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John 4:13

ESV Jesus said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again,
NIV Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again,
NASB Jesus answered and said to her, 'Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again;
CSB Jesus said, "Everyone who drinks from this water will get thirsty again.
NLT Jesus replied, 'Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again.
KJV Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again:
NKJV Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again,

What does John 4:13 mean?

Here Jesus begins to unpack the concept of "living water." Listeners commonly misinterpreted Jesus' parables or teachings in a purely physical way. In some cases, those hearing Jesus sensed He wasn't being literal but could not see the point of the analogy (John 3:3–4). In others, they mistook the intended lesson (John 2:19–21). Jesus starts by explaining the difference between the literal well water, meaning the physical world, and living water, meaning the Holy Spirit. This is a concept Jesus will return to, in a much more public way, later in this gospel (John 7:38–39).

No matter how hard we try, earthly things will never satisfy the natural human longing for God. Writers from Augustine to C. S. Lewis have noted that human nature finds itself ultimately dissatisfied with material things. We seek all kinds of earthly "water" in attempts to quench our spiritual thirst. Only a healed relationship with God, through salvation in Christ, can solve that problem.
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What is the Gospel?
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