What do we know about the Samaritans?

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

The Samaritans were Jews who intermarried with foreigners. Their intermarrying led to a religion mixing pagan worship with Judaism. The history of the Samaritans, spanning from the Old to the New Testament, reveals a deep-seated animosity between them and the Jews due to cultural and religious disparities. Despite this, Jesus' interactions with Samaritans like the woman at the well and the story of the Good Samaritan in the New Testament challenge our way of viewing and treating others. The transformation in attitude towards Samaritans post-resurrection signifies the gospel's power to reconcile diverse communities.

FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT

• The Samaritans lived in the land that once belonged to Ephraim and Manasseh in Israel. Their capital was Samaria, a city occupied by people from a wide variety of nations after the defeat of Israel by Assyria mentioned in 2 Kings 17:24.
• Over time, the remaining Israelites married foreigners who served other gods. Samaritan religion grew to become a mixture of pagan worship with variations of worship of the Lord (2 Kings 17:26–28).
• The Jewish people looked down on Samaritans and had little to do with them for several reasons: their mixed-ethnicity, their ignorance and disregard of the ways of God, and their worship of God on Mount Gerizim instead of at the temple in Jerusalem.
• In the time of Joshua, the area of Samaria was known as a place of refuge—a safe place to be while they awaited judgment particularly for those who committed accidental manslaughter (Joshua 20:7). Generations of providing refuge for criminals would have given Samaria a notorious reputation, one further worsened by the influx of non-Jewish residents under Assyrian rule who followed the teachings of other gods.
• Later, after the Babylonian exile, the Samaritans opposed the reconstruction of the wall of Jerusalem, seeking to stop the work (Nehemiah 4).
• The Scripture of the Samaritans also differed from the Jewish people. Samaritans accepted only the Torah, the first five books of the Old Testament. The other inspired writings included in the Hebrew Bible were rejected.

FROM THE NEW TESTAMENT

• Understanding why Jews despised Samaritans sheds light on two important New Testament passages. First, there is the account of the woman at the well with Jesus in John 4. The Samaritan woman was not accustomed to a Jewish man willing to speak to her. When Jesus asked her for a drink, she replied, "How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?" (John 4:9). Their discussion transitioned from cultural differences to water to her marital status to the issue of worship and of Jesus as the Messiah. This woman then shared her story with those in her town and many people believed in Him.
• In Luke 9;51-56, James and John wanted to call fire upon the Samaritans because the people did not receive them. God rebuked them, and they went on to another village.
• Another account that mentions the Samaritans is the narrative of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10. There a Jewish man is robbed and left injured on the side of the road. Both a priest and a Levite passed by without stopping to help, likely concerned about becoming ceremonially unclean and unable to perform their religious duties. The third man, a Samaritan, stopped and helped, going above and beyond the expected to the extent that he even left money to pay for the man’s stay in an inn. Jesus' point was that our actions make us neighbors, not the similarities in our backgrounds.
• After the resurrection of Jesus, Samaritans were treated much differently by His followers. Though Christianity initially spread among Jews, Acts 8:25 reveals that Jewish Christians soon began to share the gospel with Samaritans. This was a fulfillment of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18–20; Acts 1:8) which included sharing the gospel with everyone, both Jews and non-Jews (Romans 1:16).

IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY

The story of the Samaritans challenges us to think about how we treat people and overcoming prejudice. In both the Old and New Testaments, there's a consistent portrayal of the disdain between Jews and Samaritans due to their cultural, religious, and historical differences. In the New Testament, particularly in the accounts of Jesus interacting with Samaritans, we see a radical departure from this prejudice. Jesus engages with the Samaritan woman at the well, breaking societal norms, and reveals Himself as the Messiah not only to her but also to her community. Similarly, the parable of the good Samaritan challenges the notion of who our neighbor is and emphasizes the importance of compassion and action irrespective of cultural or ethnic barriers. The shift in the New Testament highlights the transformative power of the gospel to break down barriers and to unite diverse communities under the banner of Christ's love and redemption.

As a personal application, this narrative prompts reflection on our own biases and prejudices. It encourages us to examine whether we harbor prejudices against certain groups based on cultural, ethnic, or religious differences. Moreover, it calls us to emulate the example of Jesus in reaching out to those who are different from us, extending love, compassion, and acceptance regardless of societal norms or historical animosities. Ultimately, it challenges us to share the gospel with all people, regardless of background.

UNDERSTAND

• The Samaritans were a group of people formed by Israelites who married people from pagan nations.
• The Samaritans were hated by the Jews.
• The gospel transformed how Samaritans were viewed and treated.

REFLECT

• How do your own cultural, ethnic, or other biases influence the way you perceive and interact with people from different backgrounds?
• Have you ever experienced prejudice or discrimination based on cultural or ethnic differences? How did it affect you, and how did you respond?
• In what ways can you emulate Jesus' example of reaching out to those who are different from you, showing love and compassion?

ENGAGE

• What factors contributed to the historical animosity between Jews and Samaritans, as depicted in both the Old and New Testaments?
• How do the encounters between Jesus and Samaritans, such as the woman at the well and His story of the Good Samaritan, challenge societal norms and prejudices of their time?
• What lessons can we learn from the transformation in attitudes towards Samaritans post-resurrection, and how can we apply them to promote reconciliation in our communities today?