Daily Dose of Hope

October 17, 2025

Scripture – John 8:1-11

Prayer: Almighty God, We give you glory and praise. Thank you for the ways you care for us. Thank you for the ways you care for our church. Lord Jesus, help us set aside our scattered thoughts. Help us push away distractions and truly focus on you. In these next few moments of silence, Lord, hear our prayers...Holy Spirit, guide our reading and devotional time today. May we hear a word from you. In Your Name, Amen.

Welcome back to the Daily Dose of Hope, the devotional and podcast that complements the New Hope Church daily Bible reading plan. We are currently doing a deep dive into the Gospels and Acts. Today, we are starting John 8.

Today's passage is one of the most beloved in the Gospel of John. The line, "he who is without sin can throw the first stone", has become a common part of our vocabulary. And the story itself is amazing. The Pharisees have brought a woman caught committing adultery to Jesus. Notice the man was not brought. It always makes me think the whole thing was planned. They were trying to trap Jesus and this was one more opportunity. And the woman was just collateral damage. She probably would have been naked or partially dressed and the whole situation was dehumanizing for her.

While the Torah did say that stoning was punishment for adultery, my understanding is that it was not actually carried out often. But it could have been. So, these Pharisees brought the woman to Jesus to ask what should be done. Keep in mind, they didn't really care Jesus' serious thoughts about the situation, but they did care to catch him saying the wrong thing.

What did he do? He started writing on the ground. I always wonder what he wrote. Was he writing the men's sins? Was he listing the things the people in that group had done? It would be fascinating to know for sure. And that's when he said that very famous line, ...let he who is without sin cast the first stone. And they all started to walk away, the oldest first down to the youngest.

And Jesus asks the woman, "Who has condemned you?" Of course, no one had because they all left. "Go and sin no more." Jesus saw into the hearts of both the accused and the accusers and dealt with the situation accordingly.

Probably, for many of you, this passage is in italics in your Bible. The reason for this is that there is significant debate as to whether this passage is original. In fact, most scholars agree that it was added at a later date. The first manuscript of John to include this story is Codex Bezae (D), which dates to the fifth century. There is also an argument that the way the story is written seems to be contrary to John's vocabulary and grammar.

So, if this text isn't from John, where did it come from and how do we handle it? It's very possible the story is historical but was part of the oral tradition and just stuck in the Gospel of John later on. Other scholars I read said that the style looks like Luke's handiwork. There is also the possibility that the story is absolutely true but was left out of John by early scribes because they thought Jesus was too lenient and grace-filled. Despite all of this, the church fathers often taught on this passage.

I personally think there is a lot to learn from this passage. We see Jesus' compassion and boldness. It seems consistent with the kinds of things Jesus did and said. We also know that there were many things that Jesus did that were originally omitted from the Gospels. Could this be one of them? I don't know. I would love to hear your thoughts on this.

Blessings,

Pastor Vicki