What did Jesus say to the woman caught in adultery?

After her accusers left, Jesus asked, 'Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?' and then said, 'Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more' (John 8:10-11). He neither excused the sin nor condemned her, but freed her to leave it.

Does this mean Jesus ignores sin?

No. He tells the woman to 'go, and sin no more,' taking the sin seriously. But he refuses to condemn her, showing that with Christ, guilt need not be the final word. He offers forgiveness that frees us to change, not permission to continue.

A question Jesus asked

“Where Are Your Accusers?”

Asked to the woman caught in adultery · John 8:10

After the crowd ready to stone the woman caught in adultery slipped away one by one, Jesus asked her, 'Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?' (John 8:10), then said, 'Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.'

He asked it

“Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?”

Jesus · John 8:10

Why he asked

They drag her before him, a woman caught in adultery, using her as bait to trap him: the law says stone her, what do you say? He stoops and writes in the dust, and then says the sentence that has echoed ever since: 'He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.' And one by one, beginning with the oldest, they drop their stones and walk away, until only Jesus and the woman are left, the one person there with the right to condemn, and the last one holding a stone.

And instead of a verdict, he asks a question, gently, so that she will lift her eyes and see for herself what has happened: 'Where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?' Look up. They are gone. The voices that were so certain of your ruin have all slipped away. And then the only One who could rightly throw a stone lays it down: 'Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.' He does not excuse the sin, notice; he tells her to leave it. But he refuses to let it be the end of her.

The only One with the right to throw the stone is the One who refuses to. That is the whole Gospel in a courtyard.

And he asks it of youMaybe you live under accusers, some of them other people, some of them the voice in your own head that keeps replaying your worst moment and pronouncing you finished. His question is an invitation to look up. In Christ, where are they? The condemnation you were so sure of, is it actually his verdict, or only the crowd's, and your own? He does not minimize what you did. He simply refuses to be the one to condemn you, and tells you that you can leave it behind and go.

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The question waits for an answer

A question is not a lecture; it waits for you. These were not asked two thousand years ago and closed. The same Jesus is still asking, and Living Bread is a quiet place to sit with the question, read the Gospels, and answer him honestly, at your own pace.

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Frequently asked questions

What did Jesus say to the woman caught in adultery?: After her accusers left, Jesus asked, 'Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?' and then said, 'Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more' (John 8:10-11). He neither excused the sin nor condemned her, but freed her to leave it.
Does this mean Jesus ignores sin?: No. He tells the woman to 'go, and sin no more,' taking the sin seriously. But he refuses to condemn her, showing that with Christ, guilt need not be the final word. He offers forgiveness that frees us to change, not permission to continue.

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