Matthew 16, on this rock

At Caesarea Philippi, Jesus asks his disciples: “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replies: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16). Jesus then says to him: “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18).

A verse at the heart of a debate

This verse is read differently by different Churches. The Roman Catholic Church relies on Matthew 16:18-19 to ground the primacy of Peter and, after him, the ministry of the bishop of Rome, the pope, whom it regards as Peter’s successor.

Let us clarify a point that is often misunderstood. In Catholic doctrine, defined at the First Vatican Council in 1870, infallibility does not mean that the pope is perfect or incapable of sinning. It concerns only solemn definitions in matters of faith and morals.

The central question is simple: what is this rock? Three main answers have been given. Rather than a linguistic study, we will examine each of them in the light of the rest of the New Testament. We believe, in fact, that Scripture does not contradict itself. An interpretation that went against the rest of the New Testament therefore cannot be accepted.

A word about the play on words. In Greek, Jesus calls Simon Petros and speaks of petra, two closely related forms of the same word “rock”. In Aramaic, the language Jesus spoke, a single word, kepha, may have been used. This is where the name “Cephas” comes from.

First reading, Peter himself

This is the most immediate interpretation. Peter took a stand in the face of those who doubted and recognised that Jesus is the Son of God. The New Testament does give him a special place.

• He is the first of the apostles to see the risen Christ (1 Corinthians 15:5).
• He takes the initiative to replace Judas (Acts 1:15-22).
• He preaches on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:14).
• Paul counts him among those who “seemed to be pillars” (Galatians 2:9).

Yet Peter does not have authority over the others. In Galatians 2:9, he is mentioned with James and John, on the same level. The Church is “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets” (Ephesians 2:20), and the heavenly Jerusalem bears the names of the twelve apostles (Revelation 21:14). Peter is sent by the other apostles to Samaria (Acts 8:14). He has to give an account of his visit to Cornelius before the Church in Jerusalem (Acts 11:1-18). Paul even rebukes him publicly in Antioch: “I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned” (Galatians 2:11).

A point of honesty is needed here. Many Protestants struggle with this reading because it is the reading of the Catholic Church. But we must not reject an interpretation because of those who defend it. It has to be examined as objectively as possible.

In reality, the doctrine of papal primacy does not rest only on the idea that Peter is the rock. It also assumes that Jesus gave him a primacy, that this primacy was transmissible, that Peter came to Rome, that he was bishop there, and that he passed this office on to an unbroken line of successors. The position of this course is that Matthew 16 speaks neither of primacy nor of transmission. In our view, these points are deductions that the text does not contain. Yet a doctrine must be built on Scripture, in order to avoid errors and divisions.

Second reading, Peter’s confession

According to another interpretation, the rock is not Peter the man, but his declaration of faith: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

According to Alfred Kuen, this was the most widespread reading among the Church Fathers, those Christian leaders of the first centuries. According to an old survey, that of Jean de Launoy in the 17th century, 44 Fathers defended this interpretation, against 17 for the previous one, the others seeing the rock as Christ or as all the apostles. This reading is still widely held today, particularly in the Orthodox tradition and in many Protestant Churches.

Third reading, Jesus himself

Several texts present Jesus as the cornerstone of the Church. Peter himself proclaims this before the Sanhedrin (Acts 4:11) and in his letter (1 Peter 2:4-7). Paul writes: “For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 3:11).

This truth is essential. But in the context of Matthew 16, it does not seem that Jesus is speaking about himself. He is addressing Peter directly. This reading is therefore true in itself, but it does not fit this verse.

The position of this course

To interpret well, we must read the words in their immediate context. The first two readings converge. Peter is indeed a foundation stone of the Church. But why? Because he confessed who Jesus is, the Christ, the Son of the living God.

This passage does not make Peter the only rock on which the Church is built. Nor does it give him a transmissible primacy. Peter is one stone among others. And all who recognise and proclaim that Jesus is the Christ become, in their turn, stones in this building.

Peter himself reminds us of this: “you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house” (1 Peter 2:5). The Church thus continues to be built every day, on Christ, with each of those who confess him.