Psalm 118:22b tells us that the stone which the builders rejected has become "the head of the corner." The Hebrew for "head of the corner" can also be translated "chief cornerstone." Although Christ was rejected by Israel as the builders of God, in resurrection God made Him the cornerstone for God's building. In Isaiah 28:16 Christ is unveiled as the foundation stone; in Zechariah 4:7, as the topstone; and in Psalm 118:22, as the cornerstone. Of these three kinds of stones, the cornerstone is the most crucial, for it joins together the two walls and thus enables God's building to stand.
Concerning Christ as the cornerstone, Acts 4:10-12 says, "Let it be known to you all and to all the people of Israel that in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified and whom God has raised from the dead, in this name this man stands before you in good health. This is the stone which was considered as nothing by you, the builders, which has become the head of the corner. And there is salvation in no other, for neither is there another name under heaven given among men in which we must be saved." The word in verse 12 about there not being another name in which we must be saved is often quoted by evangelists, but who ever points out that the Savior is the cornerstone? If Christ had not been made the cornerstone, He could not be the Savior.
In Ephesians 2:19-22 we have Paul's word regarding Christ as the cornerstone. "So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, being built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone; in whom all the building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling place of God in spirit." All the revelations, truths, and teachings concerning Christ that we have passed on to you from the Word have been about Christ as the cornerstone. Without Christ's being the cornerstone, we could not have been crucified with Him and resurrected with Him. Without Christ's being the cornerstone, we could not have been made alive with Him and seated with Him in the heavenlies. As the cornerstone Christ is everything; He is all-inclusive. Do you know what we are doing in all our meetings? We are building up God's building by Christ as the cornerstone.
The Psalms unveil Christ to us in a complete way. If we did not have Psalm 118, the revelation concerning Christ in the Psalms would not have been completed. Christ is unveiled from Psalm 2 through Psalm 110, which is the highest revelation of Christ. Nevertheless, we still need to see from Psalm 118 that Christ is the stone rejected by the builders but honored by God as the cornerstone. If Christ were not the cornerstone, He could not have died for us and for our sins, and He could not have died with us. If He were not the cornerstone, He could do nothing. Everything He is, everything He has done, and everything He is doing is due to the fact that He is the cornerstone. In Acts 4 we see that as the cornerstone He is the Savior, and in Ephesians 2 we see that as the cornerstone He is the building factor. Without Christ as the cornerstone, we cannot be built up together to be God's dwelling place, God's habitation, which is the unique temple in the universe. This temple is built up through Christ, by Christ, and with Christ as the cornerstone.