12 Then they understood that He did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the1 doctrine of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
Peter Confesses Jesus as the Christ
13 When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, a“Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?”
14 So they said, a“Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or bone of the prophets.”
15 He said to them, “But who do ayou say that I am?”
16 Simon Peter answered and said, a“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, afor flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but bMy Father who is in heaven.
18And I also say to you that ayou are Peter, and bon this rock I will build My church, and cthe gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.
Peter proclaims Jesus to be the Messiah, and Jesus speaks of building His church and being crucified and resurrected. This was a major step forward in the disciples' understanding, and it corrected the erroneous prophetic teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees. However, from the incident that occurs in verses 22-23, we can see that Peter—and probably the other disciples also—were not yet fully convinced of it.
