Peter has just given support for his premise by using Old Testament Scripture to make his point, in verse six. In this week’s passage, he adds two more Old Testament passages.
Take a look for yourself in 1 Peter 2:7-8.
In verse six, Peter began to use Old Testament passages to reinforce his point, and described Christ as the cornerstone of the foundation of our faith. He continues to do so with a couple more passages, that drive home his point even further.
Where verse six speaks to those who believe, these two verses speak to those who do not. Peter first quotes Psalm 118:22, a text he was probably familiar with because Jesus quoted it in Matthew 21:42. In fact, Peter has used this passage before himself, in Acts 4:11, when he stood before the Sanhedrin. His point, in both uses, is that the stone that has been rejected, both by Jews and by non-Christians elsewhere, has become the main piece of the foundation, the cornerstone.
The NIV uses the word “capstone” here, because the Greek is different. But a capstone, or a keystone from an arch, would be difficult to stumble over, as Peter’s imagery depicts, so the meaning is probably still focused on the idea of a cornerstone in a foundation.
Next, Peter uses another passage from Isaiah, this time from chapter eight, verse 14. This stone, rejected by the builders, will cause them to stumble and fall. Peter is very clear here. They stumble because they disobeyed the word of God. This illustration is very riveting: the very stone that the construction workers or builders discarded has become something that they continue to stumble over. And, perhaps even more accurately, the cornerstone, which God inserted into place, is a projection that they continue to trip over.
This is seemingly their destiny, their doom. Some have used this as a passage to support the idea of predestination, but that is not clearly the meaning of this passage. It could mean an eternal destiny, or it could mean a temporal one. For example, if I am driving in my car at high speeds, and headed straight for a cliff, I am destined to drive over the edge… unless I change my course. And then my destiny, along with my destination, has changed.
There are many who have rejected Christ throughout the ages. There are many living today who have done so as well. And their destiny is clear. However, there is one circumstance that can rearrange that destiny: repentance. In Acts 2:36-38, the Jews were told that they were appointed to this destiny were given the choice to repent and avoid it. And in Peter’s next letter, in 2 Peter 3:9, he explains why God has been slow to return, because he is offering each person every chance to repent and avoid such a destiny.
Peter’s point is clear: If we disobey the message, we will stumble and our destiny is clear. And yet if we repent, everything changes.
Thank God for his wonderful opportunity of grace!
Question: What is your destiny? Have you stumbled over that cornerstone? Or have you chosen to repent and obey the message of the gospel? You can leave a comment by clicking here.