Who is the Rock in Matthew 16:13-19?

" 13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, 'Who do people say that the Son of Man is?' 14 And they said, 'Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.' 15 He said to them, 'But who do you say that I am?' 16 Simon Peter answered, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.' 17 And Jesus said to him, 'Blessed are you, Simon Barjona [son of Jonah], because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. 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. 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.' "

Who is the "rock" in this verse?

While many have puzzled over this, there is a simple answer. I have heard basically three explanations. Here is a basic summary of them:
1) Jesus declares that Peter is the "rock", the only "rock" that Jesus builds His church on.
2) Jesus is NOT saying that Peter is the "rock" nor is Peter in view as being the object on which Jesus builds the church. Jesus is here referring to himself as that "rock".
3) Jesus here declares Peter to be "this rock" while not excluding the possibility of there being other similar rocks. Jesus is here commenting on Peter's role because of his expression of faith without commenting one way or the other about other key persons.

In verse 17 Jesus is clearly addressing Peter. This address continues into verse 18. The second part of 18 is what concerns us. Then in verse 19 Peter is again the object of address and there he receives a special gift from Jesus, the keys of the kingdom.

So let's now focus on the problematic verse 18:

18 "I also say to you that you are Peter (Greek - Petros - a stone), and upon this rock (Greek - petra - a large bed-rock) I will build My church;"
It is important to understand that the name "Peter" in Greek meant "rock" or "stone". Also in this verse Jesus used a related word "petra" which meant "boulder" or large bed-rock. If we were to paraphrase this it would say something like:
"I also say to you that you are Stone, and upon this big Rock I will build My church"
Now let's analyze this passage verse-by-verse and taking careful note of the object of address. (Note that in the following breakdown, the reference to "you" is singular, referring to one person, not serveral.)
 
verse  phrase /paraphrase object of address
17 "And Jesus said to him, 'Blessed are you, Simon Barjona [son of Jonah], because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven." Peter
18 a 'I also say to you that you are Stone (Peter),' Peter
18 b "and upon this big Rock" who?
18 c "I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it." the church
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

Some persons believe that the reference to the figurative 'big Rock' is a deliberate play on words to draw attention to Peter who is the "stone". From this many have concluded belief number one mentioned at the beginning of this article.

But many others believe the 'big Rock' is not Peter but Jesus himself. They see this phrase as being:

"I also say to you that you are Stone, but upon this (gesturing to himself) big Rock I will build My church"
This second view uses as support some scriptures that clearly show Jesus is the foundation-stone or corner-stone for the church (Matthew 21:42; Mark 12:10; Luke 20;17; Luke 6:48; Acts 4:11; 1 Corinthians 3:11; Ephesians 2:19,20; 1 Peter 2:5-8).

So the first belief-system has Peter being THE Foundation-Rock of Matthew 16:18 and the second view has Jesus being THE Foundation-Rock (or corner-stone).

Now consider a third explanation and whether it fits all the verses. Is Peter one of several Foundation-Rocks upon which the church would be built?

Ephesians 2:19-22
" 19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God's household, 20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, 21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, 22 in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit."
and
Revelation 21:10-14
" 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, 11 having the glory of God. Her brilliance was like a very costly stone, as a stone of crystal-clear jasper. 12 It had a great and high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels; and names were written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel. 13 There were three gates on the east and three gates on the north and three gates on the south and three gates on the west. 14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb."
It is clear that all 12 apostles, including Peter, are foundation stones for the church, which is built upon Jesus who is the Primary Foundation Stone (also see 1 Peter 2:5; 1 Corinthians 3:16). However in Matthew 16:18 the focus is not on all twelve foundation stones, but specifically on Peter's role in the church's construction and the first step in that which is the act of Jesus giving him the keys of the kingdom. (This is not the only time Jesus gave a singular privilege to Peter. On another occasion, Jesus gave a special assignment for Peter to encourage the other disciples. See Luke 22:31,32).

Now with this information, which sounds more reasonable for Matthew16:18:
 

".  . . the Father revealed Me to you Simon Barjona. You are also called Stone, and I will build my church on such a big stone, along with the other apostles, and furthermore I will give you the keys of the kingdom."
Or
".  . . the Father revealed Me to you Simon Barjona. You may be called Stone, but I am Jesus and upon me, a big Stone, I will build my church. But I will give you the keys of the kingdom."

Conclusion

Peter is not the corner-stone, Jesus is. Jesus is also the real foundation for the entire structure. Peter is not the ONLY rock the church is built upon, there are 11 other foundation rocks (Ephesians 2:19-22; Revelation 21:10-14). But as for who is the "Rock" in Matthew 16:18, the most natural conclusion is Peter.