Page images
PDF
EPUB

Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel 6 of ground that Jacob gave to his Son Jofeph. Now Jacob's well was there. Jefus therefore being wearied. with his journey, fat thus on the well (b): and it was 7 about the fixth hour (c). There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jefus faith unto her, 8 Give me to drink. For his difciples were gone away 9 unto the city to buy meat. Then faith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou being a Jew, afkeft drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria (d) for the Jews have no dealings with 10 the Samaritans (e). Jefus answered and faid unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God (f), and who it is that faith to thee, Give me to drink, thou wouldest have afked of him, and he would have given thee living II water. The woman faith unto him, Sir, thou haft nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from 12 whence then haft thou that living water? Art thougreater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himfelf, and his children, 13 and his cattle? Jefus anfwered and faid unto her, Whofoever drinketh of this water fhall thirst again : "But whofoever drinketh of the water that I fhall.

14

(b) As it were by chance, only to reft himself.

(c) The fixth hour is noon, and the heat of the day accountsfor his being thirfly and wifhing to drink.

(d) See the melancholy effects of religious differences, which flop. the common intercourse of courtesy and humanity! for that is what. is meant by dealings.

(e) The Samaritans were defcendants from that mixt multitude, which was fent by Shalmanezer to inhabit those parts from whence he had carried away the Ifraelites, 2 Kings xvii.. These at first ferved other gods together with the one, true, living God; and though they were afterwards reformed from their idolatry, and received the five books of Mofes, yet, nevertheless, instead of affifting to rebuild the temple at Jerufalem, they built one in oppofition to it on Mount Gerizim, and between them and the Jews there was always an irreconcileable hatred.

(f) If thou knewest the value of the opportunity. God has given

thee.

[blocks in formation]

give him, fhall never thirst: but the water that I fhall give him, fhall be in him a well of water 15 fpringing up into everlafting life (g). The woman

[ocr errors]

faith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirft not, 16 neither come hither to draw (h). Jefus faith unto her, 17 Go, call thy husband, and come hither. The woman answered and faid, I have no hufband. Jefus faid unto her, Thou haft well faid, I have no 18 husband: For thou haft had five hufbands, and he whom thou now haft is not thy husband : in that said 19 thou truly (i). The woman faith unto him, Sir, I per20 ceive that thou art a prophet. Our fathers worship

ped in this mountain; and ye fay, that in Jerufalem 21 is the place where men ought to worship. Jefus faith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye fhall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerufa22 lem, worship the Father (k). Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for falvation is 23 of the Jews. But the hour cometh, and now (/) is, when the true worshippers fhall worship the Father in Spirit and in truth: for the Father feeketh, fuch to 24 worship him. God is a Spirit, and they that wor

(g) Not fuch as is kept in cifterns, or drawn up from wells, but which flows in plentiful and perpetual ftreams, and is most neceffary for health and fife; for life, I fay, not only at prefent, but for ever.

(h) The woman not yet understanding our blefled Saviour's meaning, he graciously contrives another method to convince her that he was the Chrift.

(2) She had probably been divorced from fome of the five, according to the practice which then prevailed, and perhaps fhe was actually in that ftate at this time.

(4) God fhall be no longer worshipped in any particular place exclufively, neither on mount Gerizim, as is done by the Samaritans at prefent, no, nor yet in the temple of Jerufalem, though hitherto he hath vouchfafed to place his name there, and exprefsly appointed the fervice to be performed; whereas you Samaritans have no fuch authority for your temple, which was built in direct oppofition to the divine command, to ferve a political purpose.

() The time is at hand, and indeed is now actually come.

fhip him, muft worship him in fpirit and in truth. 25 The woman faith unto him, I know that Meffias

cometh, which is called Chrift: when he is come, he 26 will tell us all things. Jefus faith unto her, I that speak unto thee, am he.

27 And upon this came his difciples, and marvelled (m) that he talked with the woman: yet no man faid, What feekeft thou? or, Why talkeft thou with her? 28 The woman then left her water-pot, and went her 29 way into the city, and faith to the men, Come, fee a man which told me all things that ever I did: 30 is not this the Chrift? Then they went out of the city, and came unto him.

31 In the meanwhile his difciples prayed him, fay32 ing, Mafter, eat. But he faid unto them, I have 33 meat to eat that ye know not of. Therefore faid the difciples one to another, Hath any man brought him 34 ought to eat? Jefus faith unto them, My meat is to

do the will of him that fent me, and to finish his 35 work. Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harveft? Behold, I fay unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white 36 already to harveft (n). And he that reapeth, receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal: that both he that foweth, and he that reapeth, may rejoice to37 gether (). And herein is that faying true, Orte foweth, 38 and another reapeth. I fent you to reap that where

(m) They wondered at our Lord's talking with the woman, for the fame reafon that the wondered (verfe 10.) at his asking a favour of her, becaufe fhe was a Samaritan.

(n) The usual distance from feed time to harveft is the space of four months; but our fpiritual harvest is more speedy, for the corn is ripe already, though the feed is but juft fown: meaning that his difcourfe with the woman, had been the happy occafion of bringing a great number of others from that town to hearken to his inftructions. (0) The fower and the reaper have each his reward from the hufbandman for doing his work.

N 6

39

on ye bestowed no labour: other men laboured, and ye are entered into their labours (p).

And many of the Samaritans of that city believed on him, for the faying of the woman, which teftified, 40 He told me all that ever I did. So when the Samaritans were come unto him, they befought him that he would tarry with them and he abode there two 41 days. And many more believed, because of his own 42 word: And said unto the woman, Now we believe,

43

not because of thy faying: for we have heard him ourfelves, and know that this is indeed the Chrift, the Saviour of the world.

Now after two days he departed thence, and went 44 into Galilee (g): For Jefus himself teftified, that a pro45 phet had no honour in his own country (r). Then when he was come into Galilee, the Galileans received him, having feen all the things that he did at Jerufalem at the feaft: for they alfo went unto the 46 feaft. So Jefus came again into Cana of Galilee, where he made the water wine.

47

And there was a certain noblemah, whose fon was fick at Capernaum. When he heard that Jefus was come out of Judea into Galilee, he went unto him, and befought him that he would come down, and heal his fon: for he was at the point of death. 48 Then faid Jefus unto him, Except ye fee figns 49 and wonders, ye will not believe. The no

bleman faith unto him, Sir, come down ere my 50 child die. Jefus faith unto him, Go thy way; thy fon liveth. And the man believed the word that Jefus had spoken unto him, and he went his way.

(p) The common proverb, One foweth and another reapeth, is verified in your cafe; for you are fent into the field to reap, where you have not had the labour of preparing the ground, or sowing the feed.

(q) That is, he went to Galilee, but not to Nazareth, where his own relations lived.

(r) See Matt. xiii. 57.

51 And as he was now going down, his fervants met 52 him, and told him, faying, Thy fon liveth. Then en

quired he of them the hour, when he began to amend: and they faid unto him, Yesterday (s) at the 53 feventh hour the fever left him. So the father knew that it was at the fame hour, in the which Jefus faid unto him, Thy fon liveth; and himself believed, and 54 his whole houfe. This is again the second miracle that Jefus did, when he was come out of Judea into Galilee.

СНА Р. V.

I FTER this there was a feaft of the Jews, and 2 Jefus went up to Jerufalem. Now there is at Jerufalem by the sheep-market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue, Bethesda (a), having five (b) 3 porches. In thefe lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of 4 the water. For an angel (c) went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whofoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in, was made whole of whatfoever disease he 5 had. And a certain man was there, which had an 6 infirmity thirty and eight years. When Jefus faw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that cafe, he faith unto him, Wilt thou be made 7 whole? The impotent man anfwered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another

(s) About one o'clock afternoon.

(a) Bethesda is the houfe of mercy.

(b) Five feparate divifions for the fick.

(c) Not that an angel visibly defcended from heaven, but the miraculous virtue of the water was afcribed (according to the Jewish way of fpeaking) to the power of fome angel, who was employed by God for that purpose.

[merged small][ocr errors]
« PreviousContinue »