Peter's Speech on the Wooden Pole
The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree.
*Xylon* is translated "tree" rather than the conventional "cross," as the word means wood, timber, or a living tree — not a cross-shaped structure. *Diecheirisasthe* means to lay hands on with intent to kill, so "killed" captures its force directly. The verse sharply distinguishes the God of the fathers as the one who raised Jesus, preserving the clear distinction between the Father who acts and the Son who was raised.
Berean Standard Bible
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30The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging Him on a ξύλον · xylonGreek word meaning wood or tree. Peter and Paul's preferred term — Acts 5:30, Galatians 3:13, 1 Peter 2:24..
King James Version
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30The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a ξύλον · xylonGreek word meaning wood or tree. Peter and Paul's preferred term — Acts 5:30, Galatians 3:13, 1 Peter 2:24..
Goodspeed New Testament
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30The God of our forefathers raised Jesus to life when you had hung him on a cross and killed him.
Translation for Translators
T4T was designed as a tool for Bible translators, not as a devotional text. It makes implicit meaning explicit and flags figurative language with abbreviations. Gold [brackets] indicate translation notes. ◄Triangles► mark alternative renderings.Read more about how to read T4T →BSB and T4T shown with Greek annotations — · Why we show the Greek →
30God considers that you are the ones who killed Jesus by nailing him to a σταυρός · staurosPrimary classical Greek meaning: upright stake or pole. Liddell-Scott-Jones lexicon, Oxford.! But God, whom our ancestors worshipped, ◄T4T alternative rendering — the text between these markers is an alternative translation or explanatory expansion. Translators choose the option that best fits their target language.caused Jesus to become alive again after he died/raised Jesus from the dead►T4T alternative rendering — the text between these markers is an alternative translation or explanatory expansion. Translators choose the option that best fits their target language..
Berean Standard Bible
Goodspeed New Testament
BSB and T4T shown with Greek annotations — · Why we show the Greek →
The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging Him on a ξύλον · xylonGreek word meaning wood or tree. Peter and Paul's preferred term — Acts 5:30, Galatians 3:13, 1 Peter 2:24..
The God of our forefathers raised Jesus to life when you had hung him on a cross and killed him.
Berean Standard Bible
Goodspeed New Testament
King James Version
BSB and T4T shown with Greek annotations — · Why we show the Greek →
The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging Him on a ξύλον · xylonGreek word meaning wood or tree. Peter and Paul's preferred term — Acts 5:30, Galatians 3:13, 1 Peter 2:24..
The God of our forefathers raised Jesus to life when you had hung him on a cross and killed him.
The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a ξύλον · xylonGreek word meaning wood or tree. Peter and Paul's preferred term — Acts 5:30, Galatians 3:13, 1 Peter 2:24..
SBL
30
ὁ the ὁ ho the definite article; the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom) the, this, that, one, he, she, θεὸς God θεός theós a deity, especially (with G3588 (ὁ)) the supreme Divinity; figuratively, a magistrate; by Hebraism, very X exceeding, Go τῶν the ὁ ho the definite article; the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom) the, this, that, one, he, she, πατέρων father πατήρ patḗr apparently a primary word; a father (literally or figuratively, near or more remote) father, parent ἡμῶν I ἐγώ egṓ a primary pronoun of the first person I (only expressed when emphatic) I, me ἤγειρεν wake ἐγείρω egeírō probably akin to the base of G58 (ἀγορά) (through the idea of collecting one's faculties); to waken (transitively or int Ἰησοῦν Jesus Ἰησοῦς Iēsoûs of Hebrew origin (H03091); Jesus (i.e. Jehoshua), the name of our Lord and two (three) other Israelites Jesus , ὃν who ὅς hós probably a primary word (or perhaps a form of the article G3588 (ὁ)); the relatively (sometimes demonstrative) pronoun, ὑμεῖς you σύ sý the personal pronoun of the second person singular; thou thou διεχειρίσασθε lay my hands upon διαχειρίζομαι diacheirízomai from G1223 (διά) and a derivative of G5495 (χείρ); to handle thoroughly, i.e. lay violent hands upon kill, slay κρεμάσαντες hang up κρεμάννυμι kremánnymi a prolonged form of a primary verb; to hang hang ἐπὶ on ἐπί epí a primary preposition; properly, meaning superimposition (of time, place, order, etc.), as a relation of distribution (w ξύλου staff ξύλον xýlon from another form of the base of G3582 (ξέστης); timber (as fuel or material); by implication, a stick, club or xylon (tree / wood) or ·
The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging Him on a xylon (tree / wood).
Where the New Testament uses stauros, this site shows the Greek word alongside its primary classical meaning in brackets. Stauros meant stake or upright stake in classical Greek — the Liddell-Scott-Jones lexicon (Oxford University Press) lists this as its first definition, citing Homer and Herodotus. The word itself does not specify material; wood is implied by the context of the era, not encoded in the Greek term.
Where the New Testament uses xylon, this site shows the Greek word alongside its meaning of tree or wood — xylon does specify material, and is already translated as tree by the NIV, ESV, and KJV in Acts 5:30, Galatians 3:13, and 1 Peter 2:24.
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Note: BSB follows the xylon (tree / wood) reading of Acts 5:30. Goodspeed and T4T follow manuscript traditions or translation choices that render this passage with stauros (stake). The Greek New Testament has textual variants here — some manuscripts use xylon, others stauros. Peter's speech connects the execution to Deuteronomy 21:22-23, where anyone hung on a tree is under a curse, suggesting xylon was Peter's likely word — but the manuscript tradition is not uniform. The NIV, ESV, and KJV all translate this passage as tree, following the xylon reading.
The Greek word Peter uses here is xylon — wood, timber, tree.
Note: BSB follows the xylon (tree / wood) reading of Acts 5:30. Goodspeed and T4T follow manuscript traditions or translation choices that render this passage with stauros (stake). The Greek New Testament has textual variants here — some manuscripts use xylon, others stauros. Peter's speech connects the execution to Deuteronomy 21:22-23 where anyone hung on a tree is under a curse — suggesting xylon was Peter's likely word, but the manuscript tradition is not uniform. The NIV, ESV, and KJV all translate this passage as tree, following the xylon reading.
This is a deliberate choice, and it carries weight. Peter reaches back to Deuteronomy 21:23, where hanging on a tree signals cursed status under the Torah. The word xylon ties the execution to that curse directly.
Most readings flatten this to a passing detail about how crucifixions worked. But Peter's word choice is not incidental. He is making a theological argument rooted in the Hebrew scriptures, not just describing a method of execution. The choice of xylon over stauros is doing real work that generic translations of "cross" quietly erase.
What this passage recovers is striking: the Father raised what the world tried to bury under a curse. The Pioneer absorbed the full weight of covenant judgment — hung on the wood, declared shameful, finished. And then Jehovah reversed the verdict entirely. The resurrection is not a footnote. It is the Father's answer to everything the religious establishment thought they had settled.
For the person walking the road today, this matters: the path the Pioneer walked included being counted as cursed. Following the Pattern may mean carrying what looks like failure to everyone watching.
Sit with this
What verdict have you accepted about yourself that the Father may be preparing to reverse?
Sources
SBL Greek New Testament (SBLGNT)License
The Greek New Testament: SBL Edition
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