21b).
C. One
need not care about the worshiping place. ---- Neither on this mountain, nor in
D. One
should not worship God by the natural religious concepts. ---- You worship what you do not
know (v
E. One
should worship by revelation. ---- We know what we worship (v.22b).
F. One
should worship according to the accomplished salvation. ---- For salvation is of the Jews (v
G. One should worship in spirit and truth. ---- Those who worship Him must
worship in spirit and truth (v.23-24).
H. One
should realize the right worship is spiritual fellowship. ---- For God is
Spirit (v
VIII. The Comparison of Doing
the Lord’s works
A. Food
---- one will obtain food to enjoy if he does the will of Him and finishes His work (v.34).
B. Reap
---- he who reaps a harvest of God receives wages of his own and gathers fruit for eternal
life (v.35-37).
C. Sow
---- to sow the seeds of God (v.36-37)
VIII. The Comparison of Reap a
Harvest
A. To lift up one’s eyes and look at the fields (v
B. For they are already white
for harvest (V.35b)! ---- It
will be good chance of doing the Lord’s work at any time
C. He who reaps
receives wages gathers fruit for eternal life (v
D. Both he who
sows and he who reaps may rejoice together (v.36B). ---- Those who do
the work of the Lord may partake of their accomplishments and be filled with
great joy.
E. One sows and another reaps (v.37). ---- Those who do the work of the Lord may
co-operate with each other.
IX. The Way of Knowing
Christ
A. The witness of
believers ---- because
of the word of the woman who testified
(v.39)
B. The
presence of the Lord ---- they
urged Him to stay with them (v.40)
C. The word of the Lord ---- because of His own word (v.41)
D. The personal experience ---- we ourselves have heard Him (v.42)
X. The Two Kind of
Faith of the Woman of Samaritans
A. The objective faith ---- they believed in Him because of
the word of the woman who testified
(v.39)
B. The
subjective faith ---- they themselves
had heard Him
and believed Him because of the Lord’s word (v.40-42).
XI. The Faith of the Nobleman at
A. The humble faith ---- he went to Jesus and implored Him to come down and
heal his son (v.46-47)
B. The faith being able to endure trials ---- though he was reproached
by the Lord, he did not leave disappointedly
(v.48-49)
C. The
faith based on the promise of the Lord ---- he believed the word that Jesus spoke to
him, and he went his way (v.50).
D. The
obedient faith ---- his
whole household believed on account of his witness of the faithfulness and great
power of the Lord (v.51-53).
XII. The Increase of One’s Faith
A.
From “hearing” from others to “seeing” the Lord personally (v.47)
B.
From believing by “seeing the signs” to believing by the Lord’s “word” (v.48,
50)
C.
From believing by holding the Lord to believing by being held by the Lord
(v.49-50)
D.
From the faith being restricted by time and space to the faith surpassing time
and space (v.49-53)
E.
From the faith not by sight to the faith providing true experiences (v.50, 53)
F.
From the faith of “an individual” to the faith of the “whole household” (v.50,
53)
XIII. The Procedures of Being Healed by the Lord
A. Heard Him (v.
B.
Came to see Him (v. 47b) ---- one should come to the Lord (see Matt 11:28)
C. Implored Him (v.
D.
Believed the word of Him (v.
E.
Kept His word and went his way (v. 50b) ---- obey in faith
──
Caleb Huang《Christian Digest Bible
Commentary Series》
Translated by Mary Zhou