=Journey to Phœnicia.= This great crisis marks an important turning-point in Jesus' ministry. Influenced by the evidences of the loss of public favor and of the open opposition of the Pharisees, he withdrew from public activity in Galilee and devoted himself more and more to the instruction and training of his disciples. Through them he realized that he was to accomplish his divine mission. On one occasion he departed with his disciples to the borders of Tyre and Sidon. It was a circuitous journey through the lofty, picturesque valleys of upper Galilee, down toward the fertile, warm plains of Phœnicia. The biblical narrative indicates that he did not enter the ancient city of Tyre, but proceeded northward, probably along the great coast road that ran through Sarepta and Sidon. At this time both of these cities were important commercial centres. Sidon lay on a promontory jutting out into the Mediterranean, with shallow, sandy harbors both on the north and on the south. The fertile fields and groves that encircled this northern metropolis, and its warm, sunny climate doubtless reminded Jesus and his disciples of their home at Capernaum. The Gospel narrative also implies that Jesus returned to Bethsaida through the Greek towns east of the Jordan, thus completely avoiding the territory of Antipas. =At Cæsarea Philippi.= Soon after, or possibly in connection with the same journey, Jesus visited Philip's capital at Cæsarea.^{(30)} It lay at the head of the Jordan valley, on the highway from northern Palestine to Damascus. About were picturesque hills, covered with poplars, oaks, and evergreens, and fertile gardens watered by the many streams that sprang from the base of Mount Hermon. The Roman town was situated on a triangular terrace, with the present Wady Hashabeh on the north and the Wady Zaareh on the south. On the east there was also a protecting moat, while the inner city was surrounded by thick walls and guarded by towers. It was not within this heathen city, but on the quiet hilltops and the spurs of Mount Hermon that rise to the north of the town, that Jesus found the refuge and quiet which he sought. Here, away from the Judean multitudes and the popular hopes of a temporal Messiah, Jesus told his disciples that he must accomplish his mission not by the sword or with the outward signs of triumph, but through suffering, ignominy, and death. Here, therefore, is to be sought the scene of that transfiguration which was so closely connected with his announcement to his disciples of the supreme sacrifice which he was about to make and which revealed to them his true character.