The episode of the Woman Taken in Adultery in one of the most dramatic of all Jesus' encounters with the Pharisees. Yet it is also one of the most mysterious as well. Here is the text.

John Chapter 8:
1. Jesus went unto the mount of Olives.
2. And early in the morning he came again into the temple, and all the people came unto him; and he sat down, and taught them.
3. And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery; and when they had set her in the midst,
4. They say unto 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 sayest thou?
6. This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not.
7. So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.
8. And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground
9. And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.
10. When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?
11. She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.

The idea of a spiritual meaning behind this passage came to me several years ago while listening to a tape by Bob Jones, one of the Kansas City Prophets. Brother Jones explained that the woman is a type of the Church, and that the story is prophetic of her redemption. That is, just as the woman is caught in her adultery and has her sin openly exposed, so the Church is about to have her sin exposed and to be accused, of all manner of things. As the woman in the story repents and is set free, the church also will go through a similar experience that will lead to revival. [Some are now prophesying this in terms of a Civil War.]

Therefore this text has a special prophetic significance. As it says in 1st Corinthians 10:11 "Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come."

There is a pattern in this story; a pattern of revival, specifically of end-time revival. The church is about to experience a severe attack of the enemy. This will in fact be a judgment from the Lord. (...Judgment must begin at the house of God.... 1st Peter 4:17) This in turn brings the Church to the place of Repentance. Revival will take place, which will include Divine commissioning, a mandate and an anointing that empowers her to complete the Great Commission and bring in the Harvest.

There is another pattern here found widely throughout scripture: An Encounter with The Lord, in which He reveals Himself for Who He is.

This encounter produces several results that are typical of revival. (After all, isn't revival the result of a meeting with the Lord?) The one having the encounter receives the Fear of the Lord. They become very meek and humble. They worship the Lord. They receive new revelation knowledge from the Lord. Then they are used by the Lord. (Where before they could not be used because they lacked these things.) This happens to greater or lesser degree depending directly upon the degree to which God reveals himself.

This is true of almost all major characters in the bible. Consider the degree to which He revealed Himself to Saul of Tarsus, and the thoroughness of his dramatic conversion to Paul the Apostle. (Another story typical of revival.) Another way of describing an encounter with the Lord is this: The Revelation of Jesus Christ! Which is to say, Revival is the Revelation of Jesus Christ! And this is seen in the very next Verse (12) which says "Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world:"

Let's go back to the text.

John Chapter 8:
1. Jesus went unto the mount of Olives.
2. And early in the morning he came again into the temple, and all the people came unto him; and he sat down, and taught them.

Verse 2 also mentions that he taught the people - a mark of revival. On first reading this text it is easy to assume that while He was teaching, the Pharisees and Scribes came and interrupted him. We are not told what he taught them, but the text shows us. For you see the incursion of the Pharisees & Scribes was not an interruption of the lesson, it was the lesson!

The Bible says that "The Lord thy God, in the midst of thee is Mighty!" (Zephaniah 3:17) We see this demonstrated here as Jesus, the Captain of the Host, reigning in the midst of His people, is about to do battle with his enemies.

3. And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery; and when they had set her in the midst,
4. They say unto 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 sayest thou?
6. This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with [his] finger wrote on the ground, [as though he heard them not].

This shows the seriousness involved in Satan's challenging the Word of God. The entire scene reminds me of Job chap 1 and 2 where the sons of God came and presented themselves and Satan came amongst them to accuse Job, and to challenge God Himself. There is an even greater resemblance to the scene in Psalm 82.

Psalms 82
1. God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods.
2. How long will ye judge unjustly, and accept the persons of the wicked? ....
6. I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.
7. But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes.

Now back to our story.

3. And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery; ....

3. ...and when they had set her in the midst,

Ps 119:25 My soul cleaveth unto the dust: quicken thou me according to thy word.
Ps 41:4 I said, LORD, be merciful unto me: heal my soul; for I have sinned against thee.
Ps 31:9 Have mercy upon me, O LORD, for I am in trouble: mine eye is consumed with grief, yea, my soul and my belly.
Ps 51:2 Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.
Ps 51:3 For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.
Ps 86:14 O God, the proud are risen against me, and the assemblies of violent men have sought after my soul; and have not set thee before them.

6. This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not.

At this point the Pharisees are thinking that after all their attempts they have finally gotten something on Jesus. They tried to trick him with the Roman tax coin, they tried to trap him with the question about the Baptism of John, and other such questions. So many times they have tried, but this time they're sure they have him. They are so confident that they come against him right in the very Temple and in front of all the people. (But Job 20:5 says "That the triumphing of the wicked is short, and the joy of the hypocrite but for a moment?")

At this point things have suddenly become deadly serious. I can just imagine the spectators sucking in their breath as the tension mounts! "Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captive delivered?" (Isaiah 49:24)

Now it is thought that by saying nothing in answer to their accusation, he avoids the trap and puts the burden of executing judgment on them. "...and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her."

But there is much more to it than that. Let's look at three elements here. What did He write, what was he doing as he wrote, and why did He write it instead of saying it?

What did Jesus Write?

First of all, it is significant that Jesus wrote WITH HIS FINGER. The finger of God. (Always keep in mind that Jesus is God.) He said in Luke 11:20 "But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you." Here he casts out the scribes and Pharisees, stand-ins for devils! 'The finger of God' therefore speaks of the Law and Judgment. The finger of God wrote the Law upon the stone tablets of Moses. A tablet or table is nothing more than a flat surface. So is the floor of the temple. The same finger of God produced the famous "Handwriting on the wall" in Babylon. (Daniel 5) It's the same finger that writes His Law in our hearts.
The accusers stated that Moses commanded that she should be stoned. Here is where the Holy Spirit prompted me with a pointed question:

What exactly does the Law say?

And in the process of finding this out, He led me to two key verses in the Law of Moses. Then I began to receive deep insights into the whole passage. Because when you check out what the Law says you see that THE PHARISEES LIED! What they claimed Moses said is not what the Law says! So to demonstrate that; when Jesus wrote on the ground, HE QUOTED THE LAW! And He quoted it correctly, exactly as it was given to Moses. (After all He was the one who gave the law in the first place!)

The first thing he wrote was Leviticus 20:10.

And the man that committeth adultery with another man's wife, even he that committeth adultery with his neighbor's wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.

7. So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.

8 And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground.

If a man be found lying with a woman married to an husband, then they shall both of them die, both the man that lay with the woman, and the woman: so shalt thou put away evil from Israel.

At this point, we recall that the scribes were those whose task was to copy out the scriptures. So they should be expected to know what the Law said. The Pharisees were especially noted for memorizing the five books of Moses. But what have they done here? They have shown themselves to be liars, and incompetents in front of all the people. First of all they were liars for misquoting Moses whose disciples they claimed to be. Experts in the Law who don't even know what the Law says?

And then they show themselves to be incompetent to rule over the people by not bringing in both guilty parties! They claimed to have caught her in the very act, so they must have caught him as well! Even though they had taken captive a prisoner who was known to be guilty, they let the other guilty party go free! So there was no way for them to execute judgment or even to make their accusation stick according to the law of Moses!

Now after Jesus spoke the words "He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her" He continued to write. While that was sinking in, the second scripture completed the proof that none of the accusers were without sin! Perhaps there was an element of sarcasm in his voice as he said it! As if to say, 'here by quoting the law, I have exposed your sin. Now which of you has the nerve to claim he is without sin?' In other words Jesus has exposed their sin and they could not stand before God with sin.

Let's look at one more aspect of this. Speaking of witnesses and the sentence of death consider this passage from Deuteronomy.
 

Deuteronomy 17:2-7
2 If there be found among you, within any of thy gates which the LORD thy God giveth thee, man or woman, that hath wrought wickedness in the sight of the LORD thy God, in transgressing his covenant,
3  And hath gone and served other gods, and worshipped them, either the sun, or moon, or any of the host of heaven, which I have not commanded;
4  And it be told thee, and thou hast heard of it, and inquired diligently, and, behold, it be true, and the thing certain, that such abomination is wrought in Israel:
5  Then shalt thou bring forth that man or that woman, which have committed that wicked thing, unto thy gates, even that man or that woman, and shalt stone them with stones, till they die.
6  At the mouth of two witnesses, or three witnesses, shall he that is worthy of death be put to death; but at the mouth of one witness he shall not be put to death.
7  The hands of the witnesses shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterward the hands of all the people. So thou shalt put the evil away from among you.

Here is the prayer of the woman at this point.

Ps 142:7 Bring my soul out of prison, that I may praise thy name: the righteous shall compass me about; for thou shalt deal bountifully with me.
Ps 119:175 Let my soul live, and it shall praise thee; and let thy judgments help me.
Ps 69:18 Draw nigh unto my soul, and redeem it: deliver me because of mine enemies.
Ps 40:14 Let them be ashamed and confounded together that seek after my soul to destroy it; let them be driven backward and put to shame that wish me evil.

9 And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.

What was Jesus doing as he wrote?

He was fighting his battle and he was revealing himself. Since God's throne is established on Mercy and Judgment, Jesus was demonstrating His Lordship! How so? Jesus wrote in the dust before all the people to pronounce judgment and to show mercy at the same time. In doing one He was able to do the other, for as the accusers were judged, the woman received forgiveness! (Psalm 9:16 says "The LORD is known by the judgment which he executeth: the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands." Since the Lord is know by the judgment he executes, this is one way He reveals Himself for Who He is!)

Now besides that, what Jesus did was to use the law to convict them of sin. Romans 5:13 (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law.) shows the purpose of the law was to convict of sin. Here the Pharisees not only made fools of themselves, they are guilty of breaking the very law they are trying to use against the woman. Why? Because that law applied to them! The prohibition against adultery applied to the woman. There was no question about her guilt. The entire dispute is over the penalty for sin. The law proscribing the death penalty for the two parties involved in adultery was binding on them. The judges of Israel were required to carry it out. Doesn't the law speak to them when it says "... so shalt thou put away evil from Israel." This they clearly failed to do; it was never even their intention. They could not even come close since they had let one of the guilty ones go free. "How long will ye judge unjustly, ..." was the rebuke he gave in Ps. 82:2, it is equally descriptive of the situation here.

Now moving along, note also that it says "Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst" and in verse 10, "When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman". In the natural sense of the text it is understood to mean all the accusers had left. But in the literal sense it says all the people had left as well. (This is one of those cases, where something that does not quite make sense in the literal, that just doesn't add up, is used to point to a spiritual meaning.) When the accusers were driven back, Jesus was alone with the woman. What about the people? Symbolically the people are part of the woman. There are no neutral spectators in this situation. You are part of the woman or your part is with the enemies of God. The people are the temple, the temple is the church. The church is the woman, the woman is you and I. And we are the bride; and Jesus has eyes only for his bride, he "saw none but the woman". And when Jesus arises again, on the last day, at the sound of the last trumpet, it will be to gather his bride to himself with great rejoicing!

And so we need to consider this from the point of view of the accused woman, not that of a spectator. Our position is that of the accused; we the church are guilty as charged and her prayers, all of them, shall be our prayers. So we note that she is humble and repentant, and thereby able to remain standing when others are driven back. As 1st Peter 5:5 says "...and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble."

10 When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?
11 She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.

Again there is a combination of mercy and judgment.
By not exposing the full extent of their sin out loud and in public, he was in effect letting them off the hook. The pharisees knew He could have made it far worse on them if He did. And it would perhaps have angered them to the point where they would try to kill him before his time.
But He also did it to illustrate two amazing points from the scriptures! It was not for the benefit of those on the scene at that time. It was for our benefit as readers of the bible. How so? We must visualize the scene, and be open to the Lord's sense of humor as he makes a play on words.

There are two amazing points that are made by visualizing the scene. First by stooping down to write, He had to rise up again. "When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman,"
This is an illustration of a scripture. It's an exact visual demonstration of Psalm 68:1! "LET GOD ARISE; LET HIS ENEMIES BE SCATTERED!" Hallelujah! When God Arose all his enemies were on the run! And that's exactly how it is when Jesus moves on your behalf!

The second play on words in even more interesting. Picture Jesus standing in the center of the scene. About three or four feet in front of him is the accused woman, facing him, repentant and broken. The accusers have left and the people are standing around watching. Between them, written 'in the dust of the earth' as one translation puts it, are the scriptures Jesus has just written out. Now Jesus speaks. "Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?"

At this point something happens. The woman reacts by turning completely around. Now with her back to Jesus, facing the same way he is, we see her taking two or three steps backward in astonishment and joy that her accusers are gone! "When the LORD turned again the captivity of Zion, we were like them that dream. Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing...." Ps. 126:1,2. A perfectly natural and obvious reaction by anyone in these circumstances!

And here is the woman's prayer at this point.

Ps 30:3 O LORD, thou hast brought up my soul from the grave: thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.
Ps 124:7 Our soul is escaped as a bird out of the snare of the fowlers: the snare is broken, and we are escaped.

Recall the scene in 2nd Chronicles 20...

15 ... Thus saith the LORD unto you, ... Be not afraid nor dismayed ... for the battle is not yours, but God's.
17 Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set your selves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the LORD

Now Jesus steps forward and lays a comforting hand upon her shoulder. (Draw close to God and He will draw close to you!) And, while also standing on His Word, says "Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more." Notice His two commands; GO, and sin no more. These are the same for any Christian; but speak especially of the Church in Revival. The 'Go' is the power and the anointing, the 'sin no more' is the requisite holiness to move in that power.

And This is how you get the victory.
First be willing to come before the Lord in repentance.
Second let the Lord fight the battle for you!

"There is therefore, no condemnation to those that are in Christ Jesus." {Romans 8:1)

Now the final prayer of the woman would go something like this from Luke chapter 1: (Where it is spoken by another woman who is another type of the Church.)

46 ... My soul doth magnify the Lord,
47 And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior.
48 For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
49 For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name.
50 And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation.
51 He hath showed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
52 He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree.
53 He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away.

If this scene represents Satan accusing the church of spiritual adultery, isn't he the other guilty party? We have seen that the Law requires that there be two guilty parties and that both be put to death. So cannot the Lord reply 'well tell me Satan, just who is the other guilty party? Exactly who have my people been unfaithful with?' So the effect here is to illustrate yet another scripture: as it says in Psalm 64:8 "So they shall make their own tongue to fall upon themselves...."

The relationship between God and his people (Israel and/or Church) is one of betrothal of marriage. They are legally married but not yet fully united. One thing this accomplishes is to protect them, to a degree, from the accuser when they are unfaithful. Since the accuser is the other guilty party in the adultery. So to bring the full accusation of adultery against them would rebound against the accuser as well. The other thing is that eventually the church must be willing to accept the sentence of death. Ps. 110:3 "Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power...." And in that day the Lord will use it to destroy the enemy!

Now to summarize:

Colossians 2:13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;
14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;
15 And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.

Psalm 68:1 Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered: let them also that hate him flee before him. 2 As smoke is driven away, so drive them away: as wax melteth before the fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of God.
3 But let the righteous be glad; let them rejoice before God: yea, let them exceedingly rejoice.
...
34 Ascribe ye strength unto God: his excellency is over Israel, and his strength is in the clouds.
35 O God, thou art terrible out of thy holy places: the God of Israel is he that giveth strength and power unto his people. Blessed be God.

Ephesians 5:23 For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the savior of the body.
25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;
26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,
27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.

Jude 1:24 Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,
25 To the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.