7/15/18 - Tender Justice - John 8:2-11

In Old Testament times, attorneys didn't really exist in Israel. Defending the accused was such a sacred duty that the judge refused to delegate the work to anyone else. The judge himself served as the defender of the accused. The Jewish Encyclopedia gives insight: “attorneys at law are unknown in Jewish law.” Their legal code required judges to “lean always to the side of the defendant and give him the advantage of every possible doubt.” However, things had changed by the time of Jesus. The Pharisees were in power and they were not just. Instead of using the law appropriately, they manipulated it for their purposes and their primary purpose was to ensnare Jesus. To do this they entrap an adulterous woman and bring her before him. Outwardly Jesus is between a rock and hard place. But in reality this is never the case. Will he side with Moses and declare the death penalty, or will he prove to be the gentle man he says he is? Will he exercise justice or compassion? He does both because he is Jesus. In the middle of the text is the popular statement, "Let him who is without sin cast the first stone." These words are misunderstood and therefore misused. Jesus isn't saying that only perfect people can judge. That would have no affect on the Pharisees. Instead he says to them they have no right to judge because in this very moment they are guilty of breaking the law. In other words, hypocrites don't get to sit in the judge's seat.