John 4:35 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, then comes the harvest’? Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest.

NIV: Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.

NASB: Do you not say, ‘There are still four months, and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I tell you, raise your eyes and observe the fields, that they are white for harvest.

CSB: "Don’t you say, ‘There are still four more months, and then comes the harvest’? Listen to what I’m telling you: Open your eyes and look at the fields, because they are ready for harvest.

NLT: You know the saying, ‘Four months between planting and harvest.’ But I say, wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe for harvest.

KJV: Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.

NKJV: Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest!

In this passage, Jesus has drawn an analogy between the "spiritual food" of serving God and the physical food which refreshes the body (John 4:34). Here, He continues that analogy by comparing the work of evangelism to that of collecting crops.

The phrase Jesus uses at the start of this verse might have been a local proverb. Experienced farmers could look at the season and know how far away the harvest-time was. Those same farmers could look at their fields to recognize the right time to bring in the crops. Similarly, the disciples should have the ability to recognize the right time for a spiritual harvest.

In this case, the Samaritan woman is bringing many people from town back to meet Jesus (John 4:30). When a wheat field is ready to be collected, the tips of the plants appear white. The crowd of people, in white garments and headwear, might have echoed this same imagery. Presumably, the disciples could have turned from Jesus to see the sight of an approaching crowd and would have grasped His meaning. Evangelism is not merely something to be done when we think it's convenient; waiting until the perfect moment means never getting anything done at all (Ecclesiastes 11:4).

John 4:27–45 is an object lesson for the disciples. Jesus has just finished a conversation with a Samaritan woman, while the disciples were in town buying food. As it turns out, this supposedly unclean woman will bring many people to meet Christ. The disciples have brought no one. Jesus explains that some work to plant spiritual seeds, while others collect the harvest. Both are valuable and we should be ready for opportunities in either case.

Jesus speaks to a Samaritan woman who is drawing water from a well. He confronts her about sin, yet He also comforts her with the truth of the gospel. Even though He knows her sins, He still seeks after her, and those like her. The woman returns to town, eventually bringing many people to meet Jesus. The disciples, meanwhile, are reminded of the purpose of their mission. Jesus also heals the son of a government official in a way that demonstrates the importance of trusting faith, rather than reliance on spectacle.

John chapter 4 continues the use of contrast. Jesus goes from conversing with an educated, powerful, prestigious man (John 3:1–2) to talking to an outcast, unlearned, self-conscious woman. The combination of this passage, along with Jesus' conversation with Nicodemus, makes an important spiritual point: the gospel is for all people, in all places, and all times. Christ can reach each person exactly where he or she needs to be reached.

The disciple John wrote the gospel of John decades after the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke were written. The author assumes that a reader is already familiar with the content of these other works. So, John presents a different perspective, with a greater emphasis on meaning. John uses seven miracles—which he calls "signs"— to prove that Jesus is, in fact, God incarnate. Some of the most well-known verses in the Bible are found here. None is more famous than the one-sentence summary of the gospel found in John 3:16.