John 4:31-32

“ In the mean while, the disciples prayed him, saying: Master, eat. 32. But he said unto them, I have meat to eat which ye know not. ”

John 4:31 (after the interruption of John 4:28-29), is connected with John 4:27. The words, ἐν δε τῷ μεταξύ (in the mean while), denote the time which elapsed between the departure of the woman and the arrival of the Samaritans. ᾿Ερωτᾷν (to ask) takes here, as often in the New Testament, and as שׁאל does in the Old Testament, the sense of pray, without, however, losing altogether its strict sense of interrogate: ask whether he will eat.

Since the beginning of His ministry, Jesus had perhaps had no joy such as this which He had just experienced. This joy had revived Him, even physically. “You say to me: eat! But I am satisfied; I have had, in your absence, a feast of which you have no suspicion.” ᾿Εγώ (I), has the emphasis; this word places His person in strong contrast to theirs (ὑμεῖς, you): “You have your repast; I have mine.” Βρῶσις, strictly the act of eating, but including the food, which is its condition. The abstract word better suits the spiritual sense of this saying, than the concrete βρῶμα, (food).