<p>4:37 <i>For herein is the saying true: One sows and another reaps</i>- This is perhaps John's equivalent to the parable of the sower in the synoptics. The Lord is the sower. The Lord likened His preachers to men reaping the harvest. The implication is that He had done His work with the woman, and they were to now work with the crowd of Gentile men she was bringing to Him. He speaks of how they fulfilled the proverb that one sows and another reaps (Jn. 4:37,38). Yet this &lsquo;proverb&rsquo; has no direct Biblical source. What we <i>do </i>find in the Old Testament is the repeated idea that if someone sows but another reaps, this is a sign that they are suffering God&rsquo;s judgment for their sins (Dt. 20:6; 28:30; Job 31:8; Mic. 6:15). But the Lord turns around the &lsquo;proverb&rsquo; concerning Israel&rsquo;s condemnation; He makes it apply to the way that the preacher / reaper who doesn&rsquo;t sow is the one who harvests others in converting them to Him. Surely His implication was that His preacher-reapers were those who had known condemnation for their sins, but on that basis were His humbled harvesters in the mission field.</p>