John 4:39
ESV
Many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman 's testimony, "He told me all that I ever did."
NIV
Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, "He told me everything I ever did."
NASB
Now from that city many of the Samaritans believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, 'He told me all the things that I have done.'
CSB
Now many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of what the woman said when she testified, "He told me everything I ever did."
NLT
Many Samaritans from the village believed in Jesus because the woman had said, 'He told me everything I ever did!'
KJV
And many of the Samaritans of that city believed on him for the saying of the woman, which testified, He told me all that ever I did.
NKJV
And many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, “He told me all that I ever did.”
What does John 4:39 mean?
This is an interesting verse for several reasons. First , in that time and place, the testimony of a woman was considered unreliable. Women could only testify in court if three or four of them had co-witnessed the same event. And yet, it was the word of a woman which brought these Samaritans to meet Jesus (John 4:28–30). Strictly speaking, this verse is not saying that the people of town were saved on account of the woman's story. Rather, it was her story which led them to meet Jesus, resulting in their belief and salvation.The other interesting point is that Jesus' extensive knowledge is specifically mentioned. In that place and time, a woman's opinion might have been pointless under normal circumstances. However, this woman might well have had less-than-honorable connections to other men in town (John 4:17–18). When she said that Jesus knew "all" she had done, that might have made some people nervous enough to go investigate.
This is also a prime example of why evangelism efforts are never wasted. There is no such thing as a person too far gone, too sinful, or too unimportant to share the gospel with. A lowly, outcast Samaritan woman was so impressed by Jesus that she sparked a revival in her town! The impact of her actions are still being felt in the Christian world today.
