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.
Parallel translations
- WEB But when they continued asking him, he looked up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw the first stone at her.”
- BSB When they continued to question Him, He straightened up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to cast a stone at her.”
- NKJV So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.”
- NASB When they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.”
- NLT 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!”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
When they persisted, Jesus said that the one without sin among them should throw the first stone. He upholds the law while exposing the accusers' own guilt.
Overview
Jesus' famous reply neither denies the law nor dismisses the woman's sin, but confronts the accusers with their own sinfulness. By requiring a sinless accuser to cast the first stone, He calls for self-examination before condemnation. This wisdom magnifies both the holiness of God's law and the mercy of Christ, who alone is without sin and yet does not condemn the repentant.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- Matt 7:1–5Judge not, that ye be not judged.
- Rom 2:21–25Thou therefore which teachest another, teachest thou not thyself? thou that preachest a man should not steal, dost thou steal?
- Rom 2:1–3Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things.
- Deut 17:6–7At 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.
- Matt 23:25–28Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.
- Col 4:6Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.
- Heb 4:12–13For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
- Ps 50:16–20But unto the wicked God saith, What hast thou to do to declare my statutes, or that thou shouldest take my covenant in thy mouth?
- Rev 2:16Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.
- Prov 26:4–5Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest thou also be like unto him.
- 1 Cor 14:24–25But if all prophesy, and there come in one that believeth not, or one unlearned, he is convinced of all, he is judged of all:
- Rev 19:15And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
- Rev 1:16And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.
- Jer 23:29Is not my word like as a fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?
- Prov 12:18There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health.
- John 7:46The officers answered, Never man spake like this man.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
John declares him plainly: the eternal Word made flesh, the Lamb of God, the great 'I AM' — bread, light, door, shepherd, way, truth, life, resurrection — that you may believe and have life in his name.
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Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.