³ The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman. She had been caught committing adultery. They made her stand in front of the group. ⁴ They said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught sleeping with a man who was not her husband. ⁵ In the Law, Moses commanded us to kill such women by throwing stones at them. Now what do you say?” ⁶ They were trying to trap Jesus with that question. They wanted to have a reason to bring charges against him.

But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. ⁷ They kept asking him questions. So he stood up and said to them, “Has any one of you not sinned? Then you be the first to throw a stone at her.”

²⁸ There is no Jew or Gentile. There is no slave or free person. There is no male or female. That’s because you are all one in Christ Jesus.

Love Fulfills the Law

⁸ Pay everything you owe. But you can never pay back all the love you owe one another. Whoever loves other people has done everything the law requires. ⁹ Here are some commandments to think about. “Do not commit adultery.” “Do not commit murder.” “Do not steal.” “Do not want what belongs to others.” (Exodus 20:13–15,17; Deuteronomy 5:17–19,21) These and all other commands are included in one command. Here’s what it is. “Love your neighbor as you love yourself.” (Leviticus 19:18) ¹⁰ Love does not harm its neighbor. So love does everything the law requires.