This passage of Matthew's gospel has Jesus turning to the crowds that were with him learning from his activity and his teaching. They witnessed and interaction between Jesus and some of John the Baptist's disciples. Now Jesus prepares to teach them something about who John the Baptist was. At the same time Jesus teaches them something about themselves; how they search for the truth about God. By showing them that John the Baptist is the Elijah prophesied to return, they find out who Jesus is as they discover who John the Baptist is.