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).