The divinity of Jesus Christ has been the topic of much debate, from opponents of the cross to those who profess to be followers of Christ. It should come as no surprise given that the Bible forewarns us about the advent of false teachers in the end days. Not only is Jesus’ deity called into question, but the Word of God has been under attack since before the Fall. One of the chapters that has been criticized is John 8:1-11, which deals with the woman who was caught in an adulterous act. Critics argue that the account is not trustworthy, and some later Bible translations have gone so far as to remove it. I don’t believe critics were wise when they questioned the account’s veracity. If you look at the other Gospels and examine Jesus’ life, you’ll see that such a record couldn’t be made; it must have truly happened.
But I’m not here today to debate the veracity of this account, but one thing Jesus did piqued my interest: He wrote on the ground with His finger. Many people have speculated and entertained fantasies about what He wrote on the ground. In doing so, they have overlooked the significance of Jesus writing on the ground with His finger. The apostle John did not simply record this occurrence so that we may speculate about what was written. His goal was to demonstrate the significance of the writing on the ground. To understand the meaning of the writing, we must look to Scripture to see if there are any instances that are remotely similar.
The Writing Of The Law On Mount Sinai
Exodus 31:18,
18 And he gave to Moses, when he had finished speaking with him on Mount Sinai, the two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone, written with the finger of God.
We can extract from the passage above that the Law given to Moses on Mount Sinai was written on tablets of stone with the finger of God. What I want you to keep in mind is the tablet of stones, and how hard it is to use one’s finger to write on such a surface. The next account we’re going to look at is from the book of Daniel.
The Handwriting On The Wall
Daniel 5:1-9,
5 King Belshazzar made a great feast for a thousand of his lords and drank wine in front of the thousand.
2 Belshazzar, when he tasted the wine, commanded that the vessels of gold and of silver that Nebuchadnezzar his father[a] had taken out of the temple in Jerusalem be brought, that the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines might drink from them. 3 Then they brought in the golden vessels that had been taken out of the temple, the house of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines drank from them. 4 They drank wine and praised the gods of gold and silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone.
5 Immediately the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace, opposite the lampstand. And the king saw the hand as it wrote.6 Then the king’s color changed, and his thoughts alarmed him; his limbs gave way, and his knees knocked together. 7 The king called loudly to bring in the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the astrologers. The king declared[b] to the wise men of Babylon, “Whoever reads this writing, and shows me its interpretation, shall be clothed with purple and have a chain of gold around his neck and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.” 8 Then all the king’s wise men came in, but they could not read the writing or make known to the king the interpretation. 9 Then King Belshazzar was greatly alarmed, and his color changed, and his lords were perplexed.
I want you to concentrate on what is happening in this account. Human hand fingers appeared ( it was a physical manifestation that could be perceived by the naked eye). And I want you to pay attention to the king’s reaction: he was terrified because what happened was otherworldly. According to the text, his color altered, his limbs gave way, and his knees collided. These are the reactions of a man who is terrified. He desecrated God’s Holy Vessels, and God’s wrath was shown through human fingers writing on a wall. This was a hard surface, and only God’s fingers could have inscribed on it.
Now we are going to see the connection between these two events and the account recorded in John 8:1-11,
1 but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 2 Early in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him, and he sat down and taught them. 3 The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery, and placing her in the midst 4 they said to him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. 5 Now in the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?” 6 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. 7 And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8 And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground. 9 But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. 10 Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” 11 She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.
According to Baruch Korman’s research on this record, the ground on which Jesus wrote is extremely hard and nearly impossible to crack at this time of year. This is the most crucial aspect of this account. It’s nearly like stony soil ( similar to cement) where no human can write.
Why did Jesus Write With His Finger On The Ground?
By writing on this really ‘ impossible to write on ground’, Jesus was revealing his Deity in connection with Exodus 31:18 and Daniel 5:5. And his audience was well aware of what was going on. It’s not so much about what Jesus wrote on the ground as it is about why He wrote on the ground with His finger. A Finger that could pierce through a brick like soil, thus showing that Jesus bore the finger of God.
When Jesus said to the crowd, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her”, HE was essentially asking his audience if they wanted judgment to begin immediately. Because Jesus was the only one who was sinless. This is why they all left one by one. They would have perished if they had agreed to His request. They were not so much convicted, ashamed, and driven away as they were confronted with the prospect of God’s judgment and were terrified. This is why everyone fled.
What’s the takeaway for you and I?
The purpose of Jesus’ first coming was to prepare us for his second coming. His first coming was to die for the sins of the world. He Himself stated that He did not come to condemn the world, but rather to save us. So, if you hear His voice today, I urge you to repent and believe the Gospel. Do not delay in turning away from your wretchedness and turn to God for salvation, the saving of your souls from the wrath of God.
image courtesy of United Church of God
My name is Tayib Salami and I started Tayibs.com for the sole purpose of exploring difficult questions about the Christian faith that most of us shy away from. In 2017, I entered a very dark time in my life and it’s only by the grace of the Living God that I’m still alive today. It led me to really go deeper in my faith and consider a myriad of questions that I never thought about asking myself or others before. Welcome and enjoy the ride with me.