In 1631, two English printers made a huge mistake. When printing a new edition of the Bible, they accidentally left out one word and caused a huge commotion. They left out the word “not” in the seventh commandment. As a result, those who bought that edition of the Bible were surprised when they read these words: “Thou shalt commit adultery.” You can imagine how surprised the readers were! This caused such an uproar that the king demanded that all of these editions be destroyed. He also fined the printers a large sum of money. Thankfully, almost all of the printings were destroyed before that misprint could mislead many people.
Almost 400 years have passed since “The Wicked Bible” was first printed. However, the sin of adultery has been around for thousands of years before that. The Bible talks about Joseph rejecting the advances of Potiphar’s wife, David’s adultery with Bathsheba, and the unfaithfulness of Hosea’s wife. While it has happened many times, the Bible makes it clear that this is not something that pleases God. In fact, the Law of Moses prescribes the death penalty for those who commit adultery. But what did Jesus think about it? Was it something to be forgiven or to be judged? This was the question posed to Him in our passage today.
- What does it say?1
Jesus departed to the Mount of Olives. But at daybreak, He approached the temple and all the people were coming to Him. After He sat down, He was teaching them. Then the scribes and the Pharisees led a woman to Him who had been caught committing adultery. After placing her in the middle, they said to Him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of committing adultery. In the law, Moses commanded us that these types of people are to be stoned. With that in mind, what do you say?” However, they said this testing Him that they might have a reason to accuse Him. But Jesus, having stooped down, was writing on the ground with a finger. As they were continuing to ask him, Jesus raised himself up and said to them, “Let the one among you who is without sin cast the first stone at her.” Once again, having stooped down, he was writing on the ground. When they heard this, being convicted by their conscience, they began going out one by one, starting with the older ones until the last. Jesus was left alone and the woman in the middle. When Jesus had raised Himself and seen just the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are your accusers? Has no one accused you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you. Go and from now on do not sin anymore.” - What does it mean?
Jesus had a lesson for the people (John 8:1-2).
At the end of the last chapter, the religious leaders were arguing about whether Jesus could be a prophet. When the conversation got heated, everyone left for their own houses. But Jesus didn’t have somewhere to sleep, so He went to the Mount of Olives where He probably slept outside. The next morning, Jesus returned to the temple. Many people also came back hoping to hear from Him. So, He sat down and taught them. Apparently, this was the custom of the day. The teacher would sit while others stood around and listened.
In this passage, we are not told what Jesus taught the people. But the Gospel of John is filled with examples of His teaching. In chapter 2, He taught that the temple was to be a place dedicated to God the Father not religious merchandise. In chapter 3, He taught that a person must be born again by God to see God’s kingdom. In chapter 4, He taught that God the Father wants people to worship Him from the heart and according to truth. In chapter 5, He taught that His message was from God the Father and that those who believed would have eternal life. In chapter 6, He taught that He was the Bread of Life sent by God to fulfill their deepest needs. In chapter 7, He taught that the Holy Spirit would indwell those who believed Him.
The people kept returning to hear Jesus speak. Although some had left after they misunderstood His teaching, many had returned to hear more. Like the arresting officers sent by the religious leaders, they had never heard someone teach like Jesus. This had a double effect. The first effect was that the people kept coming back to hear what He taught. They were hungry to hear truth because the religious leaders had replaced God’s truth with their own traditions. The second effect was that it soured the religious leaders against Jesus and anyone who followed Him. They were both jealous of His popularity and enraged that He was pointing out their sinfulness. This led the people to listen and the leaders to devise plans to destroy Him.
The lesson to the people was that Jesus was everything they needed. If they would believe and follow Him, they would escape the errors of the religious leaders and find true fulfillment in Him. Each time they listened to Jesus teach, they heard God’s truth. But would they believe what they heard and follow Jesus?
Jesus had a lesson for the leaders (John 8:3-9).
On this particular day, the scribes and Pharisees devised a tricky plan to make Jesus look bad. They led a woman to Jesus whom they claimed had been caught in the act of adultery. They quickly informed Jesus that the Law required such persons to be stoned to death. This was a true reference to Deuteronomy 22:22-24. God is against adultery of any kind and did not want the Israelites to become a promiscuous society. So, the law commanded that those caught committing adultery were to be put to death by public stoning. This would be an example to the community of what God thought about such sin. But the religious leaders weren’t really interested in obeying what the Law said. They wanted Jesus to speak about the situation so that they could find fault with Him no matter how He answered. If they had really been interested in fulfilling the law, they would have brought the woman’s partner to be judged as well.
When they asked Jesus what He thought should be done, He didn’t answer them at first. Instead, He stooped down and wrote on the ground with his finger. To the religious leaders, it seemed that He was not listening to them. So, they kept pestering Him for an answer. If Jesus would forgive the woman, they could accuse Him of disobeying God’s Law. If Jesus “urged her execution, he would lose popular favor, endanger his image as a friend of publicans and sinners, and perhaps be accused of promoting a policy contrary to Rome (only Rome could execute death sentences).”2 In either case, they thought they would win. But things didn’t turn out quite as they had expected. Jesus stood up and made a surprising statement. He told them that the one among them who was sinless should cast the first stone at the accused woman. According to the Law, this was actually part of the process. Those who witnessed and reported a wicked act were to be the first to administer the punishment (Deut. 17:7). This would mean that those who had found this woman in the act of adultery were to be the first to cast a stone at her when she was condemned. Would they do it?
The scribes and Pharisees were well aware of what the Bible said. They knew that if this woman was guilty, death was the punishment she and her companion deserved according to the Law. But Jesus had added something that got their attention. He said that the one among them who was sinless should be the first to cast a stone at her. After making this statement, Jesus stooped down again and wrote on the ground with his finger. It appeared that He was not interested in giving them any more time than they deserved. The woman’s accusers thought about what Jesus had said — “the one among you without sin.” For some reason, these words convicted each man’s conscience. Why was this? Perhaps each of her accusers had been involved in the same type of sin. Whatever the reason, each of them left beginning with the oldest.
The lesson to the religious leaders was not that adultery was something to overlook. It is a terrible crime that has ruined many families. The lesson Jesus wanted them to learn was that their own guilt needed to be addressed. Until they were ready to confess and forsake their own sins, they should not be worried about the sins of others.
Jesus had a lesson for the woman (John 8:10-11).
When all of the religious leaders had left, Jesus stood up and noticed that it was just Him and the accused woman. He asked her where her accusers were and if someone had condemned her. It was a serious question that deserved an answer. By asking this, He was “intimating that the law against adultery was a just law; and if the crime were proved against her, she deserved to die, but she must first be convicted and condemned.”3 By this time, her accusers had left the area. So, she said that nobody had condemned her. Jesus responded that He didn’t condemn her either. Although He is God and knows all things, Jesus had not been physically present when the act was committed, so He was neither a witness who would testify of her guilt or the judge before whom she would be tried. So, He did not condemn her.
Was this woman guilty of adultery? The scribes and Pharisees had accused her of that, but we never heard her side of the story. Also, the fact that the scribes and Pharisees only brought her and not the man makes me wonder what actually happened. We will never know the whole story. However, Jesus made it clear that she had been sinning because He told her to “go and sin no more.” With this subtle rebuke, she knew that He knew the truth. Now it was her opportunity to repent of her sins and choose to live a life that pleased the Lord. I hope that she took Jesus’ admonition seriously.
The lesson to the accused woman was that she should change her direction. She had been accused of a serious crime but had not been condemned. She had escaped the death sentence, but that didn’t mean she should go on living in sin. From that point on, Jesus told her to make the choice to stop sinning against God. - How does it apply?
Have you found everything you need in Jesus?
When Jesus taught the people, He told them that He would satisfy their needs. He was the Bread of Life sent by the Father. When they believed Him and chose to follow Him, they would find forgiveness and eternal life. But if they searched for fulfillment in anything else, they would not be satisfied. This longing for satisfaction has led many people to seek the thrill found in an adulterous relationship. But the thrill never completely satisfies because God has not designed us to function that way. Those sins are never enough. There is the continued desire for more. Thankfully, Jesus provides what we need. Through His death on the cross, we can be forgiven by God. When we believe Him, we are given a new life that brings true fulfillment. Have you found that in Jesus?
Have you dealt with your own sinfulness?
When the scribes and Pharisees confronted Jesus about the accused woman, He quickly turned the tables and confronted them about their own sin problem. When Jesus told the sinless one among them to be the first to cast a stone, they realized that they were guilty of sin themselves. But these religious leaders are not alone in their sinfulness. The Bible says that “there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:22-23). Each one of us must admit our own sinfulness to God. Have you dealt with your own sinfulness? It was your sin (and mine) that separated us from God and made us deserving of death. Thankfully, despite our sinfulness, God loved us and sent Jesus to die in our place. Now all who trust in Jesus can be forgiven by God. Have you dealt with your own sinfulness?
Have you made the choice to leave your sin?
After being led to Jesus, the woman in our story was accused of committing adultery. But after her accusers left, Jesus told her to go and stop practicing sin. Whether she did or not, we don’t know. But all those who met Jesus were always faced with a decision to continue in or leave their sin. Think of Zacchaeus who repented of his sin, paid back those he had wronged, and then followed Jesus. This is what we are called to do. Leave our sin, believe Jesus, and then follow Him. What about you? Have you made the choice to leave your sin and to follow Jesus? Thankfully, when God works in a sinner’s heart, that person is changed from the inside so that he has new desires. Has God made that change in your heart? Or are you still serving your old sinful desires?
Conclusion
At the beginning of this meeting with Jesus, it seemed that the woman was the only one caught in her sin. But then Jesus addressed the secret sins of her accusers. What was supposed to be an easy victory for them turned into an embarrassing defeat. Soon, they were leaving with their heads hung low. While it seems like the religious leaders got their just desserts, we have to admit that they are not the only ones with a sin problem. All of us are guilty before God. But it doesn’t have to stay that way. God has provided the way for our guilt to be taken away through what Jesus accomplished on the cross. He died and paid the price for our sins. Now all those who repent of their sin and put their trust in Him will be forgiven by God, cleansed from their sin, and made into a new creation. What a gift from God!
Bibliography
Augustine, Lectures or Tractates on the Gospel According to St. John as viewed at https://ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf107/npnf107.iii.xxxiv.html on 7/11/2026.
Kent Jr., Homer A., Light in the Darkness, Grand Rapids: Baker, 1974. Reprint 1986.
McGee, J. Vernon, Thru the Bible with J. Vernon McGee, Vol IV, Matthew through Romans, Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1983.
Plummer, A., The Gospel According to St. John, Cambridge; University Press, 1923, orig. 1880.
Poole, Matthew, A Commentary on the Holy Bible, Vol.3, The New Testament, Carlisle: The Banner of Truth Trust, 1979, orig. 1685.
Footnotes
- “The episode of the woman, covering the first eleven verses, is not found in some of the better manuscripts. As I am sure you know, our English Bibles are translated from the original languages. The New Testament was first written in the Greek language. Extant manuscripts were used to compile a Greek New Testament; then our English translations were made from that. The Greek text of Westcott and Hort omits the incident of the woman taken in adultery from its position in the eight chapter of John but inserts it at the end of that gospel. Nestle’s Greek text includes it but encloses it in brackets. Augustine writes that it was omitted because of a prudish fear that it would encourage adultery. However, if you read the account carefully, we will see that it does not condone sin. Rather, it condemns sin. We have both a scholarly and moral basis for considering it part of the inspired Word of God.” – McGee 414. ↩︎
- Kent 124. ↩︎
- Poole 320. ↩︎