Matthew 21:42

Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes?

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Word by word — the Greek

Word	Greek	Strong’s	Meaning
Jesus	Ἰησοῦς· Iēsous	G2424	Jesus (i.e. Jehoshua) · noun — nominative singular masculine, a proper name
saith	Λέγει Legei	G3004	properly · verb — present active indicative, 3rd person singular
them	αὐτοῖς autois	G846	the reflexive pronoun self · personal pronoun — dative plural masculine
Did ye	ἀνέγνωτε anegnōte	G314	to know again · verb — second aorist active indicative, 2nd person plural
never	οὐδέποτε oudepote	G3763	not even at any time · adverb — negative
read	ἀναγινώσκω anaginṓskō	G314	to know again
in	ἐν en	G1722	"in · preposition
the scriptures	γραφαῖς· graphais	G1124	a document · noun — dative plural feminine
The stone	λίθον lithon	G3037	a stone (literally or figuratively) · noun — accusative singular masculine
which	ὃν hon	G3739	the relatively (sometimes demonstrative) pronoun · relative pronoun — accusative singular masculine
the builders	οἰκοδομοῦντες, oikodomountes	G3618	to be a house-builder · verb — present active participle, nominative plural masculine
rejected	ἀπεδοκίμασαν apedokimasan	G593	to disapprove · verb — aorist active indicative, 3rd person plural
the same	οὗτος houtos	G3778	the he (she or it) · demonstrative pronoun — nominative singular masculine
is become	ἐγενήθη egenēthē	G1096	to cause to be ("gen"-erate) · verb — second aorist passive deponent indicative, 3rd person singular
the head	κεφαλὴν kephalēn	G2776	the head (as the part most readily taken hold of) · noun — accusative singular feminine
of the corner	γωνίας. gōnias	G1137	an angle · noun — genitive singular feminine
this	αὕτη, hautē	G3778	the he (she or it) · demonstrative pronoun — nominative singular feminine
is	ἐγένετο egeneto	G1096	to cause to be ("gen"-erate) · verb — second aorist middle deponent indicative, 3rd person singular
the Lord’s	κυρίου kuriou	G2962	supreme in authority · noun — genitive singular masculine, a title
doing	παρὰ para	G3844	properly · preposition
and	καὶ kai	G2532	and · conjunction
it is	ἐστί estí	G2076	he (she or it) is
marvellous	θαυμαστὴ thaumastē	G2298	wondered at · adjective — nominative singular feminine
in	ἐν en	G1722	"in · preposition
our	ἡμῶν hēmōn	G2257	of (or from) us
eyes	ὀφθαλμοῖς ophthalmois	G3788	the eye (literally or figuratively) · noun — dative plural masculine

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

Psalms 118:22-23 The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner.
Isaiah 28:16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation…
Acts 4:11 This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner.
1 Peter 2:4-8 To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious,
Ephesians 2:20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;
Romans 9:33 As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.
Mark 12:10-11 And have ye not read this scripture; The stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner:
Luke 20:17-18 And he beheld them, and said, What is this then that is written, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the c…

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Matthew 21:42

Jesus saith unto them. Did ye never read in the scriptures-- (Psa 118:22-23). The stone which the builders rejected, &c.--A bright Messianic prophecy, which reappears in various forms (Isa 28:16, &c.), and was made glorious use of by Peter before the Sanhedrim (Act 4:11). He recurs to it in his first epistle (Pe1 2:4-6).

John Gill on Matthew 21:42

Jesus saith unto them, did ye never read the Scriptures,.... The passage which stands in Psalm 118:22. The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes. Very appropriately is this Scripture cited, and applied to the present case; which expresses the rejection of the Messiah by the Jewish builders, priests, and scribes: the whole Psalm may be understood of the Messiah. R. David Kimchi owns (z), that there is a division among their Rabbins about it: some say that the Psalm is spoken of David, and others, that it is spoken of the days of the Messiah; and these are certainly in the right; and as for this…

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John Calvin on Matthew 21:33–end

Matthew 21:33-46 Matthew 21:33-46 Mark 21:1-12 Luke 20:9-19 33. Hear another parable: There was a certain householder, who planted a vineyard, and surrounded it by a ditch, and dug a wine-press in it, and built a tower, and let it to husbandmen, and went abroad, 34. And when the season of the fruits drew near, he sent his servants to the husbandmen, that they might receive its fruits. 35. And the husbandmen, having seized his servants, wounded one, killed another, and stoned another. 36. Again, he sent other servants more numerous [37] than the first, and they did to them in the same manner. 37. And last of all he sent to them his son, saying, They will reverence my son. 38. And when the…

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Tyndale Open Study Notes on Matthew 21:42

The cornerstone was either the first stone of the foundation or the capstone (as of an arch), the last to be laid. The very stone that the builders rejected as unworthy of use was, in fact, the most important. Jesus was referring to his own role in the Kingdom of God (21:43) and to the religious leaders’ rejection of him.

The Church Fathers

The same things are treated under various figures; whom above He called labourers and husbandmen, He now calls builders.
— Jerome ((as quoted by Aquinas, AD 1274)), Catena Aurea by Aquinas

He is become the head of the corner, because He is the union of both sides between the Law and the Gentiles.
— Hilary of Poitiers ((as quoted by Aquinas, AD 1274)), Catena Aurea by Aquinas

That is, the stone is the gift of God to the whole building, and is wonderful in our eyes, who can discern it with the eyes of the mind.
— Origen of Alexandria ((as quoted by Aquinas, AD 1274)), Catena Aurea by Aquinas

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Bible — Bible, the English form of the Greek name Biblia, meaning “books,” the name which in the fifth century began to be given to the entire collection of sacred books, the “Library of Divine Revelation.”…
Corner — The angle of a house (Job 1:19) or a street (Prov. 7:8). “Corners” in Neh. 9:22 denotes the various districts of the promised land allotted to the Israelites. In Num. 24:17, the “corners of Moab”…
Cornerstone — a quoin or cornerstone, of great importance in binding together the sides of a building. The phrase “corner-stone” is sometimes used to denote any principal person, as the princes of Egypt, (Isaiah…
Stone — Stones were commonly used for buildings, also as memorials of important events (Gen. 28:18; Josh. 24:26, 27; 1 Sam. 7:12, etc.). They were gathered out of cultivated fields (Isa. 5:2; comp. 2 Kings…
Builder · FIGURATIVE — FIGURATIVE
Christ, The Head Of The Church · Predicted — Predicted
Cornerstone · .Of Christ — .Of Christ
Ecclesiasticism · Jewish, to be overthrown — Jewish, to be overthrown
Husbandman · An agriculturist — An agriculturist
Jews, The · Punishment of, for rejecting and killing Christ, illustrated — Punishment of, for rejecting and killing Christ, illustrated
Parables · Parables of christ: Wicked husbandmen — Parables of christ: Wicked husbandmen
Pharisees · .By Jesus