Commentary by John Calvin
John 4:10-15
10. Jesus answered and said to her, If thou knewest the gift of God,
and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink, thou wouldst have
asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. 11. The woman
saith to him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is
deep; whence, therefore, hast thou living water? [74] 12. Art thou
greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and himself drank
of it, and his children, and his cattle? 13. Jesus answered and said to
her, Every one that drinketh of this water will thirst again; 14. But
he who drinketh of the water which I shall give him will never thirst;
but the water, which I shall give him, shall be in him a well of water
springing up into eternal life. 15. The woman saith to him, Sir, give
me this water, that I may not thirst, and may not come hither to draw.
10. Jesus answered. Christ now, availing himself of the opportunity,
begins to preach about the grace and power of his Spirit, and that to a
woman who did not at all deserve that he should speak a word to her.
This is certainly an astonishing instance of his goodness. For what was
there in this wretched woman, that, from being a prostitute, she
suddenly became a disciple of the Son of God? Though in all of us he
has displayed a similar instance of his compassion. All the women,
indeed, are not prostitutes, nor are all the men stained by some
heinous crime; but what excellence can any of us plead as a reason why
he deigned to bestow on us the heavenly doctrine, and the honor of
being admitted into his family? Nor was it by accident that the
conversation with such a person occurred; for the Lord showed us, as in
a model, that those to whom he imparts the doctrine of salvation are
not selected on the ground of merit. And it appears at first sight a
wonderful arrangement, that he passed by so many great men in Judea,
and yet held familiar discourse with this woman. But it was necessary
that, in his person, it should be explained how true is that saying of
the Prophet,
I was found by them that sought me not; I was made manifest to them
that asked not after me. I said to those who sought me not, Behold,
here I am,
(Isaiah 65:1.)
If thou knewest the gift of God. These two clauses, If thou knewest the
gift of God, and, who it is that talketh with thee, I read separately,
viewing the latter as an interpretation of the former. For it was a
wonderful kindness of God to have Christ present, who brought with him
eternal life. The meaning will be more plain if, instead of and, we put
namely, or some other word of that kind, [75] thus: If thou knewest the
gift of God, namely, who it is that talketh with thee By these words we
are taught that then only do we know what Christ is, when we understand
what the Father hath given to us in him, and what benefits he brings to
us. Now that knowledge begins with a conviction of our poverty; for,
before any one desires a remedy, he must be previously affected with
the view of his distresses. Thus the Lord invites not those who have
drunk enough, but the thirsty, not those who are satiated, but the
hungry, to eat and drink. And why would Christ be sent with the
fullness of the Spirit, if we were not empty?
Again, as he has made great progress, who, feeling his deficiency,
already acknowledges how much he needs the aid of another; so it would
not be enough for him to groan under his distresses, if he had not also
hope of aid ready and prepared. In this way we might do no more than
waste ourselves with grief, or at least we might, like the Papists, run
about in every direction, and oppress ourselves with useless and
unprofitable weariness. But when Christ appears, we no longer wander in
vain, seeking a remedy where none can be obtained, but we go straight
to him. The only true and profitable knowledge of the grace of God is,
when we know that it is exhibited to us in Christ, and that it is held
out to us by his hand. In like manner does Christ remind us how
efficacious is a knowledge of his blessings, since it excites us to
seek them and kindles our hearts. If thou knewest, says he, thou
wouldst have asked. The design of these words is not difficult to be
perceived; for he intended to whet the desire of this woman, that she
might not despise and reject the life which was offered to her.
He would have given thee. By these words Christ testifies that, if our
prayers be addressed to him, they will not be fruitless; and, indeed,
without this confidence, the earnestness of prayer would be entirely
cooled. But when Christ meets those who come to him, and is ready to
satisfy their desires, there is no more room for sluggishness or delay.
And there is no man who would not feel that this is said to all of us,
if he were not prevented by his unbelief.
Living water. Though the name Water is borrowed from the present
occurrence, and applied to the Spirit, yet this metaphor is very
frequent in Scripture, and rests on the best grounds. For we are like a
dry and barren soil; there is no sap and no rigour in us, until the
Lord water us by his Spirit. In another passage, the Spirit is likewise
called clean water, (Hebrews 10:22,) but in a different sense; namely,
because he washes and cleanses us from the pollutions with which we are
entirely covered. But in this and similar passages, the subject treated
of is the secret energy by which he restores life in us, and maintains
and brings it to perfection. There are some who explain this as
referring to the doctrine of the Gospel, to which I own that this
appellation is fully applicable; but I think that Christ includes here
the whole grace of our renewal; for we know that he was sent for the
purpose of bringing to us a new life. In my opinion, therefore, he
intended to contrast water with that destitution of all blessings under
which mankind groan and labor. Again, living water is not so called
from its effect, as life-giving, but the allusion is to different kinds
of waters. It is called living, because it flows from a living
fountain.
11. Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with. As the Samaritans were
despised by the Jews, so the Samaritans, on the other hand, held the
Jews in contempt. Accordingly, this woman at first not only disdains
Christ but even mocks at him. She understands quite well that Christ is
speaking figuratively, but she throws out a jibe by a different figure,
intending to say, that he promises more than he can accomplish.
12. Art thou greater than our father Jacob? She proceeds to charge him
with arrogance in exalting himself above the holy patriarch Jacob.
"Jacob," she says, "was satisfied with this well for his own use and
that of his whole family: and hast thou a more excellent water?" How
faulty this comparison is, appears plainly enough from this
consideration, that she compares the servant to the master, and a dead
man to the living God; and yet how many in the present day fall into
this very error? The more cautious ought we to be not to extol the
persons of men so as to obscure the glory of God. We ought, indeed, to
acknowledge with reverence the gifts of God, wherever they appear. It
is, therefore, proper that we should honor men who are eminent in
piety, or endued with other uncommon gifts; but it ought to be in such
a manner that God may always remain eminent above all -- that Christ,
with his Gospel, may shine illustriously, for to him all the splendor
of the world must yield.
It ought also to be observed that the Samaritans falsely boasted of
being descended from the holy Fathers. In like manner do the Papists,
though they are a bastard seed, arrogantly boast of the Fathers, and
despise the true children of God. Although the Samaritans had been
descended from Jacob according to the flesh, yet, as they were
altogether degenerated and estranged from true godliness, this boasting
would have been ridiculous. But now that they are Cutheans by descent,
(2 Kings 17:24,) or at least collected out of the profane Gentiles,
they still do not fail to make false pretensions to the name of the
holy Patriarch. But this is of no avail to them; and such must be the
case with all who wickedly exult in the light of men, so as to deprive
themselves of the light of God, and who have nothing in common with the
holy Fathers, whose name they have abused.
13. Every one that drinketh of this water. Though Christ perceives that
he is doing little good, and even that his instruction is treated with
mockery, he proceeds to explain more clearly what he had said. He
distinguishes between the use of the two kinds of water; that the one
serves the body, and only for a time, while the power of the other
gives perpetual vigor to the soul. For, as the body is liable to decay,
so the aids by which it is supported must be frail and transitory. That
which quickens the soul cannot but be eternal. Again, the words of
Christ are not at variance with the fact, that believers, to the very
end of life, burn with desire of more abundant grace. For he does not
say that, from the very first day, we drink so as to be fully
satisfied, but only means that the Holy Spirit is a continually flowing
fountain; and that, therefore, there is no danger that they who have
been renewed by spiritual grace shall be dried up. And, therefore,
although we thirst throughout our whole life, yet it is certain that we
have not received the Holy Spirit for a single day, or for any short
period, but as a perennial fountain, which will never fail us. Thus
believers thirst, and keenly thirst, throughout their whole life; and
yet they have abundance of quickening moisture; for however small may
have been the measure of grace which they have received, it gives them
perpetual vigor, so that they are never entirely dry. When, therefore,
he says that they shall be satisfied, he contrasts not with Desire but
only with Drought
Shall be a fountain of water springing up into eternal life. These
words express still more clearly the preceding statement; for they
denote a continual watering, which maintains in them a heavenly
eternity during this mortal and perishing life. The grace of Christ,
therefore, does not flow to us for a short time, but overflows into a
blessed immortality; for it does not cease to flow until the
incorruptible life which it commences be brought to perfection.,
15. Give me this water. This woman undoubtedly is sufficiently aware
that Christ is speaking of spiritual water; but because she despises
him, she sets at naught all his promises; for so long as the authority
of him who speaks is not acknowledged by us, his doctrine is not
permitted to enter. Indirectly, therefore, the woman taunted Christ,
saying, "Thou boastest much, but I see nothing: show it in reality, if
thou canst."
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Footnotes
[74] "Ceste eau vive;" -- "this living water."
[75] "Si en lieu de Et, nous mettons A scavoir, ou quelque autre mot
semblable."
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