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NASB | John 4:18 for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; this you have said truly." |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | John 4:18 for you have had five husbands, and the man you are now living with is not your husband. You have said this truthfully." |
Bible Question:
What makes people say that the woman at the well in John 4 was "immoral?" I've heard the argument that because she went to the well alone means people wouldn't associate with her which means she was immoral. In any country I've been in where the woman have to go to the public water supply, they go all hours of the day - alone, together, young or old, they went WHEN they needed water. Rebecca went alone to the well in Gen 24, and she wasn't immoral. And, I've heard preachers claim that the woman kept trying to change the subject yet reading that section - she is the one which brought up "prophet" "worship" "the messiah". Am I missing something that should be obvious? |
Bible Answer: Hi TommyS, I have found this morning, that looking at Hosea along with John 4 can be enlightening. The idea of husbands and harlots or adulteresses are key to Hosea. I can envision the woman at the well and Jesus talking about Hosea. The idea that we can get from comparing them is that Jesus can show compassion on whom he shows compassion, and He will say to those who were not His people, "You are My people!" See Hosea 2:23. Jesus wants the woman to know Him as her "Husband". Hosea 2:16, "And it will come about in that day," declares the Lord, "That you will call Me, Ishi And will no longer call Me Baali. For I will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth, So that they will be mentioned by their names no more." Jesus does not judge the woman for he knows that the men also are the sinners. Hosea 4:14 says that "I will not punish your daughters when they play the harlot Or your brides when they commit adultery, For the men themselves go apart with harlots And offer sacrifices with temple prostitutes; So the people without understanding are ruined." And Hosea 5:4 says that "Their deeds will not allow them To return to their God. For a spirit of harlotry is within them, And they do not know the Lord." The men were coming to Him after hearing the word of the woman. James 4:8 says "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you." From the heart, Ray |