3rd Sunday of Lent, Year A– March 8, 2026
Exodus 17:3-7; Romans 5:1-2, 5-8; John 4:5-42
Theme: The Living Water and The Divine Identity of Jesus
A. Exegetical
Analysis of Jn 4:5-42
1.
Historical
and Literary Contexts
The
story of John the Baptist’s final witness about Jesus (3:22-36) precedes and
sets the background for our text. Jesus spent time with his disciples, who were
baptizing many people in the region of Judea. John the Baptist was also
baptizing people in Aenon near Salim. John’s disciples raised a dispute about
why many people were going to Jesus’ baptism, administered by Jesus’ disciples,
and not by Jesus himself (see 4:1-2). In his answer, John the Baptist testified
that Jesus was the Messiah, not him. Due to this dispute, and especially
because the Pharisees became aware of how Jesus was making more disciples,
Jesus decided to leave Judea and return to Galilee, where he had to pass
through Samaria (4:1-4). Our Gospel story picks up from here. It is in the
context of Jesus’ self-revelation to the Samaritans. The story of the second
sign at Cana (4:43-54) follows our account.
2. Form,
Structure, and Movement
Our
Gospel passage is a narrative story filled with metaphors. Vv. 5-6 serve as an
introduction, while v. 43, which the lectionary has omitted, can be seen as a
conclusion. The body of the text (vv. 7-42) contains three movements. The first
movement (vv. 7-15) involves a conversation about Living Water. The second
movement (vv. 16-26) addresses Jesus’ divine identity. In the third movement (vv.
27-42), the woman and her townspeople recognize Jesus as the Messiah.
3. Detailed
Analysis
Vv.
5-6. There was significant conflict between the Jews and Samaritans during both
the time before and during Jesus. They share the same patriarch, Jacob, the
ancestor of Israel's twelve tribes. After Solomon's death, Israel divided into
two kingdoms. Ten tribes of Jacob (Asher, Dan, Ephraim, Gad, Issachar,
Manasseh, Naphtali, Reuben, Simeon, and Zebulun) established the independent
kingdom of Israel in the north, with Samaria as its capital. The other two
tribes (Judah and Benjamin) formed their own kingdom in the south, known as the
Kingdom of Judah, with Jerusalem as its capital. The Assyrians conquered the
northern kingdom in 722 BC, deporting the Israelites to Assyria and bringing in
five foreign nations that intermarried with the Israelites who remained. The
descendants of these remaining Israelites and the five foreign nations are
identified as Samaritans, who worshipped the gods of those nations. The
deported Israelites never returned, and the biblical tradition identifies them
as the “lost sheep of Israel.”
The
descendants of the Southern kingdom of Judah are known as the Jews. The
Babylonians overthrew them in 587/586 B.C. They returned from the Babylonian
exile to Jerusalem in the late 500s B.C. Since their return, their relationship
with the Samaritans has been poor, as they accused them of losing the right to
be “God’s chosen people” due to intermarrying with foreign nations and
worshiping pagan gods. Bit by bit, the Samaritans abandoned the worship of
foreign gods and returned to worshiping the God of Israel. However, the Jews
still prohibited them from worshiping in Jerusalem, which is considered the
only legitimate place for worship according to the covenant with David (see the
comments of the Samaritan woman in our Gospel passage in v. 20b). In response,
the Samaritans, in the fourth century, built their own Temple on Mount Gerizim
(that our Gospel refers to in v. 20a) to rival Mount Zion in Jerusalem.
In
its spiritual sense, the woman represents all the Samaritans. The five husbands
married to the Samaritan woman mentioned in v. 18 of our Gospel passage allude
to the five foreign nations that intermarried with the Israelites and the five
foreign gods that the people of Israel worshiped.
Vv. 7-15. Jesus opens the conversation with a
simple command: “Give me a drink.” The woman attempts to halt the conversation
with a question that carries a hint of mockery (v. 9). She points out to Jesus
that the discussion he seeks to start is illogical due to the conflicts between
the Jews and Samaritans. Jesus refrains from commenting on their conflict but
persists with the topic of water, introducing two shifts. First, he shifts the
subject from regular water to “living water.” Second, he alters the roles that
he and the woman play in this conversation: Jesus, who initially asked, becomes
the giver, while the woman, who was previously the giver, becomes the one who
asks. For these two shifts to take effect, the woman must first recognize two
facts or truths: (1) The gift of God identified as the living water and (2) the
divine identity of Jesus who speaks to her (v. 10). These two facts form the
essential foundation for the entire conversation.
The
story continues with the theme of living water as God’s gift. The woman
questions what Jesus will do to obtain the “supposed living water” from the
well since he does not have a bucket and the pool is deep (v. 11). Previously,
in v. 9, she referred to Jesus as a “Jew,” but here she calls him “Sir,” which
shows a slight improvement in how she relates to Jesus. She compares Jesus to
their patriarch, Jacob. This indicates that at this point, she cannot see
beyond their tradition, which regards Jacob as the greatest because he provided
them with the pool that continues to sustain their lives (v. 12). In his reply,
Jesus contrasts the water from Jacob’s well with the living water that he
offers, suggesting that he is greater than Jacob. People who drink the water
from that well will be thirsty again, but those who drink the living water
Jesus provides will never thirst, for it will become a spring of water welling
up to eternal life (vv. 13-14). Then, this woman asks Jesus to give her the
water he speaks of (v. 15). However, she remains focused on physical water and
thirst because, thus far, her faith in Jesus is based on material rather than
spiritual needs.
Vv.
16-26. The narrator shifts the topic from the “living water” to “Jesus’ divine
identity.” Jesus reveals to this woman her secret about the five “husbands” she
had in her life (vv. 16-18). Here, the woman represents all the Samaritans, and
the “five husbands” allude to the five foreign gods worshiped by the
Samaritans. This indicates that Jesus exposes the unfaithfulness of the
Samaritans without judging them because his goal is to call them to repentance
and extend God’s salvation to them. Following this revelation, the woman confesses
that Jesus is a “prophet.” “Sir, I can see that you are a prophet.” (V. 19).
Her faith journey is improving. She moves from referring to Jesus as a “Jew” in
v. 9, then as “Sir” in vv. 11 and 15, to calling him a “prophet” here in v. 19.
The
Samaritan woman feels guilty because Jesus knows her secret sins. She questions
Jesus about the correct place to confess her sins and worship God: The temple
on Mount Zion in Jerusalem (for the Jews) or the temple on Mount Gerizim in
Samaria (for the Samaritans) (V. 20). Jesus’ answer is a prophecy about extending
his Church to all nations when the believers will no longer need to come to
these two Mountains to worship God (v. 21). His declaration in v. 22 means that
the salvation story continues with the Jews, who are the descendants of the
southern kingdom of Judah since the Samaritans mixed their faith in God with
other pagan gods and the Israelites from the northern kingdom were deported by
the Assyrians and never returned. So, in his answer, Jesus asserts that the salvation
that was primarily for the Jews is now extended to all true worshipers, who
will worship the Father in Spirit and truth. God seeks such worshipers, and he
came to seek the Samaritans to become part of these worshipers (vv. 23-24). The
expression in Spirit and truth is “not a reference to an interior
worship within one’s own spirit. The Spirit is the spirit given by God that
reveals truth and enables one to worship God appropriately (Jn 14:16-17. Cf.
‘born of water and Spirit’ (Jn 3:5).”[1]
The
woman’s reply in v. 25 connects Jesus’ explanation about the correct place to
worship God to what the Samaritans believe about the forthcoming Messiah: They
believe that it is the Messiah who, when he comes, will answer this question to
end the dispute between them and the Jews (v. 25). Here, it is Jesus who
answers this question and resolves their quarrel with the Jews. Jesus confirms
to her that “I am he,” meaning, I am the Messiah you are waiting for (v. 26).
The expression “I am he,” which can also be translated as “I AM,” is the
expression that the Old Testament used to refer to Yahweh (see Is 43:3). So,
here, Jesus is asserting that he is both the Messiah and God.
Vv.
27-42. The journey of faith for this woman comes to its fullness: Jesus is no
longer “a Jew” (see v.9), or “a Sir” (see vv. 11, 15), or “a Prophet” (see v.
19), but now the Messiah. This faith transforms her into a missionary. She
leaves her water jar and goes to share her experience with the townspeople.
Leaving her water jar symbolizes abandoning everything in favor of prioritizing
the proclamation of the Gospel. The townspeople believe in Jesus thanks to the
mission work of this woman (vv. 29-30, 39). However, they deepen their faith
when they have their own experience with Jesus (see vv. 40-42). Vv. 31-38
captures Jesus’ conversation with his disciples. He tells them that the mission
to do his Father’s will is his primary “food.” In their absence, he fulfilled
this mission; he extended salvation to the Samaritans through this woman.
4. Synthesis
The
Jews did not consider the Samaritans to be the chosen people, yet Jesus
extended salvation to them through a woman he met at Jacob’s well (vv. 5-6).
The conversation unfolded in three stages and developed two essential topics:
The Living Water as the Gift of God and (2) the revelation of Jesus’ divine
identity. The first stage (vv. 7-15) focused on the Living Water as the Gift of
God. Here, Jesus led this woman to believe that he is the Living Water, which,
upon drinking it, becomes a spring of water welling up to eternal life. In the
second stage (vv. 16-26), Jesus systematically helped this woman discover his
divine identity. In the third stage (vv. 27-42), the woman became a missionary
who spread news of Jesus to her townspeople. The Samaritans first believed in
Jesus because of her missionary work, and later, they deepened their faith, no
longer based on her words but on their own experience with Jesus.
B. Pastoral
Implications
1. The
Liturgical Context
2. What
the Church Teaches Us Today
Today, Jesus meets
each of us as he met the Samaritan woman in our Gospel. The well symbolizes the
baptistery and font where the catechumens will be baptized, and all of us, the
baptized, will renew our baptismal promises at this coming Easter vigil. Our
encounter with Jesus in the baptismal font of our Church will signify the
moment of the full light of our faith in Christ.
In vv. 7-15, Jesus
opens the conversation by asking for water because he is thirsty. In a
spiritual sense, Jesus thirsts not for water but for extending salvation (the
gift of God) and revealing his divine identity to the Samaritans. Jesus
continues to feel “thirsty” even today. Jesus’ thirst is the Church’s thirst
and our thirst. As Jesus’ followers, our mission is to extend God’s salvation
to our brothers and sisters, including those we consider enemies, and help them
believe in Jesus as the Messiah, who came to lead us to the full light of our
faith in God through the water of baptism. In our Gospel, the woman tries to
stop this conversation, reminding Jesus of the conflict between the Samaritans
(represented by the woman) and the Jews (represented by Jesus). People may also
prevent us from evangelizing them. Like Jesus, let us not give up because their
salvation matters.
Then, the Samaritan
woman compares Jesus to their patriarch, Jacob. At this point, she cannot go
beyond their tradition, which considers Jacob the greatest because he gave them
this pool, which continues to save their lives (v. 12). Like this woman, we sometimes
allow our human traditions and convictions to prevent us from believing in
Jesus. Our relationship with Jesus should be based not on material but on
spiritual needs. For instance, we attend Mass, serve our Church in different
ministries, and help people in our community not because we want Jesus to pay
us back, but out of gratitude for his love.
In vv. 16-26, the
narrator shifts the topic from the “living water” to “Jesus’ divine identity.”
Through the woman in our Gospel, Jesus reveals how the Samaritans are
unfaithful to God without passing judgment, as his goal is to call them to
repentance and extend God’s salvation to them.
Jesus continues to unveil the secrets of our hearts to each of us. He
knows us better than we know ourselves. He highlights our infidelity without
judging us because his mission is to prompt us to repent and embrace the salvation
he offers. In our second reading, Saint Paul tells us that Jesus died for us
and justified us. Then, Saint Paul invites us to claim this justification
through our faith in Jesus, hope in eternal salvation, and love for God and our
brothers and sisters. We can achieve this only by regularly attending Mass and
worshiping our God in “spirit and truth” in our local Churches, as Jesus
prophesies to the woman in our Gospel (see v. 21).
In vv. 27-42, the
narrator reveals how this woman's faith journey reaches its fullness. She
believes Jesus to be the Messiah and becomes his missionary, abandoning
everything to prioritize the proclamation of the Gospel to her townspeople.
Once our faith reaches its fullness at the end of this Lenten journey, the
catechumens will receive the sacraments of initiation, and all of us, the
baptized, will renew our baptismal promises during this Easter Vigil. Then,
like the woman in our Gospel, we will become missionaries who prioritize
proclaiming the Word of God to our brothers and sisters, inviting them to come
to Jesus and experience him for themselves. The Samaritan people in our Gospel
first believed in Jesus through the woman’s missionary work, and later, they
deepened their faith through their own experience with Jesus. This signifies
that we build our faith on what others (priests, parents, schoolteachers,
catechists, etc.) tell us about Jesus and what we learn during this Lenten
season. We should not stop there. After the sacraments of initiation (for the
catechumens) and the renewal of the baptismal promises (for the baptized)
during the Easter Vigil, we will be called to deepen our faith by starting our
own one-on-one relationship with Jesus.
May this Eucharistic
celebration enable us to experience Jesus, mature our faith in him, and become
his missionaries wherever we live. Amen.
Rev. Leon Ngandu, SVD
Pastor of Holy Family Catholic Church,
Jackson, MS &
SVD USS Biblical Apostolate Coordinator
