Quote:
Originally Posted by Lee Parish  Mathew 16:18 "And I also say unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it." ESV
Peter (petros) Rock (petra). I am not a Greek scholar, but those words translated Peter, and rock are of different genders, and seem to have vastly different meanings; possibly comparable to a large mountain and hill. One should think twice before trying to equate the two.
I believe Peter himself gives us additional details in 1 Peter 2.
Also Christ gave Peter his name long before this point, see John 1:42. |
Aww, now you got ahead of me, Lee! But since you brought it up...maybe we should go to the point where this is brought out...in Greek, the original language of the New Testament, Christ calls Peter "Rock" (masculine gender) then says "on this rock" (feminine gender) I will build my church. What is the rock on which the church is built? To give insight...isn't the church always referred to in feminine gender (as the bride or wife of Christ)?
The usual catholic interpretation is Peter, but the difference in gender makes this questionable. Then, just five verses ahead, Jesus reproves Peter with such severity that He calls him Satan. In the context itself then, it is equally possible that the "rock" upon which the church is founded is found in the statement that Peter made, You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God. Is the church founded upon Satan??? If it is Peter, why would Christ call Peter Satan??? (Of course there is more to that, but I am showing the different usage in gender terms).
If we will let the passages in other parts of the Bible that refer to the same subject help us decide who it is that the church is founded upon, we find that it is Christ. No one can lay a foundation other than the one that has been laid, namely Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 3:11).
Of course that is not all, I have to say (well, really the Bible) about this matter...