What Old Testament analogy does Peter use when he calls Christ the chief cornerstone?
Peter uses the Old Testament analogy of the chief cornerstone, or head of the corner. This is the architectural stone that holds everything together. The builders did not recognize it and cast it aside, but it was destined to be the chief cornerstone, pointing to Christ.
Les explains that Peter is using an Old Testament analogy in which Christ was to be the chief cornerstone and the head of the corner. Les notes an associated legend, not Scripture, about Solomon's temple: because everything was pre-cut at the quarry, there was no hammer or chisel sound at the temple site. The chief cornerstone was brought in ahead of time, but the builders and architects did not recognize it, so they dumped it in a vacant lot where weeds grew. In arch architecture, the top stone holds everything together, and that is what Christ was to have been. The very stone the builders cast out in ignorance became the stone people bump into.
What Old Testament analogy does Peter use in Acts 4?
Peter uses the Old Testament analogy of the chief cornerstone, the head of the corner, which the builders failed to recognize and dumped in a vacant lot. He applies this stone to Christ, the rock of salvation, who should have held all the architecture together.
Why does Peter call Jesus the chief cornerstone?
Peter calls Jesus the chief cornerstone because the Old Testament analogy identifies Christ as the stone the builders dumped out, the head of the corner who holds all the architecture together. That stone was Christ, the rock of salvation, not Peter. The legend illustrates how the true cornerstone was ignored and cast aside.