Jacob's Well

Biblical Text

Jacob's Well appears in chapter 4 of the Gospel of John. On his way from Judea to Galilee, Jesus came to a town in Samaria called Sychar. The well lay near the parcel of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph, and Jesus, wearied from the journey, sat down beside it (John 4:5-6). The conversation begins when Jesus asks for a drink from a Samaritan woman who has come to draw water. Jesus says, "Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst" (John 4:14). The conversation turns to the question of the proper place of worship and culminates in Jesus revealing himself as the Messiah. After hearing the woman's testimony, many Samaritans from the town come to believe in Jesus (John 4:39-42).

Background

The Old Testament contains no record of Jacob digging a well. Nevertheless, the area came to be associated with Jacob because of the following accounts:

• Jacob bought a field near Shechem and erected an altar there (Genesis 33:18-20).
• Jacob gave land to Joseph (Genesis 48:22).
• Joseph's bones were buried in that land (Joshua 24:32).

The woman's words, "our father Jacob, which gave us the well" (John 4:12), reflect this Samaritan tradition. "This mountain" in the conversation (John 4:20) is understood to be Mount Gerizim, where the Samaritans worshiped.

In verse 6 the Greek text uses a word meaning "spring" (pēgē), while in verses 11-12 it uses a word meaning a dug well (phrear). The woman remarks that the well is deep (John 4:11). A well near present-day Nablus has traditionally been identified as Jacob's Well and is known to be located within an Orthodox monastery. Scholars differ on the exact identification of Sychar. Likewise, "about the sixth hour" (John 4:6) is commonly understood as around noon, though some reckon the time differently.

Significance in Scripture as a Whole

In the Old Testament, wells are settings for significant encounters. Abraham's servant met Rebekah, who would become the wife of Isaac (Genesis 24); Jacob met Rachel (Genesis 29); and Moses met Zipporah (Exodus 2). Some interpreters read John 4 in light of these scenes.

The theme of "living water" connects with the expression in Jeremiah 2:13, "me the fountain of living waters." John 7:37-39 interprets the rivers of living water as the Holy Spirit. The question "Art thou greater than our father Jacob?" (John 4:12) brings out the Johannine theme of Jesus as one greater than the patriarchs. The conversation also leads into John 4:20-23, which speaks of worship "in spirit and in truth" that is not bound to any particular place.

Interpretation and Points of Debate

• The five husbands: The text (John 4:18) does not say why the woman had had five husbands. She is often described as an immoral woman, but some interpreters suggest other circumstances, such as widowhood or divorce. The explanation that she came at midday to avoid the eyes of others is likewise an inference not found in the text.
• Symbolic interpretation: Some interpret the five husbands as the gods of the peoples resettled in Samaria in 2 Kings 17.
• The meaning of living water: Some, on the basis of John 7:39, identify it with the Holy Spirit; others see it as the life or revelation that Jesus gives.
• The woman's name: Orthodox tradition venerates this woman as a saint named Photine (Photini), but Scripture does not give her name.

In the Korean Church

In the Korean church, sermons on the story of the Samaritan woman and the theme of "living water" are common. Jesus' conversation with the woman is frequently presented as a model for personal evangelism. Because the traditional site of the well lies in the West Bank, whether it can be visited on a Holy Land pilgrimage depends on local conditions.