John 4:18

Translations

Modern

In fact, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. You have spoken truthfully.”

Traditional

For thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly.

Literal

For you have had five husbands, and the one whom you have now is not your husband; this you have said truly.”

Latin

…quinque enim viros habuisti, et nunc, quem habes, non est tuus vir: hoc vere dixisti.

Interlinear

Greek

English

In fact, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. You have spoken truthfully.”

Notes

John 4:16–18

The woman’s immoral life affected her understanding. Her pattern of broken relationships kept her from seeing clearly.

She had been married five times. She was also living with a man who was not her husband. These facts show that her life did not match God’s will. Her sin created a barrier between her and a full understanding of what Jesus was saying.

John 4:1–42

At an ancient well in Samaria, Jesus offered himself as living water. This living water means the life that comes from God. Jesus spoke openly about who he was. When he revealed God’s truth, people had to respond. They either followed him or turned away.
The Samaritan woman is very different from Nicodemus. She was a woman, not a man. She was a Samaritan, not a Jew. She had a sinful past, not a reputation for righteousness. She was an outsider, not a respected teacher of Israel.
Nicodemus came to Jesus at night and did not openly respond to the challenges from Jesus (3:1–21). The Samaritan woman spoke with Jesus in the daylight. She recognized him as Lord. She remained in the light and showed signs of becoming a disciple (see 1:35–51).

Theme notes and profiles

Samaritans Encounters with Jesus John’s Profile of Discipleship

Events

The Samaritan Womanc. AD 27

Related verses

Romans 7:3
So then, if she is joined to another man while her husband is still alive, she is called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from that law and is not an adulteress if she marries another man.
1 Corinthians 7:10–11
To the married I give this command (not I, but the Lord): A wife must not separate from her husband.
Jeremiah 3:20
But as a woman may betray her husband, so you have betrayed Me, O house of Israel,” declares the LORD.
Mark 10:12
And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another man, she commits adultery.”
Numbers 5:29
This is the law of jealousy when a wife goes astray and defiles herself while under her husband’s authority,
Genesis 20:3
One night, however, God came to Abimelech in a dream and told him, “You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken, for she is a married woman.”
Ezekiel 16:32
You adulterous wife! You receive strangers instead of your own husband!
Genesis 34:2
When Shechem son of Hamor the Hivite, the prince of the region, saw her, he took her and lay with her by force.
Ruth 4:10
Moreover, I have acquired Ruth the Moabitess, Mahlon’s widow, as my wife, to raise up the name of the deceased through his inheritance, so that his name will not disappear from among his brothers or from the gate of his home. You are witnesses today.”
Genesis 34:7–8
When Jacob’s sons heard what had happened, they returned from the field. They were filled with grief and fury, because Shechem had committed an outrage in Israel by lying with Jacob’s daughter—a thing that should not be done.
Genesis 34:31
But they replied, “Should he have treated our sister like a prostitute?”
Hebrews 13:4
Marriage should be honored by all and the marriage bed kept undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterers.

Glossary

Bible, Manuscripts and Text of the (New Testament) Disease History of Israel Jacob’s Well Jesus Christ Jesus Christ, Teachings of John, Gospel of Samaritans Sychar Worship

Topics

Adultery: The Samaritan Woman Jacob: The Well of Jesus, the Christ: Omniscience of Jesus, the Christ: Visits Sychar and Teaches the Samaritan Woman Living Together Unmarried Samaria: Country of: Jesus Travels Through Shechem: Also Called Sychar, a City of Refuge in Mount Ephraim: Jesus Visits; Disciples Made In Sin: Known to God

John 4:18

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