16:18 “I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”

The interpretation of this saying has far-reaching implications for church government, apostolic succession, and the role of the pope.

1. The rock is Peter himself, along with his Roman successors

In support of this interpretation is the fact that what Jesus says is in the singular, and must have been addressed to Peter himself (even if it also had a wider application).  There is an interesting comparison with the Midrash on Isa 51:1, where God says of Abraham: ‘Behold, I have found a rock on which I can build and base the world. Therefore he called Abraham a rock’ (SB, cited by NBD).’

In wider application, this saying (according to this interpretation) would apply to the first apostles and prophets, on whose foundation the church was built, and then (according to many) to the succession of popes.

Of course, this passage makes no mention of Peter’s successors.  Moreover, in Mt 18:15-20 the keys are given, not to Peter, but to the church.   Roman Catholics therefore have to regard their interpretation as a later ‘flowering’ of the bud that is present in Jesus’ saying.

William Johnstone, a spokesman for ‘Catholic Voices’ and Duncan Boyd, representing the Protestant Truth Society, discussed this passage:

William’s (and presumably the Catholic church’s) argument relied in part on the assumption that Jesus spoke these words in Aramaic, in which language the word for ‘Peter’ and ‘rock’ would have been the same (cephas). But, as Duncan pointed out, it is not at all certain that these words were spoken by Jesus in Aramaic. And, in any case, this saying is recorded in Scripture not in Aramaic, but in Greek. Two different Greek words are used, ‘petros’ and ‘petra’, weakening the idea that they both have the same referent. In any case, Jesus does not say, “on you will I build my church”, strongly suggesting that the church is to be built, not on Peter personally, but on the confession he has just made, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God”, which would be echoed by all the apostles and their followers.

When Jesus says that “the gates of Hades will not overcome [his] church”, this means, according to William, that the church has infallible authority. If the church could err, then this could scarcely be said of it. But, as Duncan pointed out, the Catholic church can and has erred, even in some of its most authoritative pronouncements (such as Papal bulls advocating anti-semitism). Within the pages of the New Testament itself, we find local churches exhibiting various forms of error (just think of the 7 churches in Revelation 2-3). Jesus’ expression here means that the church will not die, even though he himself and also Peter would die.

2. The rock is Peter’s confession of Jesus as Messiah

This interpretation pays due attention to the context, in which Peter’s confession is pivotal.  The church is built on the rock of apostolic confession (cf. Eph 2:20).

The contributor to Hard Sayings of the Bible writes:

‘The familiar “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church” may mean not that the rock is Peter the person but that it is Peter confessing Jesus as “the Christ, the Son of the living God.” In this case Christ, whom Peter is confessing, is the important one, not Peter himself, and Christ becomes the foundation of the church as he is thus confessed’ (IVP Commentary on Eph 2:19-22).‘Now that someone has been found who is prepared to confess Jesus as what he really is, and not try to fit him into some inherited framework, a start can be made with forming the community of true disciples who will carry on Jesus’ mission after his departure.’

Murray Harris, who favours this interpretation, invites us to note that

‘the earliest and foundational confession made by Christians was in fact “Jesus is the Messiah” (see Acts 18:5, 28; cf. Acts 2:36; 9:22; 17:3).’

(Navigating Tough Texts)

3. The rock is Peter as a representative apostle

Some version of this interpretation is adopted by most modern scholars.

This would be consistent with:

Eph 2:20 ‘You have been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone.’

According to the Reformation Study Bible:

‘If it had not been for the abuse of this passage by the Roman Catholic Church, it is unlikely that any doubt would have arisen that the reference is to Peter. But the foundational rock is Peter as a representative apostle (v. 15 note) whose confession of Christ has been revealed to him by the Father. As Peter himself later declares (1 Pet. 2:4–8), all believers have become “living stones” by virtue of their association with Christ, with the apostles as the foundation (Eph. 2:20, 21; Rev. 21:14). When Peter says that Jesus must not go to the cross, he is not called a foundation rock, but a stumbling stone (v. 23).’

Gregg R. Allison advocates a hybrid of the first two views: the ‘rock’ is Peter, by virtue of his confession.

This view finds support in the prominent place Peter occupies in gospel witness and the expansion of the church:

‘He’s the first to announce the gospel to the Jews (Acts 2:14–41). Together with John, he confirms the inclusion of the Samaritans in the church (Acts 8:14–25). Finally, he is instrumental in the conversion of the first Gentiles (Acts 10–11).’

The special place of Peter in the early church is thus recognised (but not the idea that Peter is the first Pope, the vicar of Christ and the infallible head of the church).

D. A. Carson:

‘What the NT does show is that Peter is the first to make this formal confession and that his prominence continues in the earliest years of the church (Ac 1–12). But he, along with John, can be sent by other apostles (Ac 8:14), and he is held accountable for his actions by the Jerusalem church (Ac 11:1–18) and rebuked by Paul (Gal 2:11–14). He is, in short, primus inter pares (“first among equals”), and on the foundation of such men (Eph 2:20), Jesus built his church.’ (EBC)

4. Michael Heiser suggests that ‘this rock’ is the very ground they were standing on

Jesus and his disciples were at this time in Caesarea Philippi, near the foot of Mount Hermon.  In the OT, this region was known as Bashan, and was believed to be the gateway to the underworld, Sheol/Hades, the realm of the dead and of demons.  Heiser adds that the phrase

‘the gates of hell shall not prevail against it’ suggests on onslaught on the church by the forces of evil.  But, he writes, the word ‘against’ is not present in the Greek.  ‘Translating the phrase without it gives it a completely different connotation: “the gates of hell will not withstand it.  It is the Church that Jesus sees as the aggressor. He was declaring war on evil and death. Jesus would build His Church atop the gates of hell—He would bury them.’

(I Dare You Not To Bore Me With The Bible)

Conclusion

I find Allison’s understanding (3) above, to be quite persuasive.