Section 4
to answer slowly. The Lord's first reaction to their question was not to answer it quickly. We also must learn this wisdom. When people come to you with an urgent question, you must learn from the Lord. He simply stooped to write on the ground. Silence cools people down, like cold water cools boiling water. When the Lord stooped to write, He was cooling down the situation. At the same time, by cooling down the hot situ ation, the sinful woman was comforted. I be lieve that by stooping to write on the ground the Lord Jesus was indicating to the religionists that they should not be so proud, that they had to humble themselves a little. They had to real ize that they were as sinful as that woman.
When I was young, I tried to discover what it was that the Lord Jesus wrote on the ground. Throughout many generations no one has been able to tell what He wrote. I would guess that the Lord might have written, "Who is without sin among you?" While the Pharisees were asking what should be done with such a woman, the Lord Jesus might have written in big letters, "Who is without sin?" Everyone was staring at the Lord as He stooped to write on the ground. Then the Lord stood up and said, "He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to