Luke 20:18
Everyone who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom it falls will be crushed."
Everyone who falls
The phrase "everyone who falls" suggests a universal principle applicable to all individuals. In the Greek, the word for "falls" is "piptō," which implies a stumbling or a failure to stand firm. This can be seen as a metaphor for those who encounter Christ, the cornerstone, and fail to recognize His authority and divinity. Historically, this reflects the Jewish leaders' rejection of Jesus as the Messiah, a theme prevalent throughout the Gospels. Spiritually, it serves as a warning to all who encounter the truth of Christ but choose to reject it, leading to spiritual brokenness.

on this stone
The "stone" here is a direct reference to Jesus Christ, often depicted as the cornerstone in biblical literature. The Greek word "lithos" is used, which can mean a stone of stumbling or a foundational stone. In the context of first-century Judea, a cornerstone was the principal stone placed at the corner of a building, ensuring its alignment and stability. Jesus, as the cornerstone, is essential for the spiritual edifice of the Church. Theologically, this emphasizes Christ's role as the foundation of faith, and the necessity of aligning one's life with His teachings.

will be broken to pieces
The phrase "will be broken to pieces" uses the Greek word "sunthlaō," which conveys a sense of shattering or being dashed to pieces. This imagery suggests the consequences of rejecting Christ, leading to spiritual ruin. Historically, this can be seen in the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70, a judgment upon those who rejected Jesus. On a personal level, it speaks to the inner turmoil and fragmentation that occurs when one resists the transformative power of Christ's love and truth.

but he on whom it falls
This part of the verse introduces a contrast with the previous clause. The Greek word "epipiptō" means to fall upon or to crush. This implies a more severe judgment than merely stumbling. Theologically, it suggests the finality of divine judgment upon those who persist in their rejection of Christ. It is a sobering reminder of the ultimate accountability every soul has before God.

will be crushed
The word "crushed" comes from the Greek "likmaō," meaning to grind to powder or to utterly destroy. This denotes the complete and irreversible nature of judgment for those who oppose Christ. In a historical context, it reflects the fate of those who opposed God's purposes throughout biblical history. Spiritually, it serves as a powerful call to repentance, urging individuals to embrace Christ as Savior to avoid the dire consequences of eternal separation from God.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Jesus Christ
The speaker of this verse, Jesus is addressing the religious leaders and the people, using the metaphor of a stone to convey a spiritual truth.

2. The Stone
Symbolically represents Jesus Himself, as the cornerstone rejected by the builders, a reference to His role in God's plan of salvation.

3. The Religious Leaders
The primary audience of Jesus' parable, who are being warned about their rejection of Him.

4. Jerusalem
The city where Jesus is teaching, a place of significant religious and historical importance.

5. The Parable of the Wicked Tenants
The broader context of this verse, where Jesus tells a parable about tenants who reject the owner's son, symbolizing Israel's rejection of God's messengers and ultimately His Son.
Teaching Points
The Cornerstone of Faith
Jesus is the cornerstone of our faith. Belief in Him is foundational to our spiritual lives.

The Consequences of Rejection
Rejecting Jesus leads to spiritual ruin. This verse warns of the severe consequences of not accepting Christ.

Humility and Brokenness
Falling on the stone represents humility and repentance. We must be willing to be broken before God to be made whole.

Judgment and Salvation
The stone's dual role as a stumbling block and a cornerstone highlights the dual nature of Christ's coming—bringing both judgment and salvation.

Living Stones
As believers, we are called to be living stones, built upon the foundation of Christ, contributing to the spiritual house of God.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does understanding Jesus as the cornerstone influence your personal faith journey?

2. In what ways can we ensure that we are not stumbling over the "stone" but rather building our lives upon it?

3. Reflect on a time when you experienced spiritual brokenness. How did it lead to growth in your relationship with Christ?

4. How can the imagery of Jesus as both a cornerstone and a stumbling block inform our approach to sharing the Gospel with others?

5. What practical steps can you take to become a "living stone" in your community, contributing to the spiritual house of God?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Psalm 118:22
This verse speaks of the stone the builders rejected becoming the cornerstone, directly connected to Jesus' role as the cornerstone in God's redemptive plan.

Isaiah 8:14-15
Describes God as a stone that causes people to stumble, paralleling the imagery of Jesus as a stumbling stone for those who reject Him.

1 Peter 2:6-8
Peter references Jesus as the cornerstone, emphasizing belief in Him as foundational, while also noting that He is a stone of stumbling for those who disobey.

Matthew 21:42-44
A parallel passage where Jesus uses similar imagery, reinforcing the message of judgment and salvation.

Daniel 2:34-35
The vision of a stone that becomes a great mountain, symbolizing God's kingdom, which aligns with Jesus as the cornerstone of God's eternal kingdom.
Contact and Conflict with ChristW. Clarkson Luke 20:18
Christ's Collision with the SanhedrinR.M. Edgar Luke 20:1-19
Abused MercyJohn Trapp.Luke 20:9-19
Fruitfulness the Test of ValueSword and Trowel.Luke 20:9-19
God's Manifold MercyC. H. Spurgeon.Luke 20:9-19
LessonsJ. Foote, M. A.Luke 20:9-19
Parable of the Vineyard Let to HusbandmenJ. Thomson, D. D.Luke 20:9-19
The Herodians and Pharisees Combined Against JesusJ. Thomson, D. D.Luke 20:9-19
The Madness of Opposing ChristC. S. Robinson, D. D.Luke 20:9-19
The Rejected SonD. O. Mears.Luke 20:9-19
The Son RejectedCharles M. Southgate.Luke 20:9-19
The Wreck of InfidelityLuke 20:9-19
People
David, Isaac, Jacob, Jesus, John
Places
Jerusalem
Topics
Broken, Crush, Crushed, Dust, Fall, Fallen, Falleth, Falling, Falls, Grind, Hurt, Pieces, Powder, Scatter, Severely, Stone, Utterly, Whomever, Whomsoever
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Luke 20:18

     5282   crushing

Luke 20:3-26

     7552   Pharisees, attitudes to Christ

Luke 20:9-18

     2309   Christ, as judge
     6223   rebellion, of Israel

Luke 20:9-19

     7135   Israel, people of God

Luke 20:17-18

     1240   God, the Rock
     4366   stones
     5269   cornerstone

Library
Whose Image and Superscription?
'Whose image and superscription hath it?'--Luke xx. 24. It is no unusual thing for antagonists to join forces in order to crush a third person obnoxious to both. So in this incident we have an unnatural alliance of the two parties in Jewish politics who were at daggers drawn. The representatives of the narrow conservative Judaism, which loathed a foreign yoke, in the person of the Pharisees and Scribes, and the Herodians, the partisans of a foreigner and a usurper, lay their heads together to propose
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions Of Holy Scripture

Tenants who Wanted to be Owners
'Then began He to speak to the people this parable; A certain man planted a vineyard, and let it forth to husbandmen, and went into a far country for a long time. 10. And at the season he sent a servant to the husbandmen, that they should give him of the fruit of the vineyard: but the husbandmen beat him, and sent him away empty. 11. And again he sent another servant: and they beat him also, and entreated him shamefully, and sent him away empty. 12. And again he sent a third: and they wounded him
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions Of Holy Scripture

The God of the Living.
He is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him.--ST LUKE xx. 38. It is a recurring cause of perplexity in our Lord's teaching, that he is too simple for us; that while we are questioning with ourselves about the design of Solomon's earring upon some gold-plated door of the temple, he is speaking about the foundations of Mount Zion, yea, of the earth itself, upon which it stands. If the reader of the Gospel supposes that our Lord was here using a verbal argument with the Sadducees,
George MacDonald—Unspoken Sermons

The Resurrection of the Sleeping Saints.
"And the dead in Christ shall rise first." This is the second blessed event which shall occur at the Redeemer's return--the sleeping saints will be awakened and raised. This brings us to a branch of our subject upon which there is much ignorance and confusion in Christendom generally. The idea which popularly obtains is that of a general resurrection at the end of time. So deeply rooted is this belief and so widely is it held that to declare there will be two resurrections--one of saints and another
Arthur W. Pink—The Redeemer's Return

The Morality of the Gospel.
Is stating the morality of the Gospel as an argument of its truth, I am willing to admit two points; first, that the teaching of morality was not the primary design of the mission; secondly, that morality, neither in the Gospel, nor in any other book, can be a subject, properly speaking, of discovery. If I were to describe in a very few words the scope of Christianity as a revelation, [49] I should say that it was to influence the conduct of human life, by establishing the proof of a future state
William Paley—Evidences of Christianity

In Reply to the Questions as to his Authority, Jesus Gives the Third Great Group of Parables.
(in the Court of the Temple. Tuesday, April 4, a.d. 30.) Subdivision A. Introduction ^A Matt. XXI. 23-27; ^B Mark XI. 27-33; ^C Luke XX. 1-8. ^c 1 And it came to pass, on one of the days, ^b they [Jesus and the disciples] come again to Jerusalem: ^a 23 And when he was come into the temple, ^b and as he was walking in the temple [The large outer court of the temple, known as the court of the Gentiles, was thronged during the feasts, and was no doubt the part selected by Jesus and his apostles when
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

In Reply to the Questions as to his Authority, Jesus Gives the Third Great Group of Parables.
(in the Court of the Temple. Tuesday, April 4, a.d. 30.) Subdivision C. Parable of the Wicked Husbandmen. ^A Matt. XXI. 33-46; ^B Mark XII. 1-12; ^C Luke XX. 9-19. ^b 1 And he began to speak unto them ^c the people [not the rulers] ^b in parables. { ^c this parable:} ^a 33 Hear another parable: There was a man that was a householder [this party represents God], who planted a vineyard [this represents the Hebrew nationality], and set a hedge about it, and digged a ^b pit for the ^a winepress in it
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Cix. Jewish Rulers Seek to Ensnare Jesus.
(Court of the Temple. Tuesday, April 4, a.d. 30.) Subdivision A. Pharisees and Herodians Ask About Tribute. ^A Matt. XXII. 15-22; ^B Mark XII. 13-17; ^C Luke XX. 20-26. ^a 15 Then went the Pharisees, and took counsel how they might ensnare him in his talk. ^c 20 And they watched him, and sent forth { ^b send unto him} ^a their disciples, ^b certain of the Pharisees and of { ^a with} ^b the Herodians, that they might catch him in talk. [Perceiving that Jesus, when on his guard, was too wise for them,
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Jesus' Last Public Discourse. Denunciation of Scribes and Pharisees.
(in the Court of the Temple. Tuesday, April 4, a.d. 30.) ^A Matt. XXIII. 1-39; ^B Mark XII. 38-40; ^C Luke XX. 45-47. ^a 1 Then spake Jesus ^b 38 And in his teaching ^c in the hearing of all the people he said unto ^a the multitudes, and to his disciples [he spoke in the most public manner], 2 saying, ^c 46 Beware of the scribes, ^a The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses' seat: 3 all things whatsoever they bid you, these do and observe: but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Third Day in Passion-Week - the Events of that Day - the Question of Christ's Authority - the Question of Tribute to Cæsar - The
THE record of this third day is so crowded, the actors introduced on the scene are so many, the occurrences so varied, and the transitions so rapid, that it is even more than usually difficult to arrange all in chronological order. Nor need we wonder at this, when we remember that this was, so to speak, Christ's last working-day - the last, of His public Mission to Israel, so far as its active part was concerned; the last day in the Temple; the last, of teaching and warning to Pharisees and Sadducees;
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

The Third Day in Passion-Week - the Last Controversies and Discourses - the Sadducees and the Resurrection - the Scribe and the Great Commandment - Question
THE last day in the Temple was not to pass without other temptations' than that of the Priests when they questioned His authority, or of the Pharisees when they cunningly sought to entangle Him in His speech. Indeed, Christ had on this occasion taken a different position; He had claimed supreme authority, and thus challenged the leaders of Israel. For this reason, and because at the last we expect assaults from all His enemies, we are prepared for the controversies of that day. We remember that,
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

Fac-Similes
OF ANCIENT NEW TESTAMENT MANUSCRIPTS, TO ILLUSTRATE CHAPTER XXVI., PAGE 380. Most of the following specimens of ancient manuscripts are taken from Scrivener's Introduction to the Criticism of the New Testament. No. (1) is from Tischendorf s Novum Testamentum Graece ex Sinaitico Codice; Nos. (2) and (11) from Smith's Dictionary of the Bible; and No. (5) from Horne's Introduction, Vol. IV. No. (1). PLATE I. SINAI CODEX, Century IV. Heb. 12:27-29. Notice the occasional use of very small letters. In
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible

The Third Day in Pasion-Week - the Last Series of Parables: to the Pharisees and to the People - on the Way to Jerusalem: the Parable
(ST. Matt. xix. 30, xx. 16; St. Matt. xxi. 28-32; St. Mark xii. 1-12; St. Luke xx. 9-19; St. Matt. xxii. 1-14.) ALTHOUGH it may not be possible to mark their exact succession, it will be convenient here to group together the last series of Parables. Most, if not all of them, were spoken on that third day in Passion week: the first four to a more general audience; the last three (to be treated in another chapter) to the disciples, when, on the evening of that third day, on the Mount of Olives, [5286]
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

Wherefore I Cannot Indeed Say, of Females who have Fallen Away from a Better...
14. Wherefore I cannot indeed say, of females who have fallen away from a better purpose, in case they shall have married, that they are adulteries, not marriages; but I plainly would not hesitate to say, that departures and fallings away from a holier chastity, which is vowed unto the Lord, are worse than adulteries. For if, what may no way be doubted, it pertains unto an offense against Christ, when a member of Him keepeth not faith to her husband; how much graver offense is it against Him, when
St. Augustine—On the Good of Widowhood.

Difficulties and Objections
"Yet ye say, The way of the Lord is not equal. Hear now, O house of Israel; Is not My way equal? are not your ways unequal?" (Ezek. 18:25). A convenient point has been reached when we may now examine, more definitely, some of the difficulties encountered and the objections which might be advanced against what we have written in previous pages. The author deemed it better to reserve these for a separate consideration rather than deal with them as he went along, requiring as that would have done the
Arthur W. Pink—The Sovereignty of God

Synopsis. --Account to be Made of the Law of Atrophy through Disuse. --The virgin Birth and the Corporeal Resurrection of Jesus
VII SYNOPSIS.--Account to be made of the law of atrophy through disuse.--The virgin birth and the corporeal resurrection of Jesus, the two miracles now insisted on as the irreducible minimum, affected by this law.--The vital truths of the incarnation and immortality independent of these miracles.--These truths now placed on higher ground in a truer conception of the supernatural.--The true supernatural is the spiritual, not the miraculous.--Scepticism bred from the contrary view.--The miracle narratives,
James Morris Whiton—Miracles and Supernatural Religion

Of the Practice of Piety in Holy Feasting.
Holy feasting is a solemn thanksgiving, appointed by authority, to be rendered to God on some special day, for some extraordinary blessings or deliverances received. Such among the Jews was the feast of the Passover (Exod. xii. 15), to remember to praise God for their deliverance out of Egypt's bondage; or the feast of Purim (Esth. ix. 19, 21), to give thanks for their deliverance from Haman's conspiracy. Such amongst us is the fifth of November, to praise God for the deliverance of the king and
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety

Jesus Attends the First Passover of his Ministry.
(Jerusalem, April 9, a.d. 27.) Subdivision A. Jesus Cleanses the Temple. ^D John II. 13-25. ^d 13 And the passover of the Jews was at hand [We get our information as to the length of our Lord's ministry from John's Gospel. He groups his narrative around six Jewish festivals: 1, He here mentions the first passover; 2, another feast, which we take to have been also a passover (v. 1); 3, another passover (vi. 4); 4, the feast of tabernacles (vii. 2); 5, dedication (x. 22); 6, passover (xi. 55). This
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Cix. Jewish Rulers Seek to Ensnare Jesus.
(Court of the Temple. Tuesday, April 4, a.d. 30.) Subdivision B. Sadducees Ask About the Resurrection. ^A Matt. XXII. 23-33; ^B Mark XII. 18-27; ^C Luke XX. 27-39. ^a 23 On that day there came { ^b come} unto him ^c certain of the the Sadducees, they that { ^b who} say there is no resurrection [As to the Sadducees, see p. 71. We may regard their attitude toward Christ as expressed by their leader Caiaphas, see p. 528]; and they asked him, saying, 19 Teacher, Moses wrote unto us [See Deut. xxv. 5,
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The King on his Throne.
"Crown Him with many crowns, The King upon His Throne." When the time came for our Blessed Lord to return into Heaven again, He ascended in the presence of His Apostles, whilst in the act of blessing them; "and a cloud received Him out of their sight" (Acts i. 9). And, we are told, they "returned to Jerusalem with great joy" (S. Luke xxiv. 52), not sorrowing as before at His being taken from them. And when we consider what His Ascension implied, we can see that they had good reason for their joy.
Edward Burbidge—The Kingdom of Heaven; What is it?

The Barren Fig-Tree;
OR, THE DOOM AND DOWNFALL OF THE FRUITLESS PROFESSOR: SHOWING, THAT THE DAY OF GRACE MAY BE PAST WITH HIM LONG BEFORE HIS LIFE IS ENDED; THE SIGNS ALSO BY WHICH SUCH MISERABLE MORTALS MAY BE KNOWN. BY JOHN BUNYAN 'Who being dead, yet speaketh.'--Hebrews 11:4 London: Printed for J. Robinson, at the Golden Lion, in St. Paul's Churchyard, 1688. This Title has a broad Black Border. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. This solemn, searching, awful treatise, was published by Bunyan in 1682; but does not appear
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

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