This is a good question and it seems that the person asking the question is confounding two different things. One the death of Jesus and one is a verse found in 1 Peter that says Jesus went to preach to those who were bound . I love the bible as it takes careful reading to understand . Yet we can only understand the bible through the Holy Spirt .
Many times people think there are contradictions in the bible because we read too fast, we do not look at the context. First let us see if Jesus went to hell when He died . But above al let us see if there is a hell ? Did Jesus descend into hell 3 days ? If not who did go to those bound to preach ?
Did Jesus descend into hell 3 days ? Is there a hell
This is the verse about supposedly Jesus going to hell to preach .
1 Pet. 3:18–20 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, in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, 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.
Hell is a pagan concept that is not found in the bible . The bible always talks about eternal destruction or eternal salvation . The bible does use words such as They will burn forever and ever or for ages. What does it mean .
MT 3 12 Whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.
Here the word unquenchable means that the fire will not be put out until it does its job . We need to keep in mind when we read the bible that we need to understand how God speaks . God has a way of speaking and his expressions are very different that how we speak today . Plus the words in the bible date back to 1611 in the King James bible and have different meaning that today ;
Did Jesus descend into hell 3 days ? Meaning of the words
For exempla when Genesis says refill, in the king James bible times refill meant fill . Even if the glass was never filled, someone would say refill. Paul says I wanted to go to Jerusalem but i was let. Let means allowed today. In bible times it means the opposite, it meant i was hindered. The words unquenchable or forever does not mean the fires will burn forever ?
It means the fires will continue until they do their work. It means that the outcome of the fire will be forever. This is the 1611 meaning of the words. When we burn a book biblically we can say The book burned forever ? Did the book burn forever ? No but the outcome is forever. Forever the book will be no more, forever the book will not come back to life, forever the book will be out of existence. But the book did not burn forever ? The book burned until the fire did its job .
Did Jesus descend into hell 3 days ? No and let us continue learning about the apparent contradictions in the bible about hell. Note they are only apparent .
MT 25 46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.
Here the same meaning is intended and the meaning of the expression everlasting punishment does not mean the punishment will be forever ? It means that the outcome of the fires of hell will destroy people forever . The outcome of the punishment will be forever. But the bible never says there will be forever punishing.
MT 10 28 28 And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
Here Jesus says plainly that God will destroy the soul and body in hell . This hell is the fire at the end of the millennium . When the 1000 years end, when the holy city descends, the people who will have rejected Jesus will be raised up to be destroyed forever.
Re 20 says God will send fire and He will destroy the wicked. The word destroy or consume is plain . It means they will be no more .
RE 20 9 And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.
MT 25 41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.
There is a fire prepared for the wicked it is the end of millennium fire . But nowhere does the bible say that this fire will burn forever. God is too good to make people burn forever in hell for a few sins during their 80 years lifespan . This would be terribly unjust from God to make people burn forever for a few years of being selfish, proud, unloving, unkind, dishonest.
Did Jesus descend into hell 3 days ? Verses about eternal destruction
JA 1 15 Sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death” Sin brings forrth death. Here too it does not say death comes right away . As with Adam and Eve they did not die right away bit death came . Here it is talking about eternal death that the wicked have chosen to partake of .
RO 6 23
“The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” We chose by our behaviour where we will spend eternity . Either in heaven or destroyed forever ? All our sins can be forgiven freely I do not understand why some people refuse to ask God to forgive them and do amends of the things they have done against God and against others.
JN 5 28 “The hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation” The resurection of condemnation . We condemn ourselves when we refuse to love God and love others. Following this society will not have you be pleasant to God because All that is highly esteemed in this world is abomination for God .
JOB 21 30 “That the wicked is reserved to the day of destruction? … Yet shall he be brought to the grave, and shall remain in the tomb” The wicked are reserved for the day of destructon . What makes one wicked. Most people do not know . If you read more Earthlastday.com articles you can find out . Even most Christians do not know what evil is . Pride is the basis of Satan fall it is pride .
Satan believed that what God gave him, the glory the beauty, the intelligence came from himself. This is pride . Pride is believing and claiming falsely that what God gives us we did ourselves. It is a deception and lying and robbing God of the glory that belongs tu Him only . Pride is one of the thing that is not taught yet will have billions destroyed in hell . Other sins are selfishness, and being unloving .
RE 21 8 all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. This verse proves also that wicked such as liars in this case Wil be destroyed in hell.
MT 13 40 42 “So it will be at the end of this age. The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will ... cast them into the furnace of fire”
RE 20 9 “They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them”
PR 11 31 “If the righteous will be recompensed on the earth, how much more the ungodly and the sinner” This verse says that the warnings of God and his rebuke come already on earth . By experience i see that God rebukes someone he loves much faster than a proud and selfish person . The righteous is blessed already on earth, the wicked already receive punishment on earth .
EX 8 11,12 11 Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. 12 Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him:
Now that we have defined that hell is not forever then let us see those verses about Jesus preaching in hell .
Did Jesus descend into hell 3 days ? Those who make it to heaven
When Jesus died He did not go to hell as we see there is no such thing as hell. The bible never teaches that there is a hell right now . The bible says that when the judgment is over and the wicked are raised then they will die a second time and Gof will send fire and devour and destroy them . It will be a very sad time for God . As God loves everybody even the most wicked person is loved by God.
But God cannot allow in his kingdom someone who is proud, thus liar and covetous. Someone who is selfish who does not help others unselfishly . Someone who is rude to others and treats people very unkindly . God has to protect those who will make it to heaven with only people who are honest, humble, loving and kind . In fact only those who are like Jesus
MT 11 28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
Unless we become like Jesus we shall never enter heaven . Realize that there is nothing good in you . Realize that you cannot change your heart. See that only God is righteousness and righteousness is only found in God . Then we should ask Him everyday to out his righteousness in us the which will be able to change our hearts into Jesus likeness.
Did Jesus descend into hell 3 days ? Jesus in the grave
When Jesus was in the grave where did Jesus go ? Nowhere . The spirit goes back to God and the body decays. This is what happens to a normal human being . When Jesus talked to Nicodemus He said . Nobody went up to heaven except Me Jesus who is still in heaven . The divine Jesus was still in heaven .
JN 3 13 13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.
Jesus also said, destroy my body and in three days I will raise it up . Jesus resurrected his own body . The divine Jesus who was still in heaven . The Jesus was slit divine and 100 percent men at the same time . It is a mystery . We know that Jesus did not go to hell when He died.
Did Jesus descend into hell 3 days ? Jesus preaching in hell
2 PE 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.”
We have to out a few verses together to understand the context. We see the context talks about the times of Noah . Did God send angels to hell ? Or does it say darkness ? A place of darkness. Compared to heaven , earth is a place of darkness and hell for them . It correlates with the people in the time of Noah who were also in spiritual darkness. In Noah s times people were in the bound of unbelief, they were in chains of darkness and they did not believe the flood would happen .
EPH 4 8-10 8 Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. 9 (Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth? 10 He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.
Does this passage say that Jesus went to hell ? No it says Jesus ascended up on high and descended to the lower parts of the earth .
1 PE 3 18-20 18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: 19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison; 20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.
Does this passage say Jesus went to hell ? No leat us read carefully . It says Jesus went to preach to those who were in prison ? Which prison ? The chains of darkness or unbelief we saw above . When did Jesus do that ? It says in the days of Noah. Was Jesus present in the days of Noah physically ? No then who went to preach then ? It says
2 PE 3 18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:
19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;
Here it says that it was the Holy Spirit of Jesse went to preach by the Holy Spirit in the times of Noah . Jesus never went to hell as there is no hell . Nobody is in hell today . Jesus preached through the Holy Spirit, in the times of Noah .
2 PE 3 10 “The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up”
All things on earth Wil be destroyed, the wicked also that will be resurrected. They will die once, then resurrect to burn . What a terrible fate. Why not ask God to help you be like Jesus and to give you his righteousness. Now ? Jesus really loves you a lot Why not give Him your heart now ? Repeat after me Father God forgive my sins, come into my heart ? Bless and help me . Give me your righteousness help me walk with you in the name of Jesus amen .
