Charles Spurgeon Commentary John 4:27

"And upon this came his disciples; and they marvelled that he was speaking with a woman; yet no man said, What seekest thou? or, Why speakest thou with her?" — John 4:27 (ASV)

Yet no man said, What seekest thou? or, Why talkest thou with her?

They had some sense left, sense enough to keep silence.

And upon this came his disciples, and marvelled that he talked with the woman.

How big they were, how wise in their own conceit, to be astonished that Christ was talking with a woman! The followers of Christ often get much too big for their places, and too big to please their Master, too. Though they marvelled that he was speaking with a woman, as the Revised Version translates it—

And marvelled that he talked with the woman:

These men, who had themselves been picked off the dunghill, marveled that Christ spoke to this woman! So have I known some, who were themselves grievous sinners once, yet they have become horribly conceited some years after conversion, and they have thought that other great sinners might not be saved as they were.

God deliver any soul that professes to be saved from such abominable pride! Every believer should feel, "If the Lord has saved me, he can save anybody," and that state of mind ought to be ours always.

And upon this came his disciples, and marvelled that he talked with the woman: yet no man said, What seekest thou? or, Why talkest thou with her?

They had too much respect for him to ask such questions, except in their own hearts, but their cultural prejudices made them marvel that he was talking with a woman!

Yet no man said, What are you seeking? or, Why are you talking with her?

They dared not do that; they had too much awe of him. But, do you know, I have often wished that they had done so?

I would like to have read what Christ would have said to them. How he would have reproved them for thinking that he had degraded himself by talking with a woman, or with anybody. Our Saviour would have vindicated woman's place in the world in a way that one would have liked to hear.