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On saying this He left them and went away, refusing to argue with them. The sign of
Jonah meant death and resurrection, but this was beyond the understanding of the carnal
minds of the Lord's enemies.
The Lord Jesus and the disciples proceed across the lake and He warns them of the
leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees (verses 5, 6). The disciples began to discuss
among themselves the meaning of this statement, and they decided it was because they
had forgotten to bring bread with them (7).
It was quite pathetic that they should have come to this conclusion after the
miraculous feeding of the multitudes. Surely they should have had no anxiety about food
so long as He was with them! Christ reminds them of this (verses 9, 10). "How is it", He
said, "that you do not understand that I was not talking to you about bread?". He was
warning them to be on their guard against the evil doctrine of the Pharisees and
Sadducees and at last they realized this, but merited the rebuke "you of little faith" (8).
This is another instance of yeast or leaven being used as an illustration of something evil
and not good, this being its consistent meaning in Scripture.
The dullness of the Twelve shows how slowly the education of the Lord's most
intimate disciples was progressing. We have no stones to throw at them for we are often
slow pupils in God's school and have to learn a lesson the second time, because of our
failure to grip His teaching the first time in His dealings with us.
No.25.
16: 13 - 19.
pp. 201 - 207
The Lord Jesus now goes northward to Caesarea Philippi, which was situated on a
spur of Mt. Hermon and was under the rule of Herod Philip. He questions the disciples
concerning the current gossip relating to Himself:
"When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked the disciples, Who do
people say the Son of Man is?" (Matt. 16: 13, N.I.V.).
They tell Him that some considered Him to be John the Baptist, others thought He
might be Elijah, Jeremiah or another of the prophets. Matthew alone records the belief
that He was Jeremiah. Jeremiah was not much esteemed during his life, but came to be
regarded as one of the greatest of the prophets afterwards.
The Lord Jesus now turns to the disciples and puts the crucial question:
"But what about you? He asked, Who do you (emphatic) say I am?" (verse 15, N.I.V.).
This is what really mattered, what was their real estimate of Christ? It is still the most
important question and comes down to the present day to each one of us as the greatest of
challenges