Jesus, the Christ: Rejected

Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? …

The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.

And He replied: “Go and tell this people, ‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’

Make the hearts of this people calloused; deafen their ears and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.”

And He will be a sanctuary—but to both houses of Israel a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, to the dwellers of Jerusalem a trap and a snare.

But I said, “I have labored in vain, I have spent My strength in futility and vanity; yet My vindication is with the LORD, and My reward is with My God.”

This is what the LORD says: “Where is your mother’s certificate of divorce with which I sent her away? Or to which of My creditors did I sell you? Look, you were sold for your iniquities, and for your transgressions your mother was sent away. …

Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? …

But everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.

The rain fell, the torrents raged, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell—and great was its collapse!”

But the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Then the whole town went out to meet Jesus. And when they saw Him, they begged Him to leave their region.

And if anyone will not welcome you or heed your words, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that home or town.

Truly I tell you, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.

But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father in heaven.

To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: …

Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.” …

And He told them many things in parables, saying, “A farmer went out to sow his seed. …

And He did not do many miracles there, because of their unbelief.

“O unbelieving and perverse generation!” Jesus replied. “How long must I remain with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy here to Me.”

For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him.

But when the tenants saw the son, they said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and take his inheritance.’ …

“The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. …

Then Jesus said to them, “This very night you will all fall away on account of Me. For it is written: ‘I will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ …

Meanwhile, Peter was sitting out in the courtyard, and a servant girl came up to him. “You also were with Jesus the Galilean,” she said. …

And the people began to beg Jesus to leave their region.

Isn’t this the carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? Aren’t His sisters here with us as well?” And they took offense at Him. …

Then Jesus began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a wine vat, and built a watchtower. Then he rented it out to some tenants and went away on a journey. …

Then Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away, for it is written: ‘I will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’ …

While Peter was in the courtyard below, one of the servant girls of the high priest came down …

Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.

Why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ but do not do what I say? …

But the Pharisees and experts in the law rejected God’s purpose for themselves, because they had not been baptized by John. …

Then all the people of the region of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to depart from them, because great fear had taken hold of them. So He got into the boat and started back.

Whoever listens to you listens to Me; whoever rejects you rejects Me; and whoever rejects Me rejects the One who sent Me.”

He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters. …

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling!

But Jesus replied, “A certain man prepared a great banquet and invited many guests. …

But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.

…and said, “If only you had known on this day what would bring you peace! But now it is hidden from your eyes.

Then He proceeded to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard, rented it out to some tenants, and went away for a long time. …

Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you like wheat. …

Then they seized Jesus, led Him away, and took Him into the house of the high priest. And Peter followed at a distance. …

“If You are the Christ, tell us.” Jesus answered, “If I tell you, you will not believe.

But their words seemed like nonsense to them, and they did not believe the women.

And as they talked and deliberated, Jesus Himself came up and walked along with them. …

But they were startled and frightened, thinking they had seen a spirit. …

He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.

Truly, truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, and yet you people do not accept our testimony.

If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?

Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.

And this is the verdict: The Light has come into the world, but men loved the darkness rather than the Light because their deeds were evil.

He testifies to what He has seen and heard, yet no one accepts His testimony.

…nor does His word abide in you, because you do not believe the One He sent.

…yet you refuse to come to Me to have life.

I have come in My Father’s name, and you have not received Me; but if someone else comes in his own name, you will receive him.

But as I stated, you have seen Me and still you do not believe.

On hearing it, many of His disciples said, “This is a difficult teaching. Who can accept it?” …

So Jesus’ brothers said to Him, “Leave here and go to Judea, so that Your disciples there may see the works You are doing. …

Many in the crowds were whispering about Him. Some said, “He is a good man.” But others replied, “No, He deceives the people.”

Yet no one would speak publicly about Him for fear of the Jews.

The Jews were amazed and asked, “How did this man attain such learning without having studied?”

Then some of the people of Jerusalem began to say, “Isn’t this the man they are trying to kill? …

So the Pharisees said to Him, “You are testifying about Yourself; Your testimony is not valid.”

Again He said to them, “I am going away, and you will look for Me, but you will die in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot come.”

So the Jews began to ask, “Will He kill Himself, since He says, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come’?”

That is why I told you that you would die in your sins. For unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.” …

But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me! …

Are You greater than our father Abraham? He died, as did the prophets. Who do You claim to be?”

Because of this, some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for He does not keep the Sabbath.” But others said, “How can a sinful man perform such signs?” And there was division among them.

So once again they asked the man who had been blind, “What do you say about Him, since it was your eyes He opened?” “He is a prophet,” the man replied.

So a second time they called for the man who had been blind and said, “Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner.”

Many of them said, “He is demon-possessed and insane. Why would you listen to Him?”

But others replied, “These are not the words of a man possessed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”

So the Jews gathered around Him and demanded, “How long will You keep us in suspense? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.”

“We are not stoning You for any good work,” said the Jews, “but for blasphemy, because You, who are a man, make Yourself out to be God.”

But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. …

Although Jesus had performed so many signs in their presence, they still did not believe in Him.

There is a judge for the one who rejects Me and does not receive My words: The word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day.

If the world hates you, understand that it hated Me first.

Remember the word that I spoke to you: ‘No servant is greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you as well; if they kept My word, they will keep yours as well.

If I had not done among them the works that no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin; but now they have seen and hated both Me and My Father.

Now Simon Peter and another disciple were following Jesus. Since that disciple was known to the high priest, he also went with Jesus into the courtyard of the high priest. …

Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: “It was necessary to speak the word of God to you first. But since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles.

And when Silas and Timothy came down from Macedonia, Paul devoted himself fully to the word, testifying to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ.

But when they opposed and insulted him, he shook out his garments and told them, “Your blood be on your own heads! I am innocent of it. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.”

…and saw the Lord saying to me, ‘Hurry! Leave Jerusalem quickly, because the people here will not accept your testimony about Me.’

Some of them were convinced by what he said, but others refused to believe.

They disagreed among themselves and began to leave after Paul had made this final statement: “The Holy Spirit was right when He spoke to your fathers through Isaiah the prophet:

For this people’s heart has grown callous; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn, and I would heal them.’

What if some did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify God’s faithfulness?

…but Israel, who pursued a law of righteousness, has not attained it.

Why not? Because their pursuit was not by faith, but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone,

But not all of them welcomed the good news. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our message?”

But as for Israel he says: “All day long I have held out My hands to a disobedient and obstinate people.”

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

…but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,

…if we endure, we will also reign with Him; if we deny Him, He will also deny us;

…and then have fallen away—to be restored to repentance, because they themselves are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting Him to open shame.

How much more severely do you think one deserves to be punished who has trampled on the Son of God, profaned the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and insulted the Spirit of grace?

As you come to Him, the living stone, rejected by men but chosen and precious in God’s sight,

To you who believe, then, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,”

…and, “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.” They stumble because they disobey the word—and to this they were appointed.

Now there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.

Who is the liar, if it is not the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, who denies the Father and the Son.

Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father, but whoever confesses the Son has the Father as well.

For many deceivers have gone out into the world, refusing to confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist.

For certain men have crept in among you unnoticed—ungodly ones who were designated long ago for condemnation. They turn the grace of our God into a license for immorality, and they deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.