Topical Bible: Witness: Required to Throw the First Stone in Executing the Sentence

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In the judicial system of ancient Israel, the role of a witness was not only to testify but also to participate actively in the execution of justice. This principle is rooted in the Mosaic Law, which required that the witnesses to a crime be the first to carry out the sentence of execution, specifically in cases warranting the death penalty. This requirement served as a safeguard against false testimony and underscored the gravity of bearing witness.

The primary scriptural basis for this practice is found in Deuteronomy 17:6-7 : "On the testimony of two or three witnesses a man shall be put to death, but he shall not be executed on the testimony of a lone witness. The hands of the witnesses shall be the first in putting him to death, and then the hands of all the people. You must purge the evil from among you." This passage highlights the necessity of multiple witnesses to establish guilt and the responsibility of those witnesses to initiate the execution.

The requirement for witnesses to cast the first stone served multiple purposes. It acted as a deterrent against false accusations, as the witnesses had to be so certain of the accused's guilt that they were willing to take part in the execution. This provision also emphasized the communal responsibility in upholding justice and purging evil from the community, as the entire assembly was involved in the process after the witnesses initiated it.

The New Testament provides an illustrative account of this principle in the narrative of the woman caught in adultery. In John 8:7 , Jesus addresses the accusers, saying, "Let him who is without sin among you be the first to cast a stone at her." Here, Jesus acknowledges the Mosaic Law's requirement but also challenges the accusers to examine their own righteousness before proceeding with the execution. This incident underscores the moral and ethical dimensions of the law, highlighting the need for justice to be tempered with mercy and self-reflection.

The practice of requiring witnesses to throw the first stone reflects the seriousness with which the community of Israel was to approach matters of justice. It ensured that those who bore witness to a crime were fully accountable for their testimony and that the community as a whole participated in the solemn act of upholding the law. This principle, deeply embedded in the legal and moral fabric of ancient Israel, served as a constant reminder of the weight of truth and the communal responsibility in the administration of justice.

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Deuteronomy 13:9
But you shall surely kill him; your hand shall be first on him to put him to death, and afterwards the hand of all the people.
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Deuteronomy 17:5-7
Then shall you bring forth that man or that woman, which have committed that wicked thing, to your gates, even that man or that woman, and shall stone them with stones, till they die.
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Acts 7:58
And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man's feet, whose name was Saul.
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Library

St. Gregory the Great.
... me if I close them here, because, as you all witness, our sufferings ... which he had
made a monastery, scarcely more than a stone's-throw to the ... It required all St ...
/.../allies/the formation of christendom volume vi/chapter v st gregory the.htm

Chaldaean Civilization
... artistic character might be found, which bore witness to a ... he could easily rid himself
when her first youth was ... consent of the father was not required for this ...
/.../chapter iiichaldaean civilization.htm

Life and Works of Rufinus with Jerome's Apology Against Rufinus.
... your ideas into the ears of the multitude so as to throw confusion into ... You can bear
witness to what I say ... He that is without sin among you let him first cast a ...
/.../various/life and works of rufinus with jeromes apology against rufinus /

The Political Constitution of Egypt
... The monuments, which throw full light on the supernatural ... We have first the people
who immediately surrounded ... His wardrobe required a whole troop of shoemakers ...
/.../chapter ithe political constitution of.htm

The Pilgrim's Progress
... Every shipmaster, when in a storm, will willingly cast that overboard that is of
the smallest value in the vessel; but who will throw the best out first? ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/the pilgrims progress.htm

Come and Welcome to Jesus Christ;
... and the Father that sent me beareth witness of me ... that his blood was, by Divine justice,
required for their ... Why, first they display the dismal colours of death ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/come and welcome to jesus.htm

A Treatise of the Fear of God;
... upon the name of the Lord to be witness that the ... Jesus Christ himself being the chief
corner stone; in whom ... Why, I was at first, as you have said, possessed ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/a treatise of the fear.htm

The Work of Jesus Christ as an Advocate,
... interesting of Bunyan's treatises, to edit which required the Bible ... and we have seen
it, and bear witness and show ... And this leads me first to inquire into what ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/the work of jesus christ.htm

The Doctrine
... the Third Commandment so great, that he required no other ... yet if thou hast stolen,
born false witness, or lusted ... yea, to throw them out of the Lord's favour ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/the doctrine.htm