“Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.”
King James Version (KJV)
4:5 Sychar - Formerly called Sichem or Shechem. Jacob gave - On his death bed, #Gen 48:22|.
Joh 4:5 Samaria. The district, embracing the ancient city of Samaria, which lay between Judea and Galilee. The district of Samaria comprised the country formerly occupied by the tribe of Ephraim and the half tribe of Manasseh. When the Ten Tribes were carried to Babylon, the Assyrian king sent in other tribes to occupy the country. These mingled with the Jews left in the country, partly adopted the Jewish worship, but were contemptuously rejected by the Jews when the latter returned from the Captivity. From this time the enmity between the two races was almost bitter, and they had no dealings (see Joh 4:9). Sychar. This place was the ancient Shechem, so famous in the early history. It was forty miles north of Jerusalem, and was situated between Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal, the Mounts of Blessing and Cursing (Jos 8:30-35). Here Jacob built his first altar (Ge 33:18); here Joseph was buried in the land given him by his father (Jos 24:32); and here also the covenant of Israel was renewed with amens to the blessings and curses, after Joshua had conquered Canaan (Jos 24:1). It was afterwards called Neapolis, and at present a village called Nablous exists with a population of two thousand, about two hundred of whom are Samaritans and preserve their ancient worship. Near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. In this parcel Joseph was buried when Israel came up out of Egypt, his bones having been carried with them in accordance with his dying wish. His tomb is still shown and it can hardly be doubted that his bones really rest in the place pointed out.