Sanhedrin Chapter 4, Mishnah 3. In this Mishnah we draw even closer to that fateful and dreadful moment of the execution. The tension that accompanies us throughout the chapter is present here in full force: on one hand, the desire to minimize as much as possible the severity of the event and the degradation of the condemned person, and on the other hand, the obligation to carry out the sentence properly and execute it.
The Source of the Law - "Veragmu Oso":
The verse states "veragmu oso" - that they shall stone the accused at the time of stoning. Carrying out court-ordered executions, in all four types of capital punishment - stoning, burning, decapitation, and strangulation - is a positive commandment, and it is incumbent upon us to fulfill it. Our Mishnah deals with stoning.
From the wording "veragmu oso" the Sages learned, and according to the opinion of Rabbi Yehudah in the first view in our Mishnah, that the stoning must be directly on his body: the stones must hit him and not his clothes. If he were to stand clothed, they would end up stoning his clothes and not him, and therefore he must be stripped a moment beforehand.
Why Specifically at the Last Moment:
The stripping is done when he reaches within four amos of the place of stoning, since four amos are legally considered the place itself, as is found in many places in the Talmud. At that last moment, as he is about to be executed, his clothes are stripped. There is no desire to strip him earlier than necessary, since this involves degradation, but the verse requires the stripping for the purpose of the execution.
An Additional Reason - Not to Prolong the Death:
There is also a matter of time here. The condemned person is pushed from a height, similar to the roof of a building, and if he were clothed in his garments they would pad his fall, soften it, and potentially prolong his death. We want the death to occur as quickly as possible, by virtue of the commandment "Love your neighbor as yourself" - so why should we prolong his death? Therefore, his clothes are removed beforehand. However, there is of course a separate issue of the humiliation inherent in being naked.
The Wording of the Mishnah:
"Hayah rachok mibeis haskilah arba amos" - when he is at a distance of four amos from the place of stoning, which is already like the place itself.
"Mafshitin oso es begadav" - they remove his clothes from him.
"Ha'ish mechasin oso milefanav" - if the condemned is a man, they cover him from the front with a sort of loincloth, so that his private parts will be covered.
"Veha'ishah milefaneha ume'achareha" - if the condemned is a woman, they cover her from the front and from behind. "Divrei Rabbi Yehudah" - the words of Rabbi Yehudah.
The Opinion of the Sages:
The Sages disagree with the exegesis itself. In their view, "veragmu oso" does not only teach that the stoning must be directly on his body - which is true - but also "oso" (him) and not her, and therefore the law of stripping applies only to a man and not to a woman. However, the fundamental principle, that there should be no unnecessary padding that prolongs the execution and the stoning process, remains intact:
The man: Stripped completely, except for a covering over his private parts.
The woman: Stripped until she is left in a very thin garment, similar to a nightgown, so that she is covered but without padding, ensuring the execution is as quick as possible.
As the Mishnah states: "Chachamim omerim, ha'ish niskal arom ve'ein ha'ishah niskeles arumah" - the man is stoned without clothes, and a mere loincloth does not mean he is not considered naked, since it provides no real covering; whereas the woman is not completely stripped, but wears only a thin garment.
In summary: In this Mishnah we learned the law of stripping the garments before stoning, which is derived from the verse "and they shall stone him" - meaning that the stoning must be directly to his body and not to his clothes, and because the clothes cushion the fall and prolong the death. The stripping is done close to the site of execution, within four amos, so as not to cause excessive degradation. According to Rabbi Yehudah, the man is covered in front and the woman in front and behind, whereas according to the Chachamim, who expound "him" and not her, the man is stoned naked while the woman remains in a thin garment.