Why did the Jews refuse to have dealings with the Samaritans?

[tonychanyt]

2 Kings 17:24 explained the origin of the Samaritans:

The king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Kuthah, Avva, Hamath and Sepharvaim and settled them in the towns of Samaria to replace the Israelites. They took over Samaria and lived in its towns.

When the Jews returned from Babylonian exile in the 6th century BCE, they sought to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple. The Samaritans, who had settled in the region of Samaria, offered to assist in the rebuilding efforts but were rebuffed (Ezra 4:1-3). This rejection sowed further discord between the two peoples, leading to a long-standing animosity.

By the time of Jesus, the animosity between Jews and Samaritans had evolved into a social prejudice. Jews often viewed Samaritans as impure and heretical due to their mixed heritage and differing religious beliefs. This led to mutual disdain and a lack of social interaction.

The Samaritans believed in the roles of prophets but usurped the religion of YHWH and disagreed with the Jews. Jn 4:

19 “Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet. 20 Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.”

They thought they had the true religion, but Jesus disagreed:

21 “Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22 You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

They were also looking for the Messiah:

25 The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.”

Jesus showed himself to be the one they were looking for:

26 Then Jesus declared, “I, the one speaking to you—I am he.”

Why did the Jews refuse to have dealings with the Samaritans?

It was due to centuries of disagreements and misunderstandings between the two peoples on who had the true religion.

 

[RDKirk]

It should be noted that the reason for the division of Israel into northern and southern kingdoms was because of a tax revolt by the northern kingdom. God had said that if they had a king, they'd have to pay taxes. The result of their tax revolt was their eventual complete destruction as a nation.