John 7:37-52

John 7:37-39     Jesus’ Offer 1 - Rivers of Living Water

The earlier discussion had been rounded off. A new day had begun. As he had done on the previous occasion, Jesus shouted out in order to gain people’s attention. 

On each day of the festival priests and people processed to the pool of Siloam to collect water, which they brought back to the temple and poured liberally over the altar as a libation. The water recalled the water from the rock with which Moses, at the command of God, had slaked the thirst of their ancestors, the escaping Hebrew slaves, in the wilderness of Sinai [Exodus 17:1-6].

Jesus claimed that, just as God had satisfied the thirst of their ancestors, now he himself would slake the people’s thirst. He would do that to the extent that they were prepared to believe in him as the human revelation of God. As Jesus, the bread of life, would satisfy people’s hunger, so would he satisfy their thirst. In line with what he had promised to the Samaritan woman, he would provide a spring of water gushing up to eternal life [4:14].

To the little persecuted Christian community, excluded from the synagogue and parted from their brothers and sisters celebrating the Festival, Jesus provided something more wonderful.

Answering the World’s Thirst

In offering to quench the thirst of all who would come to him, Jesus was indirectly claiming what was seen as the prerogative of God – as he had done previously in claiming to be the bread of life. He was, indeed, the one sent by God, the human revelation of the merciful love of God.

Centuries before, Isaiah had pictured God crying out (as had Jesus!):

The Psalmist, too, had spoken of God as the object of the world’s thirst:

As the bread of life, Jesus would nourish and sustain eternal life. As the answer to the world’s thirst, he would enhance the experienced quality and depth of that life. He knew that only the infinitely merciful love which he embodied would ever satisfy the human thirst for transcendence. The community of believers could boldly proclaim this because they personally experienced the transforming effect of his presence within them.

The problem with Jesus’ Jewish opponents was that they did not experience any “thirst”. They were comfortable with their familiar customs and securities. Their quest to satisfy superficial desires drowned any awareness of their deeper “heart” desires. Christians in today’s world encounter a similar problem to that faced by Jesus. A culture of affluence and the pursuit of consumerism have deadened for many their sensitivity to the transcendent and to the message and values of Jesus. To many, the Christian message seems quite irrelevant and unnecessary.

The scriptural citation, as quoted in the narrative, was, in fact, ambiguous. It could be translated as out of the believer’s breast, or, equally accurately, simply as “from his breast” – in which case his could refer to Jesus’ breast as the source of the rivers of living water. Both translations were true. Nevertheless, as the Gospel would narrate the aftermath of Jesus’ death on the cross [19:34], it would draw attention to blood and water that flowed from the pierced heart of the crucified Jesus, citing, at the same time, a prophecy from Zechariah: They will look on the one whom they have pierced [Zechariah 12:10].

Earlier in the narrative, after Jesus had temporarily closed down commercial activity in the temple, he had claimed to the Jewish authorities who challenged his action that his own body, his humanity, would be the new dwelling of God and source of divine blessing: Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. Significantly, the evangelist had immediately added: he was talking about the temple of his body.  When he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the scripture and the word that Jesus said. [2:19-22]. 

Once again, Jesus made a similar claim. As Ezekiel had looked forward to a reconstituted future temple, from the threshold of which would flow water that would eventually become a river of delightfully fresh and fertile water, bringing life and abundance wherever it flowed [Ezekiel 47:1-11], so with Jesus’ death, Rivers of living water will flow from his breast. 

The oppressed Christian community of true believers experienced what Jesus had referred to and what Ezekiel could only look forward to.

This was the first occasion that the narrative had spoken of Jesus’ death and resurrection as his glorification. The idea would be elaborated further, particularly in Jesus’ discourses during his last meal with his disciples.

John 7:40-44     Division among the People

Moses, who had struck the rock from which flowed the water that slaked the thirst of the thirsty Israelites, had spoken of God referring to another prophet who would arise from among the people: 

Somewhat ironically, the role of Moses, the prophet, had been to tell the enslaved people that they could be free, and to lead them to that freedom; the role of Jesus, the prophet, would be to tell those who thought that they were free that they were really enslaved – and to lead them to true freedom.

Again, the dialogue returned to the issue of Jesus as Christ/Messiah. Obviously, traditions about the origins of the Christ/Messiah were fluid. Some in the crowd had earlier stated their belief that the Christ's origin would be unknown [verse 27]. Now, another group expressed their view that the Christ would be born in Bethlehem, little realising that Bethlehem was indeed the birthplace of Jesus (though the Gospel had made no reference to the historical details of Jesus’ birth); nor were they aware of the Christian tradition (again, not mentioned in this Gospel) of Jesus’ descent from David.

Interestingly, the crowd failed to engage with the real question of Jesus’ identity and role, and the challenge posed to them by his personal integrity and the meaning of the signs he worked. Academic questions of little weight distracted from engagement with the deeper issues.

The recurring issue of Jesus being the Christ/Messiah addressed an interest that made sense in the Jewish culture of the time, though it excites little spontaneous attraction to people in today’s world. Modern readers need to address the concerns of today if they are to capture the interest of the non-believer.

John 7:45-52     Defending Group Cohesion

The Christian community seemed to take delight in listing the testimony of unexpected witnesses to the uniqueness of Jesus.

For all their championing of the law, and their contempt for the crowd (which, they claimed, did not know the law), the authorities themselves had earlier been unable to answer Jesus’ accusation that they did not keep the law [verse 19]. Blind to their inconsistency, they rejected the crowd for their ignorance, and labelled them as accursed.

Nicodemus Moves Towards the Light

In confronting the majority, Nicodemus showed unusual courage. He had initially approached Jesus by night, afraid to identify himself publicly as one intrigued by Jesus [3:2]. Now, he had stepped out from the darkness, courageously choosing to allow himself to be identified, and, thereby, threatening the closed unanimity of the Pharisee group. (He would appear again [19:39].)

Confronted once more with their obvious readiness to break their own law, though this time by one of their own, rather than examine the point of law he raised, they spontaneously sought to marginalise their accuser. Projecting their own bias onto him, they insinuated that he was unqualified and ignorant of the law.

Closed systems, rather than self-criticise, will invariably close ranks and silence the dissenting voice. Yet again, they chose to remain at the level of theory, of empty discussion of irrelevant issues, rather than to engage with the real issues.

Next >> John 8:1-11