A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.”
Parallel translations
- KJV There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink.
- BSB When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Give Me a drink.”
- NKJV A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give Me a drink.”
- NASB A woman of Samaria *came to draw water. Jesus *said to her, “Give Me a drink.”
- NLT Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Please give me a drink.”
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
A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus asked her for a drink. By initiating contact, Jesus crosses social barriers to reach an outsider.
Overview
Jesus' simple request begins a conversation that breaks ethnic and gender conventions of the day. His willingness to engage a Samaritan woman reveals the reach of his grace. The everyday act of drawing water becomes the entry point for teaching about eternal, living water.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Matt 10:42Whoever gives one of these little ones just a cup of cold water to drink in the name of a disciple, most certainly I tell you he will in no way lose his reward.”
- 1 Kgs 17:10So he arose and went to Zarephath; and when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks. He called to her, and said, “Please get me a little water in a jar, that I may drink.”
- John 19:28After this, Jesus, seeing that all things were now finished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, “I am thirsty.”
- John 4:10Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.”
- Gen 24:43behold, I am standing by this spring of water. Let it happen, that the maiden who comes out to draw, to whom I will say, “Please give me a little water from your pitcher to drink,”
- 2 Sam 23:15–17David longed, and said, “Oh that someone would give me water to drink from the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate!”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
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 4:7 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.