1 But Yeshua went to the Mount of Olives. 2 At daybreak, he appeared again in the Temple Court, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. 3 The Torah-teachers and the P’rushim brought in a woman who had been caught committing adultery and made her stand in the center of the group. 4 Then they said to him, "Rabbi, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. 5 Now in our Torah, Moshe commanded that such a woman be stoned to death. What do you say about it?" 6 They said this to trap him, so that they might have ground for bringing charges against him; but Yeshua bent down and began writing in the dust with his finger. 7 When they kept questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, "The one of you who is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." 8 Then he bent down and wrote in the dust again. 9 On hearing this, they began to leave, one by one, the older ones first, until he was left alone, with the woman still there. 10 Standing up, Yeshua said to her, "Where are they? Has no one condemned you?" 11 She said, "No one, sir." Yeshua said, "Neither do I condemn you. Now go, and don’t sin any more." [Yochanan (John) 8:1-11]

Normally, I do not open a discussion of the Parashat HaShavua (weekly reading) by talking about a passage from the Besorah HaTova (Good News).  However, this week’s parasha talks about dealing with adultery.  So, I thought it would be a good idea to examine the story above in light of Torah.  

The problem I have is when Christians read this passage (without knowledge of Torah), they will say things like this shows that Yeshua abolished the law and brought about Grace.  Let us look at this story from a Torah point of view.

The Torah-teachers and the P’rushim brought in a woman who had been caught committing adultery and made her stand in the center of the group. V.3

The Torah states in this week’s reading “22 If a man is found lying with another man’s wife, both of them — the man and the woman with whom he lay — shall die. Thus you will sweep away evil from Israel.” Devarim 22:22; see also Leviticus 20:10

When they kept questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, "The one of you who is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." V.8

In last week’s Parashat we read:  Devarim 17:6 – A person shall be put to death only on the testimony of two or more witnesses; he must not be put to death on the testimony of a single witness. — 7 Let the hands of the witnesses be the first against him to put him to death, and the hands of the rest of the people thereafter. Thus you will sweep out evil from your midst.

This passage clearly outlines that TWO witnesses must be not only willing to testify against the accused, but they must be FIRST to put them to death.  I would argue that they all walked away because they knew they had violated the Torah prohibition.

This passage outlines that BOTH shall be put to death.  It would seem that because they brought just the woman and not also the man, they were clearly in violation of Torah.

It would appear that they did not “cast their stones” at her because they were in violation of the Torah and not because this was Grace over Law. Yeshua clearly states to the woman go and sin no more.  This is not a reference I believe to be perfect, but to no longer go and commit adultery.

Finally, “They said this to trap him, so that they might have ground for bringing charges against him; but Yeshua bent down and began writing in the dust with his finger…. Then he bent down and wrote in the dust again.

What was he writing in the dust?  No one knows for sure, but perhaps, He was writing the very verses in Torah dealing with this issue.  Maybe, that is why no one could cast the first stone!!