King James Version, with Nii Okai's journal notes · 16 notes
1When therefore the Lord knew how the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John,
Hm... Then this whole baptism thing became an issue of public opinion.
2( Though Jesus himself baptized not, but his disciples,)
3He left Judæa, and departed again into Galilee.
4And he must needs go through Samaria.
5Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.
6Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour.
The history of the very places they walked was common knowledge.
But we find ourselves lost as Ghanaians... The stories have died; we have let urbanization and so-called education deny us of our heritage.
7There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink.
8( For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.)
9Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.
10Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.
11The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water?
12Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle?
The woman obviously understood Jesus to be implying that he had something better than what they had.
It was not really about the water 💦, it was about eternal life.
13Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again:
14But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.
15The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.
Why did she believe this story of water that is everlasting?...
How come she believed such a fantabulous story?
Of eternal waters.
16Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband, and come hither.
17The woman answered and said, I have no husband. Jesus said unto her, Thou hast well said, I have no husband:
Ah, now Jesus was about to hit the home 🏡 run 🏃.
He had her where he wanted her.
18For thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly.
19The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet.
20Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.
21Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.
22Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.
So here he corrected her doctrine but quickly brought her up to speed with the latest event, which even the Jews did not know, that is, now the true believers worship in spirit & truth.
23But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
24God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
25The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things.
...the meshiak, transliterated Messiah and translated Christ in Greek, when he comes...
26Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he.
He easily revealed his identity to the humble and lowly in state.
He would not cast his pearls before swine. To those who would receive it he told them plainly.
27And upon this came his disciples, and marvelled that he talked with the woman: yet no man said, What seekest thou? or, Why talkest thou with her?
28The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way into the city, and saith to the men,
29Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?
30Then they went out of the city, and came unto him.
Oh, the pain when they heard of his death ☠.
At his death, the last thing anyone wanted was to be associated with Jesus in any way.
Oh, I can imagine the pain, fear 😱 and mockery the disciples experienced.
31In the mean while his disciples prayed him, saying, Master, eat.
32But he said unto them, I have meat to eat that ye know not of.
33Therefore said the disciples one to another, Hath any man brought him ought to eat?
34Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.
This woman had run into the city and was bringing the town people to meet him.
This was not the time to eat, though very hungry.
The people were coming to meet the Messiah and he was going to wait on them; they were coming to find him ready and in expectancy.
Indeed they would likely host him and feed him more lavishly than his disciples could, which was just a fringe benefit.
His meat was to do the will of him that sent him.
35Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.
36And he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal: that both he that soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together.
37And herein is that saying true, One soweth, and another reapeth.
38I sent you to reap that whereon ye bestowed no labour: other men laboured, and ye are entered into their labours.
Is it that the prophets labored and we enter into their labour?
I asked in my previous notes: is it that the prophets and men of old labored and we enter into their labours?
And the answer is yes, they labored in the sense that they yearned and waited for the coming Messiah and died waiting, whiles we just inherited their wait without labour.
And now, much more, the early church and apostles have labored and suffered martyrdom etc., and we walk in their labour and doctrine (which through much affliction they learnt).
And now it's our turn to labour and others reap our labour.
39And many of the Samaritans of that city believed on him for the saying of the woman, which testified, He told me all that ever I did.
40So when the Samaritans were come unto him, they besought him that he would tarry with them: and he abode there two days.
41And many more believed because of his own word;
42And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.
Jesus was not tied down too much by itinerary.
43Now after two days he departed thence, and went into Galilee.
44For Jesus himself testified, that a prophet hath no honour in his own country.
45Then when he was come into Galilee, the Galilæans received him, having seen all the things that he did at Jerusalem at the feast: for they also went unto the feast.
46So Jesus came again into Cana of Galilee, where he made the water wine. And there was a certain nobleman, whose son was sick at Capernaum.
47When he heard that Jesus was come out of Judæa into Galilee, he went unto him, and besought him that he would come down, and heal his son: for he was at the point of death.
48Then said Jesus unto him, Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe.
49The nobleman saith unto him, Sir, come down ere my child die.
50Jesus saith unto him, Go thy way; thy son liveth. And the man believed the word that Jesus had spoken unto him, and he went his way.
51And as he was now going down, his servants met him, and told him, saying, Thy son liveth.
52Then enquired he of them the hour when he began to amend. And they said unto him, Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him.
53So the father knew that it was at the same hour, in the which Jesus said unto him, Thy son liveth: and himself believed, and his whole house.
54This is again the second miracle that Jesus did, when he was come out of Judæa into Galilee.
This is the second miracle, not of Jesus' ministry, but in Galilee.
This is the second miracle in Galilee which he did, for he had done many in Jerusalem.
All this while, in his own home town he had done only 2 miracles.
This means the first miracle of Jesus in turning water to wine was his first miracle in his home town, not necessarily the first in his ministry.