Christian Texts and History • Re: Tosefta (t. Sanh. 11.7)

A rebellious son: we warn him before three (witnesses), as it states: "And you shall grab him... And you shall say to the elders of his city...". (We learn from here that it is a) Mitzva for the elders of the city. "...This, our child...", this is the man that was whipped before you. Another item: "...This, our child...", to exclude one who ran away and came when he had grown. (Additionally,), "...This, our child...", to exclude if one of the judges (from the initial trial) died. Another item, "...This, our child...", this teaches that one of the original (judges from the first trial) joins the last ones (the judges of the current, final trial) to sentence him to death. A rebellious son (and) a rebellious elder die at the hand of the court, and the coercers (of few to worship foreign gods), and coercers (of many to worship foreign gods), and a false prophet, and disproved witnesses: they are not sentenced immediately, rather we bring them up to the great court in Jerusalem and guard them until the holiday and they are executed on the holiday, as it says "and the entire nation will hear and see". So are the words of Rabi Akiva. Rabi Yehuda responded: but doesn't it not say "and the whole nation will see and fear", rather the whole nation will see and fear. Why is this man's judgement of interest? Rather, he is executed immediately, and they write it and send it to all the places. (The statement would read): Person so-and-so son of so-and-so was sentenced in the court of such-and-such and so-and-so and so-and-so were his witnesses. And this is what they would do, and this is what they did for him.