I sent you to reap that whereon ye bestowed no labour: other men laboured, and ye are entered into their labours.
Parallel translations
- WEB I sent you to reap that for which you haven’t labored. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.”
- BSB I sent you to reap what you have not worked for; others have done the hard work, and now you have taken up their labor.”
- NKJV I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored; others have labored, and you have entered into their labors.”
- NASB I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored; others have labored, and you have come into their labor.”
- NLT I sent you to harvest where you didn’t plant; others had already done the work, and now you will get to gather the harvest.”
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 disciples reap where others, including the prophets and Jesus Himself, have labored. Their fruitfulness depends on prior groundwork.
Overview
Jesus tells the disciples they enter into labor begun by others, perhaps the prophets, John the Baptist, or Jesus' own ministry to the Samaritan woman. The saying instills humility, since the harvest is not theirs alone. All gospel fruit ultimately flows from God's prior and ongoing work.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- John 1:7The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.
- Acts 10:42–43And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead.
- 2 Chr 36:15And the LORD God of their fathers sent to them by his messengers, rising up betimes, and sending; because he had compassion on his people, and on his dwelling place:
- 1 Pet 1:11–12Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.
- Acts 8:14–17Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John:
- Acts 10:37–38That word, I say, ye know, which was published throughout all Judaea, and began from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached;
- Matt 3:1–6In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea,
- Matt 11:8–13But what went ye out for to see? A man clothed in soft raiment? behold, they that wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses.
- Acts 6:7And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.
- Acts 8:4–8Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word.
- Acts 5:14And believers were the more added to the Lord, multitudes both of men and women.)
- Acts 4:4Howbeit many of them which heard the word believed; and the number of the men was about five thousand.
- Acts 4:32And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common.
- Jer 44:4Howbeit I sent unto you all my servants the prophets, rising early and sending them, saying, Oh, do not this abominable thing that I hate.
- Matt 4:23And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.
- Acts 2:41Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.
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 4:38 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
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