Did Jesus Go To Hell Between Good Friday and Easter Sunday? Part 3

So did Christ, after His resurrection go and proclaim a triumphant message in Hell, according to 1 Peter 3:18-20?   There appears to be a couple options.  Let me chart them for you:

Option A		Option B
1. The spirits are unsaved humans that lived during Noah’s day (because of “. . . proclaimed to the spirits in prison, 20 because they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared . . ..”)		1. The spirits are the fallen angels who were cast into hell to await the final judgment because Almost without exception in the NT, “spirits” (plural) refers to supernatural beings rather than people (e.g., Matt. 8:16; 10:1; Mark 1:27; 5:13; 6:7; Luke 4:36; 6:18; 7:21; 8:2; 10:20; 11:26; Acts 5:16; 8:7; 19:12, 13; 1 Tim. 4:1; 1 John 4:1; Rev. 16:13–14; cf. Heb. 1:7)
2. They (the unsaved human spirits) are now in prison – undergoing judgment.		2. The word “prison” is not used elsewhere in Scripture as a place of punishment after death for human beings, while it is used for Satan (Rev. 20:7) and other fallen angels (2 Pet. 2:4; Jude 6).
Other supporting evidence:		3. In this case the message that Christ proclaimed is almost certainly one of triumph, after having been “put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit” (1 Pet. 3:18)
a. Peter calls Noah a “herald of righteousness” (2 Pet. 2:5),  where “herald” represents Greek κῆρυξ “preacher,” which corresponds to the noun κηρύσσω, “proclaim,” in 1 Pet. 3:19.
b. Peter says the “Spirit of Christ” was speaking through the OT prophets (1:11); thus Christ could have been speaking through Noah as an OT prophet.		4. Some interpreters limit these spirits to the  “sons of God” in Gen. 6:2–4 assuming they are angels who sinned by cohabiting with human women.  How does this relate contextually?  This occurred “when God's patience waited in the days of Noah” (1 Pet. 3:20)
c. The context indicates that Christ was preaching through Noah, who was in a persecuted minority, and God saved Noah, which is similar to the situation in Peter's time: Christ is now preaching the gospel through Peter and his readers (v. 15) to a persecuted minority, and God will save them.

“This passage is one of the most difficult to interpret in the Bible, there being more than 90 variations of interpretation attempted by Christian scholars since the second century.”^[1]  Both of the two options that I present contain problems.  Option A seems to hold more contextual integrity whereas Option B explains better the notion that in reality Christ did go, in chronological certainty, from His resurrection to the imprisoned spirits (“but made alive in the spirit, ¹⁹ in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison”).  My solution is a combination of both Options.  Could it be that Christ indeed went into Hades to preach to imprisoned spirits under damnation; and specifically to those who rejected the message of Noah?  In such case both the punishment for sin and the triumphal victory of Christ would be proclaimed by our risen Lord.  Maybe? 

Next Blog:  What about 1 Peter 4:4-6?

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^[1] Believer's Study Bible. 1997 (electronic ed.) (1 Pe 3:18). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

Did Jesus Go To Hell Between Good Friday and Easter Sunday? Part 2

Before we try to figure out who the spirits are and where the prison is, we need to ask the question as to why.  What would be the purpose of Christ proclaiming anything to imprisoned spirits?

1 Peter 3:18–22 (ESV) 

¹⁸ For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit, ¹⁹ in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, ²⁰ because they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water. ²¹ Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, ²² who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him.

Peter was writing to Christians who were going through various levels of persecution for their faith.  They may have been confused about this and perhaps not responding in the right ways.  “Peter exhorted them to stand strong, repeatedly reminding them of Christ’s example, the riches of their inheritance in him, and the hope of his returning again to take them to heaven.“^[1]

Where does this paragraph fit within the context of the Letter?  A suggested outline is:

I. Salutation (1:1-2)

                        II. The Identity of the People of God (1:3–2:10)

                        III. The Responsibilities of the People of God (2:11–4:11)

                                   A. Summary: The Mission of God’s People in the World (2:11-12)

                                   B. Respect: The Key to Living in the World (2:13–3:12)

                                   C. Doing Good: The Promise of Vindication (3:13–4:6)

                                                1. Suffering for Doing Good (3:13-17)

                                                2. The Triumph of Christ (3:18-22)

                                                3. Living for the Promise (4:1-6)

                                   D. Mutual Love: The Key to Christian Community in the End Times (4:7-11)

                          IV. The Responsibilities of a Church and its Elders in the Midst of Trials (4:12–5:11)

                          V. Concluding Remarks (5:12-14)

So within Peter’s encouragement to the Church he promises, that in the end, the persevering Christian will be vindicated. The wrongs will be made right.  He uses the triumph of Christ as an exhibit.  His argument goes like this:

                 I. The Triumph of Christ (18-22)

                       A. Triumph through suffering

                                   1. He suffered once for all concerning sin (18)

                                   2. He proclaimed to the spirits in prison (19-20)

                                   3. Noah as a type of our deliverance from sin (20-21)

                                   4. Christ's Triumph in His Session (22)

So who are these “spirits” and where are they?   Why was important for Christ to proclaim His victory to them? 

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^[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. 2001 (1 Pe). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.