But a time is coming and has now comeThis phrase indicates a pivotal moment in redemptive history. Jesus speaks of a transition from the old covenant, centered on physical locations and rituals, to the new covenant, which emphasizes spiritual worship. This reflects the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies, such as
Jeremiah 31:31-34, which foretold a new covenant where God's law would be written on hearts rather than stone.
when the true worshipers
The term "true worshipers" distinguishes those who genuinely seek God from those who merely follow religious rituals. This echoes the call for sincerity in worship found throughout the Old Testament, such as inIsaiah 29:13, where God criticizes those who honor Him with their lips while their hearts are far from Him.
will worship the Father
The focus on "the Father" highlights the personal and relational nature of worship in the new covenant. This relationship is made possible through Jesus Christ, who reveals the Father (John 1:18) and provides access to Him (John 14:6). It underscores the shift from a distant, ritualistic worship to an intimate, familial relationship with God.
in spirit and in truth
Worship "in spirit" refers to the inner, heartfelt devotion that transcends physical locations and rituals. It aligns with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, who enables believers to connect with God on a spiritual level (Romans 8:9-16). "In truth" emphasizes worship that is grounded in the reality of who God is, as revealed in Scripture and through Jesus Christ, who is the truth (John 14:6). This dual emphasis ensures that worship is both sincere and doctrinally sound.
for the Father is seeking such as these to worship Him
This phrase reveals God's active desire for genuine worshipers. It reflects His initiative in salvation, as He draws people to Himself (John 6:44). The idea of God seeking worshipers underscores His love and grace, as He desires a relationship with humanity. It also connects to the broader biblical narrative of God calling a people for Himself, as seen in passages like1 Peter 2:9.
Persons / Places / Events
1.
JesusThe central figure in this passage, Jesus is speaking to the Samaritan woman at the well, revealing profound truths about worship and the nature of God.
2.
Samaritan WomanA woman from Samaria who encounters Jesus at Jacob's well. Her conversation with Jesus leads to a revelation about true worship.
3.
Jacob's WellThe location where Jesus meets the Samaritan woman. It is a significant historical and religious site for both Jews and Samaritans.
4.
SamariaThe region where this encounter takes place, highlighting the cultural and religious tensions between Jews and Samaritans.
5.
The FatherRefers to God, whom Jesus describes as seeking true worshipers who worship in spirit and truth.
Teaching Points
True Worship DefinedTrue worship is not confined to a specific location or ritual but is characterized by worshiping in spirit and truth. This means engaging with God sincerely and authentically, guided by the Holy Spirit.
God's Desire for WorshipersGod actively seeks those who will worship Him in spirit and truth. This highlights the relational aspect of worship, where God desires a genuine connection with His people.
Spirit and TruthWorshiping in spirit involves the heart and soul, empowered by the Holy Spirit, while worshiping in truth involves aligning with the truth of God's Word and the reality of who He is.
Cultural and Religious BarriersJesus' conversation with the Samaritan woman breaks down cultural and religious barriers, teaching us that true worship transcends human divisions.
Personal ReflectionBelievers are encouraged to examine their own worship practices, ensuring they are rooted in spirit and truth rather than mere tradition or obligation.
Bible Study Questions and Answers
1.What is the meaning of John 4:23?
2.How can we worship "in spirit and truth" in our daily lives?
3.What does John 4:23 reveal about God's expectations for true worshipers?
4.How does John 4:23 connect with Romans 12:1 on spiritual worship?
5.Why is worshiping "in spirit and truth" essential for a genuine relationship with God?
6.How can we ensure our worship aligns with the principles in John 4:23?
7.What does "true worshipers" mean in John 4:23?
8.How does John 4:23 define worship "in spirit and truth"?
9.Why does God seek worshipers according to John 4:23?
10.What are the top 10 Lessons from John 4?
11.What are Kierkegaard's key ideas and notable works?
12.What is the church's purpose in worship?
13.What defines a true worshiper?
14.What are the different styles of worship?What Does John 4:23 Mean
But a time is coming and has now comeJesus tells the Samaritan woman that a brand-new era of worship is breaking in right before her eyes.
• Old-covenant sacrifices centered on Jerusalem were about to give way to the once-for-all sacrifice of Christ (John 2:19;Hebrews 10:19-20).
• “The fullness of time” had arrived with the incarnation (Galatians 4:4-5).
• Promises of a new covenant written on hearts were being fulfilled (Jeremiah 31:31-34).
Because Jesus is present, the future has already begun; worship is no longer tied to a mountain but to the Messiah standing at the well.
when the true worshipersThe Lord draws a line between outward religion and genuine devotion.
• Many honored God with lips while their hearts were far from Him (Isaiah 29:13;Matthew 15:8-9).
• True worshipers are those whose hearts have been changed, not merely those who follow rituals (Romans 2:28-29).
• Authenticity matters: God knows the difference between performance and devotion (1 Samuel 16:7).
will worship the Father in spirit and in truthTwo inseparable qualities mark acceptable worship.
• In spirit
– Empowered by the Holy Spirit, not confined to a place or ceremony (Philippians 3:3;Romans 8:15-16).
– From the depths of a redeemed heart, expressing love, repentance, thanksgiving, and trust (Psalm 51:17).
• In truth
– Grounded in the revelation of God’s Word (John 17:17;Psalm 119:160).
– Centered on Jesus, “the way and the truth and the life” (John 14:6).
Practical outworking:
• Engage Scripture so thoughts align with God’s truth.
• Sing songs that reflect biblical doctrine.
• Pray honestly, guided by the Spirit rather than rote formulas.
• Obey what God has said; lived truth is worship (Romans 12:1).
for the Father is seeking such as these to worship HimGod is not passive; He actively pursues people who will respond to His grace.
• The Son “came to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10).
• Believers are chosen and adopted for the praise of His glory (Ephesians 1:4-6).
• Our love is a response to His first loving us (1 John 4:19).
This divine initiative means everyone—Jew, Samaritan, or Gentile—may become a true worshiper through faith in Christ. The Father delights in hearts that echo His own holiness and truth.
summaryJohn 4:23 announces the dawning of the new covenant: with Jesus’ arrival, worship is no longer about sacred sites but about sacred hearts. God now gathers people who, by the Spirit and anchored in Scripture’s truth, adore Him genuinely. He Himself seeks such worshipers, inviting all who believe in Christ to draw near and glorify Him with authenticity and fidelity.
(23)
But the hour cometh.--Better, as in
John 4:21,
but there cometh an hour. He adds to this thought, what He could not add to the previous one, "and now is." Local worship was not yet giving way to spiritual; but a band of true worshippers was being gathered, and some were then following Him.
The true worshippers.--Her distinction of place was of the accident, but the essence was the nature of the worship. What could any worship be to a God who saw the impurity of the heart, and the contradiction of thought and word? What couldshe know of the worship of which she speaks? Yes; and the temple at Jerusalem was a house of merchandise, instead of one of prayer; what did priest and Levite, scribe and Pharisee, know of true worship?
In spirit and in truth.--The link between human nature and the divine is in the human spirit, which is the shrine of the Holy Spirit (1Corinthians 6:19). All true approach to God must therefore be in spirit. (Comp.Romans 1:9, andEphesians 6:18.) Place, and time, and words, and postures, and sounds, and all things from without, are important only in so far as they aid in abstraction from the sensible world, and in elevation of the spirit within. The moment they distract they hinder true worship. Ritual cannot be discussed without risk of spiritual loss. The words "in truth," already expressed intrue worshippers, and repeated in the following verse, are more than "truly." Sincerity is not a test of acceptable worship, though it is a requisite. Bigots sincerely think they do God's service. Worship which is "in truth" is in harmony with the nature of the God whom we worship. To think of God in hearing His truth, to kindle the soul by hymns of praise, to realise the earlier portions of collects and prayers which utter His attributes, are necessary to the truth of the petitions, and thanksgivings, and adorations of worship. The model prayer of Christianity brings home to the heart the Fatherhood of God in its first words.
For the Father seeketh such to worship him.--Better,for such the Father also seeketh His worshippers to be. The word "such,"i.e., of this character, is emphatic. The "also" expresses that the worship, on the part of the true worshippers, is in accordance with the divine will: "the Father also (on His part) . . ." The reader will not fail to note the emphasis in this reply on the word "Father" (John 4:21 and twice in this verse). This name of God, which we teach children to lisp in earliest years, came to her, it may be, now for the first time. He is not Vengeance to be appeased, nor Power to be dreaded, but Love to be received. (Comp. Note onJohn 3:16.) It is when men learn to think of God as Father that merely local and material worship must cease. The universal desire and practice of worship is the witness to a universal object of worship. The yearning of the human spirit is that of a child seeking the author of his being. The seeking is not human only. The Father also seeketh His child, and seeth him when he is a great way off (Luke 15:20). . . .
Verse 23. -
But the hour cometh, and now is - already the day has dawned, the new conception is breaking like "awful rose of dawn" upon the minds of some -
when theveritableworshippers - those who answer to the idea of worshippers, those who actually draw near to the Father in living fellowship and affectionate appreciation of his eternal Name -
shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth. An old misreading of this text, accepted by some Fathers, and based upon the idea expressed in
John 16:13, has found expression in the Sinaitic Codex, "in the spirit of the truth." But "spirit" here does not refer to the Holy Spirit, but to the spirit of man - that part of man's constitution through which he most especially bears the image of God, and with which the Divine Spirit deals, and in which he dwells (
Romans 8:26). The worship in spirit is worship contrasted with all mere carnal concomitants, all mere shadows of the good things to come, all mere ritual, all specialties of place, or time, or sacrament, or order. It need not be in despite of a genuine reverence for days, or seasons, or postures, or washings, but in absolute independence of them, and they, without this, will be actually valueless.
And in truth;
i.e. as dealing with reality, the adequate and veracious expression of genuine desires and veritable emotions;
καὶ γὰρ,
nam et (ver. 9).
For indeed also the Father seeketh such to be his worshippers. Luthardt and Meyer differ as to the emphasis. Meyer insists that the
καὶ γάρ lays stress on the word which immediately follows, and he refers to
1 Corinthians 14:8 as not contradicting the rule. He would render, "For the Father also on his part seeketh," etc. Luthardt says that the new thought is to be found in
ζητεῖ, and therefore upon this the emphasis is laid. Westcott, by many passages, such as
Matthew 8:9;
Matthew 26:73;
Mark 10:45;
Luke 6:32, etc., urges that
καὶ γὰρ "alleges a reason which is assumed to be conclusive from the nature of the case." The whole sentence is therefore covered by the expression, "For the Father also on his part seeketh those as worshippers of him who worship him in spirit and in truth." A slight contrast is felt between the regimen of
προσκυνεῖν with accusative, here again introduced, following upon that with dative in the first clause. Moulton would render the first clause, "offer worship to the Father," and the second by "worship him." The Father is now seeking, by the ministry of his Son, by the gift of his Spirit, for those who approach him with deeply felt need and true affection, in spirit, not in ceremony, in truth, not in hypocritical or heartless profession. This is another indication of the high truth taught in the prologue (
John 1:4, 9;
John 3:21;
John 18:38, see notes) that there are vast differences among men, even anterior to their reception of the perfect revelation of the Father's heart in Christ Jesus. "The life is the light of men." There are those who "do the truth" and are "of the truth," who "worship God in spirit and in truth." The whole gospel dispensation is a search for these.
Parallel Commentaries ...
Greek
Butἀλλὰ(alla)Conjunction
Strong's 235:But, except, however. Neuter plural of allos; properly, other things, i.e. contrariwise.a timeὥρα(hōra)Noun - Nominative Feminine Singular
Strong's 5610:Apparently a primary word; an 'hour'.is comingἔρχεται(erchetai)Verb - Present Indicative Middle or Passive - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 2064:To come, go.andκαὶ(kai)Conjunction
Strong's 2532:And, even, also, namely.{has} nowνῦν(nyn)Adverb
Strong's 3568:A primary particle of present time; 'now'; also as noun or adjective present or immediate.comeἐστιν(estin)Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 1510:I am, exist. The first person singular present indicative; a prolonged form of a primary and defective verb; I exist.whenὅτε(hote)Adverb
Strong's 3753:When, at which time. From hos and te; at which too, i.e. When.theοἱ(hoi)Article - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3588:The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.TRUEἀληθινοὶ(alēthinoi)Adjective - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 228:True (lit: made of truth), real, genuine. From alethes; truthful.worshipersπροσκυνηταὶ(proskynētai)Noun - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 4353:A worshipper. From proskuneo; an adorer.will worshipπροσκυνήσουσιν(proskynēsousin)Verb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural
Strong's 4352:From pros and a probable derivative of kuon; to fawn or crouch to, i.e. prostrate oneself in homage.theτῷ(tō)Article - Dative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3588:The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.FatherΠατρὶ(Patri)Noun - Dative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3962:Father, (Heavenly) Father, ancestor, elder, senior. Apparently a primary word; a 'father'.inἐν(en)Preposition
Strong's 1722:In, on, among. A primary preposition denoting position, and instrumentality, i.e. A relation of rest; 'in, ' at, on, by, etc.spiritπνεύματι(pneumati)Noun - Dative Neuter Singular
Strong's 4151:Wind, breath, spirit.andκαὶ(kai)Conjunction
Strong's 2532:And, even, also, namely.in truth,ἀληθείᾳ(alētheia)Noun - Dative Feminine Singular
Strong's 225:From alethes; truth.forγὰρ(gar)Conjunction
Strong's 1063:For. A primary particle; properly, assigning a reason.theὁ(ho)Article - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3588:The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.FatherΠατὴρ(Patēr)Noun - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3962:Father, (Heavenly) Father, ancestor, elder, senior. Apparently a primary word; a 'father'.is seekingζητεῖ(zētei)Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 2212:To seek, search for, desire, require, demand. Of uncertain affinity; to seek; specially, to worship, or to plot.suchτοιούτους(toioutous)Demonstrative Pronoun - Accusative Masculine Plural
Strong's 5108:(including the other inflections); from toi and houtos; truly this, i.e. Of this sort (to denote character or individuality).as theseτοὺς(tous)Article - Accusative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3588:The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.to worshipπροσκυνοῦντας(proskynountas)Verb - Present Participle Active - Accusative Masculine Plural
Strong's 4352:From pros and a probable derivative of kuon; to fawn or crouch to, i.e. prostrate oneself in homage.Him.αὐτόν(auton)Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Accusative Masculine 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 846:He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.
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NT Gospels: John 4:23 But the hour comes and now (Jhn Jo Jn) 
