Question: "What did Jesus mean when He said 'he who is without
sin can cast the first stone'?" Answer: Jesus’ statement “If any
one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone
at her” is found in John 8:1-11. Jesus was teaching in the
temple when the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman who
had been caught in the act of adultery, and they asked Him if
she should be stoned as required by the Law of Moses. However,
they cared nothing about this woman; they were using her to trap
Jesus. In their minds, if He told them to set the woman free,
they could claim He did not hold to the Law of Moses. If He told
them to stone her they could claim He was not the Savior, and if
He said nothing they could claim He lacked wisdom. Jesus did not
answer immediately but stooped and wrote something on the
ground, and they kept pressing Him. Finally the Lord said, in
essence, “Go ahead and stone her because that is what the Law
requires. But the Law also requires that the first stone be
thrown by a person