The teachers of the Law and the Pharisees is a common expression in the other Gospels, though it occurs only here in the Gospel of John. Most translations render teachers of the Law as “scribes” (New English Bible “the doctors of the law”). To translate as “scribes” is misleading. Originally one of the main functions of these men was to make copies of the Law, but by New Testament times they were the recognized authorities on the Law. The teachers of the Law and the Pharisees is apparently a set phrase. Most of the teachers of the Law probably belonged to the Pharisaic party.
Teachers of the Law may also be rendered “those who explained the Law,” in the sense of “showed what the Law meant.” Note, however, that it may be necessary to employ a plural, namely, “laws,” since some receptor languages lack a singular form which would be interpreted as a collective.
In some languages certain problems are encountered in using definite articles, such as “the teachers” and “the Pharisees,” because this usage would imply that all the teachers and all the Pharisees were involved. Therefore, it may be necessary in some languages to use an equivalent such as “some teachers of the Law and some Pharisees.”
In some ancient manuscripts committing adultery appears as “committing sin,” perhaps in anticipation of the close of verse 11. No translations seem to follow this alternative reading. As suggested in connection with the title of this section, it may be necessary to say “who had been arrested while sleeping with a man who was not her husband.”
They made her stand before them all (Jerusalem Bible “making her stand there in full view of everybody”; Moffatt “making her stand forward”) is translated rather literally in Revised Standard Version “placing her in the midst” (see New English Bible “Making her stand out in the middle”). The meaning is that the woman was made to stand before the people before whom she was to be tried. (The same expression is used in Acts 4.7: They made the apostles stand before them.) It should be noted that, contrary to the Law of Moses (Lev 20.10; Deut 22.22), only the woman was brought to trial.
Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on the Gospel of John. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1980. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .