John 4-6

New Life Version

A Woman of Samaria at the Well

4 Jesus knew the proud religious law-keepers had heard He was making and baptizing more followers than John. ² Jesus did not baptize anyone Himself but His followers did. ³ Then Jesus went from the country of Judea to the country of Galilee. ⁴ He had to go through the country of Samaria. ⁵ So He came to a town in Samaria called Sycar. It was near the piece of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. ⁶ 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.

⁷ A woman of Samaria came to get water. Jesus said to her, “Give Me a drink.” ⁸ His followers had gone to the town to buy food. ⁹ The woman of Samaria said to Him, “You are a Jew. I am of Samaria. Why do You ask me for a drink when the Jews have nothing to do with the people of Samaria?”

¹⁰ Jesus said to her, “You do not know what God has to give. You do not know Who said to you, ‘Give Me a drink.’ If you knew, you would have asked Him. He would have given you living water.” ¹¹ The woman said to Him, “Sir, the well is deep. You have nothing to get water with. Where will You get the living water? ¹² Are You greater than our early father Jacob? He gave us the well. He and his children and his cattle drank from it.”

Jesus Tells of the Living Water

¹³ Jesus said to her, “Whoever drinks this water will be thirsty again. ¹⁴ Whoever drinks the water that I will give him will never be thirsty. The water that I will give him will become in him a well of life that lasts forever.”

¹⁵ The woman said, “Sir, give me this water so I will never be thirsty. Then I will not have to come all this way for water.”

The True Kind of Worship

¹⁶ Jesus said to her, “Go call your husband and come back.” ¹⁷ The woman said, “I have no husband.” Jesus said, “You told the truth when you said, ‘I have no husband.’ ¹⁸ You have had five husbands. The one you have now is not your husband. You told the truth.”

¹⁹ The woman said to Him, “Sir, I think You are a person Who speaks for God. ²⁰ Our early fathers worshiped on this mountain. You Jews say Jerusalem is the place where men should worship.”

²¹ Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me. The time is coming when you will not worship the Father on this mountain or in Jerusalem. ²² You people do not know what you worship. We Jews know what we worship. It is through the Jews that men are saved from the punishment of their sins. ²³ The time is coming, yes, it is here now, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father wants that kind of worshipers. ²⁴ God is Spirit. Those who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth.”

Jesus Is the One the Jews Are Looking For

²⁵ The woman said to Him, “I know the Jews are looking for One Who is coming. He is called the Christ. When He comes, He will tell us everything.” ²⁶ Jesus said to her, “I am the Christ, the One talking with you!”

²⁷ Right then the followers came back and were surprised and wondered about finding Him talking with a woman. But no one said, “What do You want?” or, “Why are You talking with her?”

²⁸ The woman left her water jar and went into the town. She said to the men, ²⁹ “Come and see a Man Who told me everything I ever did! Can this be the Christ?” ³⁰ They went out of town and came to Him.

Jesus Tells Them of a New Kind of Food

³¹ During this time His followers were saying to Him, “Teacher, eat something.” ³² He said, “I have food to eat that you do not know of.” ³³ The followers said to each other, “Has someone taken food to Him?” ³⁴ Jesus said, “My food is to do what God wants Me to do and to finish His work. ³⁵ Do you not say, ‘It is four months yet until the time to gather grain’? Listen! I say to you, open your eyes and look at the fields. They are white now and waiting for the grain to be gathered in. ³⁶ The one who gathers gets his pay. He gathers fruit that lasts forever. The one who plants and the one who gathers will have joy together. ³⁷ These words are true, ‘One man plants and another man gathers.’ ³⁸ I sent you to gather where you have not planted. Others have planted and you have come along to gather in their fruit.”

The People of Samaria Believe in Jesus

³⁹ Many people in that town of Samaria believed in Jesus because of what the woman said about Him. She said, “He told me everything I ever did.” ⁴⁰ So the people of Samaria came to Him. They asked Him to stay with them. Jesus stayed there two days. ⁴¹ Many more people believed because of what He said. ⁴² They said to the woman, “Now we believe! It is no longer because of what you said about Jesus but we have heard Him ourselves. We know, for sure, that He is the Christ, the One Who saves men of this world from the punishment of their sins.”

Jesus Goes to Galilee

⁴³ Two days later He went from there and came to the country of Galilee. ⁴⁴ Jesus Himself said that no one who speaks for God is respected in his own country. ⁴⁵ When He came to Galilee, the people there were glad. They had seen all the things He did in Jerusalem. It was at the time of the special religious gathering to remember how the Jews left Egypt. They had been there also.

Jesus Heals the Dying Boy in Capernaum

⁴⁶ Jesus came again to the town of Cana of Galilee where He had made water into wine. A man who worked with the king had a son who was sick in the city of Capernaum. ⁴⁷ This man went to Jesus. He had heard that Jesus had come from the country of Judea to Galilee. The man asked Jesus if He would go to Capernaum and heal his son who was dying. ⁴⁸ Then Jesus said to him, “Unless you see special things and powerful works done, you will not believe.” ⁴⁹ The man said to Him, “Sir, come with me before my son dies.” ⁵⁰ Jesus said to him, “Go your way. Your son will live.” The man put his trust in what Jesus said and left.

⁵¹ As he was on his way home, his servants met him. They said to him, “Your son is living!” ⁵² He asked them what time his boy began to get well. They said to him, “Yesterday at one o’clock the sickness left.” ⁵³ The father knew it was the time Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live.” He and everyone in his house put their trust in Jesus. ⁵⁴ This was the second powerful work that Jesus did after He came from the country of Judea to the country of Galilee.

Jesus Heals the Man at the Pool of Bethesda

5 Some time later, there was a religious gathering of the Jews. Jesus went up to Jerusalem. ² In Jerusalem there is a pool with five porches called Bethesda near the sheep gate. ³ Inside these porches lay many sick people. Some were blind. Some could not walk. Some could not move their bodies. ⁴ (*An angel of the Lord came at certain times and made the water move. All of them were waiting for it to move. Whoever got in the water first after it was moving was healed of whatever sickness he had.)

⁵ A man was there who had been sick for thirty-eight years. ⁶ Jesus saw him lying there and knew the man had been sick a long time. Jesus said to him, “Would you like to be healed?” ⁷ The sick man said, “Sir, I have no one to put me in the pool when the water is moving. While I am coming, another one gets in first.” ⁸ Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your bed and walk.” ⁹ At once the man was healed and picked up his bed and walked. This happened on the Day of Rest.

¹⁰ The Jews said to the man who had been healed, “This is the Day of Rest. It is against the Law for you to carry your bed.” ¹¹ He said to them, “The Man Who healed me said to me, ‘Pick up your bed and walk.’ ¹² Then the Jews asked him, “What man said to you, ‘Pick up your bed and walk’?” ¹³ The man who had been healed did not know Who He was. Jesus had gone away while many people were there.

¹⁴ Later Jesus found the man who had been healed in the house of God. He said to him, “Listen! You have been healed. Stop sinning or something worse will come to you.” ¹⁵ The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus Who had healed him.

The Jews Want to Kill Jesus

¹⁶ Because Jesus did these things on the Day of Rest, the Jews made it very hard for Him. ¹⁷ Jesus said to them, “My Father is still working all the time so I am working also.” ¹⁸ The Jews tried all the more to kill Him, not only because He had worked on the Day of Rest, but because He had also called God His Own Father. This made Him the same as God.

Jesus Tells How He Works

¹⁹ Then Jesus said to them, “For sure, I tell you, the Son can do nothing by Himself. He does what He sees the Father doing. Whatever the Father does, the Son does also. ²⁰ The Father loves the Son and shows the Son everything He does. The Father will show Him greater works than these. They will surprise you. ²¹ The Father raises up the dead and makes them live. The Son also gives life to anyone He chooses. ²² The Father does not say who is guilty. He gives this to the Son to do. ²³ He does this so that all people will honor the Son as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father Who sent Him.

²⁴ “For sure, I tell you, anyone who hears My Word and puts his trust in Him Who sent Me has life that lasts forever. He will not be guilty. He has already passed from death into life.

The Good People and the Sinful People Are Raised from the Dead

²⁵ “For sure, I tell you, the time is coming. Yes, the time is here when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God. Those who hear will live. ²⁶ The Father has life in Himself. He has given power to the Son to have life in Himself. ²⁷ God has given Him the right and the power to say if people are guilty, because He is the Son of Man. ²⁸ Do not be surprised at this. The time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear His voice. ²⁹ They will come out. Those who have done good will be raised again and will have new life. Those who have been sinful will be raised again and will be told they are guilty and will be punished.

Jesus Tells of John and of Himself

³⁰ “I can do nothing by Myself. I say who is guilty only as My Father tells Me. That way, what I say is right, because I am not trying to do what I want to do. I am doing what the Father, Who sent Me, wants Me to do. ³¹ If I tell about Myself, My words are worth nothing. ³² There is another One Who tells about Me. I know the words He says about Me are true.

³³ “You sent to John the Baptist and he told you the truth. ³⁴ I do not need words from men to say I am right. I say this that you might be saved from the punishment of sin. ³⁵ John the Baptist was a burning and shining light. You were willing for awhile to be glad in his light. ³⁶ I have something greater than John which tells of Me. I am doing works the Father has given Me to do and they are proving that the Father has sent Me. ³⁷ The Father has told of Me and has sent Me. You have never heard His voice. You have never seen Him. ³⁸ You do not have His Word living in your hearts because you do not put your trust in the One He sent.

³⁹ “You do read the Holy Writings. You think you have life that lasts forever just because you read them. They do tell of Me. ⁴⁰ But you do not want to come to Me so you might have life. ⁴¹ I do not take any honor from men. ⁴² I know you and you do not have the love of God in your hearts. ⁴³ I have come in the name of My Father. You do not receive Me. If another person comes in his own name, you will receive him. ⁴⁴ How can you believe when you are always wanting honor from each other? And yet you do not look for the honor that comes from the only God.

⁴⁵ “Do not think that I will tell the Father you are guilty. The one who says you are guilty is Moses. You trust him. ⁴⁶ If you had believed Moses, you would believe Me. For Moses wrote about Me. ⁴⁷ If you do not believe what he wrote, how will you believe My Words?”

The Feeding of the Five Thousand ^(A)

6 After this Jesus went over to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. It is sometimes called Tiberias. ² Many people followed Him. They saw the powerful works He did on those who were sick. ³ Jesus went up on a mountain and sat down with His followers. ⁴ The special religious supper to remember how the Jews left Egypt was soon.

⁵ Jesus looked up and saw many people coming to Him. He said to Philip, “Where can we buy bread to feed these people?” ⁶ He said this to see what Philip would say. Jesus knew what He would do. ⁷ Philip said to Him, “The money we have is not enough to buy bread to give each one a little.”

⁸ One of His followers was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He said to Jesus, ⁹ “There is a boy here who has five loaves of barley bread and two small fish. What is that for so many people?” ¹⁰ Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” There was much grass in that place. About five thousand men sat down.

¹¹ Jesus took the loaves and gave thanks. Then He gave the bread to those who were sitting down. The fish were given out the same way. The people had as much as they wanted. ¹² When they were filled, Jesus said to His followers, “Gather up the pieces that are left. None will be wasted.” ¹³ The followers gathered the pieces together. Twelve baskets were filled with pieces of barley bread. These were left after all the people had eaten.

¹⁴ The people saw the powerful work Jesus had done. They said, “It is true! This is the One Who speaks for God Who is to come into the world.”

Jesus Walks on the Water ^(B)

¹⁵ Jesus knew they were about to come and take Him to make Him king, so He went to the mountain by Himself. ¹⁶ When evening had come, His followers went down to the lake. ¹⁷ They got into a boat and started to cross the lake to go to the city of Capernaum. By this time it was dark. Jesus had not come back to them yet. ¹⁸ A strong wind was making high waves on the lake. ¹⁹ They were about half way across the lake when they saw Jesus walking on the water. As He got near the boat, they were afraid. ²⁰ But Jesus called to them, “It is I. Do not be afraid.” ²¹ They were glad to take Him into the boat. At once they got to the other side where they wanted to go.

Jesus Teaches Many People

²² The next day the people on the other side of the lake saw no other boat there but the one His followers had been in. The people knew Jesus had not gone with His followers in the boat because they had gone alone. ²³ There were other boats from Tiberias that had come near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. ²⁴ The people saw that Jesus and His followers were not there. They got into boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus.

²⁵ The people found Him on the other side of the lake. They said to Him, “Teacher, when did You come here?” ²⁶ Jesus said to them, “For sure, I tell you, you are not looking for Me because of the powerful works. You are looking for Me because you ate bread and were filled. ²⁷ Do not work for food that does not last. Work for food that lasts forever. The Son of Man will give you that kind of food. God the Father has shown He will do this.”

Jesus Teaches about Doing the Work of God

²⁸ Then the people said to Him, “What are the works God wants us to do?” ²⁹ Jesus said to them, “This is the work of God, that you put your trust in the One He has sent.” ³⁰ They said to Him, “Can You show us some powerful work? Then we can see it and believe You. What will You do? ³¹ Our early fathers ate bread that came from heaven in the desert. This happened as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” ^(C)

Jesus Is the Bread of Life

³² Then Jesus said to the people, “For sure, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you bread from heaven. My Father gives you the true Bread from heaven. ³³ The Bread of God is He Who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” ³⁴ They said to Him, “Sir, give us this Bread all the time.”

³⁵ Jesus said to them, “I am the Bread of Life. He who comes to Me will never be hungry. He who puts his trust in Me will never be thirsty. ³⁶ I said to you that you have seen Me and yet you do not put your trust in Me. ³⁷ All whom My Father has given to Me will come to Me. I will never turn away anyone who comes to Me. ³⁸ I came down from heaven. I did not come to do what I wanted to do. I came to do what My Father wanted Me to do. He is the One Who sent Me.

³⁹ “The Father sent Me. He did not want Me to lose any of all those He gave Me. He wants Me to raise them to life on the last day. ⁴⁰ He wants everyone who sees the Son to put his trust in Him and have life that lasts forever. I will raise that one up on the last day.”

⁴¹ The Jews talked among themselves against Him. They did not like it because He said, “I am the Bread that came down from heaven.” ⁴² They asked each other, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph? We know His father and mother. How can He say, ‘I came down from heaven’?”

⁴³ Jesus said to them, “Do not talk among yourselves against Me. ⁴⁴ The Father sent Me. No man can come to Me unless the Father gives him the desire to come to Me. Then I will raise him to life on the last day. ⁴⁵ The early preachers wrote, ‘They will all be taught of God.’ ^(D) Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from Him comes to Me. ⁴⁶ No one has seen the Father. I am the only One Who has seen Him. ⁴⁷ For sure, I tell you, he who puts his trust in Me has life that lasts forever. ⁴⁸ I am the Bread of Life. ⁴⁹ Your early fathers ate bread that came from heaven in the desert. They died. ⁵⁰ But this is the Bread that comes down from heaven. The one who eats it never dies. ⁵¹ I am the Living Bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats this Bread, he will live forever. The Bread which I will give is My flesh. I will give this for the life of the world.” ⁵² The Jews argued among themselves, saying, “How can this Man give us His flesh to eat?”

⁵³ Jesus said to them, “For sure, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you do not have life in you. ⁵⁴ Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has life that lasts forever. I will raise him up on the last day. ⁵⁵ My flesh is true food and My blood is true drink. ⁵⁶ Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood lives in Me and I live in him. ⁵⁷ The living Father sent Me and I live because of Him. In the same way, the one who eats Me will live because of Me. ⁵⁸ I am this Bread that came down from heaven. It is not like the bread that your early fathers ate and they died. Whoever eats this Bread will live forever.” ⁵⁹ Jesus said these things in the Jewish place of worship while He was teaching in the city of Capernaum.

The Troubled Followers Leave Jesus

⁶⁰ After hearing this, many of His followers said, “This teaching is too hard! Who can listen to it?” ⁶¹ Jesus knew His followers talked against what He had said. He said to them, “Does this trouble you? ⁶² Then what would you say if you saw the Son of Man going up where He was before? ⁶³ It is the Spirit that gives life. The flesh is of no help. The words I speak to you are spirit and life. ⁶⁴ But some of you do not believe.” Jesus knew from the beginning who would not put their trust in Him. He knew who would hand Him over to the leaders of the country. ⁶⁵ He said, “That is why I told you no one can come to Me unless the Father allows it.” ⁶⁶ From that time on, many of His followers turned back to their old ways of living. They would not go along with Him after that.

Peter Knows Who Jesus Is

⁶⁷ Then Jesus said to the twelve followers, “Will you leave Me also?” ⁶⁸ Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, who else can we go to? You have words that give life that lasts forever. ⁶⁹ We believe and know You are the Christ. You are the Son of the Living God.” ⁷⁰ Jesus said to them, “I chose you twelve as My followers. And one of you is a devil.” ⁷¹ He was speaking of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, who was one of the twelve followers. He was ready to hand Jesus over to the leaders of the country.