John 4 - NKJV Woman's Study Bible

4:4–6 Jesus did not follow the usual way for Jews to travel between Galilee and Judea, which was to avoid Samaritan territory by crossing to the east bank of the Jordan River (vv. 3–4). At Sychar, Jacob bought a piece of land from the children of Hamor for 100 pieces of silver and pitched his tent (v. 5; see Ge 33:18–20). While Jesus was resting at Jacob’s well, a site not mentioned in the OT, he met the Samaritan woman (see The Samaritan Woman).

4:7 For a woman to come to the well at noon, the hottest part of the day, was unusual. Middle Eastern women usually filled their water jars in the early morning and at sunset, when it was cooler. The Samaritan woman was a woman of bad reputation and may have filled her jars at noon in order to avoid meeting other women who would shun her.

4:9 Jesus simply disregarded the social rules of his day in order to talk with the Samaritan woman.

4:20–24 The ancient city of Samaria was located about 40 miles north of Jerusalem. Years before, a remnant of Israel’s Jews in Samaria had intermarried with Gentiles and had begun to worship foreign gods. The Samaritans worshiped at Mount Gerizim, where they had been given permission to build a temple. A small Samaritan community continues to worship there even now.

4:25–26 The Jews of Samaria were also awaiting the arrival of the promised Messiah (see Dt 18:15,18). Jesus told the Samaritan woman that he was the long-awaited Messiah. The woman believed Jesus’ self-disclosure and told others the Good News.

4:46 The man was a royal official in the court of Herod Antipas, the tetrarch of Galilee. Whether he was a Jew or Gentile is not known. The fact that a nobleman would request the help of a “carpenter” is extraordinary.

4:53 An ordinary household with its variety of relationships was basic to society in ancient times. The word “household” could suggest an immediate family, the servants of that family, an extended family and even the descendants of a particular nation. The head of the household usually determined the faith of the household. Thus, it was that the nobleman’s “whole household” followed him in believing in Jesus.