John 8:6
New International Version
They were using this question as a trap,in order to have a basis for accusing him. But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger.

New Living Translation
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.

English Standard Version
This they said to test him, that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground.

Berean Standard Bible
They said this to test Him, in order to have a basis for accusing Him. But Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with His finger.

Berean Literal Bible
Now they were saying this testing Him, so that they might have grounds to accuse Him. But Jesus, having stooped down, began writing with His finger on the ground.

King James Bible
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.

New King James Version
This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear.

New American Standard Bible
Now they were saying this to test Him, so that they might have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down and with His finger wrote on the ground.

NASB 1995
They were saying this, testing Him, so that they might have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down and with His finger wrote on the ground.

NASB 1977
And they were saying this, testing Him, in order that they might have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down, and with His finger wrote on the ground.

Legacy Standard Bible
They were saying this, testing Him, so that they might have evidence to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and with His finger wrote on the ground.

Amplified Bible
They said this to test Him, hoping that they would have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down and began writing on the ground with His finger.

Christian Standard Bible
They asked this to trap him, in order that they might have evidence to accuse him. Jesus stooped down and started writing on the ground with his finger.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
They asked this to trap Him, in order that they might have evidence to accuse Him. Jesus stooped down and started writing on the ground with His finger.

American Standard Version
And this they said, trying him, that they might have whereof to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
“What therefore do you say?” This they said, as they were tempting him, so that they might have something for which to accuse him.

Contemporary English Version
They asked Jesus this question, because they wanted to test him and bring some charge against him. But Jesus simply bent over and started writing on the ground with his finger.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And this they said tempting him, that they might accuse him. But Jesus bowing himself down, wrote with his finger on the ground.

English Revised Version
And this they said, tempting him, that they might have whereof to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
They asked this to test him. They wanted to find a reason to bring charges against him. Jesus bent down and used his finger to write on the ground.

Good News Translation
They said this to trap Jesus, so that they could accuse him. But he bent over and wrote on the ground with his finger.

International Standard Version
They said this to test him, so that they might have a charge against him. But Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger.

Literal Standard Version
And this they said, trying Him, that they might have to accuse Him. And Jesus, having stooped down, with the finger He was writing on the ground,

Majority Standard Bible
They said this to test Him, in order to have a basis for accusing Him. But Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with His finger, not taking notice.

New American Bible
They said this to test him, so that they could have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger.

NET Bible
(Now they were asking this in an attempt to trap him, so that they could bring charges against him.) Jesus bent down and wrote on the ground with his finger.

New Revised Standard Version
They said this to test him, so that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground.

New Heart English Bible
Now they said this to test him, that they might have something to accuse him of. But Jesus stooped down, and wrote on the ground with his finger.

Webster's Bible Translation
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.

Weymouth New Testament
They asked this in order to put Him to the test, so that they might have some charge to bring against Him. But Jesus leant forward and began to write with His finger on the ground.

World English Bible
They said this testing him, that they might have something to accuse him of. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with his finger.

Young's Literal Translation
and this they said, trying him, that they might have to accuse him. And Jesus, having stooped down, with the finger he was writing on the ground,

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Woman Caught in Adultery
5In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such a woman. So what do You say?” 6 They said this to test Him, in order to have a basis for accusing Him. But Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with His finger. 7When 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.”…

Cross References
Matthew 16:1
Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came and tested Jesus by asking Him to show them a sign from heaven.

Matthew 19:3
Then some Pharisees came and tested Him by asking, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason?"

Matthew 22:18
But Jesus knew their evil intent and said, "You hypocrites, why are you testing Me?

Matthew 22:35
One of them, an expert in the law, tested Him with a question:

Mark 3:2
In order to accuse Jesus, they were watching to see if He would heal on the Sabbath.

Mark 8:11
Then the Pharisees came and began to argue with Jesus, testing Him by demanding from Him a sign from heaven.

Mark 10:2
Some Pharisees came to test Him. "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?" they inquired.


Treasury of Scripture

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.

tempting.

Numbers 14:22
Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice;

Matthew 19:3
The Pharisees also came unto him, tempting him, and saying unto him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause?

Luke 10:25
And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?

But.

John 8:2
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.

Genesis 49:9
Judah is a lion's whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up?

Jeremiah 17:13
O LORD, the hope of Israel, all that forsake thee shall be ashamed, and they that depart from me shall be written in the earth, because they have forsaken the LORD, the fountain of living waters.

as though.

Psalm 38:12-14
They also that seek after my life lay snares for me: and they that seek my hurt speak mischievous things, and imagine deceits all the day long…

Psalm 39:1
To the chief Musician, even to Jeduthun, A Psalm of David. I said, I will take heed to my ways, that I sin not with my tongue: I will keep my mouth with a bridle, while the wicked is before me.

Proverbs 26:17
He that passeth by, and meddleth with strife belonging not to him, is like one that taketh a dog by the ears.

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Accuse Accusing Basis Bent Charge Finger Floor Forward Ground Grounds Head Heard Jesus Leant Order Proving Question Something Started Stooped Tempting Test Testing Trying Using Whereof Write Wrote
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John 8
1. Jesus delivers the woman taken in adultery.
12. He declares himself the light of the world, and justifies his doctrine;
31. promises freedom to those who believe;
33. answers the Jews who boasted of Abraham;
48. answers their reviling, by showing his authority and dignity;
59. and slips away from those who would stone him.














(6) On the text, see Note on John 8:4. The last words, in italics, which are an explanatory gloss, should also be omitted. The verse will then read, "But Jesus stooped down, and with His finger wrote on the ground"--or, more exactly, was writing on the ground. It is the imperfect of the continued action, and it points to the narrator's vivid remembrance of the scene. What precise meaning we are to attach to this action is, and must remain, uncertain. Any inquiry as to what He wrote is excluded by the fact that the narrative would certainly have recorded it had it been known; and though writing on sand was practised in the Rabbinic schools, this writing was on the pavement of the Temple (John 8:2). We have to seek the meaning, then, in the symbolism of the action, remembering that the teaching by action and gesture, common everywhere, has always been specially common in the East; and of the many interpretations which may be given, that which seems upon the whole least liable to objection is, that He deprecated the office of judge which they wished to impose on Him, and chose this method of intimating that He took no interest in what they were saying. The commentators tell us that this was a common method of signifying intentional disregard.

An alternative interpretation may be suggested. They had quoted the Law, and asked for His opinion. They were themselves the interpreters of the Law. He claimed no such office. (Comp. Luke 12:14.) He stoops down and writes, and the action intimates that the Law of God was written on tables of stone, and its decrees were immutable. They, by their technical interpretation and tradition, were making it of none effect. He came to fulfil it. The majesty of duty is sinned against by these refinements of casuistry. They are now daring to violate the sacredness of law by making it the subject of a question by which they hope to encompass His death. The solemn silence, as He stooped down in that Temple and wrote upon its pavement, must have spoken in a power greater than that of words.

Verse 6. - But this they said tempting him, that they might have (whereof) to accuse him. They sought a ground of formal accusation against Jesus. This implies some court before which the charge they desired to formulate it might be brought. The precise accusation is difficult to determine, and sundry distinguished scholars, Lucke, De Wette, and Alford, declare the problem or question insoluble. Augustine has been followed by a great body of expositors, who have supposed that an affirmative reply would have been inconsistent with the gentleness and mildness of our Lord's treatment of sinners, while a negative reply would at once have given them a charge to bring before the Sanhedrin of such a relaxation of the Law as would endanger his position as a Rabbi, still more as the Prophet like unto Moses. Almost all critics agree as to the use to which Christ's enemies were ready to put a negative reply, and therefore they coincide with Augustine in this part of his explanation. But the interpretation put upon the affirmative reply would not furnish the ground of any accusation before any court. An apparent inconsistency would be no civil charge, and would have no weight before any legal tribunal. The condemnation of adulterers to death by stoning would have been Christ's allowance of the letter of the Law to stand. The Romans could take no umbrage at this until the act had been carried into execution. It may probably have been known that, let the Sanhedrin record what verdict and punishment they pleased, the Roman magistrates would not have carried it into capital execution. How, then, could the scribes and Pharisees have carried an accusation or information before a Roman tribunal? The solution was suggested by Baumgarten-Crusius and Luthardt, and adopted by Moulton, that Christ was asked to say "Aye" or "No" to an instant, tumultuous act of vengeance upon the adulteress. Let him say "No," they would accuse him of deliberately ignoring and repudiating the authority of the Law of Moses; let him say "Yes," they were ready to stone the woman there and then, and subsequently to throw the responsibility of such violation of Roman jurisdiction upon the Lord Jesus as its instigator. Meyer's objection, that no question at all had been put to Christ on this supposition, is not clear. It was this. Clearly apprehending that adultery is a capital offence, and that there was a case before them upon which no doubt could be thrown, they ask him, with the stones in their hands, "Shall we kill this damsel or not?" If he says "No," then they were prepared to denounce the Prophet for his dogmatic trifling with the Law; if "Yes," they are ready to do the deed, and fasten upon Jesus all the shame and guilt of the proceeding before the Roman governor. It was a very analogous problem to that concerning the tribute money recorded in Matthew 22. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger was writing on the ground (εἰς τὴν γὴν, into the earth). Some manuscripts, E, G, and about ninety cursives, add, μὴ προσποιούμενος, "not troubling himself with them" - "as though he beard them not" (Authorized Version). This act is unparalleled in Scripture, even if the custom is still occasionally practised in the East. Mr. O'Neil, in his instructive volume, 'Palestine Explored,' records a curious instance of a youth, who, after playing some practical joke upon an old man, feigned utter ignorance of the surprise and cry of the old man by instantaneously assuming the position of one entirely abstracted from all sublunary thought, in fact, by sitting on the ground and scribbling with his finger in the dust, "as though he heard and saw nothing of what had happened." Such an intention can only be attributed to our Lord on the understanding that it was a current method of indicating an indisposition to have anything to say to the intruders. He was seated; he turned aside from the excited crowd, and by a significant symbol expressed his displeasure at their proceedings, and his perception of their craftiness. Conjecture has been busy, but vainly, with the inquiry as to what our Lord wrote on the ground, and some have urged (Godet) that he wrote the memorable sentence which follows, as a judge might write the verdict upon the case submitted to him. This is not probable, and it would detract from the symbolism of the act.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
They said
ἔλεγον (elegon)
Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural
Strong's 2036: Answer, bid, bring word, command. A primary verb; to speak or say.

this
Τοῦτο (Touto)
Demonstrative Pronoun - Accusative Neuter Singular
Strong's 3778: This; he, she, it.

to test
πειράζοντες (peirazontes)
Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3985: To try, tempt, test. From peira; to test, i.e. Endeavor, scrutinize, entice, discipline.

Him,
αὐτόν (auton)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Accusative Masculine 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.

in order
ἵνα (hina)
Conjunction
Strong's 2443: In order that, so that. Probably from the same as the former part of heautou; in order that.

to have [a basis]
ἔχωσιν (echōsin)
Verb - Present Subjunctive Active - 3rd Person Plural
Strong's 2192: To have, hold, possess. Including an alternate form scheo skheh'-o; a primary verb; to hold.

for accusing
κατηγορεῖν (katēgorein)
Verb - Present Infinitive Active
Strong's 2723: To accuse, charge, prosecute. From kategoros; to be a plaintiff, i.e. To charge with some offence.

Him.
αὐτοῦ (autou)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Genitive Masculine 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.

But
δὲ (de)
Conjunction
Strong's 1161: A primary particle; but, and, etc.

Jesus
Ἰησοῦς (Iēsous)
Noun - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2424: Of Hebrew origin; Jesus, the name of our Lord and two other Israelites.

bent
κύψας (kypsas)
Verb - Aorist Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2955: To bend, stoop down, bow the head. Probably from the base of kuma; to bend forward.

down
κάτω (katō)
Adverb
Strong's 2736: (a) down, below, also: downwards, (b) lower, under, less, of a length of time. Also katotero; adverb from kata; downwards.

[and] began to write
κατέγραφεν (kategraphen)
Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 1125: A primary verb; to 'grave', especially to write; figuratively, to describe.

on
εἰς (eis)
Preposition
Strong's 1519: A primary preposition; to or into, of place, time, or purpose; also in adverbial phrases.

the
τὴν (tēn)
Article - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

ground
γῆν (gēn)
Noun - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 1093: Contracted from a primary word; soil; by extension a region, or the solid part or the whole of the terrene globe.

with
τῷ (tō)
Article - Dative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

[His] finger.
δακτύλῳ (daktylō)
Noun - Dative Masculine Singular
Strong's 1147: A finger. Probably from deka; a finger.


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