Forgiven

There she stood, alone,
Battered and broken beneath
Their glares.

They knew her crime,
The wrong she had done,
And stood willing to throw

Rocks and stones, sharp
Edges in their hands.
Ready to punish, ready to end.

The Teacher came, to see,
To answer their questions,
To make them pause,

To think about their own lives.
And challenge the guiltless,
The perfect, to be the first

To condemn.

The rocks and stones slid
Like snow from their fingers.
As they all went away.

Realizing they had no place
To judge, to blame, to punish.
They were all just as shamed.

Still, she stood, cringing,
Waiting, for her fate from
The One Who was blameless.

He was the One Who
Could condemn. Who could
Reach down for rocks to throw.

But the only thing he picked up,
Were the pieces of her heart
To put back together.

To forgive.


I don’t normally like to explain my poetry. I like to let the imagery speak for itself and let each reader come to their own conclusions. Sure, I always have my own meanings, but I like to let the reader make decisions. But this one is based off of John 8:3-11. I read this passage in my devotional a few days ago and it has stuck with me. The perfect Savior, the One who could have picked up the rocks, did not condemn the woman. He let her go with love and forgiveness. To me, that’s such a strong image, and I wanted to write about it.