Fourth Day Continued

Wednesday, June 8, 1994

Tiberias

We are at Banias originally called Paneas, in honor of the Greek god, Pan whose shrine is located here. Rebuilt by Herod's son Phillip and called Caesera Philippi after Caesar Tiberias and himself, this is where Peter made the great confession about Jesus, "You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God."

William Barclay writes, "The area was scattered with temples of ancient Syrian Baal worship. Here was an area where the breath of ancient religion was in the very atmosphere. Here was the place beneath the shadow of the ancient gods.

Not only the Syrian gods had their worship here... by Caesera Phillipi there rose a great hill, in which was a deep cavern; and that cavern was said to be the birthplace of the god, Pan, the god of nature. So much was Caesera Philippi identified with that god that its original name was Panias, and to this day the place is known as Banias. The legends of the Greek gods gathered around Caesera Philippi.

Further, that cave was said to be the place where the sources of the Jordan River sprang to life. Josephus writes, 'This is a very fine cave in a mountain, under which there is a great cavity in the earth; and the cavern is abrupt, and prodigiously deep and still full of water. Over it hangs a vast mountain, and the under the cavern arises the springs of the River Jordan.' The very idea that this was the place which the Jordan River took its rise would make it redolent of all the memories of Jewish history. The ancient faith of Judaism would be in the air for anyone who was a devout and pious Jew.

But there was something more. In Caeserea Philippi there was a great temple of white Marble built to the godhead of Caesar. It had been built by Herod the Great. Later (as mentioned earlier) it was Philip, Herod's son, who further beautified and enriched the temple, changed the name of Panias to Caeserea- Caesar's town- added his own name to distinguish it from the Caeserea on the coasts of the Mediterranean. No one could look at Caeserea Philippi, even from a distance, without seeing that pile of glistening marble, and thinking of the might and of the divinity of Rome.

Here is a dramatic picture. Here a homeless, penniless Galilean carpenter, with twelve very ordinary men around Him, at the moment the orthodox are plotting to kill Him, stands and asks the question, 'Who do men say that I am?' He stands there in an area littered with the temples of the Syrian gods; in a place where the ancient Greek gods looked down; in a place where the history of Israel crowded in upon the minds of men; where the white marble splendor of the home of Caesar-worship dominated the landscape and compelled the eye. And there- of all paces this amazing carpenter stands and asks men Who they believe Him to be and expects an answer, 'the Son of God.' It is as if Jesus deliberately set Himself against the background of the world's religions in all their history and splendor, and demanded to be compared with them and to have the verdict given in His favor. There are few scenes where Jesus' consciousness of His Own Divinity shines out with a more dazzling light."

We hiked over three miles back into this preserve, very possibly in the places where Jesus and the disciples walked. What beautiful sights we saw. The waterfalls were spectacular. It was hot and the cool mist in the shade felt so refreshing.