Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Luke 20:18
Whosoever shall fall upon that stone shall be broken; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.
18. shall fall upon that stone ] as the Jews did from the first, 1Co 1:23. See Isa 8:14-15.
shall be broken ] Literally, “ shall be sorely bruised.”
it shall fall
it will grind him to powder ] Literally, “it shall winnow him” (Jer 31:10), with obvious reference to the great Image which ‘the stone cut without hands’ smote and broke to pieces, so that its fragments became “like the chaff of the summer threshingfloor, and the wind carried them away,” Dan 2:35.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 18. Grind him to powder.] See Clarke on Mt 21:44.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Whosoever shall fall on that stone, shall be broken,…. Not who shall fall upon Christ by faith, and build upon him as the foundation stone, for such shall be saved; but that stumble at him, and are offended with him, and fall by unbelief and hardness of heart; such do themselves much hurt and mischief and expose themselves to danger and ruin; they bid very fair for destruction:
but on whomsoever it shall fall; as it did with its full weight upon the Jews at their destruction, and as it will upon all Christless sinners at the last day:
it will grind him to powder; the ruin of such will be unavoidable, and there will be no recovery;
[See comments on Mt 21:44].
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Shall be broken to pieces (). Future passive indicative of , a rather late compound, only here in the N.T. unless Mt 21:44 is genuine. It means to shatter.
Will scatter him as dust (). From , an old verb to winnow and then to grind to powder. Only here in the N.T. unless in Mt 21:44 is genuine, which see.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
Shall be broken [] . Rev., rightly, broken to pieces. See on Mt 21:44.
Grind him to powder [] . See on Mt 21:44.
20 – 26. Compare Mt 22:15 – 22; Mr 12:13 – 17.
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1) “Whosoever shall fall upon that stone shall be broken;” (pas ho peson ep ekeinon ton lithon sunthlasthesetai) “Everyone who falls upon that stone will be broken in pieces,” or crushed together, Mat 21:44; to be used as a lively stone in my house, my new covenant house, 1Ti 3:15; Heb 3:3-6; Eph 2:19-22.
2) “But on whomsoever It shall fall,” (eph hon d an pese) “Yet upon whomever it falls,” Isa 8:15; Mat 21:44; it falls in judgment, of those who resent and reject it (or Him) that Stone or Rock which is Christ, Act 4:11-12; 1Co 10:4.
3) “It will grind him to powder.” (Iikmesei auton) “It will crush him to powder,” or winnow him, Jer 31:10; Mat 21:44; in excusable judgment retribution, Rom 2:1; Rom 2:4-5; Act 17:30-31; Dan 2:34-35.
When the chief priests and Pharisees had heard the entire parable they were convinced He had spoken it concerning them and they sought the more to kill Him, Mat 21:45-46; Mar 12:12.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
(18) Whosoever shall fall upon that stone.See Note on Mat. 21:44. The verse, which is omitted by many of the best MSS. in St. Matthew, is found in all MSS. of St. Luke. If we were to receive it, on this evidence, as belonging strictly to the latter Gospel only, the Greek word for bruised might take its place among those classical, or perhaps quasi-medical, terms characteristic of St. Luke. (See Note on Luk. 20:12, and Introduction.)
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
“Every one who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, but on whomsoever it will fall, it will scatter him as dust (or ‘blow him away as chaff’).”
And the stone will not only become the head of the corner, but it will also become a stone of destruction on which men will fall, like a pot on a hard stone, and be broken in pieces, and which itself will fall on men, as a stone may fall on pots, scattering them as dust. The picture may well have in mind the idea of a city which is being destroyed after siege, with stones being torn down and falling on the pottery beneath, while other pottery is seized and dashed (like the children – Luk 19:44) against stones. (There is an interesting Jewish proverb which illustrates this, “If the stone falls on the pot, alas for the pot; if the pot falls on the stone, alas for the pot!” It was one therefore to which they should have taken heed. However, where the pictures are used elsewhere in Scripture they refer to what happens to men (Isa 8:14-15; Dan 2:34). He will thus be for both salvation and judgment. Some will be founded on Him and become strong, others will fall on Him, or be crushed by Him, and will be destroyed. Both in the comparatively near future and in the last Judgment (both are again brought together in chapter 21).
The picture is taken from a combination of Isa 8:14-15, ‘He will become a Sanctuary, and a stone of offence, — and many will stumble on it, they will fall and be broken’, and Dan 2:34, ‘a stone was cut out by no human hand and it smote the image on its feet of iron and clay and broke them in pieces’.
As this verse is not cited by either Matthew or Mark in this context this may have been added by Luke from other sayings of Jesus, in order to give a satisfactory conclusion to the passage, for in contrast with them he has omitted ‘this was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes’ (Mar 11:11; Mat 21:42). By it he brings together salvation and judgment in a way quite in keeping with the parable, and consonant with the whole wider context of the passage. Compare also 1Pe 2:7-8 where similar ideas to those here are linked.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Luk 20:18 points out the bearing of the turn in the fortunes of the “Stone” on the fate of those who rejected Him. The thought is based on Dan 2:35 . It is not in Mk., and it is a doubtful reading in Mt. It may have been a comment on the oracle from the Psalter suggested to believing minds by the tragic fate of the Jews. They first stumbled on the stone, then the stone fell on them with crushing judicial effect.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
broken = broken to pieces.
grind him to powder. See note on Mat 21:44.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Luk 20:18. ) that great stone, of which the prediction had been given long ago in the Psalm.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
shall fall: This is an allusion to the Jewish mode of stoning. “The place of stoning was twice as high as a man. From the top of this one of the witnesses struck the culprit on the loins, and felled him to the ground: if he died of this, well; if not, the other witness threw a stone upon his heart,” etc. Our Lord seems to refer not only to the dreadful crushing of the Jews by the Romans, but also to their general dispersion to the present day. Isa 8:14, Isa 8:15, Dan 2:34, Dan 2:35, Dan 2:44, Dan 2:45, Zec 12:3, Mat 21:34, 1Th 2:16
Reciprocal: Psa 45:5 – sharp Isa 28:16 – Behold Mat 21:42 – The stone Mat 21:44 – whosoever Mar 12:10 – The stone Eph 2:20 – Jesus 1Pe 2:4 – disallowed
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
8
The stone is Christ who had been rejected by the Jewish leaders. The significance of falling on or being fallen upon is explained at Mat 21:44.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Jesus next referred to other Old Testament passages that also referred to a stone (Dan 2:34; Dan 2:44-45; cf. Isa 8:14-15). They taught that a capstone would be God’s agent of judgment. Those who opposed it would only destroy themselves, and it would crush those on whom it fell. The stone in Daniel 2 represents a kingdom. Likewise Jesus as the King of the kingdom of God would serve as God’s agent of judgment in the future. However even now Jesus was the stone that would bring judgment on God’s enemies.