John 4:6

THE MESSAGE

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, worn out from his journey, sat down at the well. It was about noon.

King James Version (1611)
Now Iacobs Well was there. Iesus therefore being wearied with his iourney, sate thus on the Well: and it was about the sixth houre.

King James Version
Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour.

English Standard Version
Jacob's well was there; so Jesus, wearied as he was from his journey, was sitting beside the well. It was about the sixth hour.

New American Standard Bible
and Jacob's well was there. So Jesus, tired from His journey, was just sitting by the well. It was about the sixth hour.

New Century Version
Jacob's well was there. Jesus was tired from his long trip, so he sat down beside the well. It was about twelve o'clock noon.

Amplified Bible
and Jacob's well was there. So Jesus, tired as He was from His journey, sat down by the well. It was then about the sixth hour (noon).

New American Standard Bible (1995)
and Jacob's well was there. So Jesus, being wearied from His journey, was sitting thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour.

Legacy Standard Bible
and Jacob's well was there. So Jesus, being wearied from His journey, was sitting thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour.

Berean Standard Bible
Since Jacob's well was there, Jesus, weary from His journey, sat down by the well. It was about the sixth hour.

Contemporary English Version
The well that Jacob had dug was still there, and Jesus sat down beside it because he was tired from traveling. It was noon, and after Jesus' disciples had gone into town to buy some food, a Samaritan woman came to draw water from the well. Jesus asked her, "Would you please give me a drink of water?"

Complete Jewish Bible
Ya‘akov's Well was there; so Yeshua, exhausted from his travel, sat down by the well; it was about noon.

Darby Translation
Now a fountain of Jacob's was there; Jesus therefore, being wearied with the way he had come, sat just as he was at the fountain. It was about the sixth hour.

Easy-to-Read Version
Jacob's well was there. Jesus was tired from his long trip, so he sat down beside the well. It was about noon.

Geneva Bible (1587)
And there was Iacobs well. Iesus then wearied in the iourney, sate thus on the well: it was about the sixt houre.

George Lamsa Translation
Now Jacob''s well was there; and Jesus was tired by the fatigue of the journey, and sat down by the well. It was about the sixth hour.

Good News Translation
Jacob's well was there, and Jesus, tired out by the trip, sat down by the well. It was about noon.

Lexham English Bible
And Jacob's well was there, so Jesus, because he had become tired from the journey, simply sat down at the well. It was about the sixth hour.

Literal Translation
And Jacob's fountain was there. Then being wearied by the journey, Jesus sat thus on the fountain. It was about the sixth hour.

American Standard Version
and Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour.

Bible in Basic English
Now Jacob's fountain was there. Jesus, being tired after his journey, was resting by the fountain. It was about the sixth hour.

Hebrew Names Version
Ya`akov's well was there. Yeshua therefore, being tired from his journey, sat down by the well. It was about the sixth hour.

International Standard Version
Jacob's Well was also there, and Jesus, tired out by the journey, sat down by the well. It was about twelve noon.the sixth hour">[fn]

Etheridge Translation
And the fountain of water of Jakub was there. But Jeshu was wearied with the labour of the way, and sat by the fountain; and it was six hours.

Murdock Translation
And Jacob's well of water was there. And Jesus was weary with the toil of travelling, and seated himself by the well: and it was at the sixth hour.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And there was Iacobs well. Iesus then beyng wery of his iourney, sate thus on the well. And it was about the sixt houre:

English Revised Version
and Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour.

World English Bible
Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being tired from his journey, sat down by the well. It was about the sixth hour.

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore being wearied with the journey, sat thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour.

Weymouth's New Testament
Jacob's Well was there: and accordingly Jesus, tired out with His journey, sat down by the well to rest. It was about six o'clock in the evening.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And the welle of Jacob was there; and Jhesus was weri of the iourney, and sat thus vpon the welle. And the our was, as it were the sixte.

Update Bible Version
and Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour.

Webster's Bible Translation
Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore being wearied with [his] journey, sat thus on the well: [and] it was about the sixth hour.

New English Translation
Jacob's well was there, so Jesus, since he was tired from the journey, sat right down beside the well. It was about noon.

New King James Version
Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour.

New Living Translation
Jacob's well was there; and Jesus, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside the well about noontime.

New Life Bible
Jacob's well was there. Jesus was tired from traveling so He sat down just as He was by the well. It was about noon.

New Revised Standard
Jacob's well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Now Jacob's fountain was there. Jesus, therefore, having become toil-worn with the journey, was sitting thus, upon the fountain. It was about the sixth hour.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well. It was about the sixth hour.

Revised Standard Version
Jacob's well was there, and so Jesus, wearied as he was with his journey, sat down beside the well. It was about the sixth hour.

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
And there was Iacobs well. Iesus then weryed in his iorney sate thus on the well. And it was about the sixte houre:

Young's Literal Translation
and there was there a well of Jacob. Jesus therefore having been weary from the journeying, was sitting thus on the well; it was as it were the sixth hour;

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And there was Iacobs well. Now whan Iesus was weerye of his iourney, he satt hi downe so vpo the well. And it was aboute the sixte houre.

Mace New Testament (1729)
now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore being wearied with his journey, sat him down by the well: it being about the sixth hour.

Simplified Cowboy Version
Jacob's well was near this small plot of land. Jesus dismounted and stretched his legs next to the well. He'd come a far piece for it just being noon and he was tired.

Contextual Overview

⁴To get there, he had to pass through Samaria. He came into Sychar, a Samaritan village that bordered the field Jacob had given his son Joseph. Jacob's well was still there. Jesus, worn out by the trip, sat down at the well. It was noon. ⁷A woman, a Samaritan, came to draw water. Jesus said, "Would you give me a drink of water?" (His disciples had gone to the village to buy food for lunch.) ⁹ The Samaritan woman, taken aback, asked, "How come you, a Jew, are asking me, a Samaritan woman, for a drink?" (Jews in those days wouldn't be caught dead talking to Samaritans.) ¹⁰ Jesus answered, "If you knew the generosity of God and who I am, you would be asking me for a drink, and I would give you fresh, living water." ¹¹The woman said, "Sir, you don't even have a bucket to draw with, and this well is deep. So how are you going to get this ‘living water'? Are you a better man than our ancestor Jacob, who dug this well and drank from it, he and his sons and livestock, and passed it down to us?" ¹³Jesus said, "Everyone who drinks this water will get thirsty again and again. Anyone who drinks the water I give will never thirst—not ever. The water I give will be an artesian spring within, gushing fountains of endless life." ¹⁵ The woman said, "Sir, give me this water so I won't ever get thirsty, won't ever have to come back to this well again!" ¹⁶ He said, "Go call your husband and then come back." ¹⁷"I have no husband," she said. "That's nicely put: ‘I have no husband.' You've had five husbands, and the man you're living with now isn't even your husband. You spoke the truth there, sure enough." ¹⁹"Oh, so you're a prophet! Well, tell me this: Our ancestors worshiped God at this mountain, but you Jews insist that Jerusalem is the only place for worship, right?"

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Jacob's well: Over Jacob's well the empress Helena is said to have built a church, in the form of a cross, of which "nothing but a few foundations" remained in the time of Maundrell. He states that is situated about one-third of an hour, or, about a mile, east of Naplosa, the ancient Sychar; and Mr. Buckingham says it is called Beer Samareea, or the well of Samaria, and "stands at the commencement of the round vale which is thought to be the parcel of ground bought by Jacob, and which, like the narrow valley east of Nablous, is rich and fertile. The mouth of the well itself had an arched or vaulted building over it; and the only passage down to it at this moment is by a small hole in the roof." "It is," says Maundrell, "dug in the firm rock, and contains about three yards in diameter, and thirty-five in depth; five of which we found full of water."

being: Matthew 4:2, Matthew 8:24, Hebrews 2:17, Hebrews 4:15

sat: Luke 2:7, Luke 9:58, 2 Corinthians 8:9

the sixth: John 11:9, Matthew 27:45

Reciprocal: Genesis 29:2 - a well Exodus 2:15 - sat down 1 Kings 13:14 - sitting 1 Kings 19:4 - sat down Matthew 20:5 - sixth Mark 4:38 - in the Mark 8:2 - and have Mark 11:12 - he was Luke 4:2 - he afterward 2 Timothy 4:2 - in

Cross-References

Genesis 4:1
Adam slept with Eve his wife. She conceived and had Cain. She said, "I've gotten a man, with God 's help!"

Genesis 4:3
Time passed. Cain brought an offering to God from the produce of his farm. Abel also brought an offering, but from the firstborn animals of his herd, choice cuts of meat. God liked Abel and his offering, but Cain and his offering didn't get his approval. Cain lost his temper and went into a sulk.

Genesis 4:8
Cain had words with his brother. They were out in the field; Cain came at Abel his brother and killed him.

Genesis 4:13
Cain said to God , "My punishment is too much. I can't take it! You've thrown me off the land and I can never again face you. I'm a homeless wanderer on Earth and whoever finds me will kill me."

Isaiah 1:18
"Come. Sit down. Let's argue this out." This is God 's Message: "If your sins are blood-red, they'll be snow-white. If they're red like crimson, they'll be like wool. If you'll willingly obey, you'll feast like kings. But if you're willful and stubborn, you'll die like dogs." That's right. God says so.

Jeremiah 2:31
"What a generation you turned out to be! Didn't I tell you? Didn't I warn you? Have I let you down, Israel? Am I nothing but a dead-end street? Why do my people say, ‘Good riddance! From now on we're on our own'? Young women don't forget their jewelry, do they? Brides don't show up without their veils, do they? But my people forget me. Day after day after day they never give me a thought.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Now Jacob's well was there,.... So called, either because it was dug by him; or because he and his family made use of it, when in those parts, as in John 4:12, though no mention is made of it elsewhere, unless any reference is had to it in the blessing of Joseph, to whom this place belonged, Genesis 49:22, as Dr. Lightfoot thinks, or in Deuteronomy 33:28, as Grotius suggests: in the Talmud f there is mention made, of עין סוכר, "the fountain of Sochar"; and may not improperly be rendered, "the well of Sychar": but whether the same with this, is not certain; that appears to be a great way from Jerusalem, as this also was, even forty miles:

Jesus therefore being wearied with his journey; having travelled on foot, from Judea thither; and he having a body like to ours, subject to weariness, and which proves the truth and reality of it, was greatly fatigued; having very probably travelled all that morning, if not a day, or days before:

sat thus on the well; or by it; by the side of it, upon the brink of it, as Nonnus paraphrases it, upon the bare ground. The Syriac, Arabic, and Persic versions, leave out "thus"; and the Ethiopic version reads it, "there"; but it is rightly retained, and is emphatical; and signifies, that he sat like a weary person, glad to set himself down any where; and not caring how, or where, he sat to rest his weary limbs:

and it was about the sixth hour; about twelve o'clock at noon. The Ethiopic version adds by way of explanation, and "it was then noon"; and all the Oriental versions omit ωσει, "about"; rendering it, "it was the sixth hour": and now Christ had been travelling all the morning, and it was a time of day to take some refreshment, which as yet he had not, the disciples being gone to buy food; and a time of day also, when the sun if out, and has any strength, beats with its greatest vehemence; and all which considered, it is no wonder that he should be weary, faint, and thirsty.

f T. Hieron. Shekalim, fol. 48. 4. T. Bab. Bava Kama, fol. 82. 2. & Menachot, fol. 64. 2. & Gloss. in Sanhedrin, fol. 11. 2.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Jacob’s well - This is not mentioned in the Old Testament. It was called “Jacob’s well,” probably, either because it was handed down by tradition that he dug it, or because it was near to the land which he gave to Joseph. There is still a well a few miles to the east of Nablus, which is said by the people there to be the same. Eli Smith, missionary to Syria, stated to me that he had visited this well. It is about 100 feet deep. It is cut through solid rock of limestone. It is now dry, probably from having been partly filled with rubbish, or perhaps because the water has been diverted by earthquakes. The well is covered with a large stone, which has a hole in the center large enough to admit a man. It is at the foot of Mount Gerizim, and has a plain on the east.

Sat thus - Jesus was weary, and, being thus weary, sat down on the well. The word translated “on” here may denote also by - he sat down “by” the well, or near it.

The sixth hour - About twelve o’clock noon. This was the common time of the Jewish meal, and this was the reason why his disciples were gone away to buy food.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse John 4:6. Jacob's well was there. — Of this well Mr. Maundrell gives the following account. "About one-third of an hour from Naplosa, the ancient Sychar and Sychem, stood Jacob's well. If it be inquired, whether this be the very place, seeing it may be suspected to stand too remote from Sychar for the women to come and draw water, we may answer-that, in all probability, the city extended farther in former times than it does now, as may be conjectured from some pieces of a very thick wall, the remains perhaps of the ancient Sychem, still to be seen not far from hence. Over it stood formerly a large church, erected by the Empress Irene; but of this the voracity of time, assisted by the hands of the Turks, has left nothing but a few foundations remaining. The well is covered at present with an old stone vault, into which you are let down by a very strait hole; and then, removing a broad flat stone, you discover the well itself. It is dug in a firm rock, is about three yards in diameter, and thirty-five in depth, five of which we found full of water. This confutes a story frequently told to travellers, 'That it is dry all the year round, except on the anniversary of that day on which our blessed Saviour sat upon it; but then bubbles up with abundance of water.' At this well the narrow valley of Sychem ends, opening itself into a wide field, which probably is part of the ground given by Jacob to his son Joseph. It is watered by a fresh stream, running between it and Sychem, which makes it exceedingly verdant and fruitful." See Maundrell's Travels, 5th edit. p. 62.

Cutting pools, or making wells for public use, renders a man famous among the Hindoos. So this well had the name of Jacob, because he had digged it, and it was for public use.

Sat thus — Chrysostom inquires what the particle thus, ουτως, means here? and answers, that it simply signifies, he sat not upon a throne, seat, or cushion; but (as the circumstances of the case required) upon the ground. This is a sense which is given to the word in the ancient Greek writers. See Raphelius, Wetstein, and Pearce. It is probably a mere expletive, and is often so used by Josephus. See several examples in Rosenmuller.

The sixth hour. — About twelve o'clock: John 1:31. The time is noted here:

1. To account for Christ's fatigue-he had already travelled several hours.

2. To account for his thirst-the sun had at this time waxed hot.

3. To account for the disciples going to buy food, John 4:8, because this was the ordinary time of dinner among the Jews. See the note referred to above. Dr. Macknight thinks the sixth hour to be the Roman six o'clock in the afternoon. John 1:29.