Cambridge Greek Testament Commentary

1 Peter 2:8

λίθος προσκόμματος. The stone of stumbling is the loose stone against which the traveller strikes his foot, while πέτρα σκανδάλου, the rock of offence, is rather the native rock rising up through the path, which trips him up. σκάνδαλον is constantly used of Christ as being a stumbling-block to the Jews.

προσκόπτουσιν—ἀπειθοῦντες, probably both words conjointly govern λόγῳ—who stumble at the word being disobedient to it.

εἰς ὃ καὶ ἐτέθησαν. (See S. and H. Rom. ix–xi and Hort, 1 Pet. p. 123.) The words must be neither explained away nor exaggerated. The stumbling of the disobedient, according to St Peter, was no accident nor due only to their own conduct, but part of God’s primal purpose. The corner-stone in Zion and the men who should stumble at it were both of God’s appointing. For this use of τίθημι, cf. Acts 13:47; 1 Timothy 2:7; 2 Timothy 1:11; John 15:16. It is of course perfectly true that certain results are the inevitable nemesis attached to certain conduct, and in that sense it might be said that stumbling was appointed by God as the nemesis of disobedience. But this does not exhaust St Peter’s meaning. The stumbling seems to be regarded as not merely a secondary part of God’s purpose, conditional on man’s disobedience, but as part of His primal purpose. On the other hand St Peter does not say that any persons were reprobated to damnation. To the question, “Did they stumble in order that they might fall?” asked by St Paul in Romans 11:11, St Peter would without doubt have given St Paul’s answer, “God forbid, but rather through their fall salvation is come to the Gentiles.” St Peter, as we have seen, has throughout been emphasizing the fact that the privileges formerly restricted to Jews have now been extended to Gentiles, and there is little doubt that in quoting the passage about the stone of stumbling, employed by St Paul in discussing the apostasy of Israel, St Peter in these words εἰς ὃ καὶ ἐτέθησαν is briefly summarizing St Paul’s argument, in which he shewed that Israel’s apostasy, guilty though it was, was designed to subserve God’s eternal purpose of love. The stumbling of disobedient Jews made room for the admission of believing Gentiles, that thereby Israel in return might be roused to godly jealousy to value and accept the privileges which once they so madly rejected.

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Cambridge Greek Testament Commentary

1 Peter 2:8

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