I who speak to you am He

 

 Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here."  The woman answered and said, "I have no husband."  Jesus said to her, "You have well said, 'I have no husband,' for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet.  Our fathers worshiped on this mountain and  you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship."  

 

Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.  You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.  But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.  God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."  

 

The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ).  "When He comes, He will tell us all things."  Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am He."

 

- John 4:16–26 

 

Yesterday we read that when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John (though Jesus Himself did not baptize, but His disciples), He left Judea and departed again to Galilee.  But He needed to go through Samaria.  So He came to a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.  Now Jacob's well was there.  Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well.  It was about the sixth hour.  A woman of Samaria came to draw water.  Jesus said to her, "Give Me a drink."  For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.  Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, "How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?"  For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.  Jesus answered and said to 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."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep.  Where then do You get that living water?  Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?"  Jesus answered and said to her, "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst.  But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, no come here to draw."

 

 Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here."  The woman answered and said, "I have no husband."  Jesus said to her, "You have well said, 'I have no husband,' for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet.  Our fathers worshiped on this mountain and  you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship."  My study Bible comments that since Jesus perceived she was living with a man without being married, and as He also knew of her string of husbands, this woman perceives that He is a prophet.  As the Samaritans did not accept any prophets after Moses, they expected only one prophet:  the Messiah foretold by Moses (Deuteronomy 18:15-18).  Christ insight into people's hearts, which is reported many times in the Gospels, underscores His divine nature.  

 

 Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.  You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.  But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.  God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."   My study Bible remarks that if Jesus was indeed the expected Prophet (as noted in the comment above), then He could settle this historical argument about where worship was to take place.  He refuses to answer this earthly question, and instead elevates the discussion to the way in which people should worship.  More importantly, He is turning the attention to the One worship:  God.  The Father is worshiped in spirit -- that is, in the Holy Spirit -- and in truth -- that is, in Christ Himself (John 14:6) and according to the revelation of Christ.  Jesus tells her that God is Spirit:  this means that God cannot be confined to a particular location.  My study Bible comments that those who receive the Holy Spirit and believe in Jesus Christ can worship God the Father with purity of heart.  Jesus states that salvation is of the Jews:  Here Christ affirms that true salvation comes from within Judaism.  My study Bible quotes St. Athanasius of Alexandria, who comments, "The commonwealth of Israel was the school of the knowledge of God for all the nations."  More importantly, Jesus is testifying that the Messiah, who was prophesied among the Jews, has now risen from among the Jews. We are to understand that while the gift of salvation in Christ is to all nations, it has come from within Judaism.  The hour, in Jesus' language across St. John's Gospel, refers to His death and Resurrection, and to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, inaugurating the worship of the new covenant.  

 

 The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ).  "When He comes, He will tell us all things."  Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am He."  My study Bible notes that "I who speak to you am He" is literally translated from the Greek, ''I AM [εγω ειμι/ego eimi], who speak to you."   This I AM is the divine Name of God (Exodus 3:14).   Its use indicates a theophany, a revelation or manifestation of God.  The use of this Name by a mere human being was considered to be blasphemy, my study Bible explains, and was punishable by death (see John 8:58; Mark 14:62).  But, as Jesus is divine, His use of the Name is a revelation of His unity with the Father and the Holy Spirit.  Christ is God Incarnate.

 

Once again, as in yesterday's reading and commentary, we have to ask the question: Why?  Why this woman?  Why here?  After we hear a bit about her story -- that she's living with a man who's not her husband, and that she's also had not just several, but five husbands in her past -- she seems an even less likely candidate for a revelation of God, a theophany!  But nevertheless, this is the story that we are given, and it is the story that we have.  Jesus chooses this moment, this place, and this woman to truly reveal Himself as He is in His divine identity.  He is the Holy One of God, the Son, the Lord, the I AM who was introduced to Moses in the burning bush (Exodus 3:14).  And once again, we have to remark upon the truth that such acceptance of the Christ is impossible, on worldly terms, to predict.  How can we know where faith will take root and where it won't?  How can we know who will accept Christ and who will not?  It seems that, at least according to the Gospels, the least likely candidates accept, and the most likely (the educated and those who are steeped in the religious traditions and spiritual history of Israel, the religious leaders) do not.  So, we also have to ask, who is capable of perceiving the things of God?  How is the perception and understanding of faith different from the knowledge one can study?  How does study -- say such as the effort in this blog, or the reading of literature and commentary on the Scriptures -- help or possibly even hinder our faith in some cases?  These are important questions which the story of Jesus Christ illumines and opens up to us, and which we need to consider.  Where do we find our faith, in the midst of a world that in many cases thinks it has all the answers to life, or can make life better through machines and technology, and might just deny that such reality as presented here in the Gospels ever even existed?  In one sense, many might feel the world is at a kind of tipping point, or a place that seems to be further along the spectrum of the peace Jesus presents than ever before.  But "the world" has been in such places many times and many ways before now, as much as in Christ's own time than ever since.  We're still asked to make the choices for faith in the midst of a world that is full of the temptations and distractions of evil and what we might call "fallenness" as it was in the past.  Things may look and seem different in some ways or in appearances, but a quick thought about the past and the struggles of the faithful all along will dispel this idea.  We've always have times of struggle for our faith, and the Gospels -- and all of Scripture, including the Revelation, and particularly Christ's own prophecies of end times -- teach us that this is the way of the world in which we live.  Our faith is a struggle, and this is why we must be aware of temptations and pressures that distract us from the one thing truly necessary.  Let us rejoice that it is this person, this Samaritan woman, to whom Christ reveals Himself as the Lord.  It reminds and reinforces the concept taught to Nicodemus:  "The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit" (John 3:8).  Let us never forget it, lest we despair of knowing our faith and the confidence it brings to us in the midst of troubles or distractions.

 

 

 

 

 

I who speak to you am He

 

 Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here."  The woman answered and said, "I have no husband."  Jesus said to her, "You have well said, 'I have no husband,' for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly."  

 

The woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet.  Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship."  Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.  You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.  But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.  God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."  

 

The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ).  When He comes, He will tell us all things."  Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am He." 

 

- John 4:16–26 

 

Yesterday we read that when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John (though Jesus Himself did not baptize, but His disciples), He left Judea and departed again to Galilee.  But He needed to go through Samaria.  So He came to a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.  Now Jacob's well was there.  Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well.  It was about the sixth hour.  A woman of Samaria came to draw water.  Jesus said to her, "Give Me a drink."  For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.  Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, "How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?"  For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.  Jesus answered and said to 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."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep.  Where then do You get that living water?  Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?"  Jesus answered said to her, "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst.  But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw."

 

  Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here."  The woman answered and said, "I have no husband."  Jesus said to her, "You have well said, 'I have no husband,' for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet."  My study Bible explains that since Jesus understood that she was living with a man without being married, and He also knew of her string of husbands, this woman believes that He is a prophet.  (This is similar to the reaction of Nathanael, when he understood that Jesus had seen into his heart at John 1:50).  The Samaritans did not accept any prophets after Moses, and therefore the only prophet they expected was the Messiah who was foretold by Moses (Deuteronomy 18:15-18).  My study Bible comments that Jesus' insight into people's hearts, which is reported many times in the Gospels, underscores His divine nature. 

 

"Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship."  Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.  You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.  But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.  God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."   My study Bible explains here that if Jesus was truly the expected Prophet (see comment above), then He is the one who could settle this historical argument between the Jews and Samaritans regarding where worship was to take place.  But Jesus refuses to answer this earthly question, and instead elevates the conversation to the manner in which people ought to worship.  More importantly, He turns attention to the One whom we worship:  God.  The Father, my study Bible notes, is worshiped in spirit -- that is, in the Holy Spirit -- and in truth -- meaning in Christ Himself (John 14:6) and according to the revelation of Christ.  Jesus declares that God is Spirit:  God cannot be confined to a particular location.  Those who receive the Holy Spirit and believe in Jesus Christ can worship God the Father with purity of heart, my study Bible says.  Jesus also declares here that salvation is of the Jews:   My study Bible notes that the Lord affirms here that true revelation comes from Judaism.  It quotes St. Athanasius the Great:  "The commonwealth of Israel was the school of the knowledge of God for all the nations."  Moreover, Jesus is testifying that the Messiah, who was prophesied among the Jews, has risen from among the Jews.  So, while the gift of salvation in Christ has come to all nations, it has come from within Judaism.  Jesus says, "The hour is coming . . .."   This "hour" refers to Christ's death and Resurrection and to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, inaugurating the worship of the new covenant.

 

 The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ).  When He comes, He will tell us all things."  Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am He."  The literal translation of Christ's final statement here is "I AM [Greek εγω ειμι/ego eimi], who speak to you."  "I AM" is the divine Name of God revealed to Moses in Exodus 3:14.  My study Bible says that when Christ uses this name it is a theophany, a revelation or manifestation of God.  The use of this Name by a human being was considered to be blasphemy and punishable by death (see John 8:58; Mark 14:62).  But, because Jesus is divine, His use of this Name is therefore a revelation of the Son's unity with the Father and the Holy Spirit.  He is God Incarnate.

 

Jesus says to the Samaritan woman, "God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."  We have to wonder, why this woman?  Why in this place?  Why should she be chosen for such a revelation?  Well, we don't know the answer to that, but we do know of her contributions that would follow in the Church.  (We will write more about her in tomorrow's reading and commentary.)  But let us observe what an unlikely candidate for such a revelation she seems to be based on appearances.  She not only is living with a man to whom she's not married, she has had a whole string of husbands.  Particularly in the context of Christ's time and place, this is something deeply frowned upon. Even in the most liberal of secular society today, five husbands would seem to be a large number, especially for a woman who still seems to retain some signs of youth.  She is a Samaritan woman, who does not seem to be an expert on Jewish religion, although Samaritans also followed the Torah.  Her understanding of the dispute between the Samaritans and the Jews seems to be limited to a focus on the proper location of the temple.  So from all conventional appearances, no one would suspect that this would be the person chosen by Christ to whom to reveal Himself.  But one very important lesson from today's reading is once again the revelation of Christ as the "Heart-knower."  He is the One who knows what is in a person, and has no need for anyone to tell Him (John 2:24-25).  It's possibly even more striking to consider that He is the One who asked her first to give Him a drink from the well, only to tell her about the "living water" that He had to offer.  She seems to be the least likely object for His revelation of divine truths, and yet she is the one who receives His instruction -- revealing Himself, and the coming of the Holy Spirit, even including the revelation of the type of worship being inaugurated in His new covenant.  This woman with a history of many husbands, and living with a man to whom she's not presently married, is the one to whom Jesus extends an offer of a new covenant, a new way to worship, and Himself as the object of that worship, the Messiah.  Perhaps, after all, this is just the right person to whom to reveal Himself.  For Christ has come to call -- in His own words -- not the righteous, but sinners, to repentance (Matthew 9:13; Mark 2:17; Luke 5:32).  This Samaritan woman will in turn call others, as we will see in tomorrow's reading.  Let us note that as Jesus introduces the power of the Holy Spirit into the conversation, that truly "the wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit" (John 3:8).  It is one more revelation of how God's mysterious power works and knows that which we cannot know, proving yet again we cannot second guess the working of God's power in the world.  Let us be delighted by such revelations of God midst the commonplace, and grateful for God's surprises.  The woman has faith that when the Christ comes, "He will tell us all things."  Jesus affirms her faith and tells her, "I who speak to you am He." 

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

 

 Therefore, when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John (though Jesus Himself did not baptize, but His disciples), He left Judea and departed again to Galilee.  But He needed to go through Samaria.  

 

So He came to a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.  Now Jacob's well was there.  Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well.  It was about the sixth hour.  A woman of Samaria came to draw water.  Jesus said to her, "Give Me a drink."  For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.  

 

Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, "How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?"  For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.  Jesus answered and said to 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."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep.  Where then do You get that living water?  Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?"  Jesus answered and said to her, "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst.  But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life."  

 

The woman said to Him, "Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw."  Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here."  The woman answered and said, "I have no husband."  Jesus said to her, "You have well said, 'I have no husband,' for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet.  Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship."  Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.  You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.  But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.  God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."  

 

The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ).  When He comes, He will tell us all things."  Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am He."

 

- John 4:1-26 

 

Yesterday we read that, after being in Jerusalem for the Passover, and teaching to Nicodemus by night,  Jesus and His disciples came into the land of Judea, and there He remained with them and baptized.  Now John also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was much water there.  And they came and were baptized.  For John had not yet been thrown into prison.  Then there arose a dispute between some of John's disciples and the Jews about purification.  And they came to John and said to him, "Rabbi, He who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified -- behold, He is baptizing, and all are coming to Him!"  John answered and said, "A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven.  You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, 'I am not the Christ,' but, 'I have been sent before Him.'  He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice.  Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled.  He must increase, but I must decrease.  He who comes from above is above all; he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth.  He who comes from heaven is above all.  And what He has seen and heard, that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony.  He who has received His testimony has certified that God is true.  For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the Spirit by measure.  The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand.  He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him."

 

 Therefore, when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John (though Jesus Himself did not baptize, but His disciples), He left Judea and departed again to Galilee.  But He needed to go through Samaria.   Here John gives us a hint of the tensions that are already understood by Christ in terms of the religious leadership and their scrutiny.  As His ministry has already made and baptized more disciples than John the Baptist, Jesus leaves for Galilee, traveling north.  But first He must go through Samaria, a Gentile region north of Jerusalem, and between Judea and Galilee.

 

 So He came to a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.  Now Jacob's well was there.  Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well.  It was about the sixth hour.  A woman of Samaria came to draw water.  Jesus said to her, "Give Me a drink."  For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.  My study Bible comments that the Old Testament does not mention Jacob's well, although Jacob did dwell in this area (Genesis 33:19).  It notes that wells were significant because of their rarity and their value in desert life.  So, wells became symbolic of life itself (Psalms 36:9-10, 46:4; Isaiah 55:1).  This particular well continues to be maintained as a shrine, and pilgrims can drink from it.  My study Bible also asks us to note that Jesus is wearied from His journey, which shows His complete humanity and the fullness of His Incarnation.  The sixth hour is noon.  In the tradition of the Orthodox Church, this woman is identified as St. Photini (more about her in the next reading).    

Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, "How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?"  For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.  The Samaritans were a mixed race people, and they were traditional enemies of the Jews.  My study Bible explains that although they worshiped the God of Israel, and they were also awaiting the Messiah, in their practice they accepted only the first five books of the Old Testament (the Pentateuch or Torah) as their Scriptures.  The Samaritans had built their own temple on Mt. Gerizim, which was destroyed by the Jews in 128 BC, a dispute to which this woman refers further on in today's reading.

 

 Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, "How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?"  For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.  Jesus answered and said to 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."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep.  Where then do You get that living water?  Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?"  Jesus answered and said to her, "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst.  But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life."   Living water, my study Bible says, in the ordinary sense means fresh, flowing water, from a stream or spring rather than from a pond or cistern.  Jesus uses this term, "living water," to indicate the grace of the Holy Spirit that leads to eternal life (John 7:37-39).  My study Bible tells us that this gift not only remains in a person, but is also so abundant that it overflows to others.  The woman misunderstands Jesus, and asks Him, "Are You greater than our father Jacob?"  In the Scriptures, Jacob is a type of Christ, for it was Jacob who received the vision of the divine ladder connecting heaven and earth (Genesis 28:12), which is fulfilled in Christ.  Additionally, just as Jacob gave this well for earthly life, now Christ gives the well of the Holy Spirit for eternal life.  

The woman said to Him, "Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw."  Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here."  The woman answered and said, "I have no husband."  Jesus said to her, "You have well said, 'I have no husband,' for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet."  In John's Gospel, we have already read passages which describe Jesus as the "Heart-knower" (see, for example, John 2:25).  Therefore, He perceived that she was living with a man without being married; He also knows of her string of husbands.  So, she perceives that He is a prophet.  My study Bible explains that as the Samaritans did not accept any prophets after Moses (having held only the first five books of the Old Testament as their Scriptures), the only prophet they expected was the Messiah whom Moses foretold (Deuteronomy 18:15-18).  My study Bible comments that Christ's insight into people's hearts, reported so many times in the Gospels, underscores His divine nature.  

"Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship."  Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.  You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.  But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.  God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."   The Samaritan woman brings up the religious conflict between the Samaritans and the Jews, expecting that, if Jesus were the expected Prophet (see previous paragraph), He could settle the historical argument about where worship was to take place.  My study Bible comments that Jesus refuses to answer such an earthly question and elevates the discussion instead to the manner in which people ought to worship.  More importantly, He turns attention to the One who we worship:  God.  The Father is worshiped in spirit -- that is, in the Holy Spirit -- and in truth -- that is in Christ Himself (John 14:6) and according to Christ's revelation.  God is Spirit:  Jesus is teaching that God cannot be confined to a particular location.  My study Bible says that those who receive the Holy Spirit and believe in Jesus Christ can worship God the Father with purity of heart.  Salvation is of the Jews:  Christ affirms that true revelation comes from Judaism.  My study Bible quotes St. Athanasius:  "The commonwealth of Israel was the school of the knowledge of God for all the nations."  More importantly, Jesus testifies here that the Messiah, prophesied among the Jews, has risen from among the Jews.  While the gift of salvation in Christ is to all nations, it has come therefore from within Judaism.  The hour is a reference to Christ's death and Resurrection, and to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, which my study Bible says inaugurates the worship of the new covenant. 

The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ).  When He comes, He will tell us all things."  Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am He."   My study Bible tells us that I who speak to you am He is literally translated "I AM [in Greek, εγω ειμι/ego eimi], who speak to you."  "I AM" is the divine Name of God.  Its use indicates a theophany, or manifestation of God.  The use of this Name, my study Bible explains, by a mere human being was considered to be blasphemy, and punishable by death (see John 8:58; Mark 14:62).  But, as Jesus is Himself divine, His use of the Name reveals His unity with the Father and the Holy Spirit.  He is God Incarnate.

 Jesus choose this Samaritan woman, of all people, to whom to reveal Himself.  We have to wonder why this is so, or how this came to be.  This image of Christ at the well, alone with this woman, is one we have to ponder, as it's such a seemingly quiet and intimate scene.  Imagine the day, high noon in a hot and arid climate, likely to be in the time of spring going on summer.  Jesus, the Man, sits at the well and is thirsty after traveling on foot all day.  The disciples have left Him alone to go buy food.   We can imagine it is quiet, even dusty, and if one has lived in such a climate, there may be a very slight dry wind.  Jesus, surprisingly, turns and asks the woman to get Him a drink.  This is surprising because, as she indicates by her own question, Jews and Samaritans did not interact with one another.  Moreover, a Jewish man could call scandal upon himself simply for speaking alone with a woman.  So we must presume Jesus' question to the woman is an initiative taken by Him for a reason.  Perhaps we should recall that Jesus has just come from confrontation with the religious authorities in Jerusalem, and also that they have become aware that He has made more disciples than John the Baptist.  As He is on His way to Galilee, it is to place more distance between Himself and Jerusalem, the center of the religious authority, and return to the place He began His ministry, and His home region.  Perhaps as He stops at this well, there is a beginning to the future ministry, in which the salvation which is "of the Jews" will go out to all the nations, drawing in those who "will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him." At any rate, it is this phrase, "living water," with which He draws her in to the realization of who He is, and His own confession and revelation about Himself, "I who speak to you am He."  Perhaps this is a test, to see how this "foreign" woman will respond, this traditional enemy of the Jews.  Perhaps she, as a woman with a rather spotty history in terms of her personal life, becomes a powerful testimony for the new covenant, for this power of living water, and worship in spirit and truth.  At any rate, we can see just how many doors open up in this encounter, and on so many levels and layers of meaning.  What it seems to tell us is all about a theophany or manifestation of God, and what that will do in a "Face-to-face" or Person-to-person encounter.  For all boundaries are dropped here, be they social, or gender-related, or issues of class or ethnicity, or religious affiliation.  In this encounter there is recognition and understanding, for she grasps the import of Who this is, and grasps with language she knows to identify Him ("Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?"  "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet").  She neither runs away nor leaves the well, but stays to ask, to "come and see," as Jesus said when the first disciples approached Him.  Jesus uses this phrase, "living water," to indicate something marvelous, and speaks to her about everlasting life that comes from this "water," the Spirit -- a living reality, always present, the word "living" indicating God's energies at work in the world.  In the following reading, we will delve more deeply into the identity of this woman known as St. Photini, and the outcome of this encounter.  The disciples will return, so stunned that Christ speaks to this woman that they will be unable to speak, and simply marvel.  But these are all clues about the momentous thing that is happening, the powerful energy of this ministry and its truth, and what an encounter with Christ is really like, and for all who experience it, including the disciples.  For He is the God who cannot be contained, who breaks open every door and all boundaries, but is Himself the Door.  It is He who draws everyone in, even in the smallest and least likely of encounters, or the tiniest beginnings.

 

 

 

The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ). "When He comes, He will tell us all things." Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am He"

 

 Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here."  The woman answered and said, "I have no husband."  Jesus said to her, "You have well said, 'I have no husband,' for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet.  Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship."  Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.  You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.  But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.  God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."  The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ).  "When He comes, He will tell us all things."  Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am He."

 

- John 4:16-26 

 

Yesterday we read that when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John (though Jesus Himself did not baptize, but His disciples), He left Judea and departed again to Galilee.  But He needed to go through Samaria.  So He came to a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.  Now Jacob's well was there.  Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well.  It was about the sixth hour.  A woman of Samaria came to draw water.  Jesus said to her, "Give Me a drink."  For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.  Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, "How is ti that You, being a Jew, as a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?"  For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.  Jesus answered and said to 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."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep.  Where then do You get that living water?  Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, as his sons and his livestock?"  Jesus answered and said to her, "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst.  But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw."

 

  Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here."  The woman answered and said, "I have no husband."  Jesus said to her, "You have well said, 'I have no husband,' for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet."  My study Bible comments here that since Jesus perceived she was living with a man without being married, and as He knew of her string of husbands, the woman perceives He is a prophet.  As the Samaritans did not accept any prophets after Moses, the only prophet they expected was the Messiah whom Moses foretold (Deuteronomy 18:15-18).  Christ's insight into people's hearts, reported many times in the Gospels, underscores His divine nature.  

"Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship."  Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.  You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.  But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.  God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."  My study Bible points out that if Jesus was indeed the expected Prophet (see the previous verses, above), then He could settle the historical argument about where worship was to take place.  Jesus refuses to answer such an earthly question and elevates the discussion instead to the manner in which people ought to worship.  Moreover, He turns the attention to the One we worship:  God Himself.  The Father is worshiped in spirit -- that is, in the Holy Spirit -- and in truth -- in Christ Himself (John 14:6) and according to God's revelation.  God is Spirit:   My study Bible comments on this statement that God cannot be confined to a particular location.  Those who receive the Holy Spirit and believe in Jesus Christ can worship God the Father with purity of heart.  Salvation is of the Jews:  Here Christ affirms that true revelation comes from Judaism.  My study Bible quotes St. Athanasius:  "The commonwealth of Israel was the school of the knowledge of God for all the nations."  More importantly, my study Bible says, Jesus is testifying that the Messiah, who was prophesied among the Jews,has risen from among the Jews.  While the gift of salvation in Christ is to all nations, it has come from within Judaism.  The hour is a reference to the death and Resurrection of Christ and to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, which inaugurates the worship of the new covenant.  

The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ).  "When He comes, He will tell us all things."  Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am He."   My study Bible says that I who speak to you am He is literally translated "I AM [Greek εγω ειμι/ego eimi], who speak to you."   I AM is the divine Name of God (Exodus 3:14).  The use of this name indicates what is called a theophany, meaning a revelation of God.  The use of this name by a mere human being was considered to be blasphemy, and punishable by death (see John 8:58, Mark 14:62).  But, as Jesus is divine, His use of this Name reveals His unity with the Father and the Holy Spirit; He is God Incarnate.

In the story of the Samaritan woman, we have an evolving opening up of truths and spiritual realities that Christ reveals to her through their conversation.  Through misunderstandings, through language that is symbolic, and through her own questions regarding the way she has already understood a framework for her religion, Christ reveals the greater realities of God that He has come into the world to teach.  Her mind opens to Him as she begins to grasp and desires what He offers her, even if she cannot fully comprehend.  In this story of the Samaritan woman, we have the Gospel teaching us what it is to open to the things that, as yet, we don't know.  It is also an example of what we can understand as repentance, or "change of mind" as the Greek word literally means (Greek μετανοια/metanoia).  This is because, within her framework of understanding, Christ brings a new influence and outlook, and new information that opens up perspective, and she is willing to change her mind, to open up, to be illumined by the light He offers.  When Christ switches the effective debate over where one must worship to how one must worship, she listens.   To move from an understanding that God is limited to one place, one temple, and a particular location over to an understanding that God is spirit and must be worshiped in spirit and truth, is a transformation that entirely changes one's orientation toward God and the life of worship in which we participate.  This is a tremendous change; and yet, she is listening.  Perhaps it is her openness to His teachings that enables Jesus to reveal to her -- of all people -- His identity as the Christ.  Let us observe how she responds to Him.  She asks about the strife and disagreement between the Jews and her own people; He tells her the answer is an entirely different focus.  She does not seek to re-engage in the dispute, but says to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming," affirming something truthful that she knows instead.  This opens the door to His revelation to her that He is the Christ.  Her own example serves us in any kind of testimony; she sticks to what she knows and engages to seek answers to what she doesn't.  She knows the dispute over the location of the temple, but listens when He tells her an entirely different answer than expected which demands a shift in focus.  She sticks to the truth she knows, but engages to learn about what she doesn't know.  This teaches us about how to engage in dialogue and to have a conscious awareness that when it comes to God, there is more that we don't know than that we know.  As Jesus says, God is spirit, and therefore God is also mystery.  What Jesus reveals to her is a mystery unheard of for her time and place, and yet, she listens and engages in dialogue.  In a time when we can look around ourselves and find seemingly endless examples of how not to engage in what can't even be called "dialogue" with those who have a different point of view, she remains an example for us of how to learn from interaction with others -- especially strangers who might have something to offer that we don't expect and don't yet know.   It is like the first great encounter we read about in Genesis, that of Abraham who "entertained angels unaware" (Hebrews 13:2; see Genesis 18).  The Patriarch Abraham began the entire story of the people of God because he listened to strangers who revealed spiritual truth; here this Samaritan woman listens in the desert at high noon to the One who reveals a new covenant for the people of God.  In tomorrow's reading, we will see how she is willing to hear and follow, leading others to Christ.  But for now let us consider two people alone, speaking at a rare well, sacred to religious history, on a hot desert day, and the great revelation that comes from what seems like a chance meeting of this Jewish stranger who breaks all custom to ask a Samaritan woman for a drink of water.

 

 

Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst

 Therefore, when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John (though Jesus Himself did not baptize, but His disciples), He left Judea and departed again to Galilee.  But He needed to go through Samaria.  So He came to a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.  Now Jacob's well was there.  Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well.  It was about the sixth hour.

A woman of Samaria came to draw water.  Jesus said to her, "Give Me a drink."  For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.  Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, "How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?"  For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.  Jesus answered and said to 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."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep.  Where then do You get that living water?  Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?"  Jesus answered and said to her, "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst.  But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw."

Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here."  The woman answered and said, "I have no husband."  Jesus said, to her, "You have well said, 'I have no husband.' for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet.  Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship."  Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.  You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.  But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.  God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."  The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ).  "When He comes, He will tell us all things."  Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am He."

- John 4:1-26

Yesterday we read that  Jesus and His disciples came into the land of Judea, and there He remained with them and baptized.  Now John also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was much water there.  And they came and were baptized.   For John had not yet been thrown into prison.  Then there arose a dispute between some of John's disciples and the Jews about purification.  And they came to John and said to him, "Rabbi, He who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified -- behold, He is baptizing, and all are coming to Him!"  John answered and said, "A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven.  You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, 'I am not the Christ,' but 'I have been sent before Him.'  He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice.  Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled.  He must increase, but I must decrease.  He who comes from above is above all; he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth.  He who comes from heaven is above all.  And what He has seen and heard, that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony.  He who has received His testimony has certified that God is true.  For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the Spirit by measure.  The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand.  He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him."

Therefore, when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John (though Jesus Himself did not baptize, but His disciples), He left Judea and departed again to Galilee.  But He needed to go through Samaria.  So He came to a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.  Now Jacob's well was there.  Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well.  It was about the sixth hour.  Samaria is the region that was north of Jerusalem.  It was between Judea and Galilee (see map).  My study bible says that the Old Testament does not mention Jacob's well, although Jacob did dwell in the area (Genesis 33:19).  It notes that wells were significant because of their rarity and their value in desert life.  So, wells came to symbolize life itself (Psalms 36:9-10, 46:4; Isaiah 55:1).   The well at which Jesus and the woman of Samaria spoke is now maintained as a shrine, and pilgrims can drink from it.  Jesus shows His complete humanity here, as He is wearied from His journey.   The sixth hour is noon, and we can imagine the heat and dryness after a long day of travel.

A woman of Samaria came to draw water.  Jesus said to her, "Give Me a drink."  For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.  Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, "How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?"  For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.  The Samaritans, according to my study bible, were a mixed race of people, and traditional enemies of the Jews.  Although they worshiped the God of Israel and also awaited the Messiah, they accepted only the first five books of the Old Testament (the Pentateuch or Torah) as their Scriptures.  They had built their own temple on Mt. Gerizim, which was destroyed by the Jews in 128 BC.  As we can see from the text, it is highly unusual that Jesus, as a Jew (and particularly as a man to a woman alone) would speak to a Samaritan.

  Jesus answered and said to 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."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep.  Where then do You get that living water?  Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?"  Jesus answered and said to her, "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst.  But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw."   In the sense of ordinary language, living water would mean fresh, flowing water; that is, water from a stream or spring rather than from a pond or a cistern.  Jesus uses this term, living water, to indicate the grace of the Holy Spirit that leads to eternal life (7:37-39).  This gift, my study bible says, not only remains in a person, but it is so abundant that it overflows to others.  This woman misunderstands Christ and asks Him, "Are You greater than our father Jacob?"  In the Scriptures, Jacob is a type of Christ, as he received the vision of the divine ladder (Genesis 28:12), an image fulfilled by Christ.  Moreover, as Jacob gave this well for earthly life, Christ now gives the well of the Holy Spirit for eternal life.

Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here."  The woman answered and said, "I have no husband."  Jesus said, to her, "You have well said, 'I have no husband.' for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet."  As Jesus has understood that she was living with a man without being married, and as He also knows about her string of husbands,  she perceives that He is a prophet.  Because the Samaritans did not accept any prophets after Moses (having only the first five books of the Old Testament as their Scriptures), the one prophet they expected was the Messiah foretold by Moses (Deuteronomy 18:15-18).  Jesus' insight into people's hearts, which we read about repeatedly throughout the Gospels, underscores His divine nature.

"Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship."  Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.  You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.  But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.  God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."  The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ).  "When He comes, He will tell us all things."   The Samaritan woman mentions the historical dispute between the Samaritans and Jews about where worship should take place, as it is fitting that the expected Prophet would be able to settle this question.  But Jesus refuses to answer this earthly question, and instead elevates the discussion to the manner in which people ought to worship.  Here is revelation indeed.  More importantly, He turns attention to the One whom we worship:  to God.  The Father is worshiped in spirit -- that is, in the Holy Spirit -- and in truth -- in Christ Himself (14:6) and also according to Christ's revelation.   That God is Spirit means that God cannot be confined to a particular location.  My study bible says that those who receive the Holy Spirit and believe in Jesus Christ can worship God the Father with purity of heart.  Jesus says, "Salvation is of the Jews," affirming that true revelation comes from Judaism.  My study bible quotes St. Athanasius, who writes,  "The commonwealth of Israel was the school of the knowledge of God for all the nations."  Even more importantly here, Jesus testifies that the Messiah, prophesied among the Jews, has risen from among the Jews.   As the gift of salvation in Christ is given to all nations, it has come from within Judaism.   The hour is the death and Resurrection of Christ and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, inaugurating the worship of the new covenant. 

Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am He."  This phrase spoken by Jesus is literally translated, "I AM [Greek ego eimi], who speak to you."  "I AM" is the divine Name of God.  The use of this title here gives us a theophany, a revelation of God Himself.  The use of this name by a mere human being was considered blasphemy and punishable by death (see 8:58; Mark 14:62).  However, as Jesus is also divine, His use of this name is a revelation of His unity with the Father and the Holy Spirit.  Christ is God Incarnate.

Why this woman?  It is simply extraordinary, in the context of all of the Gospels, to consider that here in John, this is the rare direct revelation of Christ's identity to another human being.  Nathanael had a glimpse of the Christ, when Jesus revealed to him that He had seen him first:  "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you."  Nathanael answered and said to him, "Rabbi, You are the Son of God!  You are the King of Israel!" (see this reading).  That was notably also after another revelation of Christ's knowledge of all people.   But that was not the completeness of Jesus' words here to this woman.  That she is a Samaritan, first of all, is almost outrageous.  She belongs to a group which are the hated enemy of the Jews.  So much so, that Jews and Samaritans have no dealings with one another.  And in the second place, she is a woman.  Again, in this time and place that a single man would speak in public to a woman alone is unthinkable -- even if they were both Jews.  Jesus does not behave here in ways considered proper to a devout Jew, or for that matter to a Samaritan either.  But He breaks all the molds.  What He is cannot be contained.  Furthermore, it is Christ who chooses His own moments.  He is the one in charge.  The disciples have been sent off to get provisions, and Jesus has intentionally sat here on His own, and demanded that the woman bring Him water.  In tomorrow's reading, we'll see the surprise and consternation of the disciples, as they also find His behavior entirely perplexing.  But clearly, Jesus has a plan for all the rest of us who read and hear this story.  This is why we must ask questions:  Why here?  Why this woman?  He affirms for her that "salvation is of the Jews," but nevertheless He has chosen to reveal Himself directly to her.   Again, in tomorrow's reading, we will understand that she at once grasps what He is saying, and goes on in complete haste to find her townspeople and spread the "good news."  So He has chosen one who could accept and understand.  This also tells us something astounding:  one need not be the most perfect person, the most devout, the best at following the rules and traditions to be called by Christ.  But to have a pure heart is a mystery.  To have the openness to receive Christ is also a mystery -- and none of us can be the judge of that.  Our experience does not prepare us for this surprise, nor our expectations.  But He knows and He is prepared.  She has been faced with the truth of her life, given by Him.  She denied nothing, but instead fully opened her heart to whatever He had to tell her.  And that is the next piece of information we can look at:  She accepts what He has to tell her.  She is brought to herself by Christ, as He brings up directly her history even if she did not reveal it herself!  He is bound by no rules, but she comes to acceptance and salvation this day through the truth-- her acceptance of His truth, as He is truth Himself standing before her.  Perhaps all of her life she has been searching and thirsty for what He offers.  We simply don't know that.  But it is Christ who reaches to us and finds us where we are, and we must be ready to respond and accept the truth that He offers to us.    Even when we ourselves are outcast, it does not leave us free to reject God's truth, and word, and discipline.  It does not leave us free to abandon what the Logos brings to us:  good order, meaning, and life itself.  He offers the living water -- and she must be able to take it from Him, and live to its grace and to go wherever it leads.