It is a position held by some Gnostics in the first to third century, as well as some modern Mandaeans and Muslims and a few skeptics.
[1] The Book of Thomas the Contender, a Gnostic text thought to have been written in the late second or the third century,[2] cites Jesus as stating, when speaking to Thomas the Apostle, "[I]t has been said that you are my twin and true companion.".
[4] However, these early texts do not expressly put forward any sort of substitution hypothesis with respect to the death and resurrection of Jesus.
The Second Treatise of the Great Seth, a Gnostic text from the third century, claims that Simon of Cyrene was crucified in the place of Jesus.
Muslim scholars do not agree on the identity of the substitute, but he is often thought to have been one of the Apostles (most often, Judas) or Simon of Cyrene.