1 But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.

2 Early in the morning He went back into the temple courts. All the people came to Him, and He sat down to teach them. 3 The scribes and Pharisees, however, brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before them 4 and said, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5 In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such a woman. So what do You say?”

6 They said this to test Him, in order to have a basis for accusing Him. But Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with His finger.

7 When they continued to question Him, He straightened up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to cast a stone at her.” 8 And again He bent down and wrote on the ground.

9 When they heard this, they began to go away one by one, beginning with the older ones, until only Jesus was left, with the woman standing there. 10 Then Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are your accusers? Has no one condemned you?”

11 “No one, Lord,” she answered.

“Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Now go and sin no more.”

REFLECTIONS

Written by Rebecca Shead

I find this passage both intriguing and confronting. Did you notice that the scribes and Pharisees brought to Jesus only the woman caught in adultery? By definition, there must also have been a man caught in adultery. The seventh of the ten commandments says, “You shall not commit adultery” (Ex 20:14). And the Old Testament law lays out the consequences: “If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife—with the wife of his neighbor—both the adulterer and the adulteress must surely be put to death” (Lev 20:10). The Pharisees are displaying their hypocrisy and double standards here by bringing only the woman to Jesus; the man was also guilty! In any case, it’s clear the woman’s sin was very serious. She was condemned by the law and deserved the death penalty.

I’m trying to imagine how the woman would have felt when she was brought to Jesus in the temple. Perhaps she felt indignant, because her partner in crime seems to have escaped without judgment. I’m guessing she felt both ashamed and fearful: ashamed, because her sin had been exposed in front of Jesus and all the people gathered in the temple; and fearful, because she deserved the harshest penalty the law could bring.

But Jesus’ response to the Pharisees and the woman shows the depth of his love and compassion. Instead of condemning her as the Pharisees wanted, and as she deserved, Jesus offers her another chance. Earlier in the book, we read, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him” (John 3:16-17). The woman is on the receiving end of God’s love. Her shame and fear have turned into surprise and gratitude!

It’s so easy to see the sin in others and be critical and judgmental. Instead, we should pray that God will help us to see our own sin. If we’re honest, we will admit that we deserve to be condemned too. Let’s pray that God will help us to turn away from our sin, to accept his offer of forgiveness, and to be thankful and rejoice in the salvation he offers to us and other sinners through Jesus.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Rebecca is a member of our Bossley Park Morning congregation.