The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.
Parallel translations
- WEB The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I don’t get thirsty, neither come all the way here to draw.”
- BSB The woman said to Him, “Sir, give me this water so that I will not get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.”
- NKJV The woman said to Him, “Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw.”
- NASB The woman *said to Him, “Sir, give me this water so that I will not be thirsty, nor come all the way here to draw water.”
- NLT “Please, sir,” the woman said, “give me this water! Then I’ll never be thirsty again, and I won’t have to come here to get water.”
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
The woman asks for this water so she will not thirst or have to keep coming to the well. She is still thinking in physical terms, yet now drawn toward what Jesus offers.
Overview
Her request shows partial openness even as she misunderstands the spiritual meaning. She desires relief from her daily labor at the well. Jesus will gently move her from this surface request to confronting her real need by raising the matter of her life.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- John 6:34Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread.
- Rom 8:5For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.
- Ps 4:6There be many that say, Who will shew us any good? LORD, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.
- Rom 6:23For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
- 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.
- Jas 4:3Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.
- John 6:26Jesus answered them and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled.
- 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.
- 1 Cor 2:14But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 4:15 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.