Cross or Stake?

Did the Romans use a Cross or a

Stake for Crucifixions?

Recently I was studying the scriptures and just casually reading a book called EERDMANS’ Handbook to the Bible. It is a really interesting book with a lot of pictures and commentaries concerning each chapter of the Bible. As I got toward the end of the book I ran into a picture of a Roman execution and it took me by surprise. Instead of the man being crucified on a cross, he was hanging from a straight post. The inset states "



“The cross was offensive to the Jews, absurd to the Gentiles. A Roman execution is shown in this figure found at Halicanassus.” Picture facsimile from EERDMANS’ Handbook to the Bible. © 1973 Lion Publishing. Page 591."




Notice this quote from Easton's Bible Dictionary "Cross". "After the conversion, so-called, of Constantine the Great ( 313), the cross first came into use as an emblem of Christianity. He pretended at a critical moment that he saw a flaming cross in the heavens bearing the inscription, “In hoc signo vinces”, i.e., By this sign thou shalt conquer, and that on the following night Christ himself appeared and ordered him to take for his standard the sign of this cross. In this form a new standard, called the Labarum, was accordingly made, and borne by the Roman armies. It remained the standard of the Roman army till the downfall of the Western empire. It bore the embroidered monogram of Christ, i.e., the first two Greek letters of his name, X and P (chi and rho), with the Alpha and Omega."


This by NO means negates or plays down the seriousness and importance of what our Savior did for us. Torture is horrible no matter how it is employed. We just need to realize that maybe we have once again been lead astray from the truth by the Adversary.


The cross or stake was the "type" of the wood used for the Jewish Sacrifice of the Lamb. Yeshua (Jesus) carried the wood for the sacrifice on his shoulder, just like Issac did on Mt. Moriah. It is amazing all of the things that happened exactly as needed for the Saviour's blood to be put on the Mercy seat of the Ark of the Covenant. This was the only way that his blood would actually be for the Atonement of our Sins.


There is no greater gift than someone laying down their life for another. Yeshua gave up his innocent, unblemished life so that you and I could live.... Forever ! This is why we should Love and Worship him.

John Dandridge