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Jesus' Lesson

Jesus taught many lessons in his time. One lesson discussed in Messianic Jewish writing, demonstrating Jesus' greatness, was the story of when an adulterer was brought to him and Jesus was asked whether she should be stoned. Here is the story from the King James Version of the Bible (John 8:1-11)

[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

This is a fascinating story, but ultimately demonstrates a contradiction in Messianic Jewish beliefs.

The Teaching

Jesus challenges those who would stone the woman. He challenged their qualifications for stoning the woman, after all, they are not free of sin. However, this teaching creates a major violation of Messianic Jewish beliefs. But let's take this one step at a time. Jesus was brought an adulterer and asked whether she should be stoned. He stated that whoever had no sin should throw the first stone. As Judaism believes that all individuals sin at some point, this disqualified anyone from being the first. There is an obvious problem here. The people that brought the adulterer are correct; being an adulterer is a capital crime. If they are correct in their accusation, Jesus is preventing the proper, legal punishment from taking place. Messianic Judaism say that Jesus is G-d. But, if G-d is just, as decribed in the Bible, how could he not allow humans to execute the just punishment for a crime? Further, there is no law that dictates that someone must be free of sin to be an executioner. If someone has to be free of sin to be the one to give the punishment, then it is impossible for the Jewish people to fulfill this Biblical law. And there lies the problem. If Jesus is merely a man, he has given an incorrect legal decision. After all, adultery is punishable by death. However, Messianic Jews believe that Jesus is G-d. If Jesus is G-d, then he enacted a law (that one needs to be without sin to be an executioner) that prevents the Jewish people from following a previous law that he gave (adultery is a capital offense). If G-d is truly perfect, how could G-d ever command a law to the Jewish people that no Jew could ever fulfill? Does G-d give laws that have no opportunities for application? If G-d is perfect, then the answer is "no". Remember the verse from Numbers 23:19 (JPS, 1917 translation)

"G-d is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of man, that He should repent: when He hath said, will He not do it? or when He hath spoken, will He not make it good?"

G-d is honest, G-d is perfect. G-d's law is, by definition, perfect; to say that G-d created a law that the Jewish people could not possibly fulfill, implies that G-d did not give the law with full honesty.

Other Lessons

There is another major difficulty here. Jesus is asked the legal use of capital punishment. He leaves out what the main difficulty is; specifically, there is no evidence that the woman has received a trial in which she was convicted of the crime. The proper answer to their challenge would be that the woman can be stoned once she has been convicted in a court of law, following all of the guidelines necessary for a capital crime. If convicted, then the death penalty is the correct decision. If G-d is perfect, and Jesus is G-d (as according to Messianic Jewish beliefs), how come he missed a fairly easy reading of the law? Further, the Jews who spoke with him stated that Moses commanded the law. Actually, G-d commanded the law, given through Moses. How come Jesus missed correcting them on this simple issue, if he is G-d, and G-d is perfect? Lastly, the woman at the end stated that she did not have any accusers. She may not have any accusers who were currently present, but she certainly had many accusers who caught her in the act of adultery. Why did Jesus miss reprimanding this woman who was clearly lying in his face? If Jesus is G-d, and G-d is perfect, how could this be missed? The problem is basically this; Jesus could not have been G-d, and by using this passage to teach other Messianic Jews about Jesus, they are using a verse that disproves their faith.

Why Jews Don't Believe in Jesus

There are many reasons why Jews do not accept Jesus, and the links below are some of the better explanations on this topic. Of course, if you have questions that are not covered on the links, you can always e-mail me with your questions.

An Answer from Rabbi Stuart Federow Click Here

An Answer from Rabbi Shraga Simmons Click Here

Ask the Rabbi from Ohr Somayach Click Here

Rabbi Tovia Singer Click Here

Countermissionary Counseling

There are a number of groups that provide Countermissionary Counseling. Here are links to a few of them:

Jews for Judaism

Torah Atlanta

Outreach Judaism

Torah Life and Living

Great Sites, Priceless Information

Here are a number of great sites that counter missionaries and explain the differences in belief between Judaism and Christianity, including addressing the Biblical verses that missionaries try to use against the Jews and explaining why the missionaries are incorrect. For the most in-depth analysis of verse by verse questions, go to Messiah Truth (sections on Counter-Missionary: Multi-media training [this can be read without being "multi-media"], Knowing Your Orchard and Judaism's Answer), Jews for Judaism (in their Reference Section (please note that the Isaiah topics tend to be under "Suffering Servant" part of the "Proof Text" section) and the Q & A section of Outreach Judaism.

Counter Missionary Reference

Kosher Judaism

Escape From Counterfeit Judaism

Talking to Kids About Missionaries

I am more than happy to answer any questions regarding why Jews do not believe in Jesus or on Jewish beliefs in general. Feel free to e-mail me. There is no such thing as a "stupid question". E-mail me-click here