“Therefore
I tell you, God’s Kingdom will be taken away from you, and will be given to a nation producing its fruit. He who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, but on whomever it will fall, it will scatter him as dust.” When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they perceived that he spoke about them. When they sought to seize him, they feared the multitudes, because they considered him to be a prophet.
Matthew 21:43-46
Matthew 21 [42.] Jesus said to them, “Did you never read in the Scriptures,
‘The stone which the builders rejected,
the same was made the head of the corner.
This was from the Lord.
It is marvelous in our eyes?’
Matthew 21 [43.] “Therefore I tell you, God’s Kingdom will be taken away from you, and will be given to a nation producing its fruit. He who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, but on whomever it will fall, it will scatter him as dust.”
Matthew 21 [45.] When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they perceived that he spoke about them. When they sought to seize him, they feared the multitudes, because they considered him to be a prophet.
Matthew 22 [1.] Jesus answered and spoke again in parables to them, saying, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a certain king, who made a marriage feast for his son, and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the marriage feast, but they would not come. Again he sent out other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who are invited, “Behold, I have prepared my dinner. My cattle and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the marriage feast!”’ But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his merchandise, and the rest grabbed his servants, and treated them shamefully, and killed them. When the king heard that, he was angry, and sent his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city.
Meaning:
Jesus had just told the parable of the wicked farmers who killed the owner’s son (Matthew 21:33-41), and then quoted the psalm, “The stone which the builders rejected, the same was made the head of the corner” (Matthew 21:42). In these verses he draws the conclusion for his hearers, and Matthew records how the leaders reacted.
- “God’s Kingdom will be taken away from you”
“Therefore” ties the warning to the parable and the psalm. The leaders who rejected the Son would lose their place as stewards of God’s people, just as the farmers lost the vineyard.
- “Given to a nation producing its fruit”
The new “nation” is not another ethnic people, but the community of all who follow Jesus, Jews and Gentiles together. Peter wrote to such believers, “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession” (1 Peter 2:9). Jesus had already said that many would come from east and west to sit down with Abraham in the Kingdom (Matthew 8:11). The mark of this nation is fruit: lives of faith, obedience and justice, the very fruit the fig tree and the farmers had failed to give.
- “He who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces”
Jesus develops the image of the rejected stone. Those who stumble over him in unbelief will be broken. Peter later applied the same psalm to Jesus and added Isaiah’s phrase, “a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense” (1 Peter 2:7-8).
- “On whomever it will fall, it will scatter him as dust”
The second picture comes from Daniel. In Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, “a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet” and broke the kingdoms of the world in pieces, so that they “became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors” (Daniel 2:34-35). Daniel explained that God would set up a kingdom that would never be destroyed. Jesus is that stone. To reject him is to stumble; to stand against his kingdom is to be crushed.
- “They perceived that he spoke about them”
The chief priests and Pharisees understood the parables perfectly. Mark says, “They tried to seize him, but they feared the multitude; for they perceived that he spoke the parable against them” (Mark 12:12). Instead of repenting, they looked for a way to arrest him. Only fear of the crowds, who considered Jesus a prophet, held them back for now.
The Significance of Matthew 21:43-46
- No one is entitled to God’s Kingdom
Privilege and position do not guarantee a place in it. God looks for those who bear its fruit.
- Jesus is the cornerstone
He is either the foundation we build on or the stone we stumble over. There is no neutral ground.
- Conviction calls for repentance
The leaders knew Jesus was speaking about them but hardened their hearts. When God’s word exposes us, the right response is to turn to him.
Cross-References:
Psalm 118:22: "The stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner." The psalm Jesus applied to himself.
Daniel 2:34: "a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet" The stone that crushes the kingdoms.
1 Peter 2:9: "a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession," The nation that bears the Kingdom’s fruit.
Conclusion: Jesus concluded his parables by warning the leaders that God’s Kingdom would be taken from them and given to a nation producing its fruit. He is the rejected stone: those who fall on it will be broken, and those on whom it falls will be scattered as dust. The chief priests and Pharisees understood that he was speaking about them, but instead of repenting they sought to seize him, held back only by fear of the crowds. The passage calls everyone to build on Jesus and bear the fruit of his Kingdom.
PIB Scriptures are derived from the World English Bible