Open to me the gates of righteousness,
that I may enter through them and give thanks to Yahweh.
This is the gate of Yahweh; the righteous shall enter through it.
I thank you that you have answered me and have become my salvation.
The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.
This is Yahweh's doing; it is marvellous in our eyes.
This is the day that Yahweh has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
(Psalms 118:19-24)
While this psalm is rich with messianic promises, our focus in this article is on that one phrase;
“The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone”
Jesus Christ made it clear that this phrase referred to him;
Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes’?”
(Matthew 21:42, also Mark 12:2 and Luke 20:17)
Peter, when dragged before the Jewish council in Jerusalem, makes it clear that Jesus is the stone the Jewish leaders had rejected.
This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone.
(Acts 4:11)
The rejection of the Messiah was prophesied by Isaiah;
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
(Isaiah 53:3)
The stone and the Messiah are one and the same.
Jesus is the cornerstone of his Church.
There has never been a better time to be a disciple of Jesus Christ!
Next article, The Stone Breaks Kingdoms into Pieces.
