In the
Epistle to Barnabas (written between 70-132), we have an early affirmation of
Jesus having been crucified, not on a torture stake, but a T-shaped cross:
For it says, "And Abraham circumcised
from his household eighteen men and three hundred." What then was the
knowledge that was given to him? Notice that he first mentions the eighteen,
and after a pause the three hundred. The eighteen is I (= ten) and H (= 8)—you
have Jesus—and because the cross was destined to have grace in the T he says
"and three hundred." So he indicates Jesus in the two letters and the
cross in the other. (Epistle to Barnabas,
9:8 [Kirsopp Lake])
While one
can call into question the purported Old Testament typological evidence the author
of this text points to, it does show that he labours under the a priori assumption that Jesus was
crucified on a T-shaped cross, not a torture stake, contra Jehovah’s Witnesses
who often dogmatically claim that σταυρὸς only means “torture stake.” Further evidence against the "torture stake" rendering of σταυρος can be seen in the use of plural nails, not the singular nail in John 20:25. On this, see:
Jehovah's Witnesses, the nature of Jesus' execution, and John 20:25
