Jn 4:43-54
43[Jesus] left [Samaria] for Galilee. 44For Jesus himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his native place. 45When he came into Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, since they had seen all he had done in Jerusalem at the feast; for they themselves had gone to the feast.
46Then he returned to Cana in Galilee, where he had made the water wine. Now there was a royal official whose son was ill in Capernaum. 47When he heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and asked him to come down and heal his son, who was near death. 48Jesus said to him, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will not believe.” 49The royal official said to him, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” 50Jesus said to him, “You may go; your son will live.” The man believed what Jesus said to him and left. 51While he was on his way back, his slaves met him and told him that his boy would live. 52He asked them when he began to recover. They told him, “The fever left him yesterday, about one in the afternoon.” 53The father realized that just at that time Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live,” and he and his whole household came to believe. 54[Now] this was the second sign Jesus did when he came to Galilee from Judea.
SECOND SIGN IN CANA: “Sign” (Greek semeion) is a Gospel word for the miracles or wonders performed by Jesus. The term conveys the idea that miracles attest to God as the source of Jesus’ message. Still, on occasion, Jesus refuses to satisfy people’s demand for such signs (Mt 12:38-40; 16:1, 4; Mk 8:11-12). He cautions against relying totally on such signs because even the forces of evil can perform miracles as false “signs” (Mt 24:24).
Signs have a marked role in the Gospel of John, whose second section (1:19—12:50) is known as “The Book of Signs” and whose conclusion declares, “Jesus did many other signs in the presence of [his] disciples that are not written in this book. But these are written that you may [come to] believe that Jesus is the Messiah…” (20:30-31).
In the second sign that Jesus works at Cana, a royal official asks Jesus to heal his son who is ill. Jesus responds accordingly, calling the man to greater faith. Without seeing the miracle, the official puts faith in Jesus’ word. His son is healed, and he and his whole household come to believe. Yet, even here, Jesus expresses his skepticism at faith induced by signs, noting the Galileans’ welcoming enthusiasm that springs from curiosity and not from the heart (v 48). What is more important is for people to believe in Jesus as speaking with God’s authority and heeding his call to repentance.