The Beginning:
Jesus teaches publicly in the temple, drawing crowds. Religious leaders bring a woman accused of adultery and place her before him, framing the situation as a legal dispute. They ask what should be done, presenting it as a test of Jesus.
The Middle:
They cite Moses’ law regarding adultery and press Jesus for a ruling. Jesus stoops down and writes on the ground, then replies that the one without sin should throw the first stone. One by one, the accusers leave, beginning with the older ones, until only Jesus and the woman remain.
The End:
Jesus asks the woman where her accusers are and whether anyone has condemned her. When she answers that no one has, Jesus says he does not condemn her either. He then tells her to go and to sin no more.
This account highlights Jesus’ authority to expose false righteousness and to confront sin without abandoning mercy. He neither denies the seriousness of wrongdoing nor allows the law to be used as a weapon for entrapment and public humiliation. The story presents divine grace as restorative: Jesus dismisses condemnatory accusations while calling the sinner to a changed life, reflecting God’s purpose to save rather than to destroy.
In Second Temple Judaism, legal proceedings required credible witnesses; the Torah also warned that witnesses were to initiate the execution in capital cases (Deuteronomy 17:6–7). By challenging the accusers to act only if they are “without sin,” Jesus forces a moral and legal reckoning, undermining a manipulative prosecution and exposing the leaders’ misuse of the law in the public temple setting.
“Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” — John 8:7
Answer the questions below. When you choose an option, you will see the result and an explanation.
1. Where was Jesus teaching when the religious leaders brought the woman accused of adultery?
2. What did Jesus tell the accusers before they left one by one?