THE experience at the Baptism signified the inception of Jesus’ messianic consciousness. In the neighbourhood of Cæsarea Philippi he revealed his secret to the Disciples. It was before the High Priest that he first openly made profession of his messianic office. Therefore the messianic consciousness underlay all the while his preaching of the Kingdom of God. But he does not assume on the part of his hearers any knowledge of the position which belonged to him. The faith which he required had nothing to do with his person, but it was due only to the message of the nearness of the Kingdom. It was the Fourth Evangelist who first presented the history of Jesus as if it concerned itself chiefly with his personality. We cannot estimate how far his real character may have shone through his message, for such as had an awakened understanding. One thing is certain: up to the time of the [pg 128] mission of the Twelve no one had the faintest idea of recognising in him the Messiah. At Cæsarea Philippi the Disciples could only reply that the people took him for a prophet or for Elijah the Forerunner, and they themselves knew no better, for Peter, as Jesus himself said, did not derive his knowledge from the Master’s ministry in work and word, but owed it to a supernatural revelation. The Synoptical notices must be judged in accordance with this fundamental fact. In the first place, there is a series of Matthean passages which stand at variance with it. Mt 9:27-31: In the Galilean parallel to the healing of the blind man at Jericho it is related that two blind men pursued him through the whole village with the cry, “Son of David.” What Jesus means by the warning, “See that no man knows it,” remains indeed obscure. Mt 12:23: After a miraculous healing the people whisper to themselves whether this is not the Son of David. Mt 14:33: After their experience at sea in the boat the Disciples fall down before him saying, “Truly thou art the Son of God.” Mt 15:22: The Canaanitish woman addresses him as the Son of David,—whereas [pg 129] according to Mark she simply falls at his feet and cries for help. All of these passages are peculiar to Matthew and belong to a secondary literary stratum. For the history of Jesus they have no importance, but a great deal for the history of the history of Jesus. They show us, that is, how the later time was inclined even more and more to depict his life in harmony with the presumption that he not only knew himself to be the Messiah but that others also had this impression of him.