Portrait of Jesus

The gospels supply very little about motivation, inner personality and character analysis of the sort that would be expected in modern biography. They prefer to state what people said and what people did. So it is necessary to be extremely cautious in 'deducing' the personality of Jesus from the record. The word 'portrait' is preferable as it draws attention to the subjective element in biblical interpretation.

This incident gives the reader some insight into the impact Jesus might have had on those he encountered. He was certainly not the meek and mild character often portrayed in later presentations of him. Instead, he aroused anger, jealousy and argument among the religious leaders, because he appeared to undermine them and also the Jewish Law. He could be seen as a threat to all they stood for. Further, they were shown up in front of the crowds, the very people over whom they exercised authority. He frequently got the better of them, as this narrative shows. Jesus' personal authority appears to have unnerved them, perhaps producing a hatred determined to belittle him, stop him and ultimately get rid of him. This reaction came about because Jesus' interpretation of the Law went to the heart of the matter rather than to the external level of strict behavioural adherence.

Whatever Jesus' emotional state he remained calm as he dealt with this contrived situation. His treatment of the woman was respectful. He did not seek to embarrass her, and in defending her, it was her enemies who were embarrassed. Jesus enabled her to recover her dignity because he did not pronounce judgement, but he combined his compassion with a recommendation to keep her out of future trouble.

What about the woman's impression of Jesus? Again, one can only speculate. In the culture of the time, she must have been overwhelmed that a man had been prepared to defend her. Her life depended on his response and he did not let her down, as men in her past might have.

Jesus is presented as a revolutionary - he turned the evil around him into good, while challenging those who needed a shake up. Here was no wishy-washy, do-gooder but someone dynamic and challenging. His followers eventually believed he was the Messiah, God's anointed one - and that explained for them his authority and ability to appreciate exactly the nature of the problems that came his way. They came to believe that Jesus encapsulated both the judgement and the mercy of God. This caused people to love or hate him - but they could never ignore him.



Saving not judging: calling not condemning

People who met Jesus felt the scrutiny and knew the shortfall. Jesus' very presence has the effect of judging the self-righteous bystanders in this narrative. But judgement was not Jesus' primary purpose (cf. John 8:15-16). Indeed judgement balances justice and mercy - the one leads to the other. John 3:17 states: 'For God did not send his Son into the world to be its judge, but to be its saviour.' Jesus' aim was to save people from the evil that beset them, whether in their personal relationships like the woman here, or in illness. The narratives presents him calling them to a new life, not condemning them for the wrong they had done.



Mercy

The Old Testament /Hebrew Bible uses different Hebrew words for mercy. 'Chesed' is often translated by 'loving kindness'. It refers to God's continued forbearance with Israel in his covenant relationship even when Israel was wayward. The Hebrew word 'racham' has to do with God's tender compassion, the pity which God has for people's weakness, misery and helplessness. 'Chanan' refers to God's generous and kindly disposition. In the Old Testament / Hebrew Bible, therefore, mercy has nothing to do with the forgiveness of sin. The same is true of the New Testament use of the Greek word 'eleos' meaning 'pity' or 'mercy'. Mercy therefore is part of the very nature of God, as justice is. Here God's mercy is seen in Jesus' treatment of the woman.



Hypocrisy and double-standards

Hypocrisy is one of the common charges made against religion. One thing is preached and another is practised. Religious leaders have to be constantly vigilant to avoid this charge because people expect them to set standards and look to them as an example to follow. But of course, even religious leaders are human. Their position and responsibilities can lead to greater temptation! The religious person has constantly to be on their guard that God is not compromised in the way they live their lives. In relation to adultery, Jesus challenged the double standards meted out to men and women. In Mark 10:1-10 Jesus puts men and women in the same position in relation to divorce. Among Jews at that time a woman could not divorce her husband but a man could divorce his wife.



Social Justice

God was a God of judgement. This judgement balanced justice with mercy. The prophets in the Old Testament / Hebrew Bible urged the need for social justice in Israel, claiming that all their religious practices were meaningless if no one cared about justice for the poor and vulnerable. Jesus continued this theme in his teaching about the Kingdom of God and in his ministry where he encountered especially the socially deprived and outcasts. Here he challenged the injustice shown to this woman. Not only was she being treated unfairly, but the male also involved in the incident was not even present! This incident took place when Jesus was actually in the Women's Court of the Temple which was a symbolic backcloth for the administering of justice to women.