And many more believedThis phrase highlights the growing faith among the Samaritans, a group traditionally at odds with the Jews. The context of this passage is Jesus' encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well, which led to her testimony about Him. The Samaritans' belief signifies a breaking of cultural and religious barriers, as they were considered heretical by the Jews. This event foreshadows the later spread of the Gospel to the Gentiles, as seen in
Acts 1:8, where Jesus commands His disciples to be witnesses "in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
because of His message.
The term "message" refers to the words and teachings of Jesus, which were powerful enough to inspire faith. Unlike the initial belief of the Samaritans, which was based on the woman's testimony, this belief was directly due to Jesus' own words. This underscores the authority and truth of Jesus' teachings, as seen inJohn 6:63, where He states, "The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life." The emphasis on His message also points to the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies about the coming of a prophet like Moses, as mentioned inDeuteronomy 18:15, who would speak God's words to the people.
Persons / Places / Events
1.
Jesus ChristThe central figure in this passage, whose words lead many to believe. His interaction with the Samaritan woman at the well is the catalyst for the events in this chapter.
2.
SamaritansThe people of the town of Sychar in Samaria, who come to believe in Jesus through His words and the testimony of the Samaritan woman.
3.
The Samaritan WomanInitially encounters Jesus at the well and becomes a witness to her townspeople, leading them to seek Jesus themselves.
4.
SycharA town in Samaria where Jesus speaks to the Samaritan woman and where many come to believe in Him.
5.
The DisciplesFollowers of Jesus who witness the events and learn from His interactions with the Samaritans.
Teaching Points
The Power of the WordJesus' words have the power to transform lives and lead to belief. We should prioritize reading and meditating on Scripture to strengthen our faith.
The Role of Personal TestimonyThe Samaritan woman's testimony led others to seek Jesus. Our personal accounts of faith can be powerful tools for evangelism.
Breaking Cultural BarriersJesus' interaction with the Samaritans shows that the Gospel transcends cultural and ethnic boundaries. We should be open to sharing the Gospel with all people.
Faith Beyond SightThe Samaritans believed because of Jesus' word, not just His miracles. True faith often requires trusting in God's word even when we cannot see.
Community ImpactThe belief of many Samaritans demonstrates the potential for community transformation when individuals encounter Christ. We should pray for and work towards the spiritual renewal of our communities.
Bible Study Questions and Answers
1.What is the meaning of John 4:41?
2.How can we emulate the Samaritans' belief in Jesus from John 4:41?
3.What does John 4:41 teach about the power of Jesus' words?
4.How does John 4:41 connect to Romans 10:17 about faith and hearing?
5.In what ways can we strengthen our faith through Jesus' teachings today?
6.How can we share Jesus' message to inspire belief like in John 4:41?
7.How does John 4:41 demonstrate the power of Jesus' words in converting the Samaritans?
8.What historical evidence supports the events described in John 4:41?
9.How does John 4:41 reflect the theme of belief without seeing?
10.What are the top 10 Lessons from John 4?
11.How did Christianity originate and develop initially?
12.What are the key events in the Book of Acts?
13.In John 17:6, why would an omnipresent God reveal Himself only to a select few, rather than all people globally?
14.What evidence supports Jesus Christ's resurrection?What Does John 4:41 Mean
And- The tiny conjunction tiesJohn 4:41 to what just happened in Sychar. The Samaritan woman’s testimony drew her neighbors to Jesus, and “they asked Him to stay with them, and He stayed two days” (John 4:40).
- Scripture loves these connecting words because they show God’s work is continuous. Just as inActs 2:47, “And the Lord added to their number daily,” the kingdom grows from one conversation to the next.
many more- The Spirit’s harvest keeps expanding. Not a handful, not even “many,” but “many more.”
• From one woman (John 4:7) to a village (4:39) to an even larger group (4:41).
• Echoes ofJohn 12:19: “Look, the world has gone after Him!”
- God’s saving heart always reaches beyond the expected—think ofActs 11:21 where “a great number believed and turned to the Lord.”
believed- Belief here isn’t casual agreement; it is saving trust in the Messiah. John’s Gospel repeatedly clarifies that “whoever believes in Him shall not perish” (John 3:16).
- In Sychar, belief moved villagers from curiosity to commitment, much like the Philippian jailer who asked, “What must I do to be saved?” and then “believed in God with his whole household” (Acts 16:30-34).
- John closes his Gospel with the same aim: “These are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ…and that by believing you may have life in His name” (John 20:31).
because of- Their faith had a clear cause. It did not spring from cultural pressure or miracles alone but from exposure to truth.
-Romans 10:17 reminds us, “So faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ”.
- The Samaritan villagers show that when God’s Word is received, it produces faith (1 Thessalonians 2:13).
His message- Jesus’ own words carried divine authority: “The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life” (John 6:63).
- Unlike the woman’s testimony, His message is firsthand revelation.Hebrews 4:12 declares it “living and active,” andLuke 24:32 records hearts burning as He spoke.
- The focus shifts from witness to the Word itself, underlining that lasting belief rests on Christ’s proclamation, not merely on human reports (John 4:42).
summaryJohn 4:41 highlights the unstoppable growth of faith when people encounter the living Word. The story moves from a single testimony to a multiplied community of believers, all grounded in Jesus’ own message. His words still create faith today, inviting us to join the “many more” who trust Him.
(41)
And many more believed.--The veil is left upon those two days, as upon so many days in the life of Christ. We know how much was said at the well in a few minutes, and that many believed on Him in a few hours. What questions they must have asked! What truths He must have taught during this sojourn! How that central truth of the Fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man must have burned in the hearts of this mixed and despised people! Salvation was of the Jews, and they were from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Ava, and from Hamath, and from Sepharvaim. But Fatherhood is a truth for every heart of man, and He who thus linked heaven and earth was the Saviour of the world. We know not what words passed from them to Him, from Him to them; but we know that the result was that many more believed, and that those who before believed on testimony passed to the higher faith of personal conviction.
Verses 41, 42. -
And very many more believed, during that visit,
by reason of his word - Christ's own word. We know not what the word was, but the specimens which John has recorded make us certain that torrents of living water flowed from his lips. He was moving in the full power of the Spirit. He was unveiling the nature of that "salvation" which was, as he said, "from the Jews;" but a salvation which affected and was adapted to the whole world.
And they (
repeatedly)
said to the woman (the play of aorist and imperfect tenses throughout this passage is very noteworthy),
No longer do we believe by reason of thy speaking. The word
λαλιά does not generally connote so serious a meaning as
λόγος. The first word is used for "utterance" pure and simple (
Matthew 26:73), and for the inarticulate voices of lower creatures as well, while
λόγος and
λέγειν never have the latter meaning; but still
λαλιά is used in classical Greek for "discourse," and in
John 8:43 is used by Christ of his own "utterance." Meyer says the term is purposely chosen from the standpoint of the
speaker, while in ver. 39
λόγος is used of the same
λαλιά by St. John as narrator. The above are the only times the term is found in the New Testament.
For we have ourselves heard, and we know - fully, by personal intuition (we might have expected
ἐγνῶμεν here) -
thatthis is indeed the Saviour of the world. This sublime description only occurs in one other place in the New Testament (viz.
1 John 4:14), and here it falls from the lips of a Samaritan. There is no improbability that it should have expressed the thought of Samaritans, for they entertained wider and less nationalized views than did the Jews. Baur's notion, that the author wished to contrast heathen or Gentile susceptibility with Jewish narrowness and reserve, is out of keeping with the facts. A genuine heathen would have been as easy to
invent as a susceptible Samaritan. "The Saviour of the world" is one of the noblest and most accurate terms in all the Bible to denote the work of Christ. It is the outcome of a discourse and of teaching which led men to the idea of spiritual and sincere worship of the Father, which searched for moral conditions rather than orthodox ritual, which demanded purity of life more than outward observance, and treated doing the will and work of the Father as more indispensable than necessary food. We need not be surprised (
Acts 8.) to find the outcome of this sojourn of the Divine Lord among the misunderstood and hated Samaritans. The effort of the Tubingen school to find in this narrative an idealization of the synoptic tradition of Christ's special beneficence towards the Samaritans is very unfortunate, because, in
Matthew 10:5, the "twelve" were forbidden to enter into cities of the Samaritans, and advised to occupy all their energies in evangelizing the cities of Israel. The record of
Acts 8. affords very slender basis for a corresponding enlargement. The narrative before us shows that, in answer to the receptivity of the Samaritans, the Lord made the richest and fullest and most explicit and immediate revelation of himself. The extension of the kingdom of grace to Samaritans, and their incorporation into the body of Christ, was arrested by the need of the visit of the apostles, by the magic and hypocrisy of Simon; of which there is not here the slightest trace.
Parallel Commentaries ...
Greek
AndΚαὶ(Kai)Conjunction
Strong's 2532:And, even, also, namely.manyπολλῷ(pollō)Adjective - Dative Neuter Singular
Strong's 4183:Much, many; often.moreπλείους(pleious)Adjective - Nominative Masculine Plural - Comparative
Strong's 4119:Or neuter pleion, or pleon comparative of polus; more in quantity, number, or quality; also the major portion.believedἐπίστευσαν(episteusan)Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural
Strong's 4100:From pistis; to have faith, i.e. Credit; by implication, to entrust.because ofδιὰ(dia)Preposition
Strong's 1223:A primary preposition denoting the channel of an act; through.Hisαὐτοῦ(autou)Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Genitive 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.message.λόγον(logon)Noun - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3056:From lego; something said; by implication, a topic, also reasoning or motive; by extension, a computation; specially, the Divine Expression.
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NT Gospels: John 4:41 Many more believed because of his word (Jhn Jo Jn) 
