White Robed Monks of St. Benedict

Orientalisms Used in The Gospel of John Chapter 6 The woman at the well  (John 4:1.43)

Verse 7:
There cometh a woman of Samaria to
draw water: Jesus saith unto her,
Give me to drink.

     It is permissible and proper for a man to speak to a woman in a public throroughfare, but only if he asks for a drink of water. There should, however, be no other conversation between them.

Verse 9:
Then saith the woman of Samaria
unto him, How is it that thou being a
Jew, askest drink of me, which am a
woman of Samaria? (For the Jews
have no dealings with the
Samaritans.)

     Jesus' reply was that of "the Son of God, the Messiah," not one who was dedicated to the dictates of custom or regulations of man! We today are finding ourselves surrounded by school and workplace laws that are designed to shackle the Word of God. We too must be first and foremost, sons of God that please our heavenly Father and not man by boldly speaking about Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world!

Verse 10:
Jesus answered and said unto her, If
thou knewest the gift of God, and
who it is that saith to thee, Give me
to drink; thou wouldest have asked of
him, and he would have given thee
living water.

     As the conversation continues, the woman's questions are physical in nature (speaking of literal water), but Jesus' reply is spiritual in regards to the gift of holy spirit.
     Many of our conversations also should lead to spiritual truth, rather than talking about the weather, sports, clothes, or the stock market. Early in life regretful lusts seem to be so important but as one gets older the cares of this world seem so trivial.
     The woman is trying to understand but she still catch the idea of the "living water". As Jesus revealed to her things that she did in the past, regarding having five husbands, she began to believe.
     For her to have had five husbands did not mean that she was immoral or a prostitute. The man that she now  has refers to the one who is now courting her, he is not yet her husband. She apparently had five husbands before that; each of them died and she is now a widow. If the woman was living in sin as some proclaim, she would not have been at Jacob's well. For any person suspected of living in sin, a leper, or a prostitute is not allowed to draw water from the town well. They must live out away from town lest they contaminate the other people. Jesus did not reproach her or rebuke her in any way.
     The disciples didn't marvel because he was speaking to a woman of bad reputation; but because he was speaking to a woman contrary to the custom that after asking for water he continued a conversation.

Verses 28-29:
The woman then left her waterpot,
and went her way into the city, and
saith to the men,

Come, see a man, which told me all
things that ever I did: is not this the
Christ?

      Waterpots are looked upon in the East with a sacred and sentimental value. Orientals feel that the clay of the pot is analogous to the clay which is our body; the water within the pot corresponds to God's spirit within us. To leave the waterpot behind would be like leaving one's soul behind! Even if the pot is broken at the well, every piece is carefully saved and brought home to be used for some purpose. The larger pieces may serve as a dipper for water; smaller pieces were used to carry coals of fire from one household to another, even smaller pieces were used to scrape sores because it was thought that there were healong properties in the clay of the jar. You may recall that Job did just this.

Job 2:7-8:
So went Satan forth from the
presence of the Lord and smote Job
with sore boils from the sole of his
foot unto his crown.

And he took him a potsherd to scrape
himself withal...

     For these obvious reasons the Samaritan woman
would not leave her waterpot behind. To do so would also bring shame and severe ridicule upon her household. Yet she left her waterpot. Why? Because she had found the Christ, the living water! Having found the Christ, she was willing to leave the pot behind and hasten to tell others about him. We as Christians should be willing to leave our "waterpots of sentimental or cultural value" and go forth to tell others! Sshe was overflowing with joy of knowing Jesus Christ and forgot about the disgrace she would face and the tradition of her time.
     Are you overjoyed about Jesus Christ or have you lost your first love as did the Ephesians church in the book of Revelation.

Revelation 2:4:
Nevertheless I have `
against thee, because thou hast left
thy first love.

     To be overjoyed and in love with Jesus Christ, we must get to know him and the power of his resurrection. As we go to God our heavenly father in the name of Jesus Christ, the comforter which is Christ in you, will reveal himself to you. Thus you have fellowship with both the Father and his Son Jesus Christ.

1 John 3:6:
...and truly our fellowship is with
the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ.

     To truly know the Lord Jesus Christ is to allow him to be lord in your life. It is more than just a confession, it is a continual seeking of God's direction in your life and allowing that Christ in you to reveal the way.
     In verse 29 the Samaritan woman went to the city and told the men about this Christ. They listened to this reputable woman and went unto him. As Christians it is also our responsibility to go to the people in the cities and tell them about our Christ.
     In verse 35 Jesus refers to the harvest as a way to communicate a spiritual truth.

Verse 35:
Say not ye, there are yet four months,
and then cometh harvest? Behold, I
say unto you, lift up your eyes, and
look on the fields; for they are white
already to harvest.

     Literally it would be in four months to begin the harvest, but Jesus was speaking of the men coming across the field in their garments and when they traveled in a group, it was a mass of white. These men came to see Jesus because of the woman's testimony.

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