Caesarea Philippi

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?" They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets." "But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?" Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. (Matthew 16:13-17)

Caesarea Philippi is situated high up in the Golan Heights on the southwestern slope of Mount Hermon, about 190 kilometres from Jerusalem and 80 kilometres from Damascus. It commands a strategic position on the main road through the Golan, dominating the valleys of northern Galilee below. From a cave at the foot of a steep bluff on the northern edge of the city flows one of the two sources of the river Jordan. For these reasons from earliest times, Caesarea Philippi has been a major centre for pagan worship.

Earliest records suggest it was a Canaanite sanctuary and perhaps the site of Baal-Hermon and the worship of the fertility god Baal (Judges 3:3; 1 Chronicles 5:23). A major battle took place here in 198 B.C. when the Egyptian army was defeated by the Seleucids under Antiochus the Great. During this time of Greek ascendancy in Palestine the site became an important centre for the worship of the god Pan and was renamed Paneas.

The region eventually fell to the Romans and in 20 B.C. the emperor Augustus bequeathed Paneas to Herod the Great. Herod built a pagan temple of white marble here dedicated to Augustus Caesar in appreciation of his benefactor. When Herod died, his son Philip became tetrarch and in 4 B.C. rebuilt the city. He renamed it Caesarea Philippi in deference to Augustus Caesar. He also added his own name to distinguish it from the other Caesarea on the Mediterranean coast. Herod Agrippa II, grandson of Herod the Great, subsequently changed its name to Neronias in honour of the emperor Nero. Still later, having put down the Jewish revolt, the Romans changed the name back to Paneas once again. Today the Syrian village, occupied by Israel since 1967, is now known by its Arabic name Baniyas.

Two niches cut into the face of the rock beside the cave are all that remain of its idolatrous origins. Caesarea Philippi is best remembered, however, as the place where the Lord Jesus Christ was revealed to be the Son of God. Six days after Jesus affirmed Peter's great confession, he was miraculously transfigured, probably nearby on Mount Hermon, meeting with Moses and Elijah, before his stunned disciples, Peter, James and John (Matthew 16:13-17:13). This high and remote region was a most appropriate place for Jesus to take his disciples on retreat to prepare them for his imminent humiliation, crucifixion and afterward, his triumphant resurrection. The transfiguration of Jesus gave a brief glimpse of his true eternal glory, laid aside when he came to earth but restored after his ascension (Philippians 2:5-11). On the basis of Peter's confession that Jesus was the Messiah, Jesus also first revealed his purpose for the Church here in Caesarea Philippi. "...on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it." (Matthew 16:18).

So it was at Caesarea Philippi then that Jesus asked his disciples the most important question they would ever face. "Who do you say that I am?" It is the same ultimate question we must answer if we too are to be transformed and become like Jesus. "And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory" (2 Corinthians 3:12-18; Romans 12:1-2).