28 · Jesus' Words and Actions

The Woman About to Be Stoned

John 7:53–8:11

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Jesus crouches and writes on the ground beside a woman while men holding stones stand around them in the temple courtyard.

A woman accused of adultery is brought before Jesus while her accusers try to trap him.

What does Jesus do with the situation?

Choose a perspective

There is no score – choose the perspective you find closest and discuss why.

Discuss: How can grace and a clear rejection of wrongdoing exist at the same time?

After your discussion: compare with our assessment

Our assessment

B and C are closest to our understanding. B captures how Jesus turns scrutiny back toward the accusers before anyone casts the first stone. C captures the ending: "Neither do I condemn you" stands together with "Go, and sin no more."

28 · John 7:53–8:11

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Text & context

Full translation

7:53 Then each of them went home. 8:1 But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 8:2 Early in the morning he returned to the temple. All the people came to him, and he sat down and taught them. 8:3 The scribes and Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery and made her stand in their midst. 8:4 They said to him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. 8:5 In the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. What then do you say?” 8:6 They said this to test him, so that they might have grounds to accuse him. But Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. 8:7 When they continued questioning him, he stood up and said to them, “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8:8 Then he bent down again and wrote on the ground. 8:9 When they heard this, they went away one by one. Jesus was left alone with the woman standing there before him. 8:10 Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” 8:11 She replied, “No one, Lord.” Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and sin no more.”

Translated from the Greek text – SBLGNT

What is happening here?
A woman accused of adultery is brought before Jesus by the scribes and Pharisees. They appeal to the law of Moses and ask what Jesus says should be done with her, while John tells the reader that the question is being used to test Jesus. Jesus bends down and writes on the ground. When they continue questioning him, he says, “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” One by one, the accusers leave. When Jesus and the woman are left, he asks whether no one has condemned her. He then says that neither does he condemn her and tells her to go and sin no more.
Notice this

The passage is commonly called the Pericope Adulterae. Its absence from several early witnesses and movement within parts of the later manuscript tradition create serious doubt that it originally occupied this location in John. That does not make it a modern invention. It is an ancient Jesus tradition with a major history in Christian reception. If the woman was caught in adultery, another party would naturally have been involved. Yet only the woman is brought forward. The story does not explain why. Leviticus 20:10 and Deuteronomy 22:22 address both parties in adultery, making the missing man noteworthy. The narrator explicitly says the question is intended to test Jesus and create grounds for accusation. The woman is therefore also being used in a conflict with Jesus. The story never tells us. Historical suggestions remain speculation and should not be presented as fact. Deuteronomy 17:7 gives witnesses a special role in carrying out a capital sentence. That legal background gives added weight to Jesus' wording. The accusers leave and no stone is thrown. Some textual forms contain additional details, but this is the central movement. Once the accusers leave, the public scene becomes a direct encounter between Jesus and the woman. Katakrinō carries the strong sense of condemning or pronouncing guilty. This is the story's clear moment of grace. The story does not end by declaring adultery irrelevant. Release from condemnation is joined to a call for change. The story should be reduced neither to "nothing is wrong because everyone sins" nor to treating grace as a minor detail. The narrative holds grace and moral transformation together.

Language & translation

From the Greek

κατέγραφεν -- kategraphen

wrote / wrote down

ἀναμάρτητος -- anamartētos

without sin / sinless

κατακρίνω -- katakrinō

condemn / pronounce guilty

Translation note

Independent English rendering of the Greek form of the story. Because of the passage's unusual textual status, its manuscript history is treated explicitly.

Compare for yourself

Read the story and follow what happens after Jesus says: “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” Who leaves? Who remains? Then notice the two things Jesus says to the woman after the accusers are gone. Does his response contain both mercy and a call to change?

    Continue the conversation

    Discuss further
    1. Why does the manuscript history matter?
    2. What can we actually know about what Jesus wrote?
    3. Why is the missing man noteworthy?
    4. How does the legal background of witnesses affect "the first stone"?
    5. How are grace and transformation held together at the end?
    Parallel passages
    • Leviticus 20:10
    • Deuteronomy 17:6–7
    • Deuteronomy 22:22
    • John 3:17–21
    Sources
    • SBLGNT and modern critical editions on John 7:53–8:11
    • Standard Greek lexical resources for anamartētos, katagraphō, and katakrinō
    • Manuscript tradition of the Pericope Adulterae