John 4

₁The Pharisees saw that Jesus was getting more disciples than John and that He baptised more disciples. Jesus knew that they heard about it. ₂It was not Jesus who baptised the people. It was his disciples who baptised them. ₃Then Jesus went from the province of Judea and He went back to Galilee. ₄He had to go through the province of Samaria. ₅He came to the town of Sychar in Samaria. Sychar was near the field that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. ₆The water-well of Jacob was there. Jesus was tired because they had walked very far and He went to sit down by the water-well. It was about noon. ₇A woman from Samaria came to get water and Jesus asked her: ‘Please give Me some water to drink.’

₈(Jesus was alone because his disciples had gone into the town to buy food). ₉The Samaritan woman was surprised and she said to Jesus: ‘You are a Jew and I am a woman of Samaria. Why do You ask me for a drink of water?’ (She said this because the Jews did not talk to the Samaritans or use the same cups to drink water).

₁₀Jesus said to the woman: ‘You do not know what God wants to give to people and you do not know who I am that ask you for water to drink. You don't know Me and that is why you don't ask Me. If you knew Me, you would have asked Me for the water that gives life and I would have given it to you.’ ₁₁The woman said: ‘Sir, You don't even have a bucket and this water-well is deep. Where will You get this water that can give me real_life? ₁₂You are not better than our forefather Jacob. He and his sons and his animals drank this water and he gave this water-well to us.’

₁₃Jesus said to her: ‘Anyone who drinks the water from this water-well will become thirsty again. ₁₄But when someone drinks the water that I give him, he will never be thirsty again. The water that I give will be like a fountain inside of him that gives eternal_life.’

₁₅The woman said to Jesus: ‘Sir, give me some of that water. Then I will not become thirsty again and I will not have to come here again to get water.’ ₁₆Jesus said to her: ‘Go and call your husband and come back here.’

₁₇The woman said to Him: ‘I do not have a husband.’ Jesus said: ‘You speak the truth. You do not have a husband. ₁₈You have had 5 husbands and the man who lives with you now is not your husband. You speak the truth.’

₁₉The woman said to Jesus: ‘Sir, I see you are a prophet. ₂₀Our forefathers worshipped God on this mountain, but you Jews say Jerusalem is the right place where we must worship God.’

₂₁Jesus said to her: ‘Woman, believe Me, there will come a time when people will worship the Father, but not on this mountain or in Jerusalem. ₂₂You Samaritans worship God, but you do not know Him. We Jews know Him because the Saviour is a Jew. ₂₃I said there will come a time and that time is here now. The Holy_Spirit will help people to worship God in the right way. The Father wants people to worship Him in truth. ₂₄God is Spirit, and the people who worship God must ask the Spirit to help them worship God in the right way.’

₂₅The woman said: ‘I know the Messiah will come. He is the Christ. When He comes, He will tell us everything that we need to know.’

₂₆Jesus said to her: ‘I am that One, the Messiah, and I am speaking to you now.’

₂₇Jesus' disciples came back. They saw Jesus talking to the woman and they were surprised. But not one of them asked Jesus what He wanted from her or why He was talking to her. ₂₈The woman put down her water jar and left it there and she went into the town. She called the people and said: ₂₉‘You must come and see. There is a Man who told me everything that I have done. I think maybe He is the Christ.’

₃₀The people of the town came to Jesus. ₃₁Before they came, the disciples said to Jesus: ‘Rabbi, you must eat some food.’ ₃₂But Jesus said to them: ‘I have food to eat, but you do not know that kind of food.’

₃₃The disciples asked each other: ‘Did someone bring Him some food?’ ₃₄But then Jesus said to them: ‘My food is to do what God wants Me to do. God has sent Me to the world. I must do everything that He said. ₃₅If you look at the wheat_fields, you say: “The wheat will be ripe in 4 months, then we can harvest the wheat.” But I tell you: Look at the people. They are like wheat which is ripe and ready to be harvested. ₃₆The people who harvest the wheat are getting their reward, because they bring in the harvest for eternal_life. The people who sow and the people who harvest the wheat will be happy together. ₃₇It is true what people always say: “One person sows the wheat and another person comes and harvests it.”

₃₈I sent you to harvest wheat but you did not sow that wheat. Other people have done the hard work.’

₃₉A lot of the Samaritans in that town started to believe in Jesus because the woman told them that Jesus had told her everything she had done. ₄₀Then the Samaritans came to Jesus and they asked Him to stay with them and He stayed there for 2 days. ₄₁More and more Samaritans started to believe in Jesus when they heard the things He said. ₄₂They said to the woman: ‘We first believed because you told us about Jesus. But now we have listened to Him ourselves. Now we know that He is the Saviour of the world.’

₄₃After 2 days Jesus went to the province of Galilee. ₄₄Jesus said: ‘Other people listen to a prophet, but his own people do not think he is important.’ ₄₅The people of Galilee were very friendly to Jesus and they welcomed Him. They were at the feast in Jerusalem and they saw everything that He did. ₄₆Jesus went back to the town of Cana in Galilee. This is where He had changed water into wine. There was an officer of the king from the town of Capernaum. His son was very sick. ₄₇They told the officer that Jesus had come from the province of Judea to Galilee. He went to Jesus and asked Him to come to Capernaum to heal his son because his son was very sick. He was dying. ₄₈Jesus said to him: ‘You always want to see signs and miracles. If you don't see them, you don't believe.’

₄₉The officer of the king said to Jesus: ‘Lord, please come to my child quickly before he dies.’ ₅₀Jesus said to him: ‘You may go home. Your son will not die.’

The man believed what Jesus said to him and he went home. ₅₁As he went home, his servants came to him. They told him that his child was well. ₅₂The man asked his servants what time the child had got better and they said: ‘Yesterday afternoon at the 7th hour (one o'clock) the fever was gone.’

₅₃The father then remembered that it was at that time when Jesus said to him: ‘Your son will not die.’

The officer and his family then started to believe in Jesus. ₅₄This was the 2nd miracle that Jesus did in the town of Cana after He went from Judea to Galilee.