Go and sin no more

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 8.7-11

This setting always makes me a bit angry. Here we have a bunch of self-righteous mysogyntist men who have found a woman commiting adultery. She was guilty. She had been caught – but where is the man? These men have decided to take her and publicly stone her to death.

I get irritated at that. It is the same tired and corrupt line that somehow women are to blame for men’s lust. We still here those lines today. “She must have said something or walked a certain way or something so she is guilty.’ I have personally heard stories of actual events where young girls were seen as at fault for ‘seducing’ adult men. Anyway, that’s not the point I guess, but I think it is interesting to see what Jesus does.

Jesus walks up and addresses the men. He kneels and writes something and then says ‘let he who is without sin cast the first stone.’ Men had the power to blame her because they were in control.

Thankfully Jesus knew their hearts. ‘Let the one of you who does not have sin cast the first stone.’

And they all left. One by one they left. They knew their guilt.

‘Where are you accusers? Jesus asked. ‘Who has condemned you?’

‘No one.’

‘I am not going to condemn you, just go and sin no more.’

Jesus didn’t excuse her sin. He told her to sin no more.

The thing is He knew that she did not sin alone. All He wanted her to do was to stop her sinning.

It is so easy to judge others. Its not quite so easy to judge ourselves.