John 8:1-11 “But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Now early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and He sat down and taught them. Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, they said to Him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?” This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He
did not hear.
So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?”
She said, “No one, Lord.”
And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.”
The Pharisees are positively gloating! This time, they’re going to catch Jesus in a doctrinal with no means of escape. And what better place to stage this encounter than on the teaching steps on the east side of the temple, where thousands of people will witness Jesus’ humiliation?
For weeks, the Pharisees have had spies following Jacob, one of their own, to the house of Miriam, a gorgeous young woman married to a merchant who travels frequently. Even though Miriam has previously resisted all blandishments from several of the men in the group, this particular night she has finally given in to Jacob’s endearments out of sheer loneliness. As soon as Jacob has completed the act of intercourse, his colleagues rush in, pouncing on Miriam and dragging her down the street and up the temple mount to the teaching steps, where they throw her at Jesus’ feet.
In an oily voice, one of the senior Pharisees puts the question to Jesus. “Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?” You can almost see all the other men in the group rubbing their hands in glee. Not only are they about to catch Jesus teaching false doctrine, but they’re also going to punish this ridiculous woman who has previously spurned all their advances. This is going to be VERY satisfying….or is it?
The Law these men are trying to refer to is in Deuteronomy 22:22“If a man is found lying with a woman married to a husband, then both of them shall die—the man that lay with the woman, and the woman; so you shall put away the evil from Israel.” Notice that these self-styled teachers of the Law have made a major since Jacob has also committed adultery, leaving himself liable to the same fate of stoning as Miriam.
“But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He
did not hear.
So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last.”
The sheer hypocrisy of these men convicts them, and they slink away. Will any of them truly change their hearts and minds? Will they cease preying on vulnerable young women? Will they stop taking revenge? We don’t know. But this we do know: “And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?”
She said, “No one, Lord.”
And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.”
Jesus knows all the circumstances surrounding this incident. Now Jesus has given everyone involved the opportunity to start over and act differently.
We love this story because it humiliates those who would humiliate Jesus; however, how many times have we behaved like the Pharisees? How many times have we manipulated or misunderstood God’s Law? How many times have we accused others of the very sins we have committed, either physically or mentally? Those Pharisees slunk away because of their vivid memories of the times they too had lusted after Miriam. Now their consciences were screaming at them.
May God help us, so that we avoid hypocrisy and minister faithfully.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to remain humble and true, refusing to accuse others, since You are the only Just Judge. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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