How does Psalm 118:21 connect with Jesus as the cornerstone in the New Testament? Psalm 118:21 in Its Immediate Setting • “I will give You thanks, for You have answered me, and You have become my salvation.” (Psalm 118:21) • The psalmist praises God for a very real deliverance—practical, visible, and life-saving. • The Hebrew word for “salvation” (yeshua) foreshadows the very name of Jesus (Yeshua in Hebrew), linking rescue in the psalm to the person of Christ. From Personal Rescue to Messianic Hope • The next verse (v. 22) declares, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.” • Together, vv. 21–22 show a movement: God’s saving act (v. 21) culminates in a rejected–yet–exalted stone (v. 22). • The shift prepares us to see God’s ultimate salvation in the One who would be rejected and then exalted. New Testament Connections 1. Matthew 21:42—Jesus quotes Psalm 118:22–23 and applies it to Himself after telling the parable of the vineyard: – By using the psalm, He identifies Himself as the rejected stone. – The “salvation” celebrated in Psalm 118:21 becomes the salvation offered through His death and resurrection. 2. Acts 4:10–12—Peter stands before the Sanhedrin: – “This Jesus is ‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’” – He continues, “There is salvation in no one else.” The language of salvation in v. 21 finds its fullest meaning in Christ. 3. 1 Peter 2:4–7—Believers come to Jesus “a living stone—rejected by men but chosen and precious to God.” – Those who trust Him experience the same saving answer celebrated in Psalm 118:21. 4. Ephesians 2:19–22—Christ Jesus Himself is “the cornerstone”; on Him God builds a household where His people dwell. – The psalm’s personal thanksgiving expands into a corporate reality: the church founded on the Cornerstone. Why Verse 21 Matters for the Cornerstone Theme • Salvation (v. 21) and the cornerstone (v. 22) are inseparably paired; New Testament writers keep the pair intact. • Jesus does not merely exemplify the stone; He embodies the salvation the psalmist experienced. • Every time the New Testament cites the cornerstone text, it implicitly recalls the grateful cry, “You have become my salvation.” Living the Connection Today • Gratitude: Like the psalmist, thank God for answering you in Christ, your salvation. • Confidence: The Cornerstone guarantees the stability of God’s house; your faith rests on a foundation God Himself laid. • Witness: Peter’s example in Acts 4 shows that declaring Jesus as the Cornerstone naturally leads to sharing the message of salvation. Summary Psalm 118:21 celebrates a personal rescue. The very next line reveals the means: a stone once discarded but now central. The New Testament reveals that stone as Jesus, and the salvation exclaimed in Psalm 118:21 is fully realized in Him—the Cornerstone of God’s redemptive plan. |
    |