Four different
methods of execution were used by the court, depending on the various
capital offenses that the person has committed. In descending order of
severity these are: stoning, burning, beheading, and strangulation.
What difference does the severity of the execution make? In a situation
where one has committed several capital offenses, each of which renders
him liable to a different type of execution – since one cannot be
executed more than once - he receives the more severe type of execution
for which he is liable. Rabbi Shimon lists them in a different order:
burning, stoning, strangulation, and beheading.
Art: Paul Delaroche - The Execution Of Lady Jane Grey