What does Jesus mean in John 4:22 ?

Question

What does Jesus mean when He says, "Ye worship ye know not what"

Answer 1

Jesus went on to tell the Samaritan woman: “You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, because salvation originates with the Jews.” (John 4:22) The Samaritans had false religious ideas and accepted only the first five books of the Bible as inspired, and these solely in their own recension known as the Samaritan Pentateuch. Therefore, they did not really know God. However, the Jews had been entrusted with Scriptural knowledge. (Romans 3:1, 2) The Scriptures gave faithful Jews and any others who would listen what they needed in order to know God.

a former soldier lamented: “People are just looking around and following what others are doing. It is exactly the same framework that prodded us into the war.”

But should how we behave, and especially whom we worship, be determined simply by the behavior and worship of those around us? Think of the millions whose unfounded religious beliefs have caused them to give their lives in fruitless wars! Blindly following the crowd can clearly be disastrous. Reflection on these historical events should teach us that worshiping ‘what we do not know’ can indeed be calamitous.

Answer 2

Lets look at a few more verses: John 4:19-24 "Sir," the woman said, "I can see that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem."
Jesus declared, "Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."

Samaritans were half Jewish and half something else. They had some Jewish lineage, but were thought to be unclean and despicable. Jesus was telling her that her anscestors worshipped an idea (of many gods), but didnt have full knowledge of who God was. They worshipped as a routine and not because they knew and respected God. They had not (because of the mixture of races) expeirenced God as the Jews had. Their religion was part Jew and part pagan and this mixture polluted their ideas of God. Jews had been through a desert with God, fought alongside God in war, and had come to a place where they trusted in his guidence and provision. However, many were getting into a routine of worship and not truly worshipping. Jesus spoke about this when he spoke about worshipping in spirit because God is a spirit. The place is not important. Christians dont have to make a pilmagrege to Jeruselum to fulfill a command or to get closer to God. As long as they worship "in spirit" then they will be in the right "place."

Answer 3

"You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews."


Salvation is from the Jews in that Jesus was a Jew, and until the New Testament, salvation was given to people among the covenant people of Israel.

God chose Abraham to be the ancestor of the Messiah, and likewise chose Isaac and then Jacob to be the children of the promise. God provided the oracles of God (the Law and prophets) to the nation of Israel, and the Messiah Himself was a Jew, born under the law.

That isn't to say that salvation is only FOR the Jews, however. God promises Abraham that in him ALL the families of the earth will be blessed (Genesis 12:1-3). Isaiah testifies that salvation will be for all the nations (Isaiah 49:6).

So, salvation is of the Jews because our savior became a Jew.

Answer 4

You give worship, but without knowledge of what you are worshipping: I give worship to what I have knowledge of..

I don't think that it is bad on what is being said just that some worship idols and imposter's not knowing anything about them.

I know the Lord so therefore; it means to me when people worship false idols or prophets..

Answer 5

That the women he was talking to, who worshiped idols, did not know what or who she was worshipping. those who worsip idols are praying to something "man" literally made with their hands. Not only that, most of the idols made where idols of evil. Moloch, Baal, Aphrodite, to name a few, are all idols that had a real presence behind them. Note though, this presence was of Satan, not God. So by worshipping these idols, not only do they worship a figure, but they literally worship satan.

Answer 6

He was talking to a Samaritan women who simply accepted blindly her parents religion.
She did not 'know' or understand the God she supposedly worshipped.
Please don't rely on the KJV only.
Its best to have a variety of translations.

Answer 7

She had changed the subject to cover her sin, but Jesus saw through that and got to the deeper issue of her relationship with God, which she did not have.

Answer 8

That they don't know God...yet they worship Him.

Answer 9

They worshipped God as a god, not the God.

Answer 10

that people don't understand God and they really don't know the power behind Him!