The Cornerstone

[Acts 4:11-12] He is the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone. Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.

Acts 4:11 quotes Psalm 118:22. When Jewish people built a foundation for a house, they would first place a key stone at the outer corner, called the cornerstone. It was typically the largest, most solid, and most finely crafted stone in the entire building. Positioned at the corner of the foundation, it was used to connect the walls, supporting and stabilizing the entire structure. Once the cornerstone was set, it became the basis for every measurement in the rest of the construction; everything had to be aligned with it. The Bible describes Jesus as the Cornerstone, upon whom His church is built. He is the foundation. As the Cornerstone of the church’s construction, Jesus is our standard for measurement and alignment.

The book of Isaiah contains many prophecies about the coming Messiah. In several places, the Messiah is referred to as the “cornerstone.” For example, the prophecy says: “Therefore thus says the Lord GOD, ‘Behold, I am the one who has laid as a foundation in Zion a stone, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, of a sure foundation: ‘Whoever believes will not be in haste.’ And I will make justice the line, and righteousness the plumb line” (Isaiah 28:16-17). In this context, God promises to send the Cornerstone—His precious Son, Jesus Christ—to provide a sure foundation for believers, as long as they are willing to trust in Him.

In the New Testament, the metaphor of the cornerstone persists. The Lord Jesus Himself quoted Psalm 118:22-23 to explain that He would be rejected (Matthew 21:42; Mark 12:10-11). The apostles Peter and Paul also applied these verses to Christ (Acts 4:11; Ephesians 2:20; 1 Peter 2:7). Paul wrote, “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord” (Ephesians 2:19-21).

Furthermore, in 1 Peter 2:6, the words of Isaiah from centuries earlier are affirmed. Peter states that Jesus, as our Cornerstone, is a “living stone, rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious” (1 Peter 2:4). The Cornerstone is also reliable; those who trust in Him will never be put to shame.

Unfortunately, not everyone accepts this Cornerstone. Some accept Christ; others reject Him. Jesus is “the stone that the builders rejected” (Mark 12:10; Psalm 118:22). How could people reject the precious Cornerstone chosen by God? Simply put, they want to build something different from what God is building. Just as those who built the Tower of Babel rebelled against God to pursue their own plans, those who reject Christ ignore God’s plan to pursue their own. Jesus becomes “a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense” (1 Peter 2:8). All who reject Christ will face judgment. “The one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him” (Matthew 21:44).

Jesus Christ is the only “Cornerstone” who can bring salvation. God’s purpose in saving us is not just for our individual eternal life, but to “build up the body of Christ” (Ephesians 4:12), so that “to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 3:21).