The metaphor of Christ as the living stone is now expounded further through the use of several quotations from the Old Testament: Isaiah 28.16 (verse 6); Psalm 118.22 (verse 7); and Isaiah 8.14 (verse 8). These quotations seemed to have been employed very early by Christian preachers to refer to Christ, and as polemic against the Jews who rejected him.
In accordance with the usual practice in this letter, a scripture quotation is introduced by dioti (see in 1.16; 1.24). The scripture quoted is from Isaiah 28.16, with some variations. One omission worthy of note is the mention of “foundation” in the Old Testament; its omission may be explained in part by the desire of early Christian preachers not to make the stone a part of the foundation, and since the foundation is usually buried, then it will not be possible for people to stumble over it (as it is mentioned in the quotation from Isaiah 8.14 (verse 8)). I chose a valuable stone translates “chosen and precious” (for analysis of this, see 2.4). The stone (lithos) and the cornerstone (akrogōniaion) are one and the same; the former functions as the latter. A cornerstone is what it means literally, that is, a stone at the corner where the two walls meet and where they are bound firmly together. In the light of Psalm 118.22 and Ephesians 2.20, some understand this to refer to the chief cornerstone; the Good News Translation leans towards this position by the use of the definite article: the cornerstone. It is possible, however, on the basis of the Greek text, to use the indefinite article before cornerstone, as many translations have done.
It may be necessary to render the expression For the scripture says as “for in the scripture one may read” or “one may read in a passage of scripture.”
The introduction of the first person “I” without indicating who is speaking may cause serious complications in certain instances, and therefore it may be better to employ an introductory statement including a reference to “God,” for example, “for as one may read in a passage of scripture in which God says.”
Zion is used in the Old Testament for the city of Jerusalem, sometimes politically, but more often in a religious and symbolic sense as the city of God (for example, Isa 60.14; Psa 48.1 and following), and the city where God dwells (Isa 8.18; Psa 74.2; 13.13, 14). At other times, Zion is personified and is made to refer to the inhabitants of the city (Psa 74.2; 97.8; Jer 14.19; Isa 51.16). This last sense, together with the symbolic meaning, seems to have been the primary way in which the early church interpreted Zion in this quotation, in that it now stands for the new Jerusalem, the new people of God.
It may be expedient in the phrase the cornerstone in Zion to indicate that this is “the cornerstone of the city of Zion.” Even though in this type of context Zion may suggest the inhabitants, nevertheless the use of cornerstone makes it almost necessary to refer to a building or a construction.
The last part of the quotation plays both a positive and negative role. Positively, it was an encouragement to the Christians who were facing persecution, and an indirect appeal for them to keep on trusting in Christ; negatively, it was an indictment on those who have rejected Christ. Believes as it is often used in the New Testament stands for a relationship of trust in and commitment to someone. The pronoun him, as the object of believes, refers back to the cornerstone, which is personified. There is a problem involved in the shift from the cornerstone, which would normally have as a pronominal referent “it,” to the third person animate pronoun him. This may require some specific identification of the relationships by translating “whoever believes in the Lord, who is the cornerstone” or “whoever believes in the Lord, that is, in the one who is like a cornerstone.”
Will never be disappointed is literally “shall never be put to shame” (whereas, the Hebrew has “shall not make haste”), a very emphatic statement, as shown by the repetition of the negative (Greek ou mē). Disappointed translates a subjunctive aorist passive verb (Good News Translation, Jerusalem Bible, Barclay, Knox, Moffatt). The Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch and Biblia Dios Habla Hoy have “disillusioned,” whereas New American Bible has “shall not be shaken.”
If one translates believes in him as “puts his trust in him,” it is possible then to translate will never be disappointed as “will never discover that he has trusted the wrong person” or “will never regret that he has trusted the Lord” or “will never have reason to say that he made a mistake in so trusting.”
Quoted with permission from Arichea, Daniel C. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on The First Letter from Peter. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1980. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .