Continuing a Bible study of the Gospels:
(John 8:1) Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.
At the end of the last chapter, Jesus had been at the Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem. He now went to the Mount of Olives about a mile east of Jerusalem. It's probable He wanted to rest in a more private place because there was much discussion going on among the chief priests and Pharisees who had wanted to seize Him during the feast.
(2) And early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him and He sat down and taught them.
The next morning Jesus went back to the temple in Jerusalem. All the people who had likewise come early to the temple came to Him and He sat down and taught them.
(3) And the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman taken in adultery, and when they had set her in the midst, (4) They said to Him, "Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act. (5) Now Moses in the law commanded us that such should be stoned, but what do you say?"
The scribes and Pharisees, some of the same ones who had been seeking Jesus the day before to take Him into custody, brought a woman to Him they said had been caught in the act of adultery. They surely were testing Him for they had made clear the day before they did not believe He was a great "Master." They told Him that Moses had commanded in the law that adulterers should be stoned, but they wanted to know what He had to say about it. Evidently, adultery was so common at that time that they had ceased to put the law in force, but they tested Jesus to see if He would uphold the law. According to John Gill in his Exposition of the Bible, the Jews had a saying that "if all adulterers were punished with stoning, according to the law, the stones would be consumed," but they were not consumed.
(6) This they said, tempting Him that they might have something to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and with His finger wrote on the ground.
John tells us the scribes and Pharisees were indeed testing Jesus, hoping to catch Him in something of which they could accuse Him. Because adultery was so common and they no longer upheld the law, if Jesus said she must be stoned, then they could accuse Him to the Roman governor for taking it upon Himself to condemn a person to death. However, if He did not uphold the law of Moses, they could use that to show the people that He did not uphold God's law. However, Jesus just stooped down and started writing with His finger on the ground, as if He wasn't even listening to them.
There is much discussion among the old commentaries I study about what Jesus was writing. We weren't told in scripture, so some suggest it was not important. It was rather a sign from Jesus that He had not come to condemn the world, so He was not going to meddle in the civil law. John Wesley, in his Notes on the Bible, made an interesting observation. God had written with His finger only one time in the Old Testament, writing the Law, the Ten Commandments. Jesus wrote with His finger only once, in fact, it is the only time we read of His writing anything. God's Old Testament law was written in stone. Jesus wrote in the dust, which would be blown away by the wind, perhaps representing spirit, the spirit of the law that the people had so corrupted. Those last thoughts are my own, not John Wesley's. John Gill wrote that the learned Johann Christoph Wagenseil, a historian who made significant contributions to the study of Hebrew and Jewish texts, mentioned one ancient Greek manuscript he had seen that added "the sins of everyone of them." If that is true, it could be seen as a fulfillment of a prophecy in Jeremiah 17:13, that said, "they that depart from me shall be written in the earth." Adam Clarke wrote in his Commentary on the Bible that several of the old manuscripts added "their sins who accused her, and the sins of all men." Any or all of these could be true, in keeping with the character and purpose of Jesus Christ.
(7) So when they continued asking Him, He lifted Himself up and said to them, "He who is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her."
The scribes and Pharisees kept pressing for an answer from Jesus, so He lifted Himself up from His stooped position and told them to go ahead, and the one who was without sin should cast the first stone.
(8) And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground.
Jesus then stooped down again and continued writing with his finger on the ground, saying nothing more.
(9) And they who heard, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the oldest to the last, and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.
Those scribes and Pharisees and all the people who heard what Jesus said were convicted by their own consciences because all have sinned. They began to walk out one by one, starting with the oldest person and continuing until they were all gone out. Only Jesus and the woman remained.
(10) When Jesus had lifted Himself up and saw none but the woman, He said to her, "Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no man condemned you?"
When Jesus again lifted Himself up from His stooped position, He saw that there was no one standing there but the woman. He asked where her accusers were. Had no man condemned her?
(11) She said, "No man, Lord." And Jesus said to her, "Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more."
The woman answered that no man had condemned her to which Jesus said that He did not condemn her either. He told her to go but not to sin anymore. Jesus was the only man ever on earth who was without sin. Yet He did not come into the world to condemn it; He came to save it because it had already been condemned because every man had sinned against God in some way or another (Romans 3:23, 5:12).
(12) Then Jesus spoke again to them, saying, "I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall not walk in darkness but shall have the light of life."
When the people had gathered together again, Jesus again spoke to them. He told them He was the light of the world, a spiritual light, a fountain of light and truth. The one who followed Him would no longer be in the darkness of the world but would have Jesus's light of life. They would gain spiritual truth and light from Jesus.
(13) The Pharisees therefore said to Him, "You bear witness of Yourself; Your witness is not true."
Here came the Pharisees again to denounce anything Jesus said. They told Him as He was the only witness in His case, His witness was not true. The law required at least two witnesses to establish a thing as true in a criminal case which is what they asserted Jesus's testimony to be, criminal. Jesus Himself had said in John 5:31 that if He bore witness of Himself, His witness would not be true. However, He had gone on to say that God the Father bore witness of Him.
(14) Jesus answered and said to them, "Though I bear witness of Myself, My witness is true for I know where I came from and where I am going, but you cannot tell where I came from and where I go."
This time Jesus somewhat granted their position that He did indeed bear witness of Himself, but His witness was true because He had come from Father God in heaven and He would be going back to Him, but these Pharisees could not understand that. They only saw Him as the son of Joseph and Mary from Galilee.
(15) "You judge according to the flesh; I judge no man."
Jesus told them that they judged people according to the flesh like they judged a book by its cover, so to speak. Jesus did not judge the outward man but judged the heart of man.
(16) "And yet if I judge, My judgment is true, for I am not alone but I and the Father who sent Me."
However, if Jesus did judge, His judgment was true because He knew and judged the heart of a man, and He was not the lone witness and judge of a person; He was a literal part of His Father in heaven who sent Him.
(17) "It is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true."
Jesus acknowledged that it was written in their law that the testimony of two men was considered to be true.
(18) "I am One who bears witness of Himself, and the Father who sent Me bears witness of Me."
However, Jesus confirmed that He had two witnesses Himself. He was one witness and His witness was true because of Whom He came from, and the Father Himself had borne witness of Him when Jesus was baptized, and also in the miracles He performed and the knowledge of God that only the Son of God could have.
(19) Then they said to Him, "Where is Your Father?" Jesus answered, "You neither know Me nor My Father. If you had known Me, you should have known My Father also."
The thick-headed hard-hearted Pharisees asked where Jesus's father was. Jesus replied that they did not know Him or His Father. Had they known the scriptures they boasted that they knew so well, then they would have recognized Him as the prophesied Messiah. Because they didn't know the scriptures or Him, they could not know His Father, as going through Jesus was the only way to know God.
(20) These words Jesus spoke in the treasury as He taught in the temple, and no man laid hands on Him for His hour was not yet come.
Jesus spoke these things in the treasury of the temple, that place where people cast in their offerings (Mark 12:41). John's purpose in reporting this was probably to show that it was a very public place and may have been a reason why no man attempted to lay hands on Him. However, they wouldn't have been able to anyway, because it was not yet His time. Jesus used this public area to prevent them from taking Him.
(21) Then Jesus again said to them, "I go My way and you will seek Me and will die in your sins; where I go, you cannot come."
Once again, Jesus said that He would be going away and they would be seeking their Messiah, but He would not come, because He had already come and they missed Him and would die in their sins. He told them where He was going, they were not able to come.
(22) Then the Jews said, "Will He kill Himself? Because He says, 'Where I go, you cannot come.'"
The last time Jesus said this (John 7:34) the Jews thought He was going to the dispersed Jews among the Gentiles, but perhaps now they understood Him to mean He was going to die. That was their reasonable assumption because He had said that where He went, they could not go. They wondered if He was going to kill Himself. That seems a rather absurd notion, but it may have been out of malice that they suggested it. It may have been their way to try to prove He was a deceiver and had broken the law and was mad, and would therefore probably go kill Himself.
(23) And He said to them, "You are from beneath; I am from above; you are of this world; I am not of this world."
Jesus told them that they were from beneath heaven, the earth, but He was from heaven above. They were of the world and only understood worldly things, but He was not of the world.
(24) "I said therefore to you that you will die in your sins, for if you do not believe that I AM, you will die in your sins."
Jesus reminded them that He had told them they would die in their sins because if they did not believe that He was the One and only from God, they would indeed die in their sins. All the Bible translators added the word "He" after "I am," but the original text said only "I AM" telling them exactly who He was, the Great I AM, God Himself come down from heaven to save them from their sins. However, if they would not believe in Him, they would not be saved, but would die in their sins.
(25) Then they said to Him, "Who are You?" And Jesus said to them, "The same that I said to you from the beginning."
Once again their hard hearts could not understand and asked who Jesus was. He answered that He was the same He had professed to be from the beginning, Son of God, sent by His Father, living bread from heaven, light of the world, etc.
(26) "I have many things to say and to judge of you, but He who sent Me is true, and I speak to the world those things which I have heard of Him."
I believe Jesus's point was that He, being omniscient and knowing their hearts, could say many things that would condemn them and He could righteously judge them right then. However, God who sent Him was true and Jesus was there to fulfill His will that the world might be saved through Him. He would only speak according to God's will, although it was certainly in His power to condemn them right then, but that would not have fulfilled God's will in that He must suffer at their hands. Jesus, the Son of man, would only speak those things that He as the Word of God knew to be His will.
(27) They did not understand that He spoke to them of the Father.
Indeed, their hard hearts could not understand that He spoke of His Father, Almighty God in heaven.
(28) Then Jesus said to them, "When you have lifted up the Son of man, then you shall know that I AM and I do nothing of Myself, but as My Father has taught Me, I speak these things."
Although they would not believe Him then, He said once they had lifted Him up on the cross, then they would know that He was the Great I AM, and that all He had done and said was from Father God in heaven. Indeed, some would come to know the truth when they saw Jesus die on the cross and observed all the signs that were done at His death, as the centurion and those with him did (Matthew 27:54).
(29) "And He who sent Me is with Me; the Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him."
Father God in heaven who had sent Jesus was always with Him, because He and His Father were One. He always did what pleased God because He was the Word of God; He was God (John 1:1).
(30) As He spoke these words, many believed in Him.
It seemed Jesus's last words pierced the hearts of many and they did believe in Him.
(31) Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed in Him, "If you continue in My word, you are My disciples indeed. (32) And you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free."
Jesus then spoke to the Jews who had come to believe in Him. He told them that if they continued to receive His words and obeyed them, they would be His disciples, and they would know truth that only comes from God, and that truth would set them free, free from the bondage of sin and free from death. Truth makes one free from guilt, free from corruption, free from evil desires, free from the bondage of lies and deception; it truly makes one free.
(33) They answered Him, "We are Abraham's seed and were never in bondage to any man; how can You say, "You shall be made free'?"
This seems to come from other Jews who were standing by, not the ones who believed in Him, for it doesn't seem to be sincere or even factual. They asserted they were of Abraham's seed and therefore never in bondage to any man. The Jews had often been in bondage, in Egypt, in Babylon, and even at that present time they were in bondage under the Romans. This statement could only be made by arrogant and most likely contemptuous Jews who thought of themselves as free already or would have others believe so and were in no need to be made free.
(34) Jesus answered them, "Verily, verily, I say to you, whoever commits sin is the servant of sin."
Jesus patiently explained that whoever committed sin was a slave to sin, in bondage to its consequences. Only Jesus could set one free from that bondage of sin.
(35) "And a servant does not abide in the house forever; the Son abides forever. (36) If the Son therefore shall make you free, you shall be free indeed."
Jesus went on to say that a servant, as one was to sin, could not abide in the house of heaven forever. However, the Son abode in heaven forever and if He made one free, they would indeed be free and would abide in that house with Him. I found it interesting that almost every other translation except for the KJV made the "Son" in verse 35 a lower case "son." While any saved disciple of Jesus might be called a son of God and would indeed be able to abide in His house forever, I do not believe that was the original intent of the verse, judging by the next verse. If the Son makes one free, he shall be free indeed.
(37) "I know that you are Abraham's seed, but you seek to kill Me because My word has no place in you."
Jesus agreed that He knew they were of Abraham's seed physically and biologically, but the fact that they wanted to kill Him meant they were not sons of Abraham in the spiritual sense. His word had no place in their hearts, proving they certainly weren't followers of the faith of Abraham.
(38) "I speak that which I have seen with My Father, and you do that which you have seen with your father."
Jesus only spoke according to the will of His Father. However, He told them that they did a different work from their father.
(39) They answered and said to Him, "Abraham is our father." Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children, you would do the works of Abraham."
They told Jesus that Abraham was their father, to which He replied that if they were indeed Abraham's children, then they would do the works of Abraham, which obviously, they didn't.
(40) "But now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I have heard from God; Abraham did not do this."
Jesus went on to repeat that they wanted to kill Him, the One who brought them truth from God, and certainly Abraham had never done anything like that.
(41) "You do the deeds of your father." Then they said to Him, "We were not born of fornication; we have one Father, God."
As they clearly didn't do the works of Abraham, Jesus indicated that they had a different father of whom they did works. They answered that they were not illegitimate children, that they had one Father as did Abraham, and that Father was God.
(42) Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither have I come of Myself, but He sent Me."
Jesus contradicted them in that assertion, too. He told them if God was their Father, then they would have accepted and even loved Him because He had come from God, and He came not of His own will, but of God who sent Him.
(43) "Why do you not understand My speech? Because you cannot hear My word."
Jesus asked them why they couldn't understand what He was telling them. If they were children of God, they would have certainly understood Him. He told them the reason they could not understand Him was because they could not really hear His Word because of their stubbornness and pride. They did not want to hear and understand it!
(44) "You are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father you will do. He was a murderer from the beginning and did not abide in the truth because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks of his own for he is a liar and the father of it."
Jesus told them that their father was the devil! And it was the lusts of their father that they did. Their father had been a murderer from the beginning. He was the one responsible for the fall of man in the very beginning of creation when he tempted Eve. He provoked Cain to kill Abel. He had been more or less involved in every murder since then and certainly was the murderer of the souls of men. Satan did not abide in truth because there was no truth in him. He rejected God completely so he did not have the only truth of God. He only spoke lies and those were from him and him alone. If he did speak any truth as he might have occasionally when he spoke scripture as he did when he tempted Jesus, he always perverted it. Satan is a liar and he alone is the father of lies. Their desire to murder the Son of God and to lie about Him and His mission was to do the work of their father, Satan.
(45) "And because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me."
I believe this statement is meant to be the conclusion of what Jesus was saying about their father the devil. Because they like their father had no truth in them and could only tell lies, they could not see the truth that Jesus told and would not believe Him.
(46) "Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do you not believe Me?"
Jesus then asked them which one of them could convict Him of any sin. If He wasn't guilty of the sin of lying, then why didn't they believe him?
(47) "He who is of God hears God's words; you therefore do not hear because you are not of God."
Jesus answered His own question. Only people who followed God could hear His words, so they could not believe Him because they were not of God. God was obviously not their Father or they would have been able to understand and believe Jesus.
(48) Then the Jews answered and said to Him, "Did we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a devil?"
Although there is no record of it in scripture, apparently the Jews had accused Jesus of being a Samaritan which they considered to be an insult as the Samaritans were considered half-breeds and heretics. Because Jesus had taught the Samaritans and one of the differences between the Jews and the Samaritans was how they worshiped God (John 4:20), they must have thought Jesus was siding with the Samaritans since He had told them God was not their Father. And because of that, He must be the one to have a devil spirit.
(49) Jesus answered, "I do not have a devil, but I honor My Father and you dishonor Me."
Exhibiting incredible patience, Jesus answered that He did not have a demon spirit, but that He only honored His Father. They, on the other hand, dishonored Him, so they in fact, dishonored His Father God (John 5:23).
(50) "And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges."
I believe Jesus's point was that He did not seek honor nor vindication for Himself, but there was One, His Father, who sought His honor and would judge and vindicate Him.
(51) "Verily, verily, I say to you, if a man keeps My word, he shall never see death."
And most assuredly, the Father would judge Jesus true, and if a man kept His word and believed in Him, he would never die but have everlasting life.
(52) Then the Jews said to Him, "Now we know that You have a devil. Abraham is dead, and the prophets, and You say, 'If a man keeps My word, he shall never taste death.' (53) Are You greater than our father Abraham who is dead? And the prophets are dead. Who do You make Yourself?"
The Jews continued demonstrating their inability to really hear and understand Jesus. They were sure He had a demon then. After all, Abraham and the prophets were dead, and yet He said if they abode in His word, they would not die. Just who did He think He was?
(54) Jesus answered, "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing; it is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God."
Jesus told them it was not Him giving Himself that honor to give life to those who believed. If it were only by Himself, Jesus the man, His honor would mean nothing. However, it was His Father in heaven who honored Him and it was God's plan that those who believed in Jesus would not die. The same God they said was their God, and they did not honor His Son.
(55) "Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him, and if I should say, 'I do not know Him,' I shall be a liar like you, but I know Him and keep His word."
They had said the Father was their God, yet Jesus said they obviously didn't know Him. However, Jesus knew Him intimately; He was one with Him. If He said He didn't know God, then He would be a liar as they were liars like their father, the devil. But He spoke truth and He did know God and He kept God's word.
(56) "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw and was glad."
Abraham, whom they called their father, rejoiced in the promise of the coming Messiah, this time of Jesus. Abraham saw and understood through faith this day and he was glad. Hebrews 11:13 tells us Abraham was one of the faith greats who died not yet having received the promise but saw it far off and was fully persuaded of it and embraced it.
(57) Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and You have seen Abraham?"
The incredibly thick-headed and hard-hearted Jews couldn't even understand what was said of Abraham in the Old Testament scriptures. They thought Jesus meant He had personally seen Abraham and they knew He was not old enough to have been able to see him.
(58) Jesus said to them, "Verily, verily, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM."
Jesus told them that before Abraham came into existence, He was. This time all translations agree that Jesus said, "I AM." By using this title of God, He was telling them how it was that He was before Abraham, because He was God.
(59) Then they took up stones to cast at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.
At that last assertion of Jesus, the Jews took up stones to cast at Him, but Jesus hid Himself. John then makes it a point to say that Jesus went right through the midst of them to go out of the temple, but they didn't see Him because He had hidden Himself from their view. Some commentators say that to pick up stones, they would have had to go outside the temple to get them and that is when Jesus made His exit, but by John's specific words, I believe Jesus miraculously hid Himself from them.
This wound up being a rather long post, but it seemed inappropriate to divide it. It began with Jesus's not condemning the woman caught in adultery, and then He went into a most patient and extensive explanation of who He was. With the utmost patience, Jesus fully answered every one of the Jews' questions and objections, but with boldness of the truth. In His example, we may learn a lot about patience and meekness, but not meekness to the point of compliance. Although patient, Jesus was bold in that He did not shy away from the truth, even in the face of provocation from others. Adam Clarke wrote about how well Jesus balanced the two, patience and boldness or fidelity to the truth. We often may be too meek and are therefore ineffective in relaying the truth of the Gospel. However, we can also be too bold and zealous and come across as self-righteous and judgmental. Jesus gave us a beautiful example of the balance of two virtues, patience and fidelity, and I didn't want to interrupt Him.
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