The concept that Jesus went to hell
after His death on the cross comes primarily from the Apostles’
Creed, which states, “He descended into hell.” There are also a few
Scriptures which, depending on how they are translated, describe Jesus going to
“hell.” In studying this issue, it is important to first understand what the
Bible teaches about the realm of the dead.
In the Hebrew Scriptures, the word
used to describe the realm of the dead is sheol. It simply means “the place of
the dead” or “the place of departed souls/spirits.” The New Testament Greek
equivalent of sheol is hades, which also refers to “the place of
the dead.” Other Scriptures in the New Testament indicate that sheol/hades is a
temporary place, where souls are kept as they await the final resurrection and
judgment. Revelation 20:11–15
gives a clear distinction between hades and the lake of fire. The lake of fire
is the permanent and final place of judgment for the lost. Hades, then, is a
temporary place. Many people refer to both hades and the lake of fire as
“hell,” and this causes confusion. Jesus did not go to a place of torment after
His death, but some biblical scholars believe He did go to hades.
Sheol/hades was a realm with two
divisions—a place of blessing and a place of judgment (Matthew 11:23; 16:18; Luke 10:15; 16:23; Acts 2:27–31). The abodes of the saved and
the lost are both generally called “hades” in the Bible. The abode of the saved
is also called “Abraham’s bosom” (KJV) or “Abraham’s side” (NIV) in Luke 16:22 and “paradise” in Luke 23:43. The abode of the unsaved is
called “hell” (KJV) or “Hades” (NIV) in Luke 16:23. The abodes of the saved and the
lost are separated by a “great chasm” (Luke 16:26). When Jesus died, some interpret He went to
the blessed side of sheol and, from there, took the believers with Him to
heaven (Ephesians 4:8–10).
The judgment side of sheol/hades has remained unchanged. All unbelieving dead
go there awaiting their final judgment in the future. Did Jesus go to
sheol/hades? One could make that argument, according to Ephesians 4:8–10 and 1 Peter 3:18–20.
Some of the confusion has arisen
from such passages as Psalm 16:10–11 as translated in the King
James Version: “For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou
suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. . . . Thou wilt show me the path of
life.” “Hell” is not a correct translation in this verse. A correct reading
would be “the grave” or “sheol.” Jesus said to the thief beside Him, “Today you
will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43); He did
not say, “I will see you in hell.” Jesus’ body was in the tomb; His soul/spirit
went to be with the blessed in sheol/hades if you hold to this interpretation. Unfortunately, in many versions of
the Bible, translators are not consistent, or correct, in how they translate
the Hebrew and Greek words for “sheol,” “hades,” and “hell.”
Some have the viewpoint that Jesus
went to “hell” or the suffering side of sheol/hades in order to further be
punished for our sins. This idea is completely unbiblical. It was the death of
Jesus on the cross that sufficiently provided for our redemption. It was His
shed blood that effected our own cleansing from sin (1 John 1:7–9). As He hung there on the
cross, He took the sin burden of the whole human race upon Himself. He became
sin for us: “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we
might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). This imputation of sin
helps us understand Christ’s struggle in the garden of Gethsemane with the cup
of sin which would be poured out upon Him on the cross.
The
Bible
does not specifically state what happened to Jesus
immediately after He died on the cross. Because of this, there is debate
surrounding the answer to the question of where He went and what He did.
So, I will present differing views so you might know the scope of the answer
and decide for yourself which position is preferable.
Perhaps
the best-known scripture that appears to deal with this issue is found in 1 Pet. 3:18-20:
"For Christ
also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, in order that He
might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in
the spirit; 19 in which also He went and made proclamation to the spirits now
in prison, 20 who once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting
in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that
is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water."
When Jesus was made
alive in the spirit, it is not saying that His spirit died, and then it became
alive again. "Made alive in the spirit" is contrasted with
"put to death in the flesh." He first lived as mortal men but “.
. . He began to live a spiritual 'resurrection'
life, whereby He has the power to bring us to God." Furthermore, some
Bibles (NIV, KJV, and NKJV) render the verse as "made alive by the
Spirit" referring to the Holy Spirit's work with Christ. “By
the Spirit” translates one word, pneumati, which could refer to the third
Person of the Trinity as the agent of Christ’s
resurrection.
One view where Jesus
was and what He did before His resurrection is that He went to Hades (the place
of the dead) and made proclamation to those who were in spiritual
prison. The word "proclamation" in Greek is
kerusso. It means to proclaim and is a different word than
"euaggelizo" which means to preach the gospel. Therefore, it is
most probable that Jesus was not preaching the gospel to those in Hades/Spirit
prison so they could be saved but was instead proclaiming the truth
to them. After all, the Bible says, "And inasmuch as it is appointed
for men to die once and after this comes judgment," (Heb. 9:27).
But who were the
ones in spiritual prison? Some believe it is the people who were alive at
the time of Noah's flood and who were killed in the flood. Others believe
it is all humanity who died before the time of the cross. There seems to
be support for the former position in 2 Pet. 2:4-5:
"For if God did
not spare angels
when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of
darkness, reserved for judgment; 5 and did not spare the ancient world, but
preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought
a flood upon the world of the ungodly."
Needless to say,
this passage also raises many questions and much debate can be found as to its
precise meaning. Nevertheless, as far as the other option goes, that
Jesus simply presented the facts concerning His work on the cross to those in
spiritual prison, we can look to Eph. 4:8-10 for possible support:
"When He
ascended on high, He led captive a host of captives, and He gave gifts to
men. 9 Now this expression, 'He ascended,' what does it mean except that
He also had descended into the lower parts of the earth? 10 He who descended is
Himself also He who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all
things . . .”
Some theologians
believe that during the three days between Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection,
He descended into Abraham's bosom (Luke 16:19-31),3
proclaimed to them the mystery of the gospel, and then led them into heaven to
dwell with God.
The belief is that they were not permitted to enter into the presence of God in
heaven until after the atonement. Once that had happened, Jesus, who had
died, descended to Abraham's bosom, proclaimed the gospel, and then led its
residents into heaven.
Robert
Mounce, in his commentary Living Hope, says that
the 1 Peter 3:18-20 passage is "widely
recognized as perhaps the most difficult to understand in all of the New
Testament." Even if one holds that Jesus did descend into hell to offer
salvation to those who had lived on earth before him, this special effort does
not apply to those who lived and died later.
There is
one thing of which we can be certain: Jesus' death was a literal
event, not some temporary state of unconsciousness. Hence, in his resurrection,
Christ did indeed conquer death—both in its spiritual and physical forms.
Bible-believing
Christians can allow themselves to differ on the nature of Jesus' descent into
hell. Some will be able to recite this part of the Apostles' Creed with
conviction, while others may choose to remain silent.
In Christ's Service,
Dr. Bryan Cox
No comments:
Post a Comment