Psalm 118:22

Context

Psalm 118 is a psalm of thanksgiving for deliverance. Together with Psalms 113–116, it is generally understood to belong to the collection of praise songs known as the Hallel, which Jews sang at festivals such as Passover. The speaker in the psalm is someone who was surrounded by enemies and was delivered by God's help. He enters the temple through the "gates of righteousness" (v. 19) and gives thanks. Scholars commonly regard this speaker as a king or as a representative of the people. Verse 22 occurs within this procession of thanksgiving: "The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner." The verse declares that God has set the stone that people discarded as worthless in the most important position in the house, and the very next verse, verse 23, confesses this as "the LORD's doing."

Interpretation

• Historical reading: According to this reading, when the psalm was first sung, the stone referred to a despised king, or to Israel, scorned among the nations, being exalted through God's deliverance.
• Jewish reading: One tradition reads the stone as the people of Israel. The Targum, the Aramaic translation of the Old Testament, is reported to contain an interpretive rendering that identifies the stone as David, the son of Jesse.
• New Testament and church reading: At the end of the parable of the wicked husbandmen, Jesus quoted this verse in reference to the religious leaders who rejected him (Matthew 21:42 and parallels). Before the council, Peter cited this verse in testifying to Jesus Christ, whom people rejected but God raised up (Acts 4:11). Most Protestant denominations read this verse as referring to the suffering and resurrection of Christ.

Debates and Issues

There is no marked disagreement among denominations over the interpretation of this verse. Several questions, however, continue to be discussed.

• What kind of stone is the "head stone of the corner"? The Hebrew expression literally means "head of the corner." One view takes it as a cornerstone laid at the corner of a building's foundation; another takes it as a keystone or capstone that completes the top of an arch or wall. Some have also noted that the Korean term meoritdol, used in Korean Bibles, commonly denotes a foundation stone inscribed with the date of a building's construction, so its meaning and connotation may differ from those of the original text.
• Prophecy or type? Some churches read this verse as a direct prophecy of the Messiah. Others explain that it originally concerned a king or Israel and that the New Testament applied it to Christ. This kind of reading, which sees earlier persons or events as foreshadowing Christ, is called typology.
• Reading it as a personal success story: The verse is sometimes quoted as a lesson in worldly wisdom, to the effect that "the rejected person eventually succeeds." Some point out that such a use departs both from verse 23's emphasis on God's doing and from the Christ-centered reading of the New Testament.

In the Korean Church

The verse is frequently quoted in sermons on Palm Sunday, during Holy Week, and at Easter when preachers speak of Christ's rejection and exaltation. Some churches and mission organizations also bear the name "Cornerstone."

Related Passages

• Matthew 21:42
• Acts 4:11
• 1 Peter 2:7
• Ephesians 2:20
• Isaiah 28:16