I recently filmed two segments on the topic of the “Woman at the Well.”
Liva Trethewey and Heidi Nelson joined me on the set of 'Women in the Word' as we dissected, in a very small way, this woman’s life and tried to find what it can mean for us today.
The three of us read scripture and discussed what this meeting meant to this unnamed women. The story means a lot to me for several reasons, one of which is the lyrics in the song with the same name.
“Like the woman at the well, I was seeking. For things which could not satisfy. And then, I heard my Savior speaking, “Draw from My well, which never shall run dry.”
Those words speak to my heart. I was that woman at the well. And I guess, if I’m honest, in some ways I still am. I fill my time, energy and heart with earthly worries and matters and plans. When truly, my focus should always, and only, be on Him.
In the bible, wells were used as markers on maps. Wells were shared by various shepherdess and herdsmen. There were quarrels over well-water. Promises were made to pass quickly through a land and not drink water from a well. And women visited the wells daily to supply their family with water. It seems a lot of history took place around these watering stations, and many lives were changed in the process.
In fact, many loves stories took place at a well.
Take for instance Abraham’s servant. He met Rebekah, Isaac’s future wife, at a well. I LOVE THIS STORY!
“And it happened, before he had finished speaking, that behold, Rebekah…came out with her pitcher on her shoulder. Now the young woman was very beautiful to behold, a virgin; no man had known her. And she went down to the well, filled her pitcher, and came up. And the servant ran to meet her and said, “Please let me drink a little water from your pitcher.” So she said, “Drink, my lord.” Then she quickly let her pitcher down to her hand, and gave him a drink. And when she had finished giving him a drink, she said, “I will draw water for your camels also, until they have finished drinking.”
“Then she quickly emptied her pitcher into the trough, ran back to the well to draw water, and drew for all his camels. And the man, wondering at her, remained silent so as to know whether the Lord had made his journey prosperous or not.” Genesis 24:15-27 NKJV
The answer, as it turns out, was yes!
Jacob met Rachel at a well when she came to water her father’s sheep. Another wonderful love story in my opinion.
“Now while he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess. And it came to pass, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, that Jacob went near and rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the flock of Laban his mother’s brother. Then Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice and wept.” Genesis 29:1-11 NKJV
Moses met his wife Zipporah at a well.
“When Pharaoh heard of this matter, he sought to kill Moses. But Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh and dwelt in the land of Midian; and he sat down by a well. Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters. And they came and drew water, and they filled the troughs to water their father’s flock. Then the shepherds came and drove them away; but Moses stood up and helped them, and watered their flock.” Exodus 2:15-17
And then we have the woman of Samaria meeting Jesus at a well in John chapter 4. Yet another true love story.
As Jesus and His men traveled toward Galilee, they came to the city of Sychar. Jacob’s Well was there. Jesus was tired from His journey and sat by the well. The disciples went into the city to buy food. It was about noon.
The women would have been to the well already. It was a hard job and one that was done in the cool of the morning. But Jesus knew today would be different.
I think it’s good to note that John tells us is verse 6 that Jesus was “wearied from His journey”.
Jesus knows what it is like to be tired. He knows what it is like to be bone tired.
We are told in Hebrews 4 that Jesus was tempted in every way that we are, this includes lack of sleep and the results of people always demanding your attention. It’s also good to note what He did at these times. “So He Himself often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed.” Luke 5:16
Jesus knew where His source of power came from and it was in constant communication with His Heavenly Father.
Back to our story. An unnamed woman is about to meet her Messiah.
This woman was headed to gather water in the heat of the day. She was an outcast. She was not married, but she was shacked up with a man. She had a reputation, and it was not a good one. She was not welcomed with the other women.
Let’s take a look at this scene, let’s peer in from the sidelines and Jesus interacts with this sinner.
“A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” (For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.”
“The woman said to him, “Sir, you have nothing to draw water with, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and his livestock.”
“Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
“The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water.” John 4:7-15 ESV
She does not get it. Not yet. She would love to be done with coming to the well every day. She would love to have this hard, hot, daily chore removed from her to-do list.
Now, much of the time we stop right here. We stop with this woman asking Jesus for this special water. But there is so much more to this story.
Jesus tells her things about herself, that no one, especially a stranger, should know. He engages with her in conversation regarding prayer and worship. At one point she said, “I know that Messiah is coming”…Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am He.”
Such a bold, matter-of-fact statement: The Messiah you have been waiting for…that’s me!
She believed. And she acted.
“The woman then left her waterpot, went her way into the city, and said to the men, “Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” Then they went out of the city and came to Him…
“And many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, “He told me all that I ever did.” So when the Samaritans had come to Him, they urged Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days. And many more believed because of His own word.
“Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world.” John 4:1-42 NKJV
They believed because one woman decided to share her story.
They believed because one woman invited them to come and listen.
And because they accepted the invitation to come and listen, they were converted.
And because they were converted, they invited Jesus to stay two more days and that resulted in “many more believed because of His own word.”
Friend, one person can make all the difference! Many of the people of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified.
Let’s be more like the woman at the well. We came because we were thirsty; we left changed and we changed the world around us.
by Jeanette Stark – Friday, June 2, 2023
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