Limitless Word
So when the Samaritans came to him, they begged him to stay with them. He stayed there two days.
John 4:40 · World English Bible
Parallel translations
  • KJV So when the Samaritans were come unto him, they besought him that he would tarry with them: and he abode there two days.
  • BSB So when the Samaritans came to Him, they asked Him to stay with them, and He stayed two days.
  • NKJV So when the Samaritans had come to Him, they urged Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days.
  • NASB So when the Samaritans came to Jesus, they were asking Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days.
  • NLT When they came out to see him, they begged him to stay in their village. So he stayed for two days,

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 Samaritans urged Jesus to stay, and he remained two days among them. Jesus willingly crossed ethnic and religious barriers to bring the gospel to a despised people.

Overview

Jews normally avoided contact with Samaritans, yet Jesus accepts their invitation and lodges among them. His readiness to dwell with outsiders anticipates the worldwide reach of salvation. It foreshadows the gospel going to all nations, breaking down the dividing walls of hostility.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 11

  • Rev 3:20Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, then I will come in to him, and will dine with him, and he with me.
  • Luke 24:29They urged him, saying, “Stay with us, for it is almost evening, and the day is almost over.” He went in to stay with them.
  • Gen 32:26The man said, “Let me go, for the day breaks.” Jacob said, “I won’t let you go, unless you bless me.”
  • Acts 16:15When she and her household were baptized, she begged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and stay.” So she persuaded us.
  • Luke 19:5–10When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and saw him, and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house.”
  • Luke 8:38But the man from whom the demons had gone out begged him that he might go with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying,
  • 2 Cor 6:1–2Working together, we entreat also that you not receive the grace of God in vain,
  • Jer 14:8You hope of Israel, its Savior in the time of trouble, why should you be as a foreigner in the land, and as a wayfaring man who turns aside to stay for a night?
  • Song 3:4I had scarcely passed from them, when I found him whom my soul loves. I held him, and would not let him go, until I had brought him into my mother’s house, into the room of her who conceived me.
  • Prov 4:13Take firm hold of instruction. Don’t let her go. Keep her, for she is your life.
  • Luke 10:39She had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet, and heard his word.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (3)

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 4:40YouTube · 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 4:40 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.