Is The Cross Biblical?

Truth

Before presenting my findings from the Scriptures, I wish to reaffirm a guiding principle. As we commit to adhering solely to the Scriptures, excluding all pagan literature, opinions, and non-scriptural religious texts, the process of purging impurities from our understanding can feel overwhelming. I, too, experienced this shift, but it has become a conviction I hold dearly. According to Elohim’s character, He will not hold us liable if we uphold His truth as revealed in the holy Scriptures alone, but He will hold us accountable if we add to or subtract from them. Knowing this, I strive to remain firmly rooted in the Scriptures to gain a complete and untainted picture of the narrative. Once I embraced this truth, my fear of adding to the Scriptures vanished, and I now rest confidently in what was written through His Spirit alone.

Stake

The Biblical Truth of Yeshua’s Impalement on a stake my heart holds fast to the scriptures alone, rejecting all pagan writings and traditions that cloud the truth of Yeshua’s death. The Bible clearly describes a stake or pole, not a cross, as the instrument of his execution, with his hands likely nailed behind his head using a single nail (his feet possibly secured to a wooden piece, but purely speculative). I refuse to have crosses in my home, though I patiently await my wife’s to fully embrace of this truth, as I cannot connect a cross to Yeshua’s death, which is rooted more in emotion and traditional doctrine than in scripture. 

Warning

Elohim warns in Exodus 20:4-5, You shall not make for yourself a carved image-any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. A cross, a man-made fiction, risks becoming an idol, substituting the living Yeshua, who deserves our worship alone. The idea of Yeshua impaled on a cross also offends many Jewish people, as they see it, an idea rooted in ignorance and assumptions, not biblical facts. Those who study the Bible should know better and honor the scripture’s truth.

This also encompasses the so-called “Jesus Fish” symbols that many display on their cars and Bibles. I, too, once adorned my vehicle with one of these emblems, driven by ignorance. However, guided solely by the Scriptures, I have refined my understanding, enabling me to take corrective action by removing it. This aligns with the scriptural meaning of the forehead, representing understanding, and the right hand, symbolizing action, as illuminated in texts such as Revelation 13:16, concerning the mark of the beast.

Continuing…

Deuteronomy

Deuteronomy 21:22-23 declares: If a man has committed a sin deserving of death, and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, his body shall not remain overnight on the tree. The Hebrew word ‘ets means wood-a single pole or stake, not a cross with a crossbar. This was Israel’s practice: execution by hanging or impaling on a stake.

Galatians

Galatians 3:13 affirms this: Messiah redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us-for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree.’ The Greek word xylon means a stake or beam, not a cross, echoing Deuteronomy’s imagery.

Moses

Moses put a bronze snake on a pole, as described in Numbers 21:8-9: “And the Lord said to Moses, ‘Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.’ So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole.” The Hebrew word for pole here is “nes,” meaning a standard or pole, not a cross.

Yeshua references this in John 3:14-15: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.” The Greek word used for “lifted up” (hypsóō) implies being raised.

Yeshua referenced Moses lifting (hypsóō) the bronze snake on a pole (nes—pole, banner, or stake) in John 3:14-15. If Moses raised the bronze snake on a pole (nes) and Yeshua was lifted up on a cross, an instrument never used before in execution, it would render Yeshua’s prophecy inaccurate. Yeshua had to be raised with the same instrument—namely, a pole (nes)—that Moses used for the snake, because Moses’ action was prophetic, foreshadowing Yeshua’s impalement.

Ezra

Ezra 6:11 reinforces this, where King Darius decrees: Whoever alters this edict, a beam shall be pulled out from his house, and he shall be impaled on it, and his house shall be made a dunghill. The Hebrew ‘ets points to a single stake, suggesting impalement on a sharpened pole, consistent with biblical execution.

Esther

In Esther 7:9-10, Haman faces this fate: Then Harbonah, one of the eunuchs, said before the king, ‘Behold, the gallows, fifty cubits high, which Haman made for Mordecai… is standing at Haman’s house.’ So the king said, ‘Hang him on it!’ And they hanged Haman on the gallows. The Hebrew ‘ets confirms a tall stake, not a cross, showing impalement as standard.

Numbers

Numbers 25:4-5 has Elohim commanding Moses: Take all the leaders of the people and hang them in the sun before the Lord.

Joshua

Joshua 8:29 adds: He hanged the king of Ai on a tree until evening.

“And he hanged the sovereign of Ai on a tree (Strong’s H6095) until evening. And at sunset Yehoshua commanded that they should take his corpse down from the tree, and throw it at the entrance of the gate of the city, and raise over it a great heap of stones, to this day.”
‭‭Yehoshua (Joshua)‬ ‭8‬:‭29‬ ‭TS2009‬‬

Acts

Acts 5:30 states: Yeshua, whom you killed by hanging on a tree (xulon). Peter’s words align with Deuteronomy, pointing to a stake. Some believe Yeshua was nailed to a cross with arms outstretched because of the sign Pilate placed above his head, reading ‘King of the Jews’ (John 19:19). Positioned above him on a vertical stake, this sign might have visually suggested a cross to later imaginations, especially if viewed from a distance. But scripture offers no evidence of Yeshua’s arms being spread out. Instead, John 20:25 mentions the mark of the nails in his hands, possibly bound behind his head, likely secured with one nail through both wrists to the stake. However, this too is speculative. Though this method, on a vertical pole, would hold the body firmly, as the stake supports weight downward, unlike a cross where outstretched arms might weaken stability. Some claim ropes were used on crosses to hold bodies, arguing nails alone wouldn’t suffice, but scripture never mentions ropes-only nails (John 20:25). This unbiblical rope idea stems from clinging to the cross tradition, which contradicts the Bible’s stake imagery.

Psalms

For Yeshua’s feet, Psalm 22:16, a messianic prophecy, declares: “They pierced my hands and my feet.” This suggests nails through the feet, possibly into a small wooden piece attached to the stake for stability (though this remains speculative), consistent with the upright pole described throughout scripture. No cross or crossbar is required. The scriptures—from Deuteronomy’s ‘ets to the stake for Haman in Esther, Ezra’s beam, and the Gospels’ stauros—point solely to a stake. The cross, with its ropes or outstretched arms, emerges as a tradition born of misunderstanding, perhaps fueled by misinterpreting the sign above Yeshua’s head as suggesting a crossbar. This offends Jewish people, who recognize the scriptures describe a stake and view the cross as a distortion. For this reason, I reject the notion that Yeshua was impaled on a cross, as it appears to violate Elohim’s command against images (Exodus 20:4-5) and risks idolizing a fiction over the living Yeshua.

Closing Remarks

we have to comprehend that the idea of the Messiah being crucified on a cross came from modern-day religion. It wasn’t mentioned in the older writings nor in the newer ones, including the gospels. That’s why it is so dangerous to learn about our Messiah, and our Elohim, being two separate persons, from religious books rather than from the scriptures themselves.

I personally grow wary when I enter a home and observe a showcase of diverse religious books authored by numerous individuals. I struggle to comprehend why one would choose to learn about our Messiah or Elohim through a third party. This concerns salvation and eternal life—why would we entrust such critical knowledge to others, uncertain of their upbringing, theology, or spiritual state? Purchasing these books, contrary to scripture (Micah 3:11–12, Matthew 10:8), is perplexing enough; learning from them is even more troubling. This reflects ignorance and immaturity when we possess a perfectly reliable book, inspired by the Spirit and penned by holy men. It simply defies reason to me. The purpose of these religious books, beyond the scriptures, appears to be merely financial gain. This essentializes a group of people through the understanding of a single mind or group, as seen in the case of Jehovah’s Witnesses, where (allegedly) they follow the Scriptures through the guidance of the Watchtower organization. 

I also frequently observe modern-day Christians debating the manner in which the Messiah was hung, often relying with amusing inconsistency on the cross and even ropes as factual evidence, thereby rendering their arguments void due to their lack of scriptural support.

If asked whether I believe the Messiah was hung on a cross, My respond will be simply this: The scriptures do not support that particular narrative. The scriptures only reveals and points solely to a sharpened pole, or stake, as the instrument of Yeshua’s execution as prophesied by Moses and reiterated by Yeshua himself, not a cross.

Often, I hear modern-day religious groups criticize Catholics for kneeling before statues or idols, a practice I agree is unbiblical. Yet, their hypocrisy is evident when they kneel before a cross. Catholics place statues behind their altars, while modern-day Christians display crosses behind theirs. I see no difference—both statues and crosses are unbiblical – a very dangerous practice.

Now, let us reflect upon this: if your son, daughter, mother, or father were murdered with an ax, could you place that ax on the wall and worship it? So why do people venerate the very instrument used to kill our Lord and Messiah? Let this final thought resonate deeply.

Shalom