Bullet Point Bible

Departure From Judea

¹ Now when Jesus knew that the Pharisees had heard that he was winning and baptizing more disciples than John² (although Jesus himself was not baptizing, but his disciples were),³ he left Judea and set out once more for Galilee.

Jesus' growing popularity attracted the attention and likely scrutiny of the Pharisees, a prominent Jewish religious group known for strict adherence to the Law.
John clarifies that while the baptisms were associated with Jesus' ministry, his disciples performed the actual rite, similar to how John the Baptist had disciples (John 4:1).
Jesus' departure seems strategic, possibly to avoid escalating conflict with the Pharisees or direct comparison/competition with John the Baptist's ministry at this early stage.
This move sets the stage for the journey through Samaria, highlighting Jesus' intentional path.
The focus on numbers ("more disciples than John") indicates the significant impact Jesus was already having.

Journey Through Samaria

⁴ But he had to pass through Samaria.⁵ Now he came to a Samaritan town called Sychar, near the plot of land that Jacob had given to his son Joseph.⁶ Jacob's well was there, so Jesus, since he was tired from the journey, sat right down beside the well. It was about noon.

The phrase "had to pass through Samaria" (Greek: *edei*) can imply divine necessity or purpose, not just geographical convenience. Jews often took longer routes to avoid Samaria due to deep-seated animosity.
Sychar is near Shechem, a place rich in Old Testament history, particularly associated with the patriarch Jacob (Genesis 33:18-20, Joshua 24:32). This historical context adds weight to the encounter.
Jacob's well was a significant landmark, revered by both Jews and Samaritans, connecting them to their shared patriarchal heritage despite their divisions.
Jesus' fatigue ("tired from the journey") underscores his genuine humanity, experiencing physical limitations just as any traveler would.
Arriving "about noon" (the sixth hour by Jewish reckoning) was the hottest part of the day and an unusual time for women to draw water, hinting at the social isolation of the woman Jesus is about to meet.

Jesus Meets the Samaritan Woman

⁷ A Samaritan woman came to draw water. Jesus said to her, "Give me some water to drink."⁸ (For his disciples had gone off into the town to buy supplies.)⁹ So the Samaritan woman said to him, "How can you-a Jew -ask me, a Samaritan woman, for water to drink?" (For Jews use nothing in common with Samaritans.)¹⁰ Jesus answered her, "If you had known the gift of God and who it is who said to you, 'Give me some water to drink,' you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water."¹¹ "Sir," the woman said to him, "you have no bucket and the well is deep; where then do you get this living water?¹² Surely you're not greater than our ancestor Jacob, are you? For he gave us this well and drank from it himself, along with his sons and his livestock."¹³ Jesus replied, "Everyone who drinks some of this water will be thirsty again.¹⁴ But whoever drinks some of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again, but the water that I will give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up to eternal life."¹⁵ The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water."

Jesus initiates the conversation, deliberately crossing significant social barriers: Jew/Samaritan, man/woman, rabbi/woman of questionable reputation.
The parenthetical note in John 4:9 explains the cultural context of hostility and separation between Jews and Samaritans for John's readers. Samaritans were viewed by Jews as religiously impure descendants of Israelites who intermarried with foreigners.
Jesus pivots from physical thirst to spiritual reality, introducing the concept of "living water," a metaphor for the Holy Spirit and the eternal life He brings (compare John 7:37-39).
The woman initially misunderstands "living water," taking it literally as flowing spring water (as opposed to stagnant cistern water) or perhaps magical water (John 4:11).
Her question comparing Jesus to Jacob (John 4:12) challenges his authority and hints at the Samaritans' reverence for the patriarchs.
Jesus contrasts the temporary satisfaction of physical water with the permanent, internal, life-giving nature of the spiritual water he offers (John 4:13-14).
The "fountain of water springing up to eternal life" emphasizes the dynamic, ongoing, and abundant nature of the spiritual life Jesus provides.
The woman's request in John 4:15 still reflects a desire for physical convenience, showing she hasn't fully grasped the spiritual meaning, yet she remains engaged and desirous of what Jesus offers.

Jesus Reveals Her Past and True Worship

¹⁶ He said to her, "Go call your husband and come back here."¹⁷ The woman replied, "I have no husband." Jesus said to her, Right you are when you said, 'I have no husband,'¹⁸ for you have had five husbands, and the man you are living with now is not your husband. This you said truthfully!"¹⁹ The woman said to him, "Sir, I see that you are a prophet.²⁰ Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you people say that the place where people must worship is in Jerusalem."²¹ Jesus said to her, "Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.²² You people worship what you do not know. We worship what we know, because salvation is from the Jews.²³ But a time is coming-and now is here -when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such people to be his worshipers.²⁴ God is spirit, and the people who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."²⁵ The woman said to him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (the one called Christ); "whenever he comes, he will tell us everything."²⁶ Jesus said to her, "I, the one speaking to you, am he."

Jesus gently confronts the woman's personal life (John 4:16), demonstrating his supernatural knowledge and shifting the focus to her moral and spiritual need.
His affirmation "Right you are" (John 4:17) acknowledges her literal truthfulness while exposing the deeper, painful reality of her marital history (John 4:18). This likely contributed to her social isolation (coming to the well at noon).
Recognizing his prophetic insight (John 4:19), the woman attempts to deflect the personal focus by raising a major theological dispute between Jews and Samaritans: the proper place of worship (Mount Gerizim for Samaritans vs. Jerusalem for Jews).
Jesus elevates the discussion beyond physical location (John 4:21). While affirming the Jewish lineage of salvation history ("salvation is from the Jews," John 4:22), he declares that true worship transcends geography.
The coming era ("and now is here," John 4:23) emphasizes worship "in spirit" (internal reality, sincerity, empowered by the Holy Spirit) and "in truth" (in accordance with God's revealed nature and will, centered on Christ).
Jesus defines the nature of God ("God is spirit," John 4:24), explaining why worship must be spiritual rather than tied to physical places or external rituals alone.
The woman expresses a common Samaritan (and Jewish) expectation of a coming Messiah who would resolve disputes and reveal all things (John 4:25).
Jesus makes one of his most direct Messianic claims in the Gospels: "{{I, the one speaking to you, am he}}" (John 4:26). The Greek "ego eimi" ("I am") can echo God's self-revelation in Exodus 3:14.

The Disciples Return and the Woman's Witness

²⁷ Now at that very moment his disciples came back. They were shocked because he was speaking with a woman. However, no one said, "What do you want?" or "Why are you speaking with her?"²⁸ Then the woman left her water jar, went off into the town and said to the people,²⁹ "Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Surely he can't be the Messiah, can he?"³⁰ So they left the town and began coming to him.

The disciples' shock (John 4:27) reflects the strong cultural taboos Jesus was breaking by conversing publicly with a Samaritan woman. Their silence, however, shows their respect for Jesus.
The woman leaving her water jar (John 4:28) is symbolic. Her immediate physical need is forgotten in the excitement of her spiritual discovery and her urgency to share it.
Her testimony focuses on Jesus' supernatural knowledge ("told me everything I ever did," John 4:29), which validated his authority for her.
Her question, "Surely he can’t be the Messiah, can he?" (John 4:29), is a tentative yet inviting way to present her conclusion, prompting others to investigate for themselves rather than making a dogmatic claim.
Despite her likely poor reputation, her earnest testimony was effective; the townspeople responded immediately and came out to see Jesus (John 4:30). This highlights the power of personal encounter and testimony.

Jesus Teaches About Spiritual Food and Harvest

³¹ Meanwhile the disciples were urging him, "Rabbi, eat something."³² But he said to them, "I have food to eat that you know nothing about."³³ So the disciples began to say to one another, "No one brought him anything to eat, did they?"³⁴ Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of the one who sent me and to complete his work.³⁵ Don't you say, 'There are four more months and then comes the harvest?' I tell you, look up and see that the fields are already white for harvest!³⁶ The one who reaps receives pay and gathers fruit for eternal life, so that the one who sows and the one who reaps can rejoice together.³⁷ For in this instance the saying is true, 'One sows and another reaps.'³⁸ I sent you to reap what you did not work for; others have labored and you have entered into their labor."

Parallel to his "living water" teaching, Jesus uses the disciples' concern about physical food (John 4:31) to teach about spiritual sustenance.
The disciples initially misunderstand Jesus literally (John 4:33), just as the woman misunderstood "living water." This is a common literary technique in John's Gospel to highlight the deeper spiritual meaning.
Jesus defines his true nourishment as obedience to God's will and the accomplishment of his mission (John 4:34). This reveals his priorities and divine purpose.
He employs an agricultural metaphor: the spiritual harvest. He contrasts the normal waiting period for crops ("four more months") with the immediate readiness of the spiritual harvest among the Samaritans, who were already coming out to see him (John 4:35).
The "fields... already white for harvest" signifies the ripeness and readiness of people (here, the Samaritans) to respond to God's message.
Jesus speaks of the joy and reward ("receives pay," "gathers fruit for eternal life") shared by both those who sow the seed (prepare the way) and those who reap the harvest (bring people to faith) (John 4:36).
He applies the proverb "One sows and another reaps" (John 4:37) to their situation. Jesus (and potentially OT prophets, John the Baptist, and the woman) had sown the seed, and the disciples would soon participate in reaping this harvest (John 4:38), particularly later in Acts 8.
This passage emphasizes the urgency of evangelism and the collaborative nature of God's work across different times and people.

Many Samaritans Believe

³⁹ Now many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the report of the woman who testified, "He told me everything I ever did."⁴⁰ So when the Samaritans came to him, they began asking him to stay with them. He stayed there two days,⁴¹ and because of his word many more believed.⁴² They said to the woman, "No longer do we believe because of your words, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this one really is the Savior of the world."

The woman's personal testimony served as the initial catalyst for faith (John 4:39). It demonstrates the power of sharing one's own experience with Christ.
The Samaritans' invitation for Jesus to stay (John 4:40) was a remarkable act of hospitality, crossing the usual ethnic and religious divides. Jesus accepting showed his mission extended beyond Judea.
Jesus' teaching ("his word") during his two-day stay led many more to faith (John 4:41), indicating that personal encounter with Jesus and his message deepens the faith initiated by testimony.
The Samaritans' final statement (John 4:42) shows a progression from secondhand belief (based on the woman's report) to firsthand conviction ("we have heard for ourselves").
Their confession of Jesus as "the Savior of the world" is significant. It moves beyond a purely Jewish or Samaritan understanding of the Messiah to a universal one, recognizing Jesus' mission for all humanity. This title is rare in the Gospels but central to John's theology.
This positive reception in Samaria contrasts sharply with the potential rejection Jesus anticipates in his own homeland (John 4:44) and the sign-seeking faith of some Galileans (John 4:48).

Return to Galilee and Healing the Official's Son

⁴³ After the two days he departed from there to Galilee.⁴⁴ (For Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in his own country.)⁴⁵ So when he came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him because they had seen all the things he had done in Jerusalem at the feast (for they themselves had gone to the feast).⁴⁶ Now he came again to Cana in Galilee where he had made the water wine. In Capernaum there was a certain royal official whose son was sick.⁴⁷ When he heard that Jesus had come back from Judea to Galilee, he went to him and begged him to come down and heal his son, who was about to die.⁴⁸ So Jesus said to him, "Unless you people see signs and wonders you will never believe!"⁴⁹ "Sir," the official said to him, "come down before my child dies."⁵⁰ Jesus told him, "Go home; your son will live." The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and set off for home.⁵¹ While he was on his way down, his slaves met him and told him that his son was going to live.⁵² So he asked them the time when his condition began to improve, and they told him, "Yesterday at one o'clock in the afternoon the fever left him."⁵³ Then the father realized that it was the very time Jesus had said to him, "Your son will live," and he himself believed along with his entire household.⁵⁴ Jesus did this as his second miraculous sign when he returned from Judea to Galilee.

John includes Jesus' saying about a prophet lacking honor (John 4:44), perhaps ironically, as the Galileans *do* welcome him, but their welcome (John 4:45) is based on the spectacular signs seen in Jerusalem, not necessarily on a deep understanding of his identity or message.
Jesus returns to Cana, the site of his first sign (John 2:1-11), linking this miracle to the beginning of his public ministry in Galilee.
The "royal official" likely served Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee. He may have been a Gentile, further showing the reach of Jesus' ministry. His desperation is clear as his son was near death (John 4:47).
Jesus' response (John 4:48) seems like a rebuke, addressing the crowd's (plural "you people") tendency to seek sensational signs rather than trusting his word. It challenges the basis of their faith.
Despite the apparent rebuke, the official persists in his plea, focusing on his urgent need (John 4:49). His faith is desperate but tenacious.
Jesus performs the healing remotely with a word of command ("{{Go home; your son will live}}", John 4:50), demonstrating his authority over distance and disease.
The official's response is crucial: "The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him" (John 4:50). He acts on faith in Jesus' word alone, without seeing the sign yet. This contrasts with the sign-demanding faith Jesus critiqued.
The confirmation of the healing time (John 4:51-53) solidifies the miracle and leads to a deeper faith for the official and his entire household. Faith based on the word led to the experience of the sign, which confirmed the faith.
John explicitly labels this the "second miraculous sign" in Galilee (John 4:54), continuing his structured presentation of Jesus' works that reveal his glory (see John 2:11).

The Bullet Point Bible

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