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John 8:10
ESV Jesus stood up and said to her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?"
NIV Jesus straightened up and asked her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?"
NASB And straightening up, Jesus said to her, 'Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?'
CSB When Jesus stood up, he said to her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?"
NLT Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, 'Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?'
KJV When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers hath no man condemned thee
NKJV When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?”

What does John 8:10 mean?

Jesus' response to the adulterous woman influences our understanding of judgment, mercy, and God's perspective on sin. At no point does Jesus shrink from the fact of her sin. She was caught "in the act" (John 8:4) so there is no doubt about her moral guilt. Old Testament law called for the death penalty for adulterers (Leviticus 20:10; Deuteronomy 22:22) so there is no doubt about her legal guilt. As the only perfectly sinless man (Hebrews 4:15), there is no doubt about Jesus' moral authority to deliver harsh justice to this sinner.

Instead, Jesus demonstrates that simply because we can do something does not make it the best option.

Christ's question here sets up His response in the next verse. This is an instance of forgiveness, not ignorance. Jesus is not going to claim that the woman is innocent or that her sin is trivial. His deflection of the Pharisees was based on procedure: they followed the law incorrectly. Jesus will explicitly refer to her behavior as sinful even as He demonstrates that mercy is meant to take precedence over retribution, even under the Old Testament law (Proverbs 21:10; Zechariah 7:8–9; Matthew 23:23).
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