John Gill Commentary John 8:4

"they say unto him, Teacher, this woman hath been taken in adultery, in the very act." — John 8:4 (ASV)

They say unto him, Master They applied to him in a handsome and respectful manner, the better to cover their ill design:

this woman was taken in adultery ; by two persons at least, who could be witnesses of it; otherwise the accusation was not legal; see (Deuteronomy 19:15) ; though in the case of a wife suspected of adultery, they admitted a single witness as valid ^F6 :

in the very act ; or "in the theft itself", for adultery is a theft; it is an unlawful use of another's property; see this word used in the same sense, in Heliodor, l. 1. sect. 11.

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FOOTNOTES:

• F6: Maimon. Hilchot Eduth, c. 5. sect. 2.