Yesaya 55:1

The Lord Gives an Invitation

55:1 “Hey, ¹  all who are thirsty, come to the water!

You who have no money, come!

Buy and eat!

Come! Buy wine and milk

without money and without cost! ² 

Keluaran 17:3

17:3 But the people were very thirsty ³  there for water, and they murmured against Moses and said, “Why in the world ⁴  did you bring us up out of Egypt – to kill us and our children and our cattle with thirst?” ⁵ 

Keluaran 17:6

17:6 I will be standing ⁶  before you there on ⁷  the rock in Horeb, and you will strike ⁸  the rock, and water will come out of it so that the people may drink.” ⁹  And Moses did so in plain view ¹⁰  of the elders of Israel.

Mazmur 42:2

42:2 I thirst ¹¹  for God,

for the living God.

I say, ¹²  “When will I be able to go and appear in God’s presence?” ¹³ 

Mazmur 63:1-2

Psalm 63 ¹⁴ 

A psalm of David, written when he was in the Judean wilderness. ¹⁵ 

63:1 O God, you are my God! I long for you! ¹⁶ 

My soul thirsts ¹⁷  for you,

my flesh yearns for you,

in a dry and parched ¹⁸  land where there is no water.

63:2 Yes, ¹⁹  in the sanctuary I have seen you, ²⁰ 

and witnessed ²¹  your power and splendor.

Amos 8:11-13

8:11 Be certain of this, ²²  the time is ²³  coming,” says the sovereign Lord,

“when I will send a famine through the land –

not a shortage of food or water

but an end to divine revelation! ²⁴ 

8:12 People ²⁵  will stagger from sea to sea, ²⁶ 

and from the north around to the east.

They will wander about looking for a revelation from ²⁷  the Lord,

but they will not find any. ²⁸ 

8:13 In that day your ²⁹  beautiful young women ³⁰  and your ³¹  young men will faint from thirst. ³² 

Matius 5:6

5:6 “Blessed are those who hunger ³³  and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.

Yohanes 4:10-15

4:10 Jesus answered ³⁴  her, “If you had known ³⁵  the gift of God and who it is who said to you, ‘Give me some water ³⁶  to drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” ³⁷  4:11 “Sir,” ³⁸  the woman ³⁹  said to him, “you have no bucket and the well ⁴⁰  is deep; where then do you get this ⁴¹  living water? ⁴²  4:12 Surely you’re not greater than our ancestor ⁴³  Jacob, are you? For he gave us this well and drank from it himself, along with his sons and his livestock.” ⁴⁴ 

4:13 Jesus replied, ⁴⁵  “Everyone who drinks some of this water will be thirsty ⁴⁶  again. 4:14 But whoever drinks some of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again, ⁴⁷  but the water that I will give him will become in him a fountain ⁴⁸  of water springing up ⁴⁹  to eternal life.” 4:15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw ⁵⁰  water.” ⁵¹ 

Yohanes 7:37-39

Teaching About the Spirit

7:37 On the last day of the feast, the greatest day, ⁵²  Jesus stood up and shouted out, ⁵³  “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me, and 7:38 let the one who believes in me drink. ⁵⁴  Just as the scripture says, ‘From within him ⁵⁵  will flow rivers of living water.’” ⁵⁶  7:39 (Now he said this about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were going to receive, for the Spirit had not yet been given, ⁵⁷  because Jesus was not yet glorified.) ⁵⁸ 

Wahyu 21:6

21:6 He also said to me, “It is done! ⁵⁹  I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the one who is thirsty I will give water ⁶⁰  free of charge ⁶¹  from the spring of the water of life.

Wahyu 22:17

22:17 And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say: “Come!” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wants it take the water of life free of charge.

[55:1]  ¹ tn The Hebrew term הוֹי (hoy, “woe, ah”) was used in funeral laments and is often prefixed to judgment oracles for rhetorical effect. But here it appears to be a simple interjection, designed to grab the audience’s attention. Perhaps there is a note of sorrow or pity. See BDB 223 s.v.

[55:1]  ² sn The statement is an oxymoron. Its ironic quality adds to its rhetorical impact. The statement reminds one of the norm (one must normally buy commodities) as it expresses the astounding offer. One might paraphrase the statement: “Come and take freely what you normally have to pay for.”

[17:3]  ³ tn The verbs and the pronouns in this verse are in the singular because “the people” is singular in form.

[17:3]  ⁴ tn The demonstrative pronoun is used as the enclitic form for special emphasis in the question; it literally says, “why is this you have brought us up?” (R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 24, §118).

[17:3]  ⁵ sn Their words deny God the credit for bringing them out of Egypt, impugn the integrity of Moses and God by accusing them of bringing the people out here to die, and show a lack of faith in God’s ability to provide for them.

[17:6]  ⁶ tn The construction uses הִנְנִי עֹמֵד (hinni ’omed) to express the futur instans or imminent future of the verb: “I am going to be standing.”

[17:6]  sn The reader has many questions when studying this passage – why water from a rock, why Horeb, why strike the rock when later only speak to it, why recall the Nile miracles, etc. B. Jacob (Exodus, 479-80) says that all these are answered when it is recalled that they were putting God to the test. So water from the rock, the most impossible thing, cleared up the question of his power. Doing it at Horeb was significant because there Moses was called and told he would bring them to this place. Since they had doubted God was in their midst, he would not do this miracle in the camp, but would have Moses lead the elders out to Horeb. If people doubt God is in their midst, then he will choose not to be in their midst. And striking the rock recalled striking the Nile; there it brought death to Egypt, but here it brought life to Israel. There could be little further doubting that God was with them and able to provide for them.

[17:6]  ⁷ tn Or “by” (NIV, NLT).

[17:6]  ⁸ tn The form is a Hiphil perfect with the vav (ו) consecutive; it follows the future nuance of the participle and so is equivalent to an imperfect tense nuance of instruction.

[17:6]  ⁹ tn These two verbs are also perfect tenses with vav (ו) consecutive: “and [water] will go out…and [the people] will drink.” But the second verb is clearly the intent or the result of the water gushing from the rock, and so it may be subordinated.

[17:6]  sn The presence of Yahweh at this rock enabled Paul to develop a midrashic lesson, an analogical application: Christ was present with Israel to provide water for them in the wilderness. So this was a Christophany. But Paul takes it a step further to equate the rock with Christ, for just as it was struck to produce water, so Christ would be struck to produce rivers of living water. The provision of bread to eat and water to drink provided for Paul a ready analogy to the provisions of Christ in the gospel (1 Cor 10:4).

[17:6]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “in the eyes of.”

[42:2]  ¹¹ tn Or “my soul thirsts.”

[42:2]  ¹² tn The words “I say” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons and for clarification.

[42:2]  ¹³ tn Heb “When will I go and appear [to] the face of God?” Some emend the Niphal verbal form אֵרָאֶה (’era’eh, “I will appear”) to a Qal אֶרְאֶה (’er’eh, “I will see”; see Gen 33:10), but the Niphal can be retained if one understands ellipsis of אֶת (’et) before “face” (see Exod 34:24; Deut 31:11).

[63:1]  ¹⁴ sn Psalm 63. The psalmist expresses his intense desire to be in God’s presence and confidently affirms that God will judge his enemies.

[63:1]  ¹⁵ sn According to the psalm superscription David wrote the psalm while in the “wilderness of Judah.” Perhaps this refers to the period described in 1 Sam 23-24 or to the incident mentioned in 2 Sam 15:23.

[63:1]  ¹⁶ tn Or “I will seek you.”

[63:1]  ¹⁷ tn Or “I thirst.”

[63:1]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “faint” or “weary.” This may picture the land as “faint” or “weary,” or it may allude to the effect this dry desert has on those who are forced to live in it.

[63:2]  ¹⁹ tn The Hebrew particle כֵּן (ken) is used here to stress the following affirmation (see Josh 2:4).

[63:2]  ²⁰ tn The perfect verbal form is understood here as referring to a past experience which the psalmist desires to be repeated. Another option is to take the perfect as indicating the psalmist’s certitude that he will again stand in God’s presence in the sanctuary. In this case one can translate, “I will see you.”

[63:2]  ²¹ tn Heb “seeing.” The preposition with the infinitive construct here indicates an accompanying circumstance.

[8:11]  ²² tn Heb “behold” or “look.”

[8:11]  ²³ tn Heb “the days are.”

[8:11]  ²⁴ tn Heb “not a hunger for food or a thirst for water, but for hearing the words of the Lord.”

[8:12]  ²⁵ tn Heb “they”; the referent (people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[8:12]  ²⁶ tn That is, from the Mediterranean Sea in the west to the Dead Sea in the east – that is, across the whole land.

[8:12]  ²⁷ tn Heb “looking for the word of.”

[8:12]  ²⁸ tn It is not clear whether the speaker in this verse is the Lord or the prophet.

[8:13]  ²⁹ tn Heb “the.”

[8:13]  ³⁰ tn Or “virgins.”

[8:13]  ³¹ tn Heb “the.”

[8:13]  ³² tn It is not clear whether the speaker in this verse is the Lord or the prophet.

[5:6]  ³³ sn Those who hunger are people like the poor Jesus has already mentioned. The term has OT roots both in conjunction with the poor (Isa 32:6-7; 58:6-7, 9-10; Ezek 18:7, 16) or by itself (Ps 37:16-19; 107:9).

[4:10]  ³⁴ tn Grk “answered and said to her.”

[4:10]  ³⁵ tn Or “if you knew.”

[4:10]  ³⁶ tn The phrase “some water” is supplied as the understood direct object of the infinitive πεῖν (pein).

[4:10]  ³⁷ tn This is a second class conditional sentence in Greek.

[4:10]  sn The word translated living is used in Greek of flowing water, which leads to the woman’s misunderstanding in the following verse. She thought Jesus was referring to some unknown source of drinkable water.

[4:11]  ³⁸ tn Or “Lord.” The Greek term κύριος (kurios) means both “Sir” and “Lord.” In this passage there is probably a gradual transition from one to the other as the woman’s respect for Jesus grows throughout the conversation (4:11, 15, 19).

[4:11]  ³⁹ tc ‡ Two early and important Greek mss along with two versional witnesses (Ì⁷⁵ B sy^s ac²) lack ἡ γυνή (Jh gunh, “the woman”) here; א* has ἐκείνη (ekeinh, “that one” or possibly “she”) instead of ἡ γυνή. It is possible that no explicit subject was in the original text and scribes added either ἡ γυνή or ἐκείνη to make the meaning clear. It is also possible that the archetype of Ì⁷⁵ א B expunged the subject because it was not altogether necessary, with the scribe of א later adding the pronoun. However, ἡ γυνή is not in doubt in any other introduction to the woman’s words in this chapter (cf. vv. 9, 15, 17, 19, 25), suggesting that intentional deletion was not the motive for the shorter reading in v. 11 (or else why would they delete the words only here?). Thus, the fact that virtually all witnesses (Ì⁶⁶ א² A C D L W^s Θ Ψ 050 083 086 Ë^1,13 Ï latt sy^c,p,h sa bo) have ἡ γυνή here may suggest that it is a motivated reading, conforming this verse to the rest of the pericope. Although a decision is difficult, it is probably best to regard the shorter reading as authentic. NA²⁷ has ἡ γυνή in brackets, indicating doubts as to their authenticity. For English stylistic reasons, the translation also includes “the woman” here.

[4:11]  ⁴⁰ tn The word for “well” has now shifted to φρέαρ (frear, “cistern”); earlier in the passage it was πηγή (phgh).

[4:11]  ⁴¹ tn The anaphoric article has been translated “this.”

[4:11]  ⁴² sn Where then do you get this living water? The woman’s reply is an example of the “misunderstood statement,” a technique appearing frequently in John’s Gospel. Jesus was speaking of living water which was spiritual (ultimately a Johannine figure for the Holy Spirit, see John 7:38-39), but the woman thought he was speaking of flowing (fresh drinkable) water. Her misunderstanding gave Jesus the opportunity to explain what he really meant.

[4:12]  ⁴³ tn Or “our forefather”; Grk “our father.”

[4:12]  ⁴⁴ tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end. In this instance all of v. 12 is one question. It has been broken into two sentences for the sake of English style (instead of “for he” the Greek reads “who”).

[4:13]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “answered and said to her.”

[4:13]  ⁴⁶ tn Grk “will thirst.”

[4:14]  ⁴⁷ tn Grk “will never be thirsty forever.” The possibility of a later thirst is emphatically denied.

[4:14]  ⁴⁸ tn Or “well.” “Fountain” is used as the translation for πηγή (phgh) here since the idea is that of an artesian well that flows freely, but the term “artesian well” is not common in contemporary English.

[4:14]  ⁴⁹ tn The verb ἁλλομένου (Jallomenou) is used of quick movement (like jumping) on the part of living beings. This is the only instance of its being applied to the action of water. However, in the LXX it is used to describe the “Spirit of God” as it falls on Samson and Saul. See Judg 14:6, 19; 15:14; 1 Kgdms 10:2, 10 LXX (= 1 Sam 10:6, 10 ET); and Isa 35:6 (note context).

[4:15]  ⁵⁰ tn Grk “or come here to draw.”

[4:15]  ⁵¹ tn The direct object of the infinitive ἀντλεῖν (antlein) is understood in Greek but supplied for clarity in the English translation.

[7:37]  ⁵² sn There is a problem with the identification of this reference to the last day of the feast, the greatest day: It appears from Deut 16:13 that the feast went for seven days. Lev 23:36, however, makes it plain that there was an eighth day, though it was mentioned separately from the seven. It is not completely clear whether the seventh or eighth day was the climax of the feast, called here by the author the “last great day of the feast.” Since according to the Mishnah (m. Sukkah 4.1) the ceremonies with water and lights did not continue after the seventh day, it seems more probable that this is the day the author mentions.

[7:37]  ⁵³ tn Grk “Jesus stood up and cried out, saying.”

[7:38]  ⁵⁴ tn An alternate way of punctuating the Greek text of vv. 37-38 results in this translation: “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. The one who believes in me, just as the scripture says, ‘From within him will flow rivers of living water.’” John 7:37-38 has been the subject of considerable scholarly debate. Certainly Jesus picks up on the literal water used in the ceremony and uses it figuratively. But what does the figure mean? According to popular understanding, it refers to the coming of the Holy Spirit to dwell in the believer. There is some difficulty in locating an OT text which speaks of rivers of water flowing from within such a person, but Isa 58:11 is often suggested: “The Lord will continually lead you, he will feed you even in parched regions. He will give you renewed strength, and you will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring that continually produces water.” Other passages which have been suggested are Prov 4:23 and 5:15; Isa 44:3 and 55:1; Ezek 47:1 ff.; Joel 3:18; and Zech 13:1 and 14:8. The meaning in this case is that when anyone comes to believe in Jesus the scriptures referring to the activity of the Holy Spirit in a person’s life are fulfilled. “When the believer comes to Christ and drinks he not only slakes his thirst but receives such an abundant supply that veritable rivers flow from him” (L. Morris, John [NICNT], 424-25). In other words, with this view, the believer himself becomes the source of the living water. This is the traditional understanding of the passage, often called the “Eastern interpretation” following Origen, Athanasius, and the Greek Fathers. It is supported by such modern scholars as Barrett, Behm, Bernard, Cadman, Carson, R. H. Lightfoot, Lindars, Michaelis, Morris, Odeberg, Schlatter, Schweizer, C. H. Turner, M. M. B. Turner, Westcott, and Zahn. In addition it is represented by the following Greek texts and translations: KJV, RSV, NASB, NA²⁷, and UBS⁴. D. A. Carson, John, 322-29, has a thorough discussion of the issues and evidence although he opts for the previous interpretation. There is another interpretation possible, however, called the “Western interpretation” because of patristic support by Justin, Hippolytus, Tertullian, and Irenaeus. Modern scholars who favor this view are Abbott, Beasley-Murray, Bishop, Boismard, Braun, Brown, Bullinger, Bultmann, Burney, Dodd, Dunn, Guilding, R. Harris, Hoskyns, Jeremias, Loisy, D. M. Stanley, Thüsing, N. Turner, and Zerwick. This view is represented by the translation in the RSV margin and by the NEB. It is also sometimes called the “christological interpretation” because it makes Jesus himself the source of the living water in v. 38, by punctuating as follows: (37b) ἐάν τι διψᾷ ἐρχέσθω πρός με, καὶ πινέτω (38) ὁ πιστεύων εἰς ἐμέ. Καθὼς εἶπεν ἡ γραφή, ποταμοὶ ἐκ τῆς κοιλίας αὐτοῦ ῥεύσουσιν ὕδατος ζῶντος. Three crucial questions are involved in the solution of this problem: (1) punctuation; (2) determining the antecedent of αὐτοῦ (autou); and (3) the source of the scripture quotation. With regard to (1) Ì⁶⁶ does place a full stop after πινέτω (pinetw), but this may be theologically motivated and could have been added later. Grammatical and stylistic arguments are inconclusive. More important is (2) the determination of the antecedent of αὐτοῦ. Can any other Johannine parallels be found which make the believer the source of the living water? John 4:14 is often mentioned in this regard, but unlike 4:14 the water here becomes a source for others also. Neither does 14:12 provide a parallel. Furthermore, such an interpretation becomes even more problematic in light of the explanation given in v. 39 that the water refers to the Holy Spirit, since it is extremely difficult to see the individual believer becoming the ‘source’ of the Spirit for others. On the other hand, the Gospel of John repeatedly places Jesus himself in this role as source of the living water: 4:10, of course, for the water itself; but according to 20:22 Jesus provides the Spirit (cf. 14:16). Furthermore, the symbolism of 19:34 is difficult to explain as anything other than a deliberate allusion to what is predicted here. This also explains why the Spirit cannot come to the disciples unless Jesus “departs” (16:7). As to (3) the source of the scripture quotation, M. E. Boismard has argued that John is using a targumic rendering of Ps 78:15-16 which describes the water brought forth from the rock in the wilderness by Moses (“Les citations targumiques dans le quatrième évangile,” RB 66 [1959]: 374-78). The frequency of Exodus motifs in the Fourth Gospel (paschal lamb, bronze serpent, manna from heaven) leads quite naturally to the supposition that the author is here drawing on the account of Moses striking the rock in the wilderness to bring forth water (Num 20:8 ff.). That such imagery was readily identified with Jesus in the early church is demonstrated by Paul’s understanding of the event in 1 Cor 10:4. Jesus is the Rock from which the living water – the Spirit – will flow. Carson (see note above) discusses this imagery although he favors the traditional or “Eastern” interpretation. In summary, the latter or “Western” interpretation is to be preferred.

[7:38]  ⁵⁵ tn Or “out of the innermost part of his person”; Grk “out of his belly.”

[7:38]  ⁵⁶ sn An OT quotation whose source is difficult to determine; Isa 44:3, 55:1, 58:11, and Zech 14:8 have all been suggested.

[7:39]  ⁵⁷ tn Grk “for the Spirit was not yet.” Although only B and a handful of other NT mss supply the participle δεδομένον (dedomenon), this is followed in the translation to avoid misunderstanding by the modern English reader that prior to this time the Spirit did not exist. John’s phrase is expressed from a human standpoint and has nothing to do with the preexistence of the third Person of the Godhead. The meaning is that the era of the Holy Spirit had not yet arrived; the Spirit was not as yet at work in a way he later would be because Jesus had not yet returned to his Father. Cf. also Acts 19:2.

[7:39]  ⁵⁸ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[21:6]  ⁵⁹ tn Or “It has happened.”

[21:6]  ⁶⁰ tn The word “water” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects were frequently omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

[21:6]  ⁶¹ tn Or “as a free gift” (see L&N 57.85).