Lenten Season · Third Sunday of Lent · Year C
If First Scrutiny of the Elect: John 4:5-42 or John 4:5-15, 19b-26, 39a, 40-42
Jesus Talks With a Samaritan Woman
March 19, 2028
Overview & Insights
“The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (John 4:14)
The transition begun in 3:22 is continued in 4:1–4. Jesus moves from Jerusalem to the Judean countryside and from there to Galilee by way of Samaria. The intervening material (3:23–36) enables the reader to make sense of this cumbersome introduction to chapter 4. That Jesus was gaining and baptizing more disciples than John (v. 1) has already been intimated in 3:26. That the Pharisees noticed this is suggested by the fact that John’s disciples seem to have been reminded of it by a Jew (3:25). What has not been told is Jesus’ response to these developments. The purpose of verses 1–3 is to explain Jesus’ actions by his knowledge. The parenthetical comment recalls other instances in which the narrator attributes things that Jesus said or did to supernatural knowledge that he possessed (cf., e.g., 2:24–25; 6:6, 64; 13:1, 3, 11; 18:4). In this case, however, the knowledge is gained through normal channels.
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Commentary
Commentary on John 4:5-42 Working Preacher
Lectionary commentary on Jesus crossing racial and social boundaries with the Samaritan woman.
John 4 Commentary: A Samaritan Woman and a Nobleman Meet Jesus Enduring Word
Evangelical verse-by-verse commentary on the well encounter.
John 4:5-42 Commentary Center for Excellence in Preaching
Reformed preaching commentary on the living-water conversation.
John 4 Commentary Precept Austin
Verse-by-verse study notes on the breaking of racial, gender and moral barriers.
John 4 - Haydock Commentary Online Haydock
Catholic verse-by-verse commentary on the Samaritan woman narrative.
Commentary on John 4:5-42 workingpreacher.org
The one Lutheran voice on the Samaritan woman at the well.
The Woman at the Well: Jesus and the Samaritan Woman (John 4) catholicproductions.com
Catholic Productions' treatment of the encounter's nuptial and sacramental symbolism.
Background & Word Study
John 4 parallel commentaries BibleHub
Aggregated interlinear and commentary tools for word-level study of the chapter.
John 4:24 Interlinear biblehub.com
Greek text of 'God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.'
Commentary on John 4 (Matthew Henry) blueletterbible.org
Classic word-by-word exposition of the Samaritan woman narrative.
The Church Fathers
Sermons & Reflections
The Woman at the Well Journey with Jesus
Debie Thomas's essay challenging common misreadings of the Samaritan woman.
John 4:5-42 Commentary cepreaching.org
Reformed preaching commentary on crossing social boundaries in the text.
The Samaritan Woman at the Well: Wells, Weddings, and Jesus the Bridegroom catholicproductions.com
A second Catholic Productions piece on the well-betrothal typology behind the scene.
John 4:5-42 Commentary cepreaching.org
A third, differently authored preaching commentary on the same reading.
Study Hub
Questions preachers ask
What does Jesus offer the Samaritan woman?
At the well Jesus asks a drink and offers living water, revealing himself as the Messiah and drawing a whole village to believe, a baptismal Gospel of Lent.
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