The Lovingkindness, Judgment, and Righteousness of Yeshua Part One

By Frank Tyler

John 7:53-8:12

Introduction

Jeremiah 9:24: A Three Part Series

This article is the first in a three part series documenting a long and grueling day in the ministry of Yeshua [1] (John 7:53 through John 10:21) in which He demonstrates perfectly, both in word and deed, those things which delight His Father. Consider the words of the Prophet Jeremiah:

9:24 But let him who glories glory in this,

That he understands and knows Me,

That I am the LORD, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth.

For in these I delight,” says the LORD.

(Jeremiah 9:24; underlining added) [2]

Yeshua glories in, understands, and knows His Father. Under the worst and most trying of circumstances, the Son delights perfectly in the very things the Father delights in—lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness.

As God’s children, you and I desire to walk in a manner pleasing to Him and experience Yeshua’s life in us both now and into eternity with greater and greater abundance. We desire to glorify Him! Thankfully, the qualities that please and glorify God are not new or unique to our own personal experience, but are definitively revealed in our Lord and Savior and His witness in the Gospel of John.

John 7:53-8:12: Day Break

Throughout the whole of the Scriptures, Yeshua exercises all three qualities, lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, but, as you and I begin our series, we will discover, in the story of the woman caught in adultery (John 7:53-8:12)[3], He displays these qualities in perfect harmony as a definitive witness and apologia that He is: [4]

1)The One who gave the Law (Ten Commandments and Mosaic law) with perfect power and authority (Exodus 31:18) [5] and

2)The long-awaited, Spirit-filled Messiah who alone fulfills the Law perfectly (Isaiah 11:1-2).

As the sun rises in the early morning sky and drama unfolds, this One who so delights His Fatherwill rescue the life of a woman and leave us with a precious promise, I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life (John 8:12; underlining added) that we might follow His example and honor God with our witness of Yeshua and the life He has gifted us—even under seemingly impossible circumstances.

An Impossible Circumstance

After spending the night on the Mount of Olives, Yeshua comes into the temple early in the morning (John 7:53 through 8:2). While He teaches a crowd, the scribes and Pharisees interrupt with a seemingly intractable legal problem:

8:4 “Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act.

8:5 Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?” (John 8:4-5; underlining added)

Parenthetically, the Apostle John reminds his audience that the woman’s accusers sought to make an accusation against Yeshua (John 8:6). If He does not condemn the woman to death, then He violates the Law (Exodus 20:14; Leviticus 20:10); if He commands her death, then He violates Roman law forbidding capital punishment by the Jews... what do you say?

This incident recalls another attempt to test Yeshua and undermine His authority: Teacher, we know that You are true, and care about no one; for You do not regard the person of men, but teach the way of God in truth. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not (Mark 12:14)? But, in John 8, the Judean authorities do not ask Yeshua to simply interpret the Law within a contemporary setting, but to judge a woman accused of a very serious offense, adultery. Perhaps, another incident comes to mind:

12:13 Then one from the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”

12:14 But He said to him, “Man, who made Me a judge or an arbitrator over you?” (Luke 12:13-14)

True, Yeshua might easily reply, “Who has made me judge over this woman?” However, the accusation against the woman threatens her life with capital punishment; therefore, righteousness demands He act on her behalf and not simply excuse Himself.

Before reaching judgment, earthly judges should carefully weigh the accusations before them (Deuteronomy 19:15-20)… but how can Yeshua do this under such impossibly trying circumstances before a large and potentially volatile crowd of onlookers? His response might initially surprise us: Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear (John 8:6), [6] but ironically this is the key to understanding His response to both the woman and her accusers. The very finger of God writing on the ground—hearing, He does not hear; seeing, He does not see—is both the Giver of the Law and the Spirit-filled Messiah fulfilling His commandments and law perfectly by exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness … For in these He delights. (Jeremiah 9:24).

The Definitive Witness of the Finger of God

Though commentators frequently speculate on what Yeshua wrote on the ground, the key may not be what He wrote, but that He wrote with the finger of God. There are many biblical examples of the finger of God that demonstrate His perfect power and authority.

Creation

The Psalmist writes: When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained (Psalm 8:3; underlining added). The Psalmist then asks: What is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him (Psalm 8:4)? The power and authority of God in creation (the finger(s) of God) dwarfs the significance of man, and yet God reveals His great love: You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet (Psalm 8:6).

Afflicting With a Plague of Lice

God commands Moses: Say to Aaron, Stretch out your rod, and strike the dust of the land, so that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt (Exodus 8:16). As the land teams with lice, try as they might to duplicate the miracle of God, the magicians of Pharaoh’s court could not. Instead, they acknowledge to their master, This is the finger of God (Exodus 8:19; underlining added). The Word of God spoken through Moses and Aaron, let My people go (Exodus 5:1; 7:16; 8:1, 20, 21; 9:1, 13; 10:3, 4), comes with perfect power and authority, and in the third plague, even the court of Pharaoh recognize the finger of God .

Giving the Ten Commandments and Law of Moses

The Law is not a code of law enacted by man, but the very Word of God written with perfect power and authority by the finger of God. And when He had made an end of speaking with him on Mount Sinai, He gave Moses two tablets of the Testimony, tablets of stone, written with the finger of God (Exodus 31:18; underlining added). That which is right is right and that which is wrong is wrong according, not to man, but to the One who gives the Law to Moses. Later, Moses reminds the children of God: Then the LORD delivered to me two tablets of stone written with the finger of God , and on them were all the words which the LORD had spoken to you on the mountain from the midst of the fire in the day of the assembly (Deuteronomy 9:10; underlining added).

When Aaron leads God’s chosen people to worship a golden calf, God threatens judgment: Now therefore, let Me alone, that My wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them. And I will make of you a great nation (Exodus 32:10). At the pleas of Moses, God relents and shows His chesed or lovingkindness as mercy to His people. The One who gives the Ten Commandments and Mosaic law exercises the perfect balance of lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness and though disciplined, God’s children not only survive, but in time flourish.

MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN

Belshazzar and his court brazenly blaspheme the God of Israel, and then witness the finger of God writing on the wall, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN (Daniel 5:5, 25). When called upon to interpret the inscription, Daniel rebukes the king (Daniel 5:23), reveals its meaning, and then pronounces judgment.

5:26 …God has numbered your kingdom, and finished it;

5:27 …You have been weighed in the balances, and found wanting;

5:28 …Your kingdom has been divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.” (Daniel 5:26-28)

Belshazzar learns that the finger of God comes with perfect power and authority: Babylon is no more.

Casting Out Demons

When the Judean authorities accuse Yeshua of casting out demons by the power of Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons, He responds by revealing the flaw in their logic:

3:26 And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end.

3:27 No one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. And then he will plunder his house.

(Mark 3:26-27)

Luke records another small but vital part of the dialogue: But if I cast out demons with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you (Luke 11:20; underlining added). In other words, the Judean authorities witness demons cast out, not by the power of Satan, but by the perfect power and authority of God, the very finger of God… surely the kingdom of God has come upon you . Curiously, Yeshua ends with a dire warning:

3:28 Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter;

3:29 but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation—

(Mark 3:28-29)

To blaspheme against the Holy Spirit is to mistake the finger of God for the power of Satan. If they cannot discern the difference between the two, how can they possibly believe in Yeshua as Israel’s Messiah? How can they receive His kingdom? Mark concludes, because they (Judean authorities) say He has an unclean spirit (Mark 3:30); indeed, when the Judean authorities mistake the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit in Yeshua for Beelzebub, an unclean spirit, they blaspheme against the Spirit.

A Woman Caught in Adultery

In John chapter 8, by using His finger to write on the ground, Yeshua dramatically quickens the woman, her accusers, and His larger audience to the power and authority of His person. He is the One who created the heavens and thenput all things underman’sfeet, who plagued Egypt with lice, who rendered judgment on Babylon, who cast out demons in preparation for His kingdom, and most importantly, given the woman before Him, who gave the Ten Commandments and the law of Moses: I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage… You shall not commit adultery (Exodus 20:2, 14).

God purposed His Law as a blessing to keep Israel from the bondage of sin. The whole of Psalm 119 rejoices in the beauty and power of God’s word to bless His children with instruction: Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path (Psalm 119:105). Solomon instructs a son: For the commandment is a lamp, a nd the law a light (Proverbs 6:23). God purposed the Law for light not darkness, yet the Apostle John reveals that the woman’s accusers have a dark malevolent motive behind their accusation: this they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him (John 8:6).

By writing on the ground with His finger, Yeshua offers a visual and highly dramatic rebuke to the accusers—in effect saying, who do you think I am? The One they seek to test at the woman’s expense gave them the commandments and law to free them from the bondage of sin. Paul writes Timothy:

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17; underlining added)

God gave all Scripture, including the commandments and law, to equip the man of God… for every good work. Are the accusers, themselves, men of God willing to accept His reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness? No, not hardly! Sadly, everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed (John 3:20).

8:7 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.”

8:8 And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground.

8:9 Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last ...

(John 8:7-9; underlining added)

In the midst of darkness, the light of God’s word shines brightly—Yeshua speaks with perfect power and authority the Word of God, but the accusers, convicted of their sin, do not come to the light that their deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God (John 3:20-21). Instead they scatter.

Their actions reveal the hardness of their hearts. The authorities have fallen into the dark pit of legalism, and with evil intent, have twisted the law into a curse at the expense of a woman caught in adultery, all in order to test and undermine the authority of the One who gave them the Law as a blessing. Our Lord’s judgment falls on deaf ears (John 8:34-47); they fail to receive God’s correction.

In stunning contrast, the crowd witnesses this Rabbi from the backwaters of Galilee (John 7:52) publicly judge and correct the authorities, the same authorities who, just the day before, had ordered the temple guard to arrest Him (John 7:32-46), the same authorities who now flee His presence lest their wickedness be revealed further. Oh, that they had listened to their guards; for indeed, No man ever spoke like this man (John 7:46)! Indeed, Yeshua is God speaking with perfect power and authority the Word of God!

Thankfully, the crowd continues listening to Him… and later that same morning many of them will believe in Him:

8:30 As He spoke these words, many believed in Him.

8:31 Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “ If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed.

8:32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free .”

(John 8:30-32; underlining added)

What are the words spoken (John 8:30)? and, what is the word Yeshua instructs these baby believers to abide in (John 8:31)?… but the very Word of God brought forth by the finger of God that shall make you free from the bondage of sin… the sin so well exemplified by the scribes and Pharisees earlier that morning. [7]

The Definitive Witness of the Spirit-Filled Messiah

One of the keys to understanding the story of the woman caught in adultery is what Yeshua did—writing with the finger of God and commanding the woman’s accusers:He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first. Amazingly, the second key may well be what Yeshua did not do as He diverted His attention away from the woman and her accusers. He refused to judge by the sight of His eyes… ordecide by the hearing of His ears(Isaiah 11:3).

Isaiah 11:2-5

Earthly judges must make inquiries of all the parties involved in order to discern truth. Not so for Israel’s Spirit-filled Messiah.

11:2 The Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him,

The Spirit of wisdom and understanding,

The Spirit of counsel and might,

The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.

11:3 His delight is in the fear of the LORD,

And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes,

Nor decide by the hearing of His ears;

11:4 But with righteousness He shall judge the poor,

And decide with equity for the meek of the earth;

He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth,

And with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked.

11:5 Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins,

And faithfulness the belt of His waist.

(Isaiah 11:2-5; underlining added)

At His baptism, Yeshua received the sevenfold gifting of the Holy Spirit without measure (John 3:34), symbolically represented by the seven lights of the Menorah. [8]

As Israel’s Spirit-filled Messiah, He is uniquely qualified to judge and fulfill the righteous requirements of the Law. His delight is in the fear of the LORD (Isaiah 11:3). He will most certainly avoid the pitfalls of legalism by exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in perfect harmony for in these I delight, says the LORD (Jeremiah 9:24)… all while judging not by the sight of His eyes or the hearing of His ears (Isaiah 11:3; John 8:6). [9]

Hearing He Does Not Hear; Seeing He Does Not See

Committing adultery requires two parties: 1) Where is the second party? 2) How did the woman’s accusers catch the woman in adultery, in the very act (John 8:4) and not the man? 3) Why do the woman’s accusers demand Yeshua judge only the woman? Lastly, 4) on whose authority—Rome’s or God’s—should judgment be rendered? All these questions and more would beg inquiry by an earthly judge.

Yeshua makes inquiry of neither the woman, nor her accusers. Instead, as the Spirit-filled Messiah, He strikesthe earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips…metaphorically slays the wicked (Isaiah 11:4) with a simple command: He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first (John 8:7).

In testing Yeshua, the woman’s accusers foolishly glory in their own wisdom, might, and riches (Jeremiah 9:23). Consider Proverbs 6:16-19:

6:16 These six things the LORD hates,

Yes, seven are an abomination to Him:

6:17 A proud look,

A lying tongue,

Hands that shed innocent blood,

6:18 A heart that devises wicked plans,

Feet that are swift in running to evil,

6:19 A false witness who speaks lies,

And one who sows discord among brethren.

In their arrogance, which of these seven abominations do they fail to commit? Though they might retract their accusation, the reality of their sin already impugns not only their word, but their person as well.

23:1 You shall not circulate a false report. Do not put your hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness .

23:2 You shall not follow a crowd to do evil; nor shall you testify in a dispute so as to turn aside after many to pervert justice .

(Exodus 23:1-2; underlining added)

They have sinned grievously against both God and the woman and made themselves an altogether loathsome spectacle in the eyes of the crowd. [10] Why should Yeshua follow their lead? May it never be!

Having executed perfect judgment and righteousness, Yeshua tempers it with lovingkindness and does not slay the wicked (Isaiah 11:4), but instead seeing He does not see and hearing He does not hear, He diverts His attention away from the woman and her accusers by writing on the ground. [11] In so doing, Yeshua fulfills the commandments and law perfectly, avoids the sin of legalism, and demonstrates the very thing the authorities lack… mercy. His delight is in the fear of the LORD (Isaiah 11:3).

Deciding with Equity for the Meek

Though He does not judge by the hearing of His ears nor by the sight of His eyes, Yeshua knows the reality of the woman’s sin. How shall He render righteous judgment? The law of Moses requires two or three witnesses to render judgment (Deuteronomy 17:5-7, 19:15-20). In the absence of witnesses, an accusation cannot be brought… Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you (John 8:10)? According to the Prophet Isaiah, the Spirit-filled Messiah, with righteousness, …shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth (Isaiah 11:4): When the woman answers, No one, Lord, Yeshua then turns to her, Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more (John 8:11). Under the most trying of circumstances, lovingkindness , judgment, and righteousness, not legalism rule the day. The Son glories in, understands, and knows His Father (Jeremiah 9:24).

Summary: A Compelling Witness

Imagine the wonder of the crowd observing the Spirit-filled Messiah, the One who writes with the finger of God. His delight is in the fear of the LORD, and He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, nor decide by the hearing of His ears (Isaiah 11:3). Truly, the presence of God illuminates the temple; Yeshua is both the Giver of the Law and the Spirit-filled Messiah who fulfills it perfectly… He is the light of the world (John 8:12)!

Fulfilling an Eschatological Expectation

The scribes and Pharisees desire to find an accusation against Him; however, their interruption sets a stage that dramatically demonstrates who Yeshua is as the Messiah. How can such trying circumstances prove an opportunity to engage a large, diverse, and highly volatile crowd?

According to Cristian S. Ile, Yeshua’s audience has a particular eschatological expectation:

An important aspect of ancient Jewish eschatology is the coming of the Spirit-filled Messiah (Isa 11:1-2; 42:1; 61:1-2)… Unlike Saul, from whom the Spirit departed (1 Sam 16:14), and David, who asked God not to take the Spirit from him (Ps 51:13), Jesus enjoys the abounding and abiding presence of the Spirit (Jn 1:32), even “without measure” (Jn 3:34-35) . This is a possible allusion to Isa 11:2 (see also Lev. Rab. 15.2), where the Messiah is described as endowed with the Spirit in unprecedent ways. [12]

What Ile considers in John 1:32 and John 3:34-35 only, “a possible allusion to Isa 11:2,” finds concrete expression in the rapidly unfolding drama between Yeshua and the Judean authorities in John 8:1-12. Indeed, as His actions and words reveal, Israel’s Messiah “enjoys the abounding and abiding presence of the Spirit (Jn 1:32) ‘without measure’ (Jn 3:34-35),” with the result that under otherwise impossible circumstances, He leaves open the door to further witness to His audience, the Judean authorities included, and bring forth much fruit to the glory of His Father. [13]

Fulfilling His Word to Nicodemus and His Disciples

When previously Nicodemus and his disciples sought out Yeshua at night, they literally came out of the darkness to the light of God’s revelation in Messiah and were commended as those who do the truth (John 3:21). [14]

3:19 And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

3:20 For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.

(John 3:19-20; underlining added)

Imagine Nicodemus and his disciples as they observe or would later hear of the perpetrators who exemplify men who love darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil . [15] Yeshua’s words to Nicodemus and his disciples regarding light and darkness, spoken in the dark of the night, now find fulfillment as the sun rises in the early morning skies over the temple.

By exercising the finger of God and commanding the woman’s accusers He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first (John 8:7), Yeshua is the light of the world, precipitating with perfect power and authority, the rulers departure. Nicodemus’s disciples witnessed their teacher receive Yeshua’s correction and rebuke with this very same power and authority (John 3:3-10). Who could Yeshua possibly be… but Messiah!

If only the Judean authorities had heeded the previous day’s stern rebuke from one of their own, Does our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he is doing (John 7:51), then they might have avoided falling into egregious sin. Rabbi from the backwaters of Galilee, indeed! If only the woman’s accusers would esteem their Messiah as Nicodemus did and receive the reproof and correction of His word! [16]

The Light of the World

How subtle, yet utterly profound that Yeshua should exercise a perfect balance of lovingkindness, judgment and righteousness while purposefully writing with His finger on the ground and diverting His attention away from the evidence. In the midst of a dark tragedy, perpetrated by the Judean authorities in the house of God, how wonderfully God’s Menorah lit the temple on the heels of the Feast of Tabernacles. [17] How wonderfully the light of the world, God’s Spirit-filled Messiah, dispels darkness with the finger of God.

A Promise to Those Who Follow the Light of the World

As born again believers, you and I are beneficiaries of Yeshua’s example and promise:He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light oflife—eternal life (John 8:12). Dr. Bob Wilkin writes:

This verse concerns discipleship (“He who follows Me”), not receiving eternal life (conditioned on believing in Jesus). Those who follow Christ (i.e., His disciples) “shall not walk in darkness” in their experience. Rather they will “have the light of life” meaning they will walk in the light that Jesus gives His followers (cf. 1 John 1:5-10). [18]

If you and I abide in His word, we are His disciples both in word and deed; and we shall know the truth, and the truth shall make us free from the bondage of sin (John 8:31-32).

Glorying in Lovingkindness, Judgment, and Righteousness

The Prophet Jeremiah exhorts his hearers to glory in the lovingkindness or loyal covenantal love of God (chesed). This great love—shown initially to Adam and Eve in promising Messiah, And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel. (Genesis 3:15); revealed throughout the Old Testament in His enduring covenantal love for Israel, Through the LORD’S mercies (chesed) we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness. (Lamentations 3:22-23); displayed before the whole world in offering His Son on the cross, For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life (John 3:16); and ultimately, magnified throughout eternity, But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2:4-7)—this lovingkindnessor loyal covenantal love (chesed) never fails. It endures forever (Psalm 136)!

If this were not daunting enough, Jeremiah reminds us to glory, not only in the knowledge of God’s great love, but also in His judgment and righteousness . Indeed! What mortal can do these things with perfect humility and please a perfect and holy God? How can you and I follow Yeshua and not walk in darkness, but have the light of life —eternal life? As the Prophet Jeremiah instructs: Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, let not the mighty man glory in his might, nor let the rich man glory in his riches (Jeremiah 9:23), or, as the Judean authorities so graphically demonstrate—not in the power of our flesh!

The Power of the Indwelling Holy Spirit

True, we are not indwelled with the seven fold, measureless fullness of the Holy Spirit (John 3:34); and, you and I may never encounter the intractable legal challenges our Lord confronts in His interactions with the Judean authorities. Nonetheless, Yeshua warns us, A servant is not greater than his master. “If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you” (John 15:20). How shall you and I face this persecution? How will we delight our LORD under seemingly impossible circumstances?

Yeshua’s actions on that morning provide an all-important clue. If our Lord both saw and heard, yet diverted His attention away from the immediate circumstances (hearing He did not hear; seeing He did not see) and allowed the Holy Spirit to empower Him to act and speak in a manner pleasing to His Father, how much more, as born again believers, ought you and I to divert our attention away from the ungodliness of this world and allow the indwelling Holy Spirit to empower us through God’s word to act and speak in a manner that glorifies Him. [19]

Our challenge could not be more real. Consider Yeshua’s repeated warnings to His disciples.

12:11 “Now when they bring you to the synagogues and magistrates and authorities, do not worry about how or what you should answer, or what you should say.

12:12 For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.” (Luke 12:11-12; underlining added)

Yeshua does not say “if persecution comes,” but when it comes…the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.

21:13 But it will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony .

21:14 Therefore settle it in your hearts not to meditate beforehand on what you will answer;

21:15 for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist.

(Luke 21:13-15; underlining added)

Yeshua, Himself, promises, I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist . Moreover, persecution will be an occasion for testimony. Our Lord does not say “if these things should happen,” but rather they will lay their hands on you and persecute you (Luke 21:12). Mark also records Yeshua’s instruction to His disciples:

13:9 “But watch out for yourselves, for they will deliver you up to councils, and you will be beaten in the synagogues. You will be brought before rulers and kings for My sake, for a testimony to them.

13:10 And the gospel must first be preached to all the nations.

13:11 But when they arrest you and deliver you up, do not worry beforehand, or premeditate what you will speak. But whatever is given you in that hour, speak that; for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit. (Mark 13:9-11; underlining added)

Again, when they arrest you and deliver you up reflects certainty—not possibility—and likewise, it is an opportunity for a testimony to them . In each instance, Yeshua taught His disciples not to panic or worry regarding how to respond, but to trust Him and the indwelling Holy Spirit for their actions and words as a testimony to Him.

The story of the woman caught in adultery (John 7:53-8:12) not only definitively reveals Yeshua as the Giver of the Law and the Spirit-filled Messiah; it also provides an example to His disciples to rely on the Holy Spirit to glorify God through their witness of Yeshua. According to our Savior’s promise, you and I possess this witness within us; we have the light of life… we have eternal life and the opportunity to live it and share it as a testimony to Him. He is the light of the world!

The Apostle Paul’s Not-So-Secret Secret

The beloved Apostle Paul, once a Pharisee who bitterly persecuted the church, learned to avoid the sin of legalism and trust the Holy Spirit for the testimony of his actions and words. Consider his epistle to the Philippians. Chained to Caesar’s elite guard while awaiting trial, the Apostle Paul reaches out with the love of Christ through the gospel and becomes an encouragement to brothers and sisters to share their faith.

Imagine that dark hour in Paul’s life and the light of the world , Christ, shining out through him with all boldness. Love looks like something; love looks like the gospel shared with Roman guards who would just as soon as not take Paul’s life!

1:19 For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance (σωτηρίαν) through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ,

1:20 according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.

(Philippians 1:19-20; underlining added)

The not-so-secret secret to the Apostle Paul’s deliverance from darkness and timidity to find words to evangelize the Roman guards did not come from a quirk of personality or special gifting, but just as Yeshua instructed, from the Holy Spirit’s ministry to him in his time of need. [20] For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:19).

Deliverance for Today

The exact same Greek word, σωτηρίαν, translated deliverance in Philippians 1:19, is translated salvation in Philippians 2:12.

2:12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation (σωτηρίαν) with fear and trembling;

2:13 for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure. (Philippians 2:12-13; underlining added)

God’s will and good pleasure in Paul is to love the Roman guards and boldly share the good news of Yeshua… for to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain (Philippians 1:21). Similarly, the great apostle to the Gentiles wants his beloved Philippians to know this same salvation or deliverance in their own lives that they, too, may boldly share the good news of Yeshua. Likewise, God’s will for us remains the same as it was for the Apostle Paul and the Philippians, namely to pray, trust the indwelling Holy Spirit, and share good news boldly under seemingly impossible circumstances as a testimony to Yeshua, the light of the world .

The darkness that surrounds Yeshua, when confronted with the woman caught in adultery, sets a stage for the light of the world to be seen clearly with the result that many believe in Him (John 8:30). When confronted with the darkness of this world, should you and I condescend to the legalism exemplified by the Judean authorities, or pray and trust the Holy Spirit, to exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness while boldly sharing good news? Our challenge is not far, but near; do we condemn the LBGTQ community only to ostracize them, or do you and I pray, trust the Holy Spirit, and share the good news of our Messiah in order to save them? And, should they not have ears to hear, do we have the strength to endure persecution and, with kindness and grace, call them to repent in order to hear Yeshua? In the flesh, no; in the Spirit, yes. The challenges are real and the victory that much greater for the one who follows the light of the world.

Are we willing to heed our brother Paul and follow his example? My earnest expectation and hope (is) that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. (Philippians 1:20). As brothers and sisters in Christ, what is our earnest expectation and hope if not boldness to magnify or glorify our Savior and share the good news of eternal life?

Conclusion

John 7:53-8:12: Day Break

The significance and beauty of the story of the woman caught in adultery shines indelibly throughout the Old and New Testaments:

1)Yeshua is the Lord who, with the finger of God , gave the Ten Commandments and law of Moses (Exodus 31:18; Deuteronomy 9:10). He speaks and acts with perfect power and authority under the most impossible of circumstances. Furthermore, He is the long-awaited, Spirit-filled Messiah (Isaiah 11:1-5) who fulfills both His commandments and law with perfect understanding and knowledge of His Father.

2)The drama which transpires between Yeshua and the Judean authorities becomes a very graphic testimony to the temple crowd and more specifically to Nicodemus and his disciples—as a result, many believe in Yeshua as the light of the world. [21]

3)Yeshua both models and promises, I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life—eternal life (John 8:12). He delights in the fear of the Lord and exercises lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness. Born again believers, who follow Him by relying on His word and the power of the Holy Spirit, have the light of life—eternal life or life in His name—radiating out from within them both in word and in deed as a testimony to those who are lost in the darkness of this world.

For our Lord and Savior Yeshua, the seemingly impossible circumstances of the woman caught in adultery are only the beginning of an extraordinary day of ministry and the perfect setting for one of His greatest apologias, I am the light of the world.

Application

Unlike Yeshua, you and I are not gifted with the seven-fold fullness of the Spirit; nonetheless, we believe His promise of eternal life, possess the light of this life within us, and are miraculously indwelled by the Holy Spirit. What is pleasing to our LORD is not new, but revealed throughout the whole of His word: I am the LORD, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight,” says the LORD (Jeremiah 9:24). If according to the Apostle Paul, It is God who works in (us) both to will and to do for His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13), then what might this look like?

When confronted with impossible circumstances, we ought not allow darkness to overwhelm us, but as overcomers we should pray and follow our Lord’s example:

1)Divert our attention away from the darkness of our circumstances (hearing we do not hear; seeing we do not see) and rivet it, through prayer, upon the Word of God and the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit.

2)Pray and trust the Spirit to radiate the light of life (eternal life) within us by empowering us to exercise lovingkindness, judgment and righteousness in direct contrast to the darkness of our circumstances.

3)Share the light of life (eternal life) within us by sharing the promise of eternal life (John 3:16, 4:10-13, 5:24, 6:47-48, 8:12, 11:25-27, 20:30-31).

When we pray and trust the Holy Spirit and the Word of God for our actions and boldness to speak, you and I lay hold of the opportunity God blesses us with to glorify our Him. In the midst of the darkest hours of our lives, we let the light of the world shine through us, both in word and deed. Truly, there is no more perfect expression of lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness (Jeremiah 9:24) and no more sure way to glorify Yeshua, than to share the good news of the light within us, eternal life.

Appendix A: Jeremiah 9:23-24 as Paradigm

How would a Jew prior to the cross come to believe in Yeshua as the Christ, the Son of God outside the Scriptural framework provided by the Old Testament Scriptures? Within John’s account, Yeshua’s pre-cross audiences are composed of Jews in particular Judean authorities drawn by the Father through His Word. Consider our Lord’s explanation:

6:44 No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.

6:45 It is written in the prophets, “And they shall all be taught by God.’ Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me.

(John 6:44-45)

Also, consider the following editorial remarks from the Apostle John:

2:21 But He was speaking of the temple of His body.

2:22 Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.

(John 2:21-22; underlining added)

12:15 “Fear not, daughter of Zion;

Behold, your King is coming,

Sitting on a donkey’s colt.”

12:16 His disciples did not understand these things at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written about Him and that they had done these things to Him.

(John 12:15-16; underlining added)

The Word of God provides paradigms or patterns for Jews to identify their Messiah. God through Jeremiah, distinguished Himself from the ruling elite of the prophet’s day.

9:23 Thus says the LORD:

“Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,

Let not the mighty man glory in his might,

Nor let the rich man glory in his riches;

9:24 But let him who glories glory in this,

That he understands and knows Me,

That I am the LORD, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight,” says the LORD.

(Jeremiah 9:23-24)

Likewise, centuries later Yahweh’s self-revelation provides a pre-cross paradigm distinguishing His Son from the Judean authorities. [22]

Verses 9:23-24 form a discreet unit within a larger cycle of laments, Jeremiah 8:4-9:26. “read in synagogues to commemorate the destruction of the temple in 587 BCE and much later, in 70 CE.” [23] Those listening to Yeshua would have been intimately familiar with this particular passage and its meaning as it related to God’s 587 BC judgment of the nation. The behavior manifest by the leadership of Israel during the time of Yeshua’s ministry mirrors the leadership during the time of the Prophet Jeremiah (Jeremiah 9:23). Yeshua’s behavior as the Son of God mirrors His Father (Jeremiah 9:24); He both understands and knows His Father and like His Father delights in lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness . The contrast between the leadership described in verse 9:23 and Yahweh in verse 9:24 becomes the contrast between the Judean authorities and Yeshua allowing many to see the light of the world (John 8:12) and believe in Him as the Christ, the Son of God.

Appendix B: The Canonicity of John 7:53-8:11

Critical Text scholars face a conundrum: While Bible translations often include the story of the woman caught in adultery, they bracket it and offer a disclaimer as to its canonicity. According to the NET Bible “This entire section 7:53-8:11, traditionally known as the pericope adulterae , is not contained in the earliest and best MMS and was almost certainly not an original part of the Gospel of John.” [24] The Life Application Bible (NLT) includes a simple parenthetical comment, “(The most ancient Greek manuscripts do not include John 7:53-8:11),” while, nonetheless, offering commentary on the passage. [25] Charles Ryrie in his NASB Study Bible writes, “This story, though probably authentic, is omitted in many mss. and may not have been originally a part of this gospel”—again, offering footnotes clarifying the meaning of the passage. [26] Translated from the Textus Receptus, the NKJV does not bracket the story, but does offer a footnote: “ 7:53 The words And everyone through sin no more (8:11) are bracketed by NU-Text as not original. They are present in over 900 manuscripts.”

Among commentators, the pericope is frequently noted as not being a part of the Gospel of John and then given a brief explanation of what it might mean. D.A. Carson offers a brief excursus: “There is little reason for doubting that the event here described occurred, even if in its written form it did not in the beginning belong to the canonical books.” [27] Craig Keener writes: “It probably bears no other direct relationship with the rest of the Fourth Gospel. Nevertheless, those wishing to study this passage will naturally turn to commentaries on the Fourth Gospel, so it is important to make some brief comments on the passage.” [28] Whether an abbreviated diminutive approach to this pericope is better than none at all is debatable. Andreas Köstenberger refrains from any commentary: “Though it may be possible to derive a certain degree of edification from the study of this pericope, proper conservatism and caution suggest that the passage be omitted from preaching in the churches (not to mention inclusion in the main body of translations, even within square brackets [Köstenberger 2003]).” [29] Blustery words indeed, but seemingly not an unreasonable conclusion. Lastly, Bruce M. Metzger, one of the text critics responsible for the Critical Text (United Bible Societies’ Greek New Testament or UBSGNT) offers the following commentary: “Although the Committee was unanimous that the pericope was original to no part of the Fourth Gospel, in deference to the evident antiquity of the passage a majority decided to print it, enclosed within double square brackets, at its traditional place following Jn. 7:52.” [30] Clearly, the conundrum originates with the text critics in the very formation of the Critical Text (UBSGNT) itself.

The question arises: Why study and write on a passage that is so clearly contested by many scholars? Perhaps for the same reason, that despite disclaimers, Bible translations based upon the Critical Text and the UBSGNT still include the story—alas in brackets. More importantly, for this author it rings irrepressibly consistent and true within the context of John’s witness that Yeshua is the Christ, the Son of God who gifts eternal life to those who believe in Him and His promise of eternal life. Briefly, let us summarize the position of Critical Text scholars and then examine evidence from a proponent of the Majority Text and a highly acclaimed textual critic, Zane Hodges, why this pericope is a part of John’s account.

Critical Text scholars often cite B.M. Metzger: “the evidence for the non-Johannine origin of the pericope of the adulteress is overwhelming.” [31] As previously noted, the pericope adulterea is not included in what proponents of the Critical Text consider the “earliest and best manuscripts.” According to the NET Bible of those manuscripts with the pericope, it is a “’floating’ text” included after John 3:36, 21:25, 8:12 and after Luke 21:38 and 24:53. [32]

In terms of internal factors like vocabulary and style, the pericope does not stand up well. The question may be asked whether this incident, although not an original part of the Gospel of John, should be regarded as an authentic tradition about Jesus. It could well be that it is ancient and may indeed represent an unusual instance where such a tradition survived outside of the bounds of the canonical literature. However even that needs to be nuanced. [33]

Daniel M. Gurtner writes that in “many of these (manuscripts containing the pericope), the scribes mark the texts with indications that they question the veracity of the reading.” [34]

Contrary to prevailing scholarship, basing the argument for exclusion of this pericope on the evidence of the “earliest and best manuscripts” risks the distinct possibility of an outlier. According to Zane Hodges:

(T)he evidence for the existence of this story seems very early and the passage is actually found in a very large majority of the surviving Greek manuscripts while there are also ancient attestations from both versions and (early church) fathers… No other extended section dealing with a non-canonical, but true event in the life of Jesus, has ever attained this kind of canonical circulation… Perhaps after all it might be easier to suggest that the narrative suffered deletion from some very early Greek exemplar of John’s Gospel, was perpetuated by this exemplar’s many descendants, and that the excision has thus exercised much influence on later copyists, translators, and commentators. [35]

The crux of Hodges’ insight is that within modern textual criticism “the surviving Greek manuscript evidence is sometimes treated as if it were truly representative of what did—or—did not exist among the nonsurviving texts which have long since perished.” [36] Considering the oldest manuscripts, “between A.D. 200 and 400—the data consists of four texts (P66, P75, B, and א) all Egyptian.” This is hardly an “adequate ‘random sample.’” Moreover, “in regard to all four of these oldest Greek witnesses, there is a serious question whether or not they have any significant textual independence… all four may ultimately be derived from a single parent exemplar which lies far back in the stream of transmission ”[37]… therefore “the ultimate parental source of the four manuscripts… might have also been the source which originally omitted the passage.” [38] In other words, the omission of the pericope adulterae from the Critical Text may be the result of a single outlier; therefore, “the concurrence of four early Egyptian manuscripts in deleting the pericope has no decisive weight whatsoever, so long as their textual independence cannot be demonstrated.” [39]

On the other hand, the evidence for inclusion is far more extensive than most Critical Text critics acknowledge. According to von Soden, the pericope is included in over 450 manuscripts; moreover, “Von Soden, whose investigations of the textual history of the pericope were far more extensive than those of any researcher before or since, has made it clear that the real location of the pericope de adultera in the manuscript tradition is exactly where it is found today in the English Authorized Version.” [40] Only a couple of dozen manuscripts place the pericope “in some other location in the biblical text than after John 7:52.” [41] Among the early church fathers, Jerome (ca. 420) states that the pericope is found in both Latin and Greek manuscripts. Furthermore both Ambrose (ca. 397) and Augustine (ca. 430) acknowledge its inclusion and hint at a possible motive for a copyist to exclude the pericope—the prospect, offensive to many, that Christ did not condemn the woman for committing adultery. [42]

“In terms of internal factors like vocabulary and style,” [43] Hodges offers two instances that reveal the Apostle John’s authorship.

1) The Unique Background for the Pericope

In the material which precedes it (the pericope), the incidents are clearly set at the Jewish feast of Tabernacles and in fact on the last “great day” of that feast (John 7:2, 37). If, as seems likely, this last “great day” was after all the eighth day referred to in Leviticus 23:39, there is an almost unique appropriateness to the mention of each person going to his “house.” For on the previous seven days observant Jewish worshipers would have followed Old Testament prescription and would have lived in “booths.” But with the feast now over everyone returned home! This delicate point, so sensitive to the festal setting of the preceding material, is an obviously authentic touch. [44]

2) A Phrase Common Only to John

(I)n the words “this they said tempting Him,” the careful student of the Fourth Gospel will recognize a turn of phrase common to John but found nowhere else in the New Testament. Indeed the Greek clause Τοῦτο δὲ ἔλεγον πειράζοντες αὐτόν (8:6) is a virtual replica of the similar expression in 6:6, Τοῦτο δὲ ἔλεγεν πειράζων αὐτόν·. [45]

This later instance, alone, should suffice to remove doubt about the pericope’s vocabulary and style evidencing Johannine authorship.

Unlike Metzger, I find “the evidence for the non-Johannine origin of the pericope of the adulteress” at the least overstated and at the worst potentially deceptive. Afterall, how should you and I conclude that the “earliest” manuscripts are the “best”? The bracketing of John 7:53-8:11 in the Critical Text might well be an example of what is possible when a text critic’s methodology struggles to account for potential outliers. [46] As a text critic and proponent of the Majority Text, Hodges remains utterly convincing.

Yeshua’s long and grueling day of ministry begins with the curse of darkness and legalism inside the temple at sunrise, but ends with the blessing of light and healing outside the temple at sunset. Thankfully, though this passage is wrongly bracketed as not a part of the original text by the text critics responsible of the Critical Text (UBSGNT), translators of the Critical Text routinely include the passage. Sadly, the origin of our Lord’s apologia, I am the light of the world (John 8:12-9:5) may be hidden from those refusing to acknowledge the pericope’s canonicity, however the overall meaning of that day and the Bible is not changed. Yeshua is the Giver of the Law and the Spirit-filled Messiah who fulfills that Law perfectly with lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness (Jeremiah 9:24). The Lord is indeed the light of the world… He is good!

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