The two men respond quite differently. When they meet Ross and Angus, the former tells Macbeth:
And, for an earnest of a greater honour,
He bade me, from him, call thee thane of Cawdor:
In which addition, hail, most worthy thane!
For it is thine.
He is saying that King Duncan has requested that they greet Macbeth with the title thane of Cawdor which he has bestowed upon Macbeth in honour of his great service.
Banquo is surprised and exclaims:
What, can the devil speak true?
Since the witches are servants of the devil and their purpose therefore evil, he cannot believe that a prediction by them could have had such goodness.
Macbeth is skeptical and informs Ross:
The thane of Cawdor lives: why do you dress me
In borrow'd robes?
Ross then informs him that the king had commanded that the thane of Cawdor be executed for acts of treason by assisting Macdonwald and the Norwegians against Scotland. His betrayal has led to his downfall.
In an aside Macbeth states that he now has two titles, thane of Glamis and Cawdor and that the 'greatest is behind', meaning that he has now breached one of his greatest hurdles and this brings him closer to obtaining what he wants - the title of king. he then addresses Banquo, asking if this announcement does not now give him hope that his children will be kings, since that is what the witches prophesied.
Banquo is quite cynical and not as easily swayed by what the witches had said. He pronounces:
That trusted home
Might yet enkindle you unto the crown,
Besides the thane of Cawdor. But 'tis strange:
And oftentimes, to win us to our harm,
The instruments of darkness tell us truths,
Win us with honest trifles, to betray's
In deepest consequence.
He tells Macbeth that since the first prediction has been realised, it might bring him the crown as well. He then expresses his doubt about such predictions for he believes that the forces of evil provide us with truths and small benefits in order to drag us deeper into their snares and then betray us. The consequences of such betrayal are much greater than one would have expected and end in perdition. In effect, Banquo is warning Macbeth not to take the witches at their word and to be careful.
Macbeth is clearly overwhelmed by the fact that the prediction has come true. In a lengthy aside aside he expresses the fact that the witches have predicted two truths: that he will be thane of Cawdor and will become king. He has accepted the fact that he will be king. 'The swelling act' and 'the imperial theme' are both references to this.
In his aside he considers the consequences of the witches' predictions and determines that it cannot be good or bad, but that it has made him nervous and anxious for his heart is beating faster. It is here that Macbeth expresses his intent to become king by foul means:
... Present fears
Are less than horrible imaginings:
My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical,
Shakes so my single state of man that function
Is smother'd in surmise, and nothing is
But what is not.
The thought about murdering king Duncan has already formed in his mind and this makes him afraid. Everything about this act is still clouded in thought and the only reality is that nothing is certain.
Banquo notices that Macbeth is 'rapt' - overwhelmed and deep in thought. In another aside Macbeth declares that if the forces of chance would make him king, then they might do so without any action from him. The idea of murder is a horrific one. Banquo ironically comments that Macbeth is overcome by 'new horrors' without realising the truth of what he speaks. He comments further that the only way one can become accustomed to a new situation/title is to use it, just as we do when wearing new clothes - they feel more comfortable over time.
In another aside, Macbeth states that whatever situations he may face, there is no doubt that time would march on, implying that his moment for greater glory will definitely come. In the end, he requests that he and Banquo have a private conversation later to freely and openly discuss the events of the day. Banquo agrees. The men then all leave 'toward the king.'
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