Isaiah 28:16

28:16 Therefore, this is what the sovereign master, the Lord, says:

“Look, I am laying ¹  a stone in Zion,

an approved ²  stone,

set in place as a precious cornerstone for the foundation. ³ 

The one who maintains his faith will not panic. ⁴ 

Luke 2:34

2:34 Then ⁵  Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, “Listen carefully: ⁶  This child ⁷  is destined to be the cause of the falling and rising ⁸  of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be rejected. ⁹ 

Romans 9:32-33

9:32 Why not? Because they pursued ¹⁰  it not by faith but (as if it were possible) by works. ¹¹  They stumbled over the stumbling stone, ¹²  9:33 just as it is written,

“Look, I am laying in Zion a stone that will cause people to stumble

and a rock that will make them fall, ¹³ 

yet the one who believes in him will not be put to shame.” ¹⁴ 

Romans 11:9-11

11:9 And David says,

“Let their table become a snare and trap,

a stumbling block and a retribution for them;

11:10 let their eyes be darkened so that they may not see,

and make their backs bend continually.” ¹⁵ 

11:11 I ask then, they did not stumble into an irrevocable fall, ¹⁶  did they? Absolutely not! But by their transgression salvation has come to the Gentiles, to make Israel ¹⁷  jealous.

Romans 11:35

11:35 Or who has first given to God, ¹⁸ 

that God ¹⁹  needs to repay him? ²⁰ 

Romans 11:1

Israel’s Rejection not Complete nor Final

11:1 So I ask, God has not rejected his people, has he? Absolutely not! For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin.

Romans 2:8

2:8 but ²¹  wrath and anger to those who live in selfish ambition ²²  and do not obey the truth but follow ²³  unrighteousness.

[28:16]  ¹ tc The Hebrew text has a third person verb form, which does not agree with the first person suffix that precedes. The form should be emended to יֹסֵד (yosed), a Qal active participle used in a present progressive or imminent future sense.

[28:16]  ² tn Traditionally “tested,” but the implication is that it has passed the test and stands approved.

[28:16]  ³ sn The reality behind the metaphor is not entirely clear from the context. The stone appears to represent someone or something that gives Zion stability. Perhaps the ideal Davidic ruler is in view (see 32:1). Another option is that the image of beginning a building project by laying a precious cornerstone suggests that God is about to transform Zion through judgment and begin a new covenant community that will experience his protection (see 4:3-6; 31:5; 33:20-24; 35:10).

[28:16]  ⁴ tn Heb “will not hurry,” i.e., act in panic.

[2:34]  ⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[2:34]  ⁶ tn Grk “behold.”

[2:34]  ⁷ tn Grk “this one”; the referent (the child) is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[2:34]  ⁸ sn The phrase the falling and rising of many emphasizes that Jesus will bring division in the nation, as some will be judged (falling) and others blessed (rising) because of how they respond to him. The language is like Isa 8:14-15 and conceptually like Isa 28:13-16. Here is the first hint that Jesus’ coming will be accompanied with some difficulties.

[2:34]  ⁹ tn Grk “and for a sign of contradiction.”

[9:32]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “Why? Because not by faith but as though by works.” The verb (“they pursued [it]”) is to be supplied from the preceding verse for the sake of English style; yet a certain literary power is seen in Paul’s laconic style.

[9:32]  ¹¹ tc Most mss, especially the later ones (א² D Ψ 33 Ï sy), read νόμου (nomou, “of the law”) here, echoing Paul’s usage in Rom 3:20, 28 and elsewhere. The qualifying phrase is lacking in א* A B F G 6 629 630 1739 1881 pc lat co. The longer reading thus is weaker externally and internally, being motivated apparently by a need to clarify.

[9:32]  ¹² tn Grk “the stone of stumbling.”

[9:33]  ¹³ tn Grk “a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.”

[9:33]  ¹⁴ sn A quotation from Isa 28:16; 8:14.

[11:10]  ¹⁵ sn A quotation from Ps 69:22-23.

[11:11]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “that they might fall.”

[11:11]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “them”; the referent (Israel, cf. 11:7) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[11:35]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “him”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[11:35]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[11:35]  ²⁰ sn A quotation from Job 41:11.

[2:8]  ²¹ tn This contrast is clearer and stronger in Greek than can be easily expressed in English.

[2:8]  ²² tn Grk “those who [are] from selfish ambition.”

[2:8]  ²³ tn Grk “are persuaded by, obey.”