What does John 4:7 mean?

Jesus' request was surprising for several reasons. First of all, in that era, men and women typically did not speak to each other in public—especially if they were not married or related. This was even more the case when they didn't already have some knowledge of each other. Secondly, the woman in question was a Samaritan. Samaritans were hated by most Jews to begin with. In fact, Rabbinic law declared that Samaritan women were perpetually unclean. Interacting with her, especially in a way that would involve contact and use of the same utensils, would have been unthinkable for a typical Rabbi. As the woman will note in verse 9, Jews typically refused even the slightest contact with Samaritans.

Given that this woman did not know Jesus, and they were completely alone (John 4:8), she might well have been nervous. She may have wondered what His intentions were, and why He was trying to talk to her. From a social standpoint, there were no obvious reasons why He would want to.