Neither Do I Condemn Thee

By popular request, another song with YouTube star Granny! :-) Granny had a scan this morning. She got up early and drank her contrast. It didn't make her sick, though it gave her the chills. She said it didn't taste too bad. Tipper took her for her 10:00 appointment. By 10:16, they were headed home. We are thankful the folks at the hospital did such a fine job. We don't know the results but are prayerful that it will show no part of the cancer has returned. She has an MRI next week. This amazing song tells a beautiful story of our Lord as captured in the Bible. I struggled with the words a few times in this one-take video, partly because Granny knew different words from the original lyrics, and partly because my thoughts were momentarily pierced by Jesus' profound responses, though I've heard those words many times. Granny sang the song the way she and Pap sang it, and I tried to match her. Granny led the first chorus and I sang harmony. After that, we switched parts. I think her harmony was much better than mine. I think Pap and Granny's alternate lyrics are fine, though I tried unsuccessfully to convince her to sing "scorned for her sin" and "proud worshipers" (the original lyrics) rather than "sorry" and "crowd of" because I think the original lines better convey what was happening in that moment. Some may notice that I deviated from the original lyrics myself when I sang verses 2-5. Some changes were accidental, but one in particular was on purpose. Like many movies and sermons, the song says that Jesus wrote upon the "ground." Pap believed that Jesus wrote into the stone floor of the temple. He believed that the moment was a repeat of the moment when God's finger wrote the law for Moses on the stone tablets. The Bible does not say what Jesus wrote, but Pap believed that Jesus wrote the law (10 commandments). He believed this for several reasons, one being that the Bible says that Jesus was inside the temple. According to some historians, the floor of the temple would have been stone, not sand or bare ground. Also, the pharisees reference Moses to Jesus: "Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou?" Pap believed that Jesus writing the law (in stone no less) was His way of showing them, you can't tell me about the law; I gave you the law. Pap believed that Jesus writing in stone in front of the woman's critics, along with His call for one without sin to cast the first stone, caused the critics to depart. What else could they do at that point? Like every other attempt they made to find fault, this attempt failed completely. I believe Pap's interpretation is most likely correct. That's why I sang "floor" instead of "ground." In case any modern listeners might be confused by the word "pray" in verses 3 and 5, please know that this is an older English usage, which means, "please tell me." Verse 3 captures the arrogance of the group. They weren't going to "let Him off the hook," but it didn't go like they wanted. This song's use of heavy inversion might also confuse some listeners. Inversion is when a poet deliberately alters the normal word order of a line, usually to help achieve end rhyme. For example, we would normally say, "He sat unheedingly," but the song says, "Sat He unheedingly." There are several examples in this song. If you find any of the lyrics confusing, the best remedy is to read them several times, bearing the inversion in mind. I know little about Linda Keck, but I have great respect for her lyrics in this song. Granny and I hope you enjoyed this important song. I'll be sure to share some of your comments with her. Due to Granny's age, we sang this song softly and quietly. If you'd like to hear a version with more vocal power, check out the Turner Family Band's version on YouTube. Thanks for watching! Lyrics below:

By the proud worshippers,
Scorned for her sin,
Was the poor wanderer
Rudely brought in.
Scribes came and Pharisees,
Eager to see,
What the meek Nazarene’s,
Verdict would be.

“Neither do I condemn thee,”
Precious words divine!
Falling from lips of mercy,
Like the sweetest chime.
Wonderful words of Jesus!
Sing them o’er and o’er,
“Neither do I condemn thee,
Go, and sin no more.”

Told of her wanderings,
Marking each flaw,
Spoke they of punishment,
Quoting the law.
Sat He unheedingly,
Head bowing low,
Writing the ground upon,
Sadly and slow.

Still cried the Pharisees,
“Pray, Master, pray,
What shall we do with her
What dost Thou say?”
Spoke He rebukingly,
“Let the first stone,
Come from a sinless hand,
And thence alone.”

Cheeks flushing red with shame,
Turned each about,
And from His presence went
Silently out.
Then saw He standing there,
Head bending low,
Her whom the world despised,
Saw her tears flow.

Spoke He most tenderly,
“Pray, woman, pray,”
“Hast thou accusers none?”
“Nay, Master, nay,”
“Neither do I condemn,
Soul sick and sore,
Go, for I pardon thee,
Go, sin no more.”