What Did He Write in the Dust?

Jesus returned to the Mount of Olives, but early the next morning he was back again at the Temple. A crowd soon gathered, and he sat down and taught them. As he was speaking, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in the act of adultery. They put her in front of the crowd. "Teacher," they said to Jesus, "this woman was caught in the act of adultery. The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?" They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger. They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, "All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!" Then he stooped down again and wrote in the dust. When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman. Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, "Where are your accusers? Didn't even one of them condemn you?" "No, Lord," she said. And Jesus said, "Neither do I. Go and sin no more." John 8:1-11 

Meditate. Consider those who would throw the first stone.

 

In Israel...there are lots of stones handy.
Who can throw the first stone?
The one who has never sinned.
Who would that be?

What did Jesus write in the dust? One of the biggest questions in all the stories about Jesus!

I think that everyone would agree that it takes two people to commit an act of adultery. Where was her accomplice? Don’t men get accused of adultery, too? The Pharisees dragged her into the Temple where Jesus was teaching a crowd of people. They were innocent bystanders—witnessing the accusations against this lady. Jesus calmly handled the situation. He wasn’t going to get tricked into the Pharisees’ game of who’s right and who’s wrong and should they follow Moses’ teachings? Stone her?!?

Jesus wisely wrote in the sand…or dust…and then said…"All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!" Never sinned! Who could claim that? Not even the self-righteous Pharisees could proclaim that. So, no one cast the first stone…or the last one…at the woman. No one condemned her. Jesus mercifully said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.” Would you cast a stone or walk away? No one is sinless, except Jesus—so none of us could ever follow the law of Moses and throw a rock at her. It was an awful custom. It is interesting to note that the crowd that Jesus was teaching didn’t get involved. They just observed while the Pharisees, her accusers, were the ones who walked away. It was a lesson in purity for them, as well as for the group of people gathered at the Temple. Do you think that anyone there took toIn  heart the words that Jesus spoke? Go and sin no more.

What do we learn about Jesus from this passage?

 

Prayer – Lord Jesus, create in me a clean heart, and renew a right spirit within me. David pleaded these words with You, as recorded in Psalm 51. Like that woman, I hear Your voice calling… Go and sin no more. Holy Spirit, please help me moment by moment to live the way You want me to live…sinless.

 

Verse of Salvation ~ This is all the more urgent, for you know how late it is; time is running out. Wake up, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is almost gone; the day of salvation will soon be here. So remove your dark deeds like dirty clothes, and put on the shining armor of right living. Because we belong to the day, we must live decent lives for all to see. Don't participate in the darkness of wild parties and drunkenness, or in sexual promiscuity and immoral living, or in quarreling and jealousy. Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don't let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires. Romans 13:11-14

 

© 2026 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved. 

All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless otherwise noted. 

New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. 

Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

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