G4716 — σταυρός (stauros)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G4716
Original: σταυρός
Transliteration: stauros
Pronunciation: stow-ros'
Part of Speech: Masculine noun
Root: From the base of G2476 (histemi) — "to set upright"; a stake or post as set upright
Occurrences: 28 unique verses (27 parsed tokens) across 10 books
First Occurrence: Matt 10:38 — "And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me."
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

A stake or post (as set upright), i.e. (specially) the cross (as an instrument of capital punishment); figuratively, exposure to death, i.e. self-denial; by implication, the atonement of Christ. From the base of G2476 (histemi).

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain¶

Domain: 6.006 — Instruments Used in Punishment and Execution
Parent Domain: 6 — Artifacts
Other words in subdomain: ξύλον (xylon, G3586) "tree/wood/stocks"; φραγέλλιον (phragellion, G5416) "a scourge"

Louw-Nida Domain Neighbors (6.006 — Instruments Used in Punishment and Execution)¶

Strong's	Lemma	Total Verses	Primary KJV Translation(s)
G3586	ξύλον (xylon)	14	tree, staves
G5416	φραγέλλιον (phragellion)	1	a scourge

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Verses	%
cross	25	89.3%
of the cross	1	3.6%
the cross	1	3.6%
to his cross	1	3.6%

Virtually uniform — KJV renders stauros as "cross" in all 28 occurrences. The variant forms reflect English syntactic framing, not semantic differentiation.

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Colossians	2	2.1
Galatians	3	2.0
Mark	5	0.7
Ephesians	1	0.6
Matthew	5	0.5
1 Corinthians	2	0.5
John	4	0.5
Luke	3	0.3
Hebrews	1	0.3
Philippians	2	0.3

The distribution splits into two clusters: Gospels (17 occurrences, narrative usage — the physical object and discipleship sayings) and Pauline epistles (11 occurrences, theological usage — the cross as salvific event and offensive message). Absent from Revelation, the Pastoral epistles, and the Petrine epistles (Peter uses xylon G3586 instead — see Easily Confused Words below). Absent from the OT entirely — stauros has no Hebrew source via LXX.

Grammatical Profile¶

Case	Count	Typical Construction
Accusative (σταυρόν)	12	Object of "take up" (αἴρω) or "bear" (βαστάζω); endure (ὑπομένω)
Genitive (σταυροῦ)	11	"of the cross" — genitival phrases: preaching/offence/blood/death/enemies of the cross
Dative (σταυρῷ)	4	Locative "on/by the cross" — stood by, nailing to, persecuted for, crucified to world
Nominative (σταυρός)	1	Subject: "the cross of Christ" (1 Cor 1:17)

The genitive dominates Pauline usage (theological abstraction — "the message of the cross"), while the accusative dominates Gospel usage (physical object to be carried or endured).

Semantic Categories¶

1. Physical Instrument of Execution¶

The literal cross on which Jesus was crucified or which Simon of Cyrene was compelled to carry. - Matt 27:32 — "him they compelled to bear his cross" - Mark 15:21 — "they compel one Simon a Cyrenian... to bear his cross" - John 19:17 — "And he bearing his cross went forth..." - John 19:19 — "Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross" - John 19:25 — "Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother" - John 19:31 — "that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the sabbath day"

2. Object of Mockery / Challenge to Descend¶

Opponents taunt the crucified Jesus to demonstrate power by coming down from the cross. - Matt 27:40 — "save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross" - Matt 27:42 — "let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him" - Mark 15:30 — "Save thyself, and come down from the cross" - Mark 15:32 — "Let Christ the King of Israel descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe"

3. Discipleship Demand — "Take Up Your Cross"¶

Jesus uses stauros as a metaphor for self-denial and willingness to suffer as a condition of following him. - Matt 10:38 — "he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me" - Matt 16:24 — "let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me" - Mark 8:34 — "Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross" - Mark 10:21 — "come, take up the cross, and follow me" - Luke 9:23 — "let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me" - Luke 14:27 — "whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple"

4. The Cross as Salvific Event / Pauline Theology¶

Paul uses "the cross" as shorthand for the entire atoning work of Christ — reconciliation, peace-making, abolition of enmity. - Eph 2:16 — "that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross" - Col 1:20 — "having made peace through the blood of his cross" - Col 2:14 — "took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross" - Heb 12:2 — "who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame"

5. The Cross as Message / Stumbling Block¶

The preaching of the cross is a distinctive Pauline theme — it is foolishness to some, power to others, and a source of offense and persecution. - 1 Cor 1:17 — "lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect" - 1 Cor 1:18 — "the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us... the power of God" - Gal 5:11 — "then is the offence of the cross ceased" - Gal 6:12 — "only lest they should suffer persecution for the cross of Christ" - Gal 6:14 — "God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ" - Phil 2:8 — "became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross" - Phil 3:18 — "they are the enemies of the cross of Christ"

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
αἴρω (airo)	G142	8x (29%)	"take up his cross" — discipleship command
Ἰησοῦς (Iesous)	G2424	7x (25%)	"cross of Jesus" — at crucifixion scene
ἔρχομαι (erchomai)	G2064	6x (21%)	"come after me... take up cross"
ἀκολουθέω (akoloutheo)	G190	5x (18%)	"take up cross and follow me"
ὀπίσω (opiso)	G3694	5x (18%)	"come after (behind) me" — with cross-bearing
Χριστός (Christos)	G5547	5x (18%)	"cross of Christ" — Pauline formula
σώζω (sozo)	G4982	4x (14%)	Mockery scenes: "save thyself, come down from the cross"
ἀπαρνέομαι (aparneomai)	G533	3x (11%)	"deny himself and take up his cross"
καταβαίνω (katabaino)	G2597	4x (14%)	"come down from the cross" — taunt formula
βασιλεύς (basileus)	G935	3x (11%)	"King of Israel/Jews" — crucifixion titulus

Word Family / Cognates¶

G4717 σταυρόω (stauroo) — verb: to impale on the cross, crucify; figuratively to extinguish (46 occurrences)
G388 ἀνασταυρόω (anastauroo) — verb: to recrucify, crucify afresh (1 occurrence: Heb 6:6)
G4957 συσταυρόω (sustauroo) — verb: to crucify together with (5 occurrences: Matt 27:44, Mark 15:32, John 19:32, Rom 6:6, Gal 2:20)

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Usage	Key Difference
ξύλον (xylon)	G3586	Both refer to the instrument of Christ's death	Stauros = the standard Gospel/Pauline term for the cross as object and theological concept. Xylon = "tree/wood" — used in Acts and 1 Peter specifically to invoke the Deuteronomic curse: "cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree" (Deut 21:23 → Gal 3:13, Acts 5:30, 10:39, 13:29, 1 Pet 2:24). Xylon links the crucifixion to OT curse-theology; stauros does not carry this allusion.

Stauros vs. Xylon (G3586) — Curse-Invocation Contrast¶

The NT uses two distinct words for the instrument of Christ's death, and the distribution is not random:

Stauros (G4716) — 28 occurrences. Used exclusively by the Gospel narrators and Paul. Denotes the physical cross and the theological event of crucifixion. Never linked to Deut 21:23 or curse language.

Xylon (G3586) — 14 total occurrences; 4 refer to the cross as "tree" in explicit curse-invocation passages: - Acts 5:30 — "whom ye slew and hanged on a tree" (Peter before the Sanhedrin) - Acts 10:39 — "whom they slew and hanged on a tree" (Peter to Cornelius) - Acts 13:29 — "they took him down from the tree" (Paul at Pisidian Antioch) - Gal 3:13 — "Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree" (quoting Deut 21:23) - 1 Pet 2:24 — "Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree"

In every case where a NT author wants to invoke the Deuteronomy 21:23 curse — "he that is hanged is accursed of God" — xylon ("tree") is chosen over stauros. This is a deliberate LXX echo: the Hebrew H6086 ets ("tree/wood") in Deut 21:22-23 was rendered ξύλον in the LXX, and the NT authors preserved this link. Paul himself uses both words: stauros for the cross as salvific event (1 Cor 1:17-18, Gal 6:14, Eph 2:16, Col 1:20) but xylon when quoting the curse text (Gal 3:13).

Hebrew Source¶

No Hebrew source — stauros does not appear in the LXX translation of the OT and has no Hebrew equivalent via the LXX alignment tables.