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From that city many of the Samaritans believed in him because of the word of the woman, who testified, “He told me everything that I did.”
John 4:39 · World English Bible
Parallel translations
  • KJV And 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.
  • BSB Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in Jesus because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.”
  • NKJV And many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, “He told me all that I ever did.”
  • NASB Now from that city many of the Samaritans believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, “He told me all the things that I have done.”
  • NLT Many Samaritans from the village believed in Jesus because the woman had said, “He told me everything I ever did!”

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

Many Samaritans believed in Jesus because of the woman's testimony that he knew everything she had done. It shows how one transformed person's witness can lead others to Christ.

Overview

The Samaritan woman, herself an outsider, becomes the first effective evangelist in John's Gospel. Her simple report of Jesus' supernatural knowledge of her life opened a whole city to faith. This demonstrates that personal testimony, though incomplete, is a genuine instrument God uses to draw people to the Savior.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 5

  • John 4:29“Come, see a man who told me everything that I did. Can this be the Christ?”
  • John 10:41–42Many came to him. They said, “John indeed did no sign, but everything that John said about this man is true.”
  • John 4:5So he came to a city of Samaria, called Sychar, near the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son, Joseph.
  • John 11:45Therefore many of the Jews, who came to Mary and saw what Jesus did, believed in him.
  • John 4:42They said to the woman, “Now we believe, not because of your speaking; for we have heard for ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world.”

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (4)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — John videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on John 4:39YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on JohnMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

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 4:39 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.