John 4:10

The gift of God. That is, Jesus Himself, as the following clause makes clear. He appears to be no more than a weary, thirsty traveler, but there is more to the offer of “living water” than the woman yet comprehends. Strange as Jesus’ request seemed on the surface, there was something even more mysterious. The significant fact about Jesus was not that He was a Jew, but that He was, and is, “the gift of God” (see John 3:16; 2 Cor. 9:15).

Who it is. Jesus is about to introduce Himself to the woman as the Messiah (see vs. 25, 26), and here tactfully leads her on to see that His proposal involves more than appears on the surface. Jesus implied, “You can satisfy my physical thirst, but I can satisfy the thirst of your soul.”

Living water. Gr. hudor zon, “fresh water,” “flowing water,” or “life[-giving] water” (cf. Eze. 47:9). Jesus here refers to Himself (see John 7:37; cf. ch. 6:27, 51). The prophet Jeremiah spoke of the Lord as “the fountain of living waters” (chs. 2:13; 17:13; cf. Isa. 12:3; Rev. 22:1). The woman thought Jesus referred to spring water, in contrast with the comparatively stale water of the well. But if Jesus had access to literal “living water,” why would He have asked her for a drink?