The Woman Caught in Adultery

“Look at her, the sinner!”

“She deserves whatever happens to her!”

“She’s a stain, a destroyer of families and marriages. She should be stoned!”

“God hates her. She could never be forgiven for what she’s done!”

No doubt these were some of the thoughts of the people she passed by on her way to meet Jesus that morning.

The Woman Caught in Adultery

You heard their footsteps before you saw her face. The Men of Religion were dragging the Woman of Adultery.

Frightened. Caught. Hated. Lusted after.

The woman caught in adultery.

Jesus knew they were coming before anyone else did. The Master was in the middle of his sermon that morning, teaching on the kingdom of heaven, declaring God’s grace for fallen humanity.

And then one of the fallen was dragged into the temple courtyard. A living illustration.

The disciples were all there. Peter, James, John, even Judas. Watching eyes everywhere.

Whispers. Glances. Shame. Oh, the shame!

The morning crowd had assembled for a time of worship, for a church service. They had become witnesses to a court trial instead.

The Pharisees showed up as plaintiffs. The woman…(where was the man, again?)…was the lone defendant. The church goers who were hearing about the kingdom of heaven were now the uncomfortable witnesses.

And then there was the judge. Jesus.

Or maybe he was the jury? The executioner?

Better yet, the defending attorney.

The religious leaders wanted a stoning. The woman wanted anything but this. Judas wanted thirty pieces of silver. And Jesus wanted an illustration of the grace of God in action.

In case you don’t already know the end of the story, Jesus wins.

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There wasn’t much needed in the way of evidence, for she was caught in the very act. In the very act. The very act!

The. Very. Act.

What a sinner. What an adulterous woman. What an illustration of God’s grace toward the woman caught in adultery!

That grace is offered to you, too.

The Men of Religion wanted to trap Jesus in his words. This was all a set-up. Where was the woman’s partner again? He is conveniently absent at the moment. It takes two to tango, even 2,000 years ago, I assume.

But it’s just her. To the religious leaders, the woman caught in adultery is a pawn. A piece in the plan of their soon-to-be-betrayal of God’s only begotten Son.

Who…exactly…is on trial here?

The religious leaders weren’t concerned about God’s justice, or his mercy, or his kingdom. Their only concern was for the words of Jesus. They wanted Jesus to slip, to speak foolishly, to cut his own throat.

“But what do you say?” they asked repeatedly. Over and over and over again.

But what do you say?

Finger in the dirt. The Prince of Peace stooped down, touched his hand to the dirt, the same dirt that so many years before was used to craft the first man (Adam), and he just scribbled.

What did he write in the dirt?

Does it matter?

Don’t forget the woman. She’s waiting, trembling, scared, and guilty.

She does deserve death. She deserves to be stoned, for the Law of Moses commands it.

But rather than stoop down to pick up stones, Jesus stooped to write in the dirt.

How uncomfortable the moment must have been. After all, has anything like that ever happened while you were listening to a sermon during a church service?

Was he dodging the question? What was Judas thinking at that moment? Did Peter or James or John want to call down fire from heaven to consume her?

A courtyard full of sinners. Except for One, that is.

God incarnate stooped no longer. He now stood, upright, firm, in charge.

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.” (John 8:7)

And then he stooped again, writing in the dust. Such behavior! The woman caught in adultery surely was hoping for something a bit more from her defending attorney.

How odd.

How brilliant.

In a sentence, he advocated for justice, righteousness, stoning, and for each of us to think long and hard about our own unique sinfulness.

Do you deserve to be stoned? Yes, you do.

Do I? A thousand times over!

Aren’t we all, at our very best, little more than adulterers at heart?

Ahh, the silence that must have echoed in the moment.

Scratch, scratch, scratch. The noise Jesus made in the earth had silenced the thunderings of religious man.

What was the outcome? Was the woman caught in adultery stoned?

One by one the Men of Religion walked away, beginning with the oldest first.

“He who is without sin among you..” Why, there was only One in the temple that morning who fit the description.

Without sin. Among you.

The accusers all left. One by one. A parade out of the temple courtyard. The One left to stone her stood up, but rather than hurl rocks he smothered her with grace.

Grace. Undeserved. Unexpected. Wonderful. All sufficient.

There was no one left to condemn her, and Jesus didn’t either. The Lamb who would soon take away the sin of the world told her to “go and sin no more.” (John 8:11)

Go. Sin no more.

Grace. Holy living.

She was free to go back home, but not back to her old bed. Her life would be different from now on.

The woman caught in adultery was now to be the woman who longed to live sinlessly. At least that’s what Jesus commanded of her.

And, my friend, he commands it of you as well.

Go and sin no more!

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.” (John 8:1-11)