Draw out now, and carry to the headwaiter

Only the servants who had drawn the water knew where the wine had come from

Previous Chapter: Who touched me?

Did everyone attending the wedding in Cana know about the miracle where Jesus Christ turned water into wine? That remains a question, for even the master of the banquet was unaware of the miracle Jesus had performed; that is precisely why he asked where the delicious wine had come from.

Furthermore, the Holy Spirit has recorded the wedding at Cana not merely as a historical event, but rather as an allegory; for instance, no human names are mentioned—only the name of Jesus. Therefore, if we view this not simply as a wedding in the town of Cana, but as a wedding that leads us to the land of Canaan (the Kingdom of Heaven), we can uncover many more spiritual mysteries - 1.On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the Mother of Jesus was there. 2.Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. 3.And when they ran out of wine, the Mother of Jesus said to Him, They have no wine. 4.Jesus said to her, Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come. 5.His mother said to the servants, Whatever He says to you, do it. 6.Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. 7.Jesus said to them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. 8.And He said to them, Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast. And they took it.9.When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. 10.And he said to him, Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now! 11.This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him - John 2:1-11

Where did the delicious wine served at this wedding come from? It seems only the servants who drew the water knew the answer—let us find out, too!

If we view this merely as an ordinary wedding in the town of Cana, only the six stone water jars come to mind; however, when we see it as an event that leads us to the land of Canaan, we realize that the exquisite wine came from a seventh jar—Jesus Himself. This is the very secret revealed by the story of the Samaritan woman, who—despite having lived with six men—wandered about with an empty pitcher in search of water.

Jesus Christ—who came there like a seventh water jar—sat by a well to meet the Samaritan woman; for only those who dwell in the wilderness truly understand the value of water, knowing they could not survive there if the well were to run dry. The Lord chose such a well to illustrate that the salvation and the Holy Spirit He offers are far more precious than the water found within it - 4.But He needed to go through Samaria. 5.So He came to a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. 6.Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour. 7.A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give Me a drink.” 8.For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. 9.Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans. 10.Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.” 11.The woman said to Him, “Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water? 12.Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?” - John 4:4-12

Just like that Samaritan woman—who responded by speaking about the water in the well when the Lord was actually speaking of the living water He gives—we too are often like her; when the Lord tells the servants to "draw some out now," it is those six stone water jars that immediately come to our minds.

Those six stone jars—vessels used to hold water for washing feet—were covered in grime and algae; they were never cleaned, and no one would ever drink that water. Had the guests at the wedding been told that the wine they were drinking had been ladled from those very vessels, not a single person at the banquet would have touched it.

In the life of that Samaritan woman, too, there were six stone water jars—she had lived with six men; yet, from those six vessels—encrusted with grime and moss—nothing remained for her but shame and disgrace.

She was unaware that there was someone in this world who could give her the water of life; that is why, when the Lord openly revealed Himself to her, she asked, "You must give me that water." - 13.Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, 14.but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.” 15.The woman said to Him, “Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw.” 16.Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here.” 17.The woman answered and said, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You have well said, ‘I have no husband,’ 18.for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly.” 19.The woman said to Him, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. 20.Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship.” 21.Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father. 22.You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. 23.But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. 24.God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” 25.The woman said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When He comes, He will tell us all things.” 26.Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am He.” - John 4:13-26

The Samaritan woman, having received the living water from the Lord, left her water jar behind and went away; this was because she now held Jesus—the Living Water—in her hands. After all, a person can carry only one jar at a time! That is why she left her jar behind - 27.And at this point His disciples came, and they marveled that He talked with a woman; yet no one said, “What do You seek?” or, “Why are You talking with her?” 28.The woman then left her waterpot, went her way into the city, and said to the men, 29.“Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” - John 4:27-29

Similarly, at that wedding in Cana, the delicious wine was not drawn from the stone jars meant for washing feet; instead, it was drawn from the seventh jar—Jesus Himself. It was truly exquisite wine, for it came from the holy vessel that was Jesus.

There are indeed six stone water jars in our lives as well; often, we believe that these six—our education, career, wealth, comforts, friends, and relatives—sustain us. However, the One who provides them is the seventh stone water jar: Jesus Christ. Recognizing Him is eternal life  - And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent - John 17:3

In our life of faith, too, there are six stone water jars. We often imagine that these six jars—representing fasting, prayer, offerings, Scripture reading, obedience, and a holy life—will lead us to the eternal kingdom. Yet, viewed from that perspective, do not those who do not know Christ fast and pray even more than we do? The reason our prayers hold weight is solely because Jesus Christ receives them from us and presents them at the feet of the God of heaven - In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I shall pray the Father for you - John 16:26

Next Chapter: You have seen him