The word cross in the New Testament comes from the Greek word stauros, which studies of word origins reveal simply means stake or pole. This term was used in literature to describe pieces of wood of various shapes, including those with crosspieces. There is no description in the Bible of the specific stauros on which Christ died. If it were important for us to know its shape, God would have provided us with additional information.

The New Testament employs the Greek word stauros (G4716), meaning a stake, to describe the instrument of Jesus' death. Used 28 times in Scripture, it is almost always translated as cross. According to Robert Young in his Analytical Concordance to the Bible, stauros signifies a stake, though it is consistently rendered as cross in each of its appearances. Vine's Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words further clarifies that stauros primarily denotes an upright pale or stake, on which malefactors were nailed for execution. Both the noun and the verb form of stauros, meaning to fasten to a stake or pale, are originally distinct from the later ecclesiastical form of a two-beamed cross.

The English word "cross" in the Bible is translated from the Greek word stauros (G4716), which derives from the root sta, meaning to stand. As far as the word itself is concerned, there is no indication of any cross piece whatsoever. According to W.E. Vine's scholarly work, stauros means simply an upright stake and is distinct from the ecclesiastical form of the two-beamed cross, which originated in ancient Chaldea as a symbol of the god Tammuz. The New Testament does not specifically describe the instrument upon which Jesus died, though in Acts it is referred to as a tree, translated from the Greek word xulou, which can mean a tree, stake, or wood. Eyewitness accounts from the apostles, such as Peter and Paul, consistently describe Jesus as being hung on a tree, emphasizing the instrument of His death as such.

The word "cross" appears 28 times in the New Testament, consistently translated from the Greek word stauros (G4716). Originally, stauros did not signify a cross but an upright stake, designating a pointed, vertical wooden stake firmly fixed in the ground. Such stakes were used either in rows as fencing or defensive palisades around settlements, or singly as instruments of torture on which serious offenders were publicly suspended to die or to have their corpses dishonored. The exact method of crucifixion used for Jesus Christ remains unclear, as the biblical account provides insufficient evidence to determine whether a crossbar was involved or if it was solely an upright stake. Consequently, the precise representation of the stake upon which He died cannot be definitively established.

In John 19:19, Pilate wrote a title and placed it on the cross, where the Greek word used is stauroo. This term, according to historical sources, primarily means an upright stake or beam, and secondarily a stake used as an instrument for punishment and execution. The study of word origins confirms that stauroo refers to a stake or pole, with no alternative meaning. This Greek word appears in literature describing pieces of wood of various shapes, sometimes including those with cross pieces. However, many references acknowledge that the exact shape of the stauroo, stake, or cross on which Jesus was crucified remains unknown, though it was most likely just a stake. The cross as a symbol was used centuries before Christ, appearing in pagan religions across various cultures, such as on statues of Assyrian kings, in depictions of the Greek goddess Diana, and in ancient Egyptian and Hindu symbolism. Crucifixion, as a method of execution, was practiced by the Phoenicians, Carthaginians, and extensively by the Romans, primarily for slaves and the lowest criminals, but it is not recorded in the Old Testament. The Christian use of the cross symbol did not begin until the time of Constantine, three centuries after Christ, and it was not until 431 AD that crosses were introduced in churches and chambers, with their use on steeples emerging around 586 AD. In the sixth century, the crucifix image was introduced and its worship sanctioned by the church of Rome. The synchronization of pagan symbols like the cross with God's truth is seen as bearing false witness, breaking the ninth commandment. The apostles did not regard the cross as a virtuous symbol but as an accursed tree, a device of death and shame. Their faith rested in what was accomplished through Christ's sacrifice on the cross, not in the physical object itself. The message of the cross, as emphasized by Paul in I Corinthians 1:17-18, is the power of God, not the cross as a material symbol. References to the cross in the Bible, including in the book of Acts where it is vaguely called a tree, focus on Christ's crucifixion and its significance for humanity, not on the shape of the wood. There is no evidence that God's true church ever used the cross symbol for any purpose, nor does the Bible command its use.

The Greek word translated as cross is stauros (G4716), meaning a stake or upright pole. It may have had a cross-beam on it, or it may have simply been a long piece of wood, thick enough to bear the weight of a human body. One possibility is that the stauros of Jesus was just the crossbeam, which was attached to a living tree, as suggested by scriptures asserting that Jesus was hung on a tree. When Jesus told His followers to take up their crosses, they were to account themselves as already being dead, symbolizing complete surrender and pointing to the encumbered life of a disciple. In studying Christ's instructions for taking up or bearing our stauros, it is clear that He did not intend for us to have anything to do with a physical crucifix. The stake, or crossbeam, was a thick and heavy piece of wood, weighing down the bearer and hindering normal mobility. Similarly, some aspects of our calling and conversion burden us and make it impossible to walk as others do, by design. The fact that we must take up our cross daily means that we must lift that crossbeam every morning and crucify our carnal nature until we go to sleep, shouldering afresh those burdens each day.

The original Greek word used for the instrument of Jesus' death is stauros (G4716). Research indicates that a stauros was often understood as a stake, pole, or post upon which the victim was nailed, strapped, or impaled. Strong's Concordance defines it as a stake or post, sometimes extending to mean a pole or cross. Vine's Expository Dictionary asserts that the stauros used in Roman crucifixion of Jesus was likely just an upright beam, distinct from the modern crucifix. Various Bible dictionaries present evidence for both an upright beam and a later addition of cross beams, though the precise shape remains secondary to the greater issue. Our Savior died a horrific death on a stauros, whether understood as a stake or cross, enduring immense suffering for our sake.

The Greek word stauros (G4716) is used in the Bible to indicate an upright wooden spike or pole, but it can also refer to the timber that forms the cross-piece of a crucifixion, known as the patibulum in Latin. The Greeks used stauros as their equivalent of patibulum, meaning a pole or cross-piece. A typical patibulum weighed about 100 pounds, making it a significant burden for Jesus to carry, especially in His weakened state after scourging. In Colossians 2:13-14, it is noted that Jesus was nailed to His cross, and when He became sin for us, sin was also nailed to the cross. This imagery suggests that the cross-piece was first nailed to a tree or pole outside the city, and then Jesus was nailed to it. In John 19:31, a peculiar detail emerges where the word "bodies" is plural, but "cross" is singular, raising the question of whether Jesus and the two bandits were nailed to the same cross-piece or tree. This ambiguity remains unresolved, but it is a point of consideration in understanding the use of stauros in the context of the crucifixion.