Peter is indeed the foundation upon which the church was built, but so are the rest of the apostles (Eph 2:20). The Greek words used in both Matt 16:18 (“I will build) and Eph 2:20 (“built upon”) are different forms of the same verb (οικοδομεω). Matt 16:18 affirms that the church would be built upon Peter, and Eph 2:20 affirms that the church was built upon the apostles. The singling out of Peter in Matt 16:18 can be no more significant than Paul in Gal 2:20 singles himself out from among all other Christians to affirm that Christ died for him. Both passages are intended to personalize, not exclude. (Eric D. Svendsen, Evangelical Answers: A Critique of Current Roman Catholic Apologists [Lindenhurst, N.Y.: Reformation Press, 1999], 194 n. 32)
