John 4:42

And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(42) We have heard him ourselves.—The “Him” is not part of the original text, and the sentence is more forcible without it: We have ourselves heard. Probably “the Christ” should also be regarded as no part of the original text, and the last clause should be, and know that this is truly the Saviour of the world. The result of their hearing is that they know. There is here, as frequently in St. John, stress laid upon the development of faith. We shall find it again in the following verses, which mark it in the case of the courtier.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

4:27-42 The disciples wondered that Christ talked thus with a Samaritan. Yet they knew it was for some good reason, and for some good end. Thus when particular difficulties occur in the word and providence of God, it is good to satisfy ourselves that all is well that Jesus Christ says and does. Two things affected the woman. The extent of his knowledge. Christ knows all the thoughts, words, and actions, of all the children of men. And the power of his word. He told her secret sins with power. She fastened upon that part of Christ's discourse, many would think she would have been most shy of repeating; but the knowledge of Christ, into which we are led by conviction of sin, is most likely to be sound and saving. They came to him: those who would know Christ, must meet him where he records his name. Our Master has left us an example, that we may learn to do the will of God as he did; with diligence, as those that make a business of it; with delight and pleasure in it. Christ compares his work to harvest-work. The harvest is appointed and looked for before it comes; so was the gospel. Harvest-time is busy time; all must be then at work. Harvest-time is a short time, and harvest-work must be done then, or not at all; so the time of the gospel is a season, which if once past, cannot be recalled. God sometimes uses very weak and unlikely instruments for beginning and carrying on a good work. Our Saviour, by teaching one poor woman, spread knowledge to a whole town. Blessed are those who are not offended at Christ. Those taught of God, are truly desirous to learn more. It adds much to the praise of our love to Christ and his word, if it conquers prejudices. Their faith grew. In the matter of it: they believed him to be the Saviour, not only of the Jews but of the world. In the certainty of it: we know that this is indeed the Christ. And in the ground of it, for we have heard him ourselves.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

And many of the Samaritans of that city believed on him, ... - There is seldom an instance of so remarkable success as this. From a single conversation, in circumstances, in a place, and with an individual little likely to be attended with such results, many sinners were converted; many believed on the testimony of the woman; many more came to hear, and believed because they heard him themselves. We should never despair of doing good in the most unpromising circumstances, and we should seize upon every opportunity to converse with sinners on the great subject of their souls' salvation.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

40. abode two days—Two precious days, surely, to the Redeemer Himself! Unsought, He had come to His own, yet His own received Him not: now those who were not His own had come to Him, been won by Him, and invited Him to their town that others might share with them in the benefit of His wonderful ministry. Here, then, would He solace His already wounded spirit and have in this outfield village triumph of His grace, a sublime foretaste of the inbringing of the whole Gentile world into the Church.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

Several things may be the occasion of faith, which are neither the principal efficient causes, nor the proper instrumental cause of it. The principal efficient cause of the faith of these Samaritans was, undoubtedly, the finger of God upon their souls, enlightening their minds with the saving knowledge of the gospel, and bowing their wills to the obedience of it. The proper instrumental cause was their hearing the words of Christ; but the occasion of this was what the woman had told them: so as, though they in a sense believed because of what she had said, because that occasioned their coming out to see and hear Christ; yet the proper instrumental cause was their hearing Christ, God upon their hearing him working in their hearts an ability and a willingness to receive and to close with Christ. Thus the church gives us the first occasion of receiving the Scriptures, and believing them to be the word of God: we, having them put into our hands by the church, read them, and find such impresses and stamps of Divinity in them, that we conclude, from our reason very probably, that they are more than human writings; but never firmly and fixedly receive them as such, until persuaded of it by the Holy Spirit. These Samaritans do not only own Christ as a prophet, nor do they only suspect that he must be the Messias, but they profess to know that he was the Christ, the Saviour of the world.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

And said unto the woman,.... Who, it appears, kept hearing Christ, attending on him, and conversing with him; for having tasted of his grace, she could not leave him:

now we believe, not because of thy saying; not on account of that only: it should seem that these were the same persons that believed upon her word before they went out of the city; and who, when come to Christ, invited him into it; and now, having heard his excellent discourses, were confirmed in the faith of him:

for we have heard him ourselves; not only externally with their bodily ears, but internally, having ears given them to hear, so as to understand what he said; to mix it with faith, and receive it in love; to feel the power of it in their hearts, and taste the sweetness of it, and be nourished by it; and so as to distinguish his voice from another's, as Christ's true sheep are capable of.

And know that this is indeed the Christ; the true Messiah, and not a false one; the Messiah spoken of by Moses, whose books the Samaritans received, as the seed of the woman, the Shiloh, and prophet, like to Moses; the Christ of God, who is anointed to be prophet, priest, and King. The Vulgate Latin and Ethiopic versions leave out the word "Christ", and only read what follows,

the Saviour of the world: they knew him to be the Saviour, he who was spoken of as such; for his work to bruise the serpent's head implies it, and his name Shiloh imports as much: and besides, he is called by Jacob God's salvation, Genesis 49:18. God appointed him as a Saviour; he sent him, and he came as such, and is become the author of salvation; and his name is called Jesus, on this account: and a great Saviour he is; both able, and willing; and he is suitable to the case of sinners; and is a complete, and an only one: and these Samaritans knew him to be "the Saviour of the world"; not of every individual person in it, for all are not saved by him; nor of the Jewish world, for many of them died in their sins; but of the Gentiles, in distinction from the Jews; see John 3:16; even of all God's elect, whether among Jews or Gentiles; of all that believe in him, of whatsoever nation, and in whatsoever state and condition: so that their knowledge of him, and faith in him, were beyond that of the Jews, who looked upon the Messiah only as a Saviour of their nation; and that the Gentiles would have no manner of benefit and advantage by him: though the Jews (b) do call the angel in Exodus 23:20 , "the Saviour", or "Redeemer of" the world. And this the Samaritans might know from the writings of Moses, as from Genesis 22:18 their present knowledge of Christ was not a mere notional, speculative, and general one, but was special, spiritual, and saving, which they had from the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Christ; they approved of him as their Saviour; they trusted in him as such; they had an experimental acquaintance with him, and practically owned him; and which they attained to by hearing him.

(b) Zohar in Gen. fol. 124. 4.

Geneva Study Bible

And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

42. thy saying] Not the same word as in John 4:39, the Greek for which is the same as that translated ‘word’ in John 4:41. John 4:39; John 4:41 should be alike, viz. ‘word,’ meaning ‘statement’ in John 4:39 and ‘teaching’ in John 4:41. Here we should have ‘speech’ or ‘talk.’ In classical Greek lalia has a slightly uncomplimentary turn, ‘gossip, chatter.’ But this shade of meaning is lost in later Greek, though there is perhaps a slight trace of it here; ‘not because of thy talk;’ but this being doubtful, ‘speech’ will be the safer translation. The whole should run, no longer is it because of thy speech that we believe. In John 8:43 lalia is used by Christ of His own words; see note there.

we Have heard him ourselves] Better, we have heard for ourselves. There is no ‘Him’ in the Greek. ‘The Christ’ is also to be omitted. It is wanting in the best MSS.

the Saviour of the world] It is not improbable that such ready hearers would arrive at this great truth before the end of those two days. It is therefore unnecessary to suppose that S. John is here unconsciously giving one of his own expressions (1 John 4:14) for theirs.

Bengel's Gnomen

John 4:42. Οὐκ ἔτι, now no longer) The true progress of faith is here evinced.—αὐτοί, ourselves) Augustine admirably remarks on this passage: At first it was by the report of others, afterwards by His own presence [the men were led to believe]. This is the way in which those who are abroad, and are not yet Christians, are dealt with in the present day. Christ is announced as having come, through Christian friends; that woman as it were, that is, the Church, announcing the tidings. Men come to Christ, and believe, through that report. He remains with them two days, i.e. He gives them the two precepts of charity:[88] and far more persons, and more firmly too, believe in Him, that He is indeed Himself the Saviour of the world. Hence it is evident in what sense that hackneyed quotation ought to be understood: I indeed would not believe the Gospel, did not the authority of the Catholic Church admonish (others read, move) me to do so: Contra Ep. fundamenti, Chap. v.[89] Inasmuch as in this passage Augustine is not teaching, but is opposing the Manicheans.[90]—τοῦ κόσμου, of the world) not merely of the Jews. Faith frees from party zeal: they believe in Jesus, since He is the Saviour of the world, having laid aside their boasting of their fathers,[91] John 4:12, “Art Thou greater than owe father Jacob,” etc.

[88] To love Christ, and to love one another.—E. and T.

[89] “The authority of the Church” is here not her infallibility, but her faithful testimony.—E. and T.

[90] The Edition of E. B. and Steudel caused me great difficulty by a misprint, “Non docet Augustinus, sed Manichæus adversum tenet.” The large Ed. of 1759 solved it by the true reading, ‘Manichæis.’ Calvin, Inst., lib. i., ch. John 7:3, answers the argument drawn by Romanists from the words of Augustine, here quoted, by saying, that Augustine, in the passage referred to, speaks of himself as a Manichean; viz. that he means that, when a Manichean, he was moved by the authority of the Church to believe the Scriptures. So also Musculus, who considers ‘crederem’ and ‘commoveret’ to be equivalent to ‘credidissem’ and ‘commovisset.’ Augustine, in the words immediately following, says, “Those whom I obeyed when they said to me, Believe the Gospel, why should I not obey when they tell me, ‘Believe not Mani?’ ” Whence it is plain, he is speaking of himself as an unbeliever, and is informing us how he was first converted from being a Manichean to be a Catholic Christian, namely, by listening to the voice of the Church. But that voice is the voice of testimony, not the voice of infallible authority.—E. and T.

[91] The Vers. Germ. is more clearly in accordance with this observation, as omitting along with the larger edition, New Testament, the reading ὁ Χριστός; than the Ed. 2, Gr., which leaves the addition ὁ Χριστός to the reader to decide upon.—E. B.

John 4:42

Vincent's Word Studies

Said (ἔλεγον)

The imperfect tense: said to the woman as they successively met her.

Saying (λαλιὰν)

Another word is designedly substituted for λόγον, word (John 4:39, John 4:41). In John 4:39 λόγος, word, is used of the woman, from the Evangelist's standpoint, as being a testimony to Christ. Here the Samaritans distinguish between the more authoritative and dignified word of Jesus, and the talk of the woman. Rev., speaking. Compare the kindred verb λαλέω, in John 4:26, John 4:27; also John 8:43; Matthew 26:73.

The Christ

The best texts omit.

The Savior (ὁ σωτὴρ)

John uses the word only here and 1 John 4:14. See on Jesus, Matthew 1:21. It is significant that this conception of Christ should have been first expressed by a Samaritan.