ק Qoph

8 ¹ but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.^(A)

² At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them.^{(B) 3} The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group ⁴ and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. ⁵ In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women.^(C) Now what do you say?” ⁶ They were using this question as a trap,^(D) in order to have a basis for accusing him.^(E)

But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. ⁷ When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone^(F) at her.”^{(G) 8} Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.

⁹ At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. ¹⁰ Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”

¹¹ “No one, sir,” she said.

“Then neither do I condemn you,”^(H) Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”^(I)

¹ The elder,^(A)

To the lady chosen by God^(B) and to her children, whom I love in the truth^(C)—and not I only, but also all who know the truth^(D)— ² because of the truth,^(E) which lives in us^(F) and will be with us forever:

³ Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and from Jesus Christ,^(G) the Father’s Son, will be with us in truth and love.

⁴ It has given me great joy to find some of your children walking in the truth,^(H) just as the Father commanded us. ⁵ And now, dear lady, I am not writing you a new command but one we have had from the beginning.^(I) I ask that we love one another. ⁶ And this is love:^(J) that we walk in obedience to his commands.^(K) As you have heard from the beginning,^(L) his command is that you walk in love.