Now Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that he was gaining and baptizing more disciples than John—although in fact it was not Jesus who baptized, but his disciples.So he left Judea and went back once more to Galilee.

Now he had to go through Samaria.So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph.Jacob's well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon.

When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, "Will you give me a drink?"(His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)

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. )

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."

"Sir," the woman said, "you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water?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?"

Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again,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."

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."

He told her, "Go, call your husband and come back."

"I have no husband," she replied.Jesus said to her, "You are right when you say you have no husband.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."

"Sir," the woman said, "I can see that you are a prophet.Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem."

"Woman," Jesus replied, "believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews.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.God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth."

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

Then Jesus declared, "I, the one speaking to you—I am he."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?"

Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people,"Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?"They came out of the town and made their way toward him.

Meanwhile his disciples urged him, "Rabbi, eat something."

But he said to them, "I have food to eat that you know nothing about."

Then his disciples said to each other, "Could someone have brought him food?"

"My food," said Jesus, "is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.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.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.Thus the saying 'One sows and another reaps' is true.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 of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman's testimony, "He told me everything I ever did."So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days.And because of his words many more became believers.

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."After the two days he left for Galilee.(Now Jesus himself had pointed out that a prophet has no honor in his own country.)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.

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.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.

"Unless you people see signs and wonders," Jesus told him, "you will never believe."

The royal official said, "Sir, come down before my child dies."

"Go," Jesus replied, "your son will live."The man took Jesus at his word and departed.While he was still on the way, his servants met him with the news that his boy was living.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."

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.

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

John 4

Departure From Judea

1 Now when Jesusst knew that the Phariseess had heard that het was winningt and baptizing more disciples than John2 (although Jesus himself was not baptizing, but his disciples were),s

3 he left Judea and set out once more for Galilee.s

Conversation With a Samaritan Woman

4 But he hads to pass through Samaria.s5 Now he came to a Samaritan townt called Sychar,s near the plot of land that Jacob had given to his son Joseph.s

6 Jacob’s well was there, so Jesus, since he was tired from the journey, sat right down besidet the well. It was about noon.ts
7 A Samaritan womant came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me some watert to drink.”8 (For his disciples had gone off into the town to buy supplies.t)s

9 So the Samaritan woman said to him, “How can you – a Jewt – ask me, a Samaritan woman, for watert to drink?” (For Jews use nothing in commonts with Samaritans.)s
10 Jesus answeredt her, “If you had knownt the gift of God and who it is who said to you, ‘Give me some watert to drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.”ts11 “Sir,”t the womans said to him, “you have no bucket and the wellt is deep; where then do you get thist living water?s

12 Surely you’re not greater than our ancestort Jacob, are you? For he gave us this well and drank from it himself, along with his sons and his livestock.”t
13 Jesus replied,t “Everyone who drinks some of this water will be thirstyt again.14 But whoever drinks some of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again,t but the water that I will give him will become in him a fountaint of water springing upt 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 drawt water.”t16 Hess said to her, “Go call your husband and come back here.”t17 The woman replied,t “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “Right you are when you said,t ‘I have no husband,’t

18 for you have had five husbands, and the man you are living witht now is not your husband. This you said truthfully!”
19 The woman said to him, “Sir, I seet that you are a prophet.20 Our fathers worshiped on this mountain,s and you peoplet say that the place where people must worship is in Jerusalem.”s21 Jesus said to her, “Believe me, woman,s a timet is coming when you will worshipt the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.22 You peoplet worship what you do not know. We worship what we know, because salvation is from the Jews.t23 But a timet is coming – and now is heret – when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seekss such people to bet his worshipers.ts24 God is spirit,t 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);ts “whenever het comes, he will tellt us everything.”t

26 Jesus said to her, “I, the one speaking to you, am he.”

The Disciples Return

27 Now at that very moment his disciples came back.t They were shockedt because he was speakingt with a woman. However, no one said, “What do you want?”ts 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,t29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Surely he can’t be the Messiah,t can he?”t

30 Sot they left the town and began comings to him.

Workers for the Harvest

31 Meanwhile the disciples were urging him,t “Rabbi, eat something.”t32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.”33 So the disciples began to sayt to one another, “No one brought him anythingt to eat, did they?”t34 Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of the one who sent mes and to completet his work.ts35 Don’t you say,t ‘There are four more months and then comes the harvest?’ I tell you, look upt and see that the fields are already whitet for harvest!36 The one who reaps receives payt 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,t ‘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.”

The Samaritans Respond

39 Now many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the report of the woman who testified,t “He told me everything I ever did.”40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they began askingt him to stay with them.t He stayed there two days,41 and because of his word many moret 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 onet really is the Savior of the world.”s

Onward to Galilee

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.)s

45 So when he came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him because they had seen all the things he had done in Jerusalemss at the feasts (for they themselves had gone to the feast).s

Healing the Royal Official’s Son

46 Now he came again to Canas in Galilee where he had made the water wine.s Int Capernaumss there was a certain royal officialt whose son was sick.47 When he heard that Jesus had come back from Judea to Galilee, he went to him and begged himt to come down and heal his son, who was about to die.48 So Jesus said to him, “Unless you peoplet see signs and wonders you will never believe!”t49 “Sir,” the official said to him, “come down before my child dies.”

50 Jesus told him, “Go home;t your son will live.” The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and set off for home.t
51 While he was on his way down,s his slavest met him and told him that his son was going to live.52 So he asked them the timet when his condition began to improve,t andt they told him, “Yesterday at one o’clock in the afternoont the fever left him.”53 Then the father realized that it was the very timet 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 signt when he returned from Judea to Galilee.