Jesus and the Adulteress (죄 없는 자가 먼저 돌로 치라)

 

 

(요 8:7)

그들이 묻기를 마지 아니하는지라 이에 일어나 이르시되 너희 중에 죄 없는 자가 먼저 돌로 치라 하시고

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lucas Cranach the Elder 1472 – 1553

Jesus and the Adulteress

oil on panel (82 × 121 cm) — 1532

  Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest

Lucas Cranach the Elder biography

 

This work is linked to John 8:7

 

In John 8, the Scribes and Pharisees bring to Jesus a woman who has been discovered in the act of adultery, asserting that the law of Moses requires that she be stoned. This puts Jesus in a difficult spot: he has to obey the old laws, but must also respect the Roman law that states that capital punishment is a Roman privilege.

If Jesus were to refer the case to the Romans, he would lose his authority. If he were to judge by himself, the Romans might arrest him for insurgency.

Cranach has painted the solution in text: "Wer under euch an Sund ist, der werffe den ersten Stein auef Si (1532)". In English: He that is without sin among you, let him cast the first stone at her. one by one, the defeated scribes leave the scene.

This painting may also have been made by Cranach's son Hans.

 

 

 

 

 

Il Guercino (Giovanni Francesco Barbieri) 1591 – 1666

The Woman taken in Adultery

oil on canvas (98 × 123 cm) — c. 1621 Dulwich Picture Gallery, London

Il Guercino (Giovanni Francesco Barbieri) biography

 

This work is linked to John 8:7

 

The Pharisees try to make Jesus break the old Jewish laws. They bring a woman before him who has committed adultery. According to the law of Moses she should be stoned. Jesus does not argue with them. In stead, he says "he that is without sin, let him cast the first stone". That made the Pharisees leave. Jesus then tells the woman to "go, and sin no more".

Guercino shows a vulnerable woman who seems ashamed or remorseful. With a gesture of his hand, Jesus reacts to the Pharisee who appears to be summing up articles from a legal text.

There are five figures in a small space. By using light and darkness the artist made it clear who are the main protagonists of this story.