the Temple is also established from documents of the time. Based on these facts Lietzmann and Winter originated a theory that the Jewish trial is not historical, and that the execution of Jesus was a purely Roman matter. The idea that the Jewish authorities did not have this power was a product of the Gospel writers working after the destruction of the Temple, when Roman rule was far more rigid. Other historians, notably A. N. Sherwin-White, disagree. While there are recorded executions by the Jewish authorities, that of James was during a time of lapsed imperial control and that of Stephen perhaps by an extrajudicial mob rather than any formal proceedings. Across the Empire the power of capital punishment was limited only to high Roman authorities. Judea would be exceptional if locals had such rights. The binding of Jesus represents that he has now been convicted, as is being presented to Pilate as a dangerous figure who must be bound. Origen's Commentary on Matthew makes much of this act of binding as a connection to the Hebrew Bible and the story of Samson. References 27:02