Biblical city
Caesarea Philippi
Banias, Golan Heights · Upper Galilee
Set at a spring beneath Mount Hermon and surrounded by pagan shrines, Caesarea Philippi is where Peter confessed Jesus as the Christ (Matthew 16:13-20). The site of Banias preserves the cave sanctuary of Pan and Herodian-era construction.
History in Scripture
At Caesarea Philippi Peter confessed, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God", and Jesus spoke of building his church and first foretold his death (Matthew 16).
The ancient city
The site lay at a spring of the Jordan beside a cave sacred to Pan, with a temple to Augustus nearby — a place thick with pagan and imperial worship, which sharpens the confession made there.
The site today
Banias in the Golan Heights is a nature reserve with the Pan sanctuary, temple remains and a waterfall trail.
Key passages
Sources & notes
Description summarizes standard historical and archaeological reference works. Imagery is added separately and is labeled by type.