Jesus in Hell? 1Peter3:18-22

The Apostle's Creed states in the fourth tenet: “Suffered under Pontius Pilate; was crucified, dead and buried: He descended into hell;” the Athanasian Creed (article 38) says the same. The Nicene Creed leaves out, “He descended into hell.” Though we draw our teaching and authority from the scriptures rather than from creeds, these statements are not inconsequential. Many Christians have grown up in traditions that regularly quote one of these and have come to accept the statements as Biblical truth.

The bases for speaking of Jesus descending into hell include 1Peter 3:19 along with Ephesians 4:8-9, Acts 2:27(Psalm16:10), and 1Peter 4:6 (and perhaps others). We want to discern the intent as well as the content of the scripture. We can best determine what the Holy Spirit was conveying through Peter by keeping the verses in the context in which they were written.

Words in this section of scripture that stand out:

ALSO - Christ also suffered. (as you are now suffering)

BRING - Jesus ushers us into relationship with God.

PROCLAIMED - can mean just to declare something, but this sense is rare in New Testament writings. Normal in NT – “to preach the gospel”

PRISON - to some held captive, most likely as punishment

SAVED - from ___, to ____, by _____, involving ____, demonstrated by _____

SUBJECT - what source is available as we go through suffering

SOME CLASSIC INTERPRETATIONS

• Between his death and resurrection, Jesus went into hell and gathered the Old Testament people who trusted Him and released them to heaven. (The Harrowing of Hell) – Roman Catholic

• Jesus, pre-incarnate preached repentance through Noah to people of his day who would eventually be destroyed in the flood. Augustine and most reformed theologians

• Jesus preached in the interval between His death and Resurrection, proclaiming His victory to the spirits of Noah's day who are confined in the realm of the dead or

  to imprisoned fallen angels who caused trouble in Noah's day (Genesis 6:2,4) John MacArthur and others

• Jesus proclaimed His victory to fallen angels at His Ascension into heaven. Jesus preached to those who once heard Noah but were now in prison and offered them a second chance. We can rule this one out by Hebrews 9:27 ...once to die but after this judgment... and by asking, “why these of all in eternal punishment?”

MacArthur points out:

• “in spirit” (His spirit, not the Holy Spirit) alive in spirit though His body is dead.

• “He went” denotes from one place to another

• “to the spirits” the word used is pneumasin rather than psuchai, the normal designation of human spirit or soul.

• “prison” = an actual place rather then merely a condition and compares this to the abyss or pit in Revelation 9:1-2 (though not the same Greek word) and points to 2Peter 2:4

Concluding that Jesus proclaimed victory to spirits that were: 1)under Satan's command in the days of Noah and 2)spoken of as “sons of God” in Genesis 6 who corrupted marriage and perhaps possessed men who married and 3)produced especially evil offspring (Nephilim); these spirits being in particular bondage waiting their final judgment at the end of time (not to be released by Satan at the fifth trumpet of Revelation 9)

ANOTHER PERSPECTIVE

Jesus did not go to Hell (punishment) – in Psalm 16:10 (quoted in Acts 2:27)“hell” and “corruption” are synonymous and speak of the grave – because His torment was finished on the cross. Rather, He went (in spirit) to Paradise to be with His Father, accompanied by the thief until His resurrection and eventual ascension.

THE PURPOSE OF THE PASSAGE That We May Know:

Jesus' suffering ushered us (believers) to God.

God is gracious and patient, but the opportunity to accept salvation in Jesus alone, by faith alone is a limited time offer.

To reject the gospel is to choose eternal punishment.

God's instrument of judgment of the wicked in Noah's day (the flood) was God's instrument of salvation to the faithful.

Salvation is from sin and death, to life and holiness, by God, involving faith and faithfulness, demonstrated by water by which Noah was buoyed and in which believers are”buried”

Jesus, at the right hand of God, with angels, authority, and power is the reason for our hope (v.15) and our leader in victory.