Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone. This was the LORD’s doing, And it is marvelous in our eyes’? (Matthew 21:42)
Jesus talked about a rejected stone which ultimately brought to its purpose and usefulness in the completeness. He talked about His merely own rejection by the house of Israel. He came to His own but they have not quite understood him. Jesus was quoting it from the Psalms 118.
A story was well known during Jesus’ time about building of the temple of Solomon. The temple structure was built with most of the stones were of the identical size and shape. When all the stones arrived from the stone mines, one stone however was different from the others. The builders took one look at it and said, “This will not do,” and sent it rolling down into the valley of Kedron below.
The years passed and the grand temple was nearing completion, and the builders sent a message to the mines to send the chief cornerstone that the structure might be complete. The stonecutters from the mines replied that they had sent the stone years before. At that time someone remembered the stone that was different than all the rest that somehow did not seem to belong. They realized that they had thrown away the cornerstone. At that moment they got into the valley and retrieved it from under the debris.
Finally, under vines and debris they recovered it and with great effort rolled it up the hill and put it in place so that the great temple would be complete. The stone that had been rejected had become the chief cornerstone.
