71 Jesus Rescues a Woman Caught in Adultery [John 8:2–11]
The Bible passage: [John 8:2–11]
The Story:
Early one morning, Jesus went to the temple complex. People were coming to Him. He sat down and began to teach them.
Some scribes and Pharisees brought a woman to Him who had been caught in adultery.
They said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of committing adultery. The law of Moses commands us to stone such women. What do You say?”
They asked Him this to trap Him, looking for something to use to accuse Him. Jesus stooped down and started writing on the ground with His finger.
When they continued questioning Him, He stood up and said, “The one among you who is without sin should be the first to throw a stone at her.”
Then He stooped down again and continued writing on the ground. When they heard this, they left one by one, the older men leaving first. Only Jesus was left with the woman.
When Jesus stood up, He said to her, “Where are they? Has no one condemned you?”
“No one, Lord,” she answered.
“I don’t condemn you, either,” said Jesus. “Go. Do not sin anymore.”
The Lessons:
- The woman was brought to Jesus by the scribes and Pharisees; the religious leaders. Jewish law called for both the man and the woman caught in the act of adultery to be stoned to death [Deuteronomy 22:22-24]. Where is the man? Apparently, the authorities didn’t care about the man sinning. Or perhaps, it just didn’t fit in with their agenda.
- This passage is often used to say that Christians should not judge others for their sins. That doesn’t fit in with the rest of scripture on the topic. You can look at [Matthew 18:15-17] for one example. Jesus told these men not to execute punishment on the woman. He himself called her a sinner, forgave her, and told her to stop.
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