The Great Gospel of John
Volume 1
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
In the land of Judah all around Jerusalem and on the way to Samaria
- Chapter 25 -
Showing mercy to those who believed in the Lord strongly increased His following. Emergence of false gospels. The Lord walks through Samaria to Galilee. Attitude of the Samaritans. Sychar. The Lord takes a rest with his people at Jacob's Well.
1
Following these words of John, his disciples soon joined Me, and the number of My disciples kept growing from day to day, often from hour to hour. For everyone who began to believe in Me and upon whom I, according to the measure of his faith and following the baptism with water which was performed by My first disciples, had laid My hands, became filled with spiritual strength and courage and lost all fear of physical death.
2
Since many heard of this, they spread the news wherever they went, although I had forbidden it. Besides, all My deeds also, often with additions and exaggerations, were made known all over Judaea and with the Jews, who were always craving for miracles, this naturally resulted in the fact that every day more and ore of them came to Me and in many cases also stayed with Me.
3
But, regrettably, this had also the inevitable result that all this came to the ears of the Pharisees and, as already mentioned, with additions and exaggerations, some of which sounded so peculiar that even some Romans began to think that I would have to be either Zeus himself or at least one of his sons.
4
The Romans also, sent investigators to Me, but they did not find what they had been sent for. On those occasions I usually did not do any signs, so as to prevent these superstitious people from becoming even more obtuse than they already were.
5
From these exaggerations there eventually originated quite a number of false gospels which distorted the true one.
6
The Pharisees, these malicious and exceedingly jealous chiefs of the temple and the Scripture, promptly began to consult together how to put a stop to our activities. They planned either to do away with us in a seemingly harmless way or at least provide for us a lifelong accommodation in an institution - nicely situated underground - as they later on managed to arrange with Herod for John (the Baptist).
7
That I was quite aware of these noble intentions is, of course, obvious but, in order to avoid scuffles and annoying rows, I had no option but to leave the ultramontane, dark Judaea and go to the more liberal Galilee.
8
It was even not advisable to travel the direct road to Galilee, but rather through Samaria which with the help of the Romans had already long since freed itself from the Priesthood of the temple (an easy and desirable task for the Romans whose principle it was anyway to split up the lands to make it easier to govern them).
9
Because of this, the Samaritans were in the eyes of the priesthood in Jerusalem also the most despicable and blasphemous people on earth. On the other hand, the priests of Jerusalem had with the Samaritans such a reputation that they usually described the worst possible thing with the name of a temple priest. If, for instance, a Samaritan in a state of unjustified agitation said to someone, "You Pharisee!" the thus abused sued the offender who often had to pay for his indiscretion with a stiff fine and imprisonment for years. Of course, it is obvious that a Pharisee or other priest would have been ill-advised to enter Samaria. This proved most useful to Me and all those who followed Me, for in Samaria we were safe from the evil persecution by the templers.
10
The road rant through Sychar, a town near the ancient little village which Jacob gave his son Joseph on his birth, together with the inhabitants of the little village consisting mainly of shepherds whom he received with Rachel as her dowry. The town of Sychar was not exactly a leading city of this land, but many very wealthy Samaritans were living there, as well as many a rich Roman, as this town was beautifully situated and the whole region very healthy.
11
According to the present calculation] of time, we set out from Judaea already at about 4 o'clock in the morning, walked briskly without a rest and arrived at exactly 12 noon, which was then the 6th hour, at the ancient Jacob's well which was situated some 40 paces in front of the little village in the direction of Sychar. This well had a very good spring, was enclosed by a curb gracefully chiselled in the old style and surrounded by shady trees.
12
Since it was midsummer, the day was hot and My body had become very tired after the strenuous journey. All those who had followed Me from Judaea and already earlier from Galilee sought in their exhaustion shelter and a most desirable rest, partly in the little village, partly under shady trees.
13
Even the first disciples, that is, Peter, My John the Evangelist, Andrew, Thomas, Philip and Nathanael, threw themselves down in the rich grass under the trees. I alone, although very tired too, seated Myself on the stone curb of the well knowing beforehand that there soon would be a good opportunity to have a useful discussion at the well with the stubborn but otherwise more open-minded Samaritans. At the same time, I was already very thirsty and waiting for a vessel to draw water, for which a disciple had gone into the village, but had not returned with it yet.