2026/01/26

232. The Gospel of John and the Priesthood of the New Covenant: The Evangelist John's Insights I

When Jesus's conversation with the Samaritan woman at Jacob's Well paused, the disciples who had gone into town to buy food returned. Observing the subsequent developments of the story, we understand the disciples learned of the events that happened during their absence. Drawing upon their experience, John the Evangelist seems to have incorporated his own insights into Chapter 4. He thereby put the foreshadowing for safeguarding and nurturing the priesthood of the New Covenant. To make this visible, we shall examine two scenes from the Bible that share the same narrative characteristics as this passage. We will compare their common features and consider the purpose towards which they are directed. These two scenes, like that of the encounter between Jesus and the Samaritan woman, take the form of dialogue. All three scenes share the common characteristic of beginning with the theme of "eating and drinking," passing through "life," and culminating in "worship." 

First, let us review the scene of Jesus' dialogue with the Samaritan woman (cf. Jn 4:7–24). Jesus began the conversation with her by saying, "Give me a drink" (4:7), introducing the theme of "eating and drinking." Next, in response to the Samaritan woman's question, He offered a teaching: "Every one who drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst; the water that I shall give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life" (4:13-14). Here, we find the theme of "life" through the phrase "to eternal life". Finally, the woman said, "You say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship" (4:20), and Jesus replied, "Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father" (4:21). This brings us to the theme of "worship." 

The first of the two scenes examined here is one from the Synoptic Gospels, depicting Jesus being tempted by Satan in the wilderness (cf. Mat 4:1–11). Approaching Jesus, who was hungry after fasting, Satan said, "Command these stones to become loaves of bread" (4:3), thus introducing the theme of "eating and drinking." After Jesus responded to this, Satan then challenged him: "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, 'He will give his angels charge of you,' and 'On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone'" (4:6). Here lies the theme of "life." Finally, Satan said to Jesus, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me" (4:9), thus arriving at the theme of "worship." 

The second scene is from Genesis, the dialogue between the first woman and the "serpent" (cf. Gen 3:1–9). The "serpent" addressed the woman, asking, "Did God say, 'You shall not eat of any tree of the garden'?" (3:1). Thus, the dialogue began with the theme of "eating and drinking." In the following exchange with the woman, the serpent asserts, "You will not die" (3:4). This is the theme of "life." Then, the woman took from the tree God had forbidden them to eat from and ate. She also gave some to the man who was with her, and he ate. Soon, the two hid themselves among the trees of the garden, avoiding the face of the Lord God. They could no longer encounter God as they had before. Thus, the story reached the theme of "worship." 

As such, these three scenes share a common characteristic: they begin with the theme of "eating and drinking," pass through that of "life," and arrive at "worship." And, as examined previously, the scene in Genesis leads directly to the moment where God suggests to Adam the priesthood. Similarly, the wilderness scene in Matthew's Gospel immediately follows with Jesus calling his first disciples. He would eventually confer upon them the priesthood of the New Covenant. 

Once Jesus's exchange with the Samaritan woman concludes, the disciples return. Then, a dialogue between Jesus and the disciples begins. What structure can we find in this dialogue? The text states: "Meanwhile the disciples besought him, saying, 'Rabbi, eat.' But he said to them, 'I have food to eat of which you do not know'" (Jn 4:31–32). Here, too, the theme of "eating and drinking" is introduced. To the disciples who ask each other, "Has any one brought him food?" (4:33), Jesus declares, "My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work" (4:34). 

The meaning of "the will of him who sent me" is as Jesus himself later said: "For this is the will of my Father, that every one who sees the Son and believes in him should have eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day" (Jn 6:40). The theme of "life" was in what Jesus called "my food." This directly connects to the theme of "worship" when Jesus answered the Samaritan woman, "Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father." 

That is because the "will of the Father" expressed in "For this is the will of my Father, that every one who sees the Son and believes in him should have eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day" only becomes possible when Jesus' following words are made a reality: "But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for such the Father seeks to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth" (Jn 4:23-24). The expression "in spirit and truth" signifies the union of the Holy Spirit and the priesthood of the New Covenant. Next time, we will continue exploring this theme, drawing closer to the insights of John the Evangelist. 

Maria K. M.