Sereifa

Sanhedrin (7:2) | Yisrael Bankier | 5 days ago

The Mishnah (7:2) describes the capital punishment of sereifa. The individual is not burnt in fire as the name might suggest, but rather molten lead was poured down his throat, such that the burning was internal. The Mishnah debates the technique used to ensure the individual's mouth was open. According to the first opinion, a coarse rope covered in soft material was wrapped around his neck and pulled by two people. R' Yehuda however argues that that technique might end up strangling him and would result in sereifa never being performed. Consequently, tools were used to pry the individual's mouth open.

Returning to the first opinion, why was the rope prepared in this way? Rashi (52a) explains that the hard strong material was needed to adequately restrict his breathing, yet it using it alone would tear at his skin. Consequently, it was covered in a soft material. Even though the individual was being executed, due to the mitzvah of "ve'ahavta le'reicha kamocha" care still needed to be taken.

The Yerushalmi however explains that it was wrapped in the soft material to ensure that the individual did not die from strangulation and sereifa could still be administered.

The Shayarei HaKorban (Sanhedrin 7:4) raises several difficulties with this Mishnah. Firstly, we find that the same combined material was used when administering the capital punishment of chanika (strangulation). In that case the objective is to strangle the person, so why would the combine material be used?

The Shayarei HaKorban cites the Lechem Mishneh who suggests that since the technique was used for one punishment it was used from both -- lo plug. Yet the Shayerei HaKorban asks that that is not enough of a reason to use this technique for chanika that might delay the death, which would be a violation of ve'ahavata! According to Rashi, he explains that perhaps the slight delay is to prevent the tearing effect of the course rope on his body and fulfils vehavta¹. Yet, according to the Yerushalmi that explains that the padding is to prevent strangulation, the question still stands.

The Shayarei Korban notes that according to the Rambam (Sanhedrin 15:4) the witnesses are the ones that pull and tighten the rope. The Rambam rules (15:1) that when it comes to sekila, the witnesses upon who's testimony the person is being executed, are the ones that administer the execution. This is based on the pasuk -- "yad eidim te'heye bo ba'rishona". It would seem that the law is being applied to sereifa also. The Sharayei Korban however asks, that for sereifa, pulling the rope is not the means of execution, rather the molten lead. That being the case, why would the witnesses be involved in, what would seem to be, the preparatory stage? Furthermore, when the Rambam described the pouring of the lead, he described an individual as being given the task. One would think that it should be both witnesses performing that task.

Perhaps we can answer the Shayarei Korban as follows. The Melechet Shlomo cites the Tosfot (Sotah 19b) who explains that the reason why the Chachamim maintain that this technique is used here (and not by a Sotah) is because sereifa is a more extreme form of punishment than chanika. Consequently, based on ve'ahavata, they would bring him close to the point of death with chanika []{dir="rtl"}, and complete the execution with sereifa. We find from the Tosfot, that pulling the rope was not just a technique to force the person's mouth open, but rather it was part of the execution itself. Consequently, we can understand why the Rambam required the witnesses to perform the task. Furthermore, we see from sekila, which is also in a number of phases, that even though the both eidim were involved, they were not both involved at every stage. One witness performed the first stage, and if the person survived all stages, others would be involved in completing the execution. Consequently, we find that the combined material was lethal -- a controlled technique used as part of the execution requiring witnesses -- allowing only one of them (or perhaps someone else) to pour the lead.

¹ Indeed we find that it is for a similar reason that a woman who receives skila is clothed. Even though the clothing might delay the death somewhat, it is preferable to the disgrace she would feel being exposed -- and therefore fulfils ve'ahavta.

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