1123. Then, at and the scribes and Pharisees brought to him a woman caught in adultery, our Lord wards off his opponents. 1123. Consequenter cum dicit adducunt autem Scribae et Pharisaei mulierem in adulterio deprehensam, repellit adversarios, et First, we see him tested, so that he can then be accused; and primo ponitur calumniae tentatio; second, he checks his accusers, at but Jesus, bending down, wrote with his finger on the ground. secundo calumniantium repulsio, ibi Iesus autem inclinans se deorsum, digito scribebat in terra. As to the first, the Evangelist does three things: Circa primum tria facit. first, he mentions the occasion for the test; Primo ponitur tentationis occasio; second, he describes the test itself, at and said to him: Master, this woman was just now caught in adultery; secundo describitur ipsa tentatio, ibi dixerunt ei: Magister, haec mulier modo deprehensa est in adulterio; and third, the purpose of those who were testing our Lord, at and they said this tempting him. tertio tentatorum intentio, ibi haec autem dicebant tentantes eum. 1124. The occasion for the test is a woman’s adultery. And so first, her accusers detail the crime; and also exhibit the sinner. 1124. Occasio autem tentationis ponitur adulterium a muliere perpetratum: et ideo primo aggravant culpam; secundo praesentant personam peccantem. As to the first, the Evangelist says, then the scribes and Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. As Augustine says, three things were noteworthy about Christ: his truth, his gentleness, and his justice. Indeed, it was predicted about him: Go forth and reign, because of truth, gentleness, and justice (Ps 44:5). For he set forth the truth as a teacher; and the Pharisees and scribes noticed this while he was teaching: if I say the truth to you, why do you not believe me? (John 8:46). Since they could find nothing false in his words or his teachings, they had ceased their accusations on that score. Dicit ergo quantum ad primum adducunt autem Scribae et Pharisaei mulierem in adulterio deprehensam. Ut enim Augustinus dicit, tria in Christo praeeminebant: scilicet veritas, mansuetudo et iustitia. De ipso quippe fuerat praedictum: procede, et regna, propter veritatem et mansuetudinem et iustitiam. Nam veritatem attulit ut doctor, et hanc perceperant Pharisaei et Scribae dum doceret. Infra eodem: si veritatem dico vobis, quare non creditis mihi? Nullum enim falsum in verbis et doctrina eius deprehendere poterant; et ideo calumniari de hoc cessaverant. He showed his gentleness as a liberator or savior; and they saw this when he could not be provoked against his enemies and persecutors: when he was reviled, he did not revile (1 Pet 2:23). Thus: learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart (Matt 11:29). Thus they did not accuse him on this point. Mansuetudinem vero attulit ut liberator; et hanc cognoverunt dum adversus inimicos et persecutores non commoveretur; I Petr. II, v. 23: cum malediceretur, non maledicebat. Unde dicebat, Mt. XI, 29: discite a me, quia mitis sum, et humilis corde. Et ideo de hoc etiam non calumniabantur. And he exercised justice as its advocate; he did this because it was not yet known among the Jews, especially in legal proceedings. It was on this point that they wanted to test him, to see if he would abandon justice for the sake of mercy. So they present him with a known crime, deserving denunciation, adultery: every woman who is a harlot will be walked on like dung on the road (Sir 9:10). Then they present the sinner in person to further influence him: and they set her in the midst. This woman will be brought into the assembly, and among the sons of God (Sir 23:24). Iustitiam autem attulit ut cognitor, et hoc quia nondum nota erat Iudaeis, maxime in iudiciis: ideo in ea scandalum posuerunt, volentes scire utrum a iustitia propter misericordiam recederet. Et ideo proponunt ei crimen notum et confusione dignum, scilicet adulterium; Eccli. IX, 10: omnis mulier fornicaria quasi stercus in via conculcabitur. Consequenter personam peccantem repraesentant, ut magis commoveant. Unde et statuerunt eam in medio; Eccli. XXIII, 34: hic in medio adducetur, et inter filios Dei etc. 1125. The Evangelist, at and said to him: Master, this woman was just now caught in adultery, shows them proceeding with their test. 1125. Consequenter cum dicit et dixerunt ei: Magister, haec mulier modo deprehensa est in adulterio, prosequuntur ipsam tentationem, et First, they point out the woman’s fault; primo manifestant culpam; second, they state the justice of the case according to the law; secundo allegant legis iustitiam; third, they ask him for his verdict. tertio exquirunt sententiam. 1126. They point out the woman’s fault when they say this woman was just now caught in adultery. They detail her fault in three ways, calculated to deflect Christ from his gentle manner. First, they mention the freshness of her fault, saying just now; for an old fault does not affect us so much, because the person might have made amends. 1126. Culpam quidem manifestant cum dicunt haec mulier modo deprehensa est in adulterio: quam quidem culpam exaggerant ex tribus, quae Christum commovere deberent a sua mansuetudine. Et primo ex culpae novitate; unde dicunt modo: nam quando est antiqua, non tantum movet, quia forte praecessit correctio. Second, they note its certainty, saying, caught, so that she could not excuse herself. This is characteristic of women: she wipes her mouth and says: I have done no evil (Prov 30:20). Secundo ex eius evidentia; unde dicunt deprehensa est, ita quod non possit se excusare, quod est consuetudinis mulierum, secundum illud Prov. XXX, 20: tergit os suum, dicens: non sum operata malum. Third, they point out that her fault is great, in adultery, which is a serious crime and the cause of many evils. Every woman who is adulterous will sin (Sir 9), and first of all against the law of her God. Tertio ex culpae enormitate; unde dicunt in adulterio, quod est grave facinus et malorum multorum causa; Eccli. IX: omnis mulier quae adulteratur peccabit, primo quidem in lege Dei sui. 1127. They appeal to the justice contained in the law when they remark, in the law, that is, in Leviticus (Lev 20:10) and in Deuteronomy (Deut 22:21), Moses commanded us to stone such a woman. 1127. Legis iustitiam allegant cum dicunt: in lege autem, scilicet Lev. et Deut. XXII, Moyses mandavit huiusmodi lapidare. 1128. They ask Jesus for his verdict when they say, but what do you say? Their question is a trap, for they are saying in effect: if he decides that she should be let go, he will not be acting according to justice, yet he cannot condemn her because he came to seek and to save those who are lost: for God did not send his Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through him (John 3:17). Now the law could not command anything unjust. Thus, Jesus does not say, let her go, lest he seem to be acting in violation of the law. 1128. Sententiam autem exquirunt cum subdunt: tu ergo quid dicis? Calumniosa est interrogatio; quasi dicant: si eam dimitti censuerit iustitiam non tenebit. Sed, absit ut qui venerat quaerere et salvum facere quod perierat, eam condemnaret; supra III, 17: non enim misit Deus Filium suum in mundum ut iudicet mundum, sed ut salvetur mundus per ipsum. Lex etiam quod iniustum erat iubere non poterat. Et ideo non dicit absolvatur ne contra legem facere videretur. 1129. The Evangelist reveals the malicious intention behind those who were questioning Jesus when he says, they said this tempting him, that they might accuse him. For they thought that Christ would say that she should be let go, so as not to be acting contrary to his gentle manner; and then they would accuse him of acting in violation of the law: let us not test Christ as they did (1 Cor 10:9). 1129. Et ideo consequenter subditur perversa tentantium intentio, cum dicit haec autem dicebant tentantes eum. Credebant enim, quod Christus ne mansuetudinem perderet, eam dimitti debere dicturus esset; et sic accusarent eum tamquam legis praevaricatorem. I Cor. X, 9: neque tentaveritis Christum, sicut illi tentaverunt. 1130. Then, at but Jesus, bending down, wrote with his finger on the ground, Jesus checks his enemies by his wisdom. The Pharisees were testing him on two points: his justice and his mercy. But Jesus preserved both in his answer. 1130. Consequenter cum dicit Iesus autem inclinans se deorsum, digito scribebat in terra, repellit adversarios sua sapientia. Nam Pharisaei de duobus eum tentabant: scilicet de iustitia et de misericordia. Et utrumque in respondendo servavit, et ideo First, the Evangelist shows how Jesus kept to what was just; and primo ostendit quomodo servavit; second, that he did not abandon mercy, at he lifted himself up and said to them. secundo quod non recessit a misericordia, ibi erigens autem se Iesus dixit ei etc. As to the first, he does two things: Circa primum duo facit. first, he mentions the sentence in accordance with justice; Primo proponit sententiam iustitiae; second the effect of this sentence, at but hearing this, they left one by one. secundo subditur effectus sententiae, ibi audientes autem haec, unus post unum exibant. About the first he does three things: Circa primum tria facit. first, we see Jesus writing his sentence; Primo describit sententiam; then pronouncing it; and secundo pronuntiat eam; third, continuing again to write it down. tertio perseverat iterum in scribendo sententiam. 1131. Jesus wrote his sentence on the earth with his finger: but Jesus, bending down, wrote with his finger on the ground. Some say that he wrote the words: O earth, earth, listen . . . write down this man as sterile (Jer 22:29). According to others, and this is the better opinion, Jesus wrote down the very words he spoke, that is, he who is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her. However, neither of these opinions is certain. 1131. Sententiam autem describit in terra digito; unde dicit Iesus autem inclinans se deorsum, digito scribebat in terra. Scribebat autem secundum quosdam illud quod dicitur Ier. XXII, 29: terra terra, audi . . . scribe iustum virum sterilem. Secundum alios vero, et melius, dicitur quod scripsit eadem quae protulit, scilicet: qui sine peccato est vestrum, primus in illam lapidem mittat. Neutrum tamen certum est. Jesus wrote on the earth for three reasons. First, according to Augustine, to show that those who were testing him would be written on the earth: O Lord, all who leave you will be written on the earth (Jer 17:13). But those who are just and the disciples who follow him are written in heaven: rejoice, because your names are written in heaven (Luke 10:20). Second, he wrote on earth to show that he would perform signs on earth, for he who writes make signs. Thus, to write on the earth is to make signs. And so he says that Jesus was bending down, by the mystery of the incarnation, by means of which he performed miracles in the flesh he had assumed. Third, he wrote on the earth because the old law was written on tablets of stone (Exod 31; 2 Cor 3), which signify its harshness: a man who violates the law of Moses dies without mercy (Heb 10:28). But the earth is soft. And so Jesus wrote on the earth to show the sweetness and the softness of the new law that he gave to us. Sed in terra quidem scribebat triplici ratione. Una quidem, secundum Augustinum, ut ostendat eos qui eum tentabant in terra describendos esse; Ier. XVII, 13: Domine, recedentes a te in terra scribuntur. Iusti autem, et discipuli qui eum sequuntur, in caelo scribuntur; Lc. X, 20: gaudete et exultate, quia nomina vestra scripta sunt in caelo. Item ut ostendat se quod signa faceret in terra: qui enim scribit, signa facit. Scribere ergo in terra, est signa facere: et ideo dicit quod inclinavit se, scilicet per incarnationis mysterium, ex quo in carne assumpta miracula fecit. Tertio, quia lex vetus in tabulis lapideis scripta erat, ut habetur Ex. XXXI, et II Cor. III. Per quod signatur eius duritia: quia irritam quis faciens legem Moysi, absque ulla miseratione occidebatur, ut dicitur Hebr. c. X, 28. Terra autem mollis est. Ut ergo signaret dulcedinem et mollitiem novae legis per eum traditae, in terra scribebat. We can see from this that there are three things to be considered in giving sentences. First, there should be kindness in lowering oneself before those to be punished; and so he says, Jesus, bending down: there is judgment without mercy to him who does not have mercy (Jas 2:13); if a man is overtaken in any fault, you who are spiritual instruct him in a spirit of mildness (Gal 6:1). Second, there should be discretion in determining the judgment and so he says that Jesus wrote with his finger, which because of its flexibility signifies discretion: the fingers of a man’s hand appeared, writing (Dan 5:5). Third, there should be certitude about the sentence given; and so he says, Jesus wrote. Ex quo tria in sententiis debemus attendere. Primo benignitatem in condescendendo puniendis: unde dicit inclinans se; Iac. II, 13: iudicium sine misericordia ei qui non fecit misericordiam; Gal. ult., 1: si praeoccupatus fuerit aliquis in aliquo delicto, vos, qui spirituales estis, huiusmodi instruite in spiritu lenitatis. Secundo discretionem in discernendo; unde dicit digito scribebat, qui propter flexibilitatem discretionem significat; Dan. c. V, 5: apparuerunt digiti quasi manus hominis scribentis contra candelabrum. Tertio certitudinem in pronuntiando: unde dicit scribebat. 1132. It was at their insistence that Jesus gave his sentence; and so the Evangelist says, when they continued asking him, he lifted himself up and said to them: he who is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her. The Pharisees were violators of the law; and yet they tried to accuse Christ of violating the law and were attempting to make him condemn the woman. So Christ proposes a sentence in accord with justice, saying, he who is without sin. He is saying in effect: let the sinner be punished, but not by sinners; let the law be accomplished, but not by those who break it, because when you judge another you condemn yourself (Rom 2:1). Therefore, either let this woman go, or suffer the penalty of the law with her. 1132. Sententiam autem profert ad eorum instantiam; unde dicit cum autem perseverarent interrogantes eum, erexit se, et dixit eis: qui sine peccato est vestrum, primus in illam lapidem mittat. Pharisaei enim transgressores legis erant, tamen nitebantur Christum de transgressione legis accusare, et mulierem condemnare: et ideo Christus sententiam proponit iustitiae, dicens qui sine peccato est vestrum, quasi dicat: puniatur peccatrix, sed non a peccatoribus: impleatur lex, sed non a praevaricatoribus legis, quia, ut dicitur Rom. II, 1: in quo enim alium iudicas, teipsum condemnas. Aut ergo istam dimittite, aut cum illa poenam legis excipite. 1133. Here the question arises as to whether a sinful judge sins by passing sentence against another person who has committed the same sin. It is obvious that if the judge who passes sentence is a public sinner, he sins by giving scandal. Yet, this seems to be true also if his sin is hidden, for we read: when you judge another you condemn yourself (Rom 2:1). However, it is clear that no one condemns himself except by sinning. And thus it seems that he sins by judging another. 1133. Hic incidit quaestio utrum iudex in peccato existens, peccet ferendo contra alium sententiam qui in eodem peccato existit. Et licet manifestum sit, quod iudex si publice in peccato existens sententiam ferat, peccat scandalizando; nihilominus tamen hoc idem videtur, si sit in peccato occulto. Nam Rom. II, 1: in quo alium iudicas, teipsum condemnas. Constat autem, quod nullus condemnat se nisi peccando: ergo videtur quod iudicando alium peccet.