Isaiah 28:16

Hebrew Bible

14 Therefore, listen to the Lord’s message, you who mock, you rulers of these people who reside in Jerusalem. 15 For you say, “We have made a treaty with death, with Sheol we have made an agreement. When the overwhelming judgment sweeps by it will not reach us. For we have made a lie our refuge, we have hidden ourselves in a deceitful word.” 16 Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord, says: “Look, I am laying a stone in Zion, an approved stone, set in place as a precious cornerstone for the foundation. The one who maintains his faith will not panic. 17 I will make justice the measuring line, fairness the plumb line; hail will sweep away the unreliable refuge, the floodwaters will overwhelm the hiding place. 18 Your treaty with death will be dissolved; your agreement with Sheol will not last. When the overwhelming judgment sweeps by, you will be overrun by it.

1 Peter 2:6

New Testament

4 So as you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but chosen and precious in God’s sight, 5 you yourselves, as living stones, are built up as a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood and to offer spiritual sacrifices that are acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For it says in scripture, “Look, I lay in Zion a stone, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and whoever believes in him will never be put to shame.” 7 So you who believe see his value, but for those who do not believe, the stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone, 8 and a stumbling-stone and a rock to trip over. They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.

 Notes and References

"... Particularly interesting is the application of Psalm 118:22-23 first to Jesus and then seamlessly to the situation of believers in 1 Peter 2:4-8 ... The author has described Jesus in 1 Peter 2:4 as a “stone ... rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God’s sight,” a description combining echoes of Psalm 118:22-23 with Isaiah 28:16. This second passage, which is then explicitly quoted in 1 Peter 2:6, ends by promising that “whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.” The addressees of 1 Peter, currently being intentionally shamed by their neighbors (see above), are thus told that their trust in Jesus will result in their future vindication. Verse 7 makes this conclusion even more explicit: “Honor, then, is for you who believe,” just as honor came to the One who had been “rejected by mortals.” ..."

DeSilva, David A. Honor, Patronage, Kinship & Purity: Unlocking New Testament Culture (p. 54) InterVarsity Press, 2000

 User Comments

Do you have questions or comments about these texts? Please submit them here.