Matthew 16:16-19 NASB
(16) Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Peter makes his confession about Jesus’ divinity.
(17) And Jesus said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
Jesus tells Peter that this confession did not come from him but was a revelation from God.
(18) "I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.
Jesus gives Simon the name Peter, meaning rock. He tells Peter that He will build His church on this rock. He is not referring to Peter but to the revelation given to Peter and his confession of faith. That it does not refer to Peter personally is shown by the change in address. Up to this point, and following this point. Jesus has been talking to Peter about Peter. Then He changes from talking to Peter to talking about something. He goes:
- You are blessed.
- God revealed it to you.
- You are Peter.
- On this rock
- I give you the keys
- What you bind and loose.
If Jesus had meant He would build His church on Peter, He could have continued the pattern He was following, and then followed again, by saying On
you I will build my church.
With respect to the gates of Hades not overpowering it, this has also been translated “prevail against it” as in the Douay-Rheims translation. It can mean that Hades will not be able to conquer the church. However gates are a defensive construct used to keep in or to prevent others to get in. My view is that this means that Hades, or death, will not be able to stop the church’s work in breaking in and freeing the prisoners of death and sin.
(19) “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.”
Peter is given the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. The way into the Kingdom is through the Gospel message. Peter will be the one to open this door by being the first to proclaim the Gospel to the Jews and then the first to proclaim it to the Gentiles.
The binding and loosing is not given to Peter alone. In Matthew 18:18 it is given to all the Apostles. They exercise it in deciding what of the ordinances given to Israel are binding on the church. An example of exercising this power was at the Council of Jerusalem. It was personal to the Apostles and doesn’t apply to their successors. When power is to descend like that, the Scriptures generally say to you and your descendants or successors. This is absent here.
