16:13 The district of Caesarea Philippi lay 25 miles north of Galilee. Its inhabitants were mainly Gentiles. Herod Philip II, the tetrarch of the region, had enlarged a smaller town on the site at the foot of Mt. Hermon.619He named it Caesarea in honor of Caesar, and it became known as Caesarea Philippi in distinction from the Caesarea on the Mediterranean coast.
Since Jesus had previously used the title "Son of Man"of Himself, His question must have meant, who do people say that I am? The disciples answered accordingly.
16:14 There were many different opinions about who Jesus was. Some, including Herod Antipas, believed He was the resurrected John the Baptist (14:2). Others believed He was the fulfillment of the Elijah prophecy, namely the forerunner of the Messiah (Mal. 4:5-6; cf. Matt. 3:1-3; 11:9-10; 17:10-13). Some concluded that Jesus was the resurrected Jeremiah probably because of similarities between the men and their ministries. For example, both men were quite negative toward Israel generally, and both combined authority and suffering in their ministries. Still other Jews thought Jesus was some other resurrected prophet. It is interesting that the disciples did not say that some said Jesus was the Messiah. That opinion was not a popular one reflecting the widespread unbelief in Israel.
"What we must recognize is that christological confession was not cut and dried, black or white. It was possible to address Jesus with some messianic title without complete conviction, or while still holding some major misconceptions about the nature of his messiahship, and therefore stopping short of unqualified allegiance or outright confession."620
16:15-16 The "you"in verse 15 is in the emphatic first position in the Greek text, and it is plural. Peter responded, therefore, partly as spokesman for the disciples, again. Peter said he believed Jesus was the Christ, the Messiah that the Old Testament prophesied, the hope of Israel (cf. 1:1).
He further defined Jesus as the Son of the living God. This is a more definite identification of Jesus as deity than "God's Son"or "a son of God"(14:33). That title leaves a question open about the sense in which Jesus was God's Son. The Jews often described their God as the living God, the contrast being with dead idols. By referring to God this way Peter left no doubt about the God who was the Father of Jesus. He was the true God. Since Jesus was the Son of God, He was the Messiah, the King over the long anticipated earthly kingdom (cf. 2 Sam. 7:14; Isa. 9:6; Jer. 23:5-6; Mic. 5:2). Peter expressed belief that Jesus was both Messiah and God.
This was probably not the first time that the idea that Jesus was the Messiah had entered Peter's mind. The disciples followed Jesus hoping that He was the Messiah (John 1:41, 45, 49). However, as we have seen, the disciples gained a growing awareness and conviction that Jesus really was the Messiah. Their appreciation of the implications of His messiahship would continue to grow as long as they lived, though Jesus' resurrection resulted in their taking a giant step forward in this understanding. Peter's great confession here was an important benchmark in their understanding and faith.
"Matthew shows that whereas the public in Israel does not receive Jesus and wrongly conceives of him as being a prophet, Peter, as spokesman for the disciples, confesses Jesus aright to be the Son of God and so reveals that the disciples' evaluative point of view concerning Jesus' identity is in alignment with that of God [cf. 3:17; 17:5]."621
16:17 "Blessed"(Gr. makarios) identifies someone whom God has singularly favored and who, therefore, enjoys happiness (cf. 5:3-11). It is not the announcement of some special benediction or blessing on Peter for answering as he did.622However, verse 19 does reveal that Peter would receive a reward for his confession. "Barjonas"is a Greek transliteration of the Hebrew bar yonahmeaning "son of Jonah"(short for Yohanan). This address stressed Peter's human nature. Jesus only used this full name for Peter when He had something very important to say to him (cf. John 1:42; 21:15).
Peter gained the insight about Jesus that he had just expressed because God had given it to him (cf. 11:27; cf. John 6:44). It did not come from Peter himself. "Flesh and blood"was a Hebrew idiom for man as a mortal being (cf. 1 Cor 15:50; Gal. 1:16; Eph. 6:12; Heb. 2:14).623Jesus perceived that Peter's confession came from God-given revelation. However not all such statements about Jesus did or do necessarily (cf. 21:9; 27:54).
