Nailed to the Cross: What Was Really Removed?

When witnessing to Christians about the Messianic faith, we are often presented with certain “key verses” that are used to claim that Yah has changed how He interacts with His people. One of the most commonly cited passages is the idea that the Law was “nailed to the cross.”

“You were dead through your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh. He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, wiping out the handwriting in ordinances which was against us. He has taken it out of the way, nailing it to the cross.” (Colossians 2:13–14)

At first glance, many assume this means the Torah itself was nailed to the cross and done away with. But is that what the text is truly saying? Or is there something deeper, something far more consistent with the character of Yah?

Blessing and Curse: The Foundation of the Covenant

From the very beginning, Yah established a clear covenantal pattern with His people: obedience brings blessing, and disobedience brings curse.

“Behold, I set before you today a blessing and a curse: the blessing, if you listen to the commandments of Yahweh your Elohim… and the curse, if you do not listen…” (Deuteronomy 11:26–28)

The Torah was never the problem. The commandments are life, righteousness, and wisdom. The issue has always been transgression, breaking Yah’s commands. So, if something was “against us,” it was not the Torah itself, but the consequences written against those who violated it.

Yah: The Jealous Husband of Israel

Scripture reveals something deeply relational about Yah, He is not distant or abstract. He is a husband to His people.

“For you shall worship no other god; for Yahweh, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous El.” (Exodus 34:14)

“Return, backsliding children… for I am a husband to you.” (Jeremiah 3:14)

But Israel did not remain faithful.

“The house of Israel and the house of Judah have dealt very treacherously against Me.” (Jeremiah 5:11)

Through idolatry and disobedience, Israel committed spiritual adultery. This is not just metaphorical language, it is covenantal reality.

The Law of the Jealous Husband

In the Torah, Yah even provides a test for a wife accused of unfaithfulness:

“The priest shall write these curses in a book, and he shall wipe them into the water of bitterness… and the water that causes the curse shall enter into her and become bitter.” (Numbers 5:23–24)

If she was guilty, the curse would come upon her. This is crucial. The curses were written down, a “handwriting” of judgment against unfaithfulness. Now consider this: Israel, the bride, had been unfaithful. The curses of the covenant stood written against her.

The Certificate of Divorce

Because of her unfaithfulness, Israel was not only judged, she was divorced.

“I had put her away and given her a certificate of divorce.” (Jeremiah 3:8)

And according to the Torah:

“Her former husband… may not take her again to be his wife after she is defiled.” (Deuteronomy 24:1–4)

This creates a dilemma. If Yah is righteous and just, He cannot simply ignore His own Torah. Yet He desires to restore His people. How can He remain just and still redeem a divorced and defiled bride?

The Cup of Bitterness

Now we come to a pivotal moment.

“My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass away from Me; nevertheless, not what I desire, but what You desire.” (Matthew 26:39)

Yeshua speaks of a cup, a cup He is about to drink. This is not just suffering in a general sense. This is the cup of judgment, the cup of the curse, the very imagery we see in the law of the jealous husband. Yeshua, the faithful one, takes the place of the unfaithful bride. He drinks the bitter water. He takes upon Himself the curses that were written against the whole House of Israel.

What Was Nailed to the Cross?

Now we return to the original passage:

“…wiping out the handwriting in ordinances which was against us… nailing it to the cross.” (Colossians 2:14)

What was “against us”? Not the Torah. Not the commandments. But the written record of our guilt—the curses, the judgment, the consequences of covenant unfaithfulness. The “handwriting” points back to what was written in the law of the jealous husband and the covenant curses. It is the record of transgression that stood as a witness against Israel and Judah. Yeshua did not abolish the Law, He bore the penalty of the unfaithful spouse.

Restoration Through Sacrifice

Through His sacrifice, something incredible happens: The curse is removed from Judah and Israel because Yeshua drank the cup of bitter waters. The penalty is paid by having the righteous husband die instead of the divorced wife. *I believe Yeshua was coming in his Father’s name throughout the Older Testament, and thus it was Yeshua that Israel was married to. More on this in a future article. * 

“For the woman that has a husband is bound by law to the husband while he lives, but if the husband dies, she is discharged from the law of the husband.” (Romans 7:2)

The way for restoration is opened. Yah remains just, because sin is punished. And yet He is merciful, because He Himself, through Yeshua, takes that punishment upon Himself. The divorced bride is restored, not by ignoring the Torah, but by fulfilling it in the most profound way.

Final Reflection

The cross is not the end of the Torah, it is the vindication of it. It shows us that Yah does not discard His commandments. He upholds them so fully that the penalty for breaking them must be paid. But in His great love, He does not leave us to drink the bitter cup alone. He drinks it for us. So when we read that something was “nailed to the cross,” let us understand: It was not the commandments that bring life. It was the curse that brings death. And through Yeshua, that curse has been taken out of the way.

What we have covered here is only one piece of a much larger picture. To see how these truths unfold across Scripture, explore the related articles below and continue the journey.

• Understanding the Distinction Between the House of Judah and the House of Israel
• Discovering the Connection Between Israel and the Church in the Bible
• The Purpose of Yeshua's Death: Redeeming the Bride of Judah - Understanding the Torah of Jealousy
• The True Ultimate Sacrifice: Understanding the Divorce of the House of Israel and its Reclamation

P.S.

Check out some of my books! Available in both print and Kindle versions.

The Purpose of Yeshua's Death: Redeeming the Bride of Judah - Understanding the Torah of Jealousy

 

The death of Yeshua and the purpose behind it are widely talked about and theorized. There are many aspects to this execution that are worthy of ponderance and research, and today I have decided to share some insight I have gathered in regards to Messiah redeeming the bride. While the first time I touched on this topic the focus was on the House of Israel, today, the House of Judah will be the centerpiece, and how Yeshua took the punishment of the unfaithful wife’s place.  

The Torah of Jealousy

“And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, having blotted out that which was written by hand against us – by the dogmas – which stood against us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the stake.” (Colossians 2:13-14)

I have long understood this to be referring to the punishments we deserved for breaking the set-apart Torah.  However, the deeper understanding that I did not comprehend for a time is how this is a reference to the punishment of the adulterous wife, also called the law of jealousy.   In Numbers chapter five, we read about the process a husband could take if he suspected his wife of being unfaithful. One of the key steps is for the priest to write out the curses the adulterous wife would endure. 

“And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying, “Speak to the children of Yisra’ĕl, and say to them, ‘When any man’s wife turns aside and has committed a trespass against him, and a man has intercourse with her, and it is hidden from the eyes of her husband, and it is concealed that she has defiled herself, and there was no witness against her, nor was she caught, and a spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he becomes jealous of his wife who has defiled herself, or a spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he becomes jealous of his wife although she has not defiled herself, then the man shall bring his wife to the priest. And he shall bring the offering for her, one-tenth of an ĕphah of barley flour. He is not to pour oil on it or put frankincense on it, because it is a grain offering of jealousy, an offering for remembering, for bringing crookedness to remembrance. And the priest shall bring her near, and shall make her stand before יהוה.  And the priest shall take set-apart water in an earthen vessel, and take some of the dust that is on the floor of the Dwelling Place and put it into the water. And the priest shall make the woman stand before יהוה, and shall uncover the woman’s head, and put the offering for remembering in her hands, which is the grain offering of jealousy, while the priest holds in his hand the bitter water that brings a curse. “And the priest shall make her swear, and say to the woman If no man has lain with you, and if you have not turned aside to uncleanness under your husband’s authority, be free from this bitter water that brings a curse.But if you have turned aside under your husband’s authority, and if you have defiled yourself and some man other than your husband has lain with you” – then the priest shall make the woman swear with the oath of the curse, and he shall say to the woman – “יהוה make you a curse and an oath among your people, when יהוה makes your thigh waste away and your belly swell, and this water that causes the curse shall go into your inward parts, and make your belly swell and your thigh waste away.” And the woman shall say, “Amĕn, amĕn.And the priest shall write these curses in a book, and shall wipe them off into the bitter water, and shall make the woman drink the bitter water that brings the curse, and the water that brings the curse shall enter her to become bitter.” (Numbers 5:11-24)

At the end of this set of verses, we read about what was written against Judah that Paul is referencing in Colossians 2:13-14, that being the curses attributed to the adulterous wife. Another thing to keep in mind is that Elohim is a husband to Israel and is jealous when it comes to His people.

“Not like the covenant I made with their fathers in the day when I strengthened their hand to bring them out of the land of Mitsrayim, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them,” declares יהוה.” (Jeremiah 31:32)

“For יהוה your Elohim is a consuming fire, a jealous Ěl.” (Deuteronomy 4:24)

Judah the Unfaithful

In part one, I discussed how the House of Israel was divorced and according to the Torah could not be remarried to Elohim, unless the husband died. For more information, please see my article “Redeeming the Bride.” Yet, Judah needed rescuing as well for while they were not divorced like Israel was, they were in many ways worse.  

“And it came to be, through her frivolous whoring, that she defiled the land and committed adultery with stones and wood. “And yet for all this her treacherous sister Yehuḏah has not turned to Me with all her heart, but falsely,” declares יהוה. And יהוה said to me, “Backsliding Yisra’ĕl has shown herself more righteous than treacherous Yehuḏah.” (Jeremiah 3:9-11)

With all this in mind, we can start to piece together how the Torah of Jealously comes into play between Judah and Yah. Even more so, how the punishments prescribed for the adulterous woman, mirror the afflictions Yeshua endured. 

The Cup of Bitter Waters

Remember that after the curses are written on a scroll they are wiped off in bitter water, which is later drank by the wife. This same principle was applied to Yeshua as well when he took Judah’s place. Starting with the symbolic drinking of the cup of bitter waters when Yeshua prayed in Gethsemane.

“And going forward a little, He fell on His face, and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me. Yet not as I desire, but as You desire.” (Matthew 26:39)

This is why Paul makes the following statement in 2 Corinthians. 

“For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of Elohim.” (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Because he recognized that Yeshua had taken Judah’s place in the Torah of jealousy. Judah, the adulterous wife, had committed sin, but Yeshua took that role from Judah so that the House of Judah could be made righteous in front of Elohim.

A Curse Among His People

In Numbers 5:21, we read how the woman proven to be unfaithful would become a curse among her people and how they would denounce her. This is reflected in Yeshua when he died, and the people began to ridicule him. 

“And those passing by were blaspheming Him, shaking their heads.” (Matthew 27:39)

Thigh to Waste Away

In the scriptures, the thigh is symbolic of an individual’s integrity or authority. This is exemplified in the following passages.

“Then the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and swore to him concerning this matter.” (Genesis 24:9)

“And the time for Yisra’ĕl to die drew near, and he called his son Yosĕph and said to him, “Now if I have found favor in your eyes, please put your hand under my thigh, and show loving commitment and truth to me. Please do not bury me in Mitsrayim,” (Genesis 47:29)

“And out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should smite the nations. And He shall shepherd them with a rod of iron. And He treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Ěl Shaddai. And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written: SOVEREIGN OF SOVEREIGNS AND MASTER OF MASTERS.” (Revelation 19:15-16)

Therefore, it is reasonable to conclude that the wasting away of the thigh would be the loss of authority or credibility. That is why, as Yeshua hung on the tree, the people mocked him for saying he was the son of Elohim. His credibility was lost among the masses.

“And those passing by were blaspheming Him, shaking their heads, and saying, “You who destroy the Dwelling Place and build it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of Elohim, come down from the stake.” And likewise the chief priests, with the scribes and elders, mocking, said, “He saved others – He is unable to save Himself. If He is the Sovereign of Yisra’ĕl, let Him now come down from the stake, and we shall believe Him. He trusted in Elohim, let Him rescue Him now if He desires Him, for He said, ‘I am the Son of Elohim.” (Matthew 27:39-43)

The physical element of the thigh wasting away is the complete muscle failure Yeshua experienced while being crucified. During a crucifixion, the person could push up with their legs, giving them the ability to breathe. However, the longer a person hangs, the harder it becomes to sustain active muscle engagement. Try doing wall sits for an inkling of an idea. In time, Yeshua’s muscles in the thighs wasted away, and he was no longer able to keep himself up, and he gave up his spirit.

Abdomen to Swell

While the spiritual aspect of the abdomen swelling is currently lost on me, Yeshua, during the crucifixion, did experience physical swelling of the abdomen. As his lungs filled with fluid, they would have pressed on his stomach, forcing his abdomen to swell. This is most likely the reason why blood and water flowed forth from Yeshua when the Roman soldier stabbed his side.

“Therefore the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first, and of the other who was impaled with Him, but when they came to יהושע and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and instantly blood and water came out.” (John 19:32-34)

Conclusion

Yeshua’s crucifixion allowed for the House of Israel to be remarried to Elohim, and by taking the cup of bitterness from the House of Judah, he washed them clean of their adultery. It is by this alone that both houses can draw near to Yah, it is by his sacrifice that the fractured whole House of Israel can be made whole again. He is a role model for husbands to emulate, he is a High Priest perfect to intercede for us, and a King worthy of serving. 

P.S.

Check out some of my books! Available in both print and Kindle versions. 

The True Ultimate Sacrifice: Understanding the Divorce of the House of Israel and its Reclamation

 

Sacrifice is a word usually used to describe having to give up something to obtain something else. We often hear about athletes, celebrities, and billionaires, on how much they had to sacrifice to get to where they are now (Whether that involved their souls is a topic for another discussion). Or how those in the line of duty paid the “ultimate” sacrifice to save the lives of others. I say “ultimate” because it does not triumph over the true ultimate sacrifice that took place many years ago. When Elohim came and died to reclaim the one, He divorced the house of Israel. I say Elohim came and died because of what Thomas said:

“And after eight days His taught ones were again inside, and T’oma (Thomas) with them. יהושע came, the doors having been shut, and He stood in the midst, and said, “Peace to you!” Then He said to T’oma (Thomas), “Bring your finger here, and see My hands. And bring your hand and put it into My side – and do not be unbelieving, but believing.” And T’oma (Thomas) answered and said to Him, “My Master and my Elohim!” (John 20:26-28) 

You may be a bit lost at this point due to what mainstream Christianity teaches. To better understand who you are, I recommend reading my posts, “Discovering the Connection Between Israel and the Church in the Bible” and “Understanding the Distinction Between the House of Judah and the House of Israel”. This is a continuation of those and will present you with the true reason why Yeshua sacrificed himself. 

The House of Israel Divorced 

Our story begins with the house of Israel being divorce from YHWH, for their adulterous ways (following other gods).