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.

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

Was Jesus in hell preaching to the lost during this time frame, nearly 2000 years ago?   That is what the tradition English version of the Apostles Creed[1] suggests:

I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth.

And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; he descended into hell; the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy catholic Church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. AMEN.

The Latin: descendit ad inferna would suggest the same, as well as the Greek version.  There have been a number of views[2] suggested by this affirmation:

1. To some, the descent into hell represents the physical agony of death upon the Cross.  

2. To others, the word hell means Hades or Sheol, the collective abode of the dead, divided into Paradise or Abraham's Bosom--the state of God-fearing souls—and Gehenna, the state of ungodly souls. Thus the descent into hell may suggest that the Son of God carried the sins of the world to hell; or the Son of God carried Good News of deliverance to the godly dead such as Lazarus the beggar and the repentant thief.

3. Yet another view comes from a third-century Syrian Creed that speaks of Jesus, "who was crucified under Pontius Pilate and departed in peace, in order to preach to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and all the saints concerning the end of the world and the resurrection of the dead."

4. Finally, some denominations consider it optional or refuse to include it at all. The problem with this phrase begins with what it connotes.

Biblical evidence offered by some is rooted in two texts of Scripture.  They are:

 1 Peter 3:18–19 (ESV) — “8 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.”

 1 Peter 4:4–6 (ESV) — “4 With respect to this they are surprised when you do not join them in the same flood of debauchery, and they malign you; 5 but they will give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. 6 For this is why the gospel was preached even to those who are dead, that though judged in the flesh the way people are, they might live in the spirit the way God does.”

Some questions that must be answered integrally within this letter are:

1. How does chapter 4, verses 4 to 6 relate to chapter 3 verses 18 and 19, if indeed they do at all?

2. Does 3:19 and 4:6 assert that Christ went into Hell and preached there prior to Easter Sunday?

The study continues ………………..

 

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[1] http://www.creeds.net/ancient/apostles.htm

[2] http://www.creeds.net/ancient/descendit.htm