But 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.
Parallel translations
- WEB but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never thirst again; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.”
- BSB But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a fount of water springing up to eternal life.”
- NKJV but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.”
- NASB but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never be thirsty; but the water that I will give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up to eternal life.”
- NLT But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Whoever drinks the water Jesus gives will never thirst again, for it becomes a spring welling up to eternal life. Christ alone satisfies the soul's deepest thirst.
Overview
The 'living water' Jesus gives, understood as the Spirit and the eternal life he brings, fully and permanently satisfies. Unlike Jacob's well, this water becomes an inner, ongoing source of life. The promise reveals Jesus as the giver of eternal life that no earthly thing can supply.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 18
- John 7:38–39He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.
- John 6:35And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.
- Isa 49:10They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the heat nor sun smite them: for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them.
- Rev 7:16They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat.
- Eph 1:13–14In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
- John 11:26And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?
- John 6:58This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.
- 1 Jn 5:20And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.
- 2 Cor 1:22Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.
- Rom 6:23For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
- Rom 8:16–17The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:
- 1 Pet 1:22Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:
- John 17:2–3As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.
- John 10:10The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
- Matt 25:46And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.
- John 14:16–19And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;
- Rom 5:21That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.
- Eph 4:30And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.
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Christ at the center
John declares him plainly: the eternal Word made flesh, the Lamb of God, the great 'I AM' — bread, light, door, shepherd, way, truth, life, resurrection — that you may believe and have life in his name.
How John 4:14 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.