John 4:42

They said to the woman, “We now believe not only because of your words; we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man truly is the Savior of the world.”

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — The Samaritan villagers address the woman at the well after Jesus has stayed with them for two days and many others have come to faith. They speak to her following their own direct encounter with His teaching.

The words — The text records οὐκέτι (ouketi), meaning "no longer," and ἔλεγον (elegon), meaning "they were saying." These terms frame the villagers' declaration that their faith no longer rests solely on the woman's testimony.

The thread — This confession of Jesus as "Savior of the world" echoes 1 John 4:14 and John 1:29, which similarly identify His global redemptive role. The progression from secondhand testimony to direct hearing aligns with the sequence in John 4:41–43.

Why it lands — The verse requires readers to recognize that personal verification of Jesus’ words supersedes reliance on intermediaries. It demands a faith grounded in direct encounter rather than inherited belief.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Greek words

King James Version

And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.

Cross-references

1 John 4:14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent His Son to be the Savior of the world.
John 1:29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!
1 Timothy 4:10 To this end we labor and strive, because we have set our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of everyone, and especially of those who believe.
1 John 5:20 And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true—in His Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.
Acts 4:12 Salvation exists in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”
2 Corinthians 5:19 that God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ, not counting men’s trespasses against them. And He has committed to us the message of reconciliation.
John 3:14 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up,
John 6:68 Simon Peter replied, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words of eternal life.
Isaiah 45:22 Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other.
Isaiah 52:10 The LORD has bared His holy arm in the sight of all the nations; all the ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God.