This page was last updated on 21 July, 2015.
Adulterous woman
John 8
3 And the scribes and the Pharisees brought to Him a woman having been taken in adultery. And standing her in the middle,
4 they said to Him, Teacher, this woman was taken in the very act, committing adultery.
5 And in the Torah, Moses commanded that such should be stoned. You, then, what do You say?
6 But they said this, tempting Him, that they may have reason to accuse Him. But bending down, Yahshua wrote with the finger in the earth, not appearing to hear.
7 But as they continued questioning Him, bending back up, He said to them, The one among you without that sin, let him cast the first stone at her.
8 And bending down again, He wrote in the earth.
9 But hearing, and being convicted by the conscience, they went out one by one, beginning from the older ones, until the last. And Yahshua was left alone, and the woman standing in the middle.
10 And Yahshua bending back up, and having seen no one but the woman, He said to her, Woman, where are those, the accusers of you? Did not one give judgment against you?
11 And she said, No one, Master. And Yahshua said to her, Neither do I judge you. Go, and sin no more.
The Scribes and Pharisees were trying to setup Jesus.
If Jesus condemns the woman He would be arrested by the Romans for breaking their law which forbids Jews passing the death sentence
John 18:31 Then Pilate said to them, You take Him and judge Him according to your own Law. Then the Jews said to him, It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death,
If Jesus sets the woman free He would have broken the Biblical law. That would make Jesus a Teacher that breaks God’s law.
Deuteronomy 22:22 "If a man is found sleeping with another man's wife, both the man who slept with her and the woman must die."
John 8:11 shows that Jesus was convinced the woman was actually guilty. John 8:7 wraps a lengthy legal procedure into one verse.
The ancient judges of the court knew that God prefers mercy and love.
Lev 19:17 You shall not hate your brother in your heart; you shall certainly reprove your neighbor, and not allow sin on him.
Hos 6:6 For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of Elohim more than burnt offerings.
Their opinion was that a court that passes 1 or more death sentences within a period of 7 years is a murderous court. Both the stoning and mercy laws are laws of God and therefore of equal value. So court rulings had to take both laws into account. The main activity of the judges was discrediting the witnesses. Often a case was dropped even before it went to court. If a case was brought before court the witnesses were severely cross examined. Witnesses had to be reliable and were deemed not so for many reasons. For example:
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Jesus wrapped up all those things in the word ‘sin’. So Jesus basically said: “I don’t break God’s stoning law, but I’m forced to let this woman go free because there are no reliable witnesses against her.”
Case dropped… :-
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