Rev. Dr. Michael T. Welhous

One of the reasons why I pursued a degree in Christian ministry, and became an ordained Nondenominational Christian minister, was because I became increasingly disturbed at what I heard coming from the pulpits of the various churches I attended. I had been studying the Scriptures for many years, and it amazed me that the congregations were not hearing the simple truths contained in God’s word. I felt the need to share with people the truth about what the Bible actually says about various things. All to often, people accept what the various members of the clergy state as fact, without questioning it and without taking the time to verify their statements.

Most of these truths are not difficult to understand. They are simple Scriptural facts that are not being conveyed to the people. One such truth is the fact that most English translations of the Bible refer to a “cross,” yet the fact is that the word “cross” is an inaccurate translation of the original Greek word stauros. Simply put, a “cross,” i.e., two intersecting beams of wood, is nowhere to be found in the Bible!

The cross has become the foremost symbol in Christendom, so this would obviously be disturbing news to many Christians who have crosses hanging on their walls, around their necks, on loved ones graves, in front of their churches, on the alter of their churches, and even mentioned in songs they sing.

The question, however, must be asked: “Since nothing in the ancient Greek manuscripts which were compiled to form the New Testament portion of the Bible, suggests nor implies an instrument composed of two intersecting beams of wood, then where did the term, image, and subsequent symbol come from?”

First, there is no doubt that the Greek word stauros has been inaccurately translated as “cross.” In Classical Greek literature, stauros simply meant “an upright stake or post.” The verb stauroo meant “to fence with pales (stakes), to form a stockade (a barrier constructed from stakes or timbers driven upright into the ground one beside the other).” There is nothing at all found in the Scriptures to suggest a crossbeam of any kind at any angle, therefore, stauros means the same thing in the Bible, as it did in Classical Greek writings.

Second, there is another Greek word used by the New Testament writers when describing the execution of Jesus. It is the word xylon, which means “timber,” and by implication “a stick, club or tree.” Notice again that there is nothing to suggest a crossbeam of any kind or at any angle. Consider the following references where xylon occurs, and notice that it is consistently translated “tree.”

Interestingly, when we read the Septuagint, which was the Greek translation of the Old Testament written in the same koine, i.e. “common” Greek as the New Testament, we find xylon at Ezra 6:11. There it is spoken of as “timber” on which the violator of the law was to be hanged.

If we were to read the Bible in the original languages – Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek – we would NEVER have the mental picture of a “cross.” Even when the Bible began to be translated into Latin, translators used the Latin word crux, which also does not specifically suggest a two-beam intersecting instrument.

The Latin dictionary by Lewis and Short states that the meaning of crux was “a tree, frame, or other wooden instruments of execution, on which criminals were impaled or hanged.” In the writings of Livy, who was a Roman historian of the first century B.C., crux means merely a stake.

“[Crucifixion] was an ancient mode of capital punishment, and is said to have been devised by Semiramis. It was in use by the Persians, Assyrians, Egyptians, Carthaginians, Scythians, Greeks, Romans, and ancient Germans. It was a most shameful and degrading punishment, and among the Romans was the fate of robbers, assassins, and rebels. It was especially the punishment of criminal slaves. There were several kinds of crosses used.” (Manners And Customs Of The Bible, James M. Freeman, page 394, paragraph 2.) [Semiramis was a Mesopotamian queen.]

Since there were many kinds of impalement instruments used by the Romans and the other nations, to definitively identify any particular “cross,” and relate to others that it is the exact type of “cross” that Jesus died on, especially given the Scriptural evidence of simply a “stake” and “tree,” is for a clergy member or Bible teacher, irresponsible at best!

In addition to all of this, many would be surprised to know that the cross many Christians hold dear today, has it’s roots in pagan worship.