The traditional version of the Apostles’ Creed in English says:
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit
and born of the virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to hell.
St. Augustine asked in the fifth century, “Who, therefore, but an infidel will deny that Christ was in hell?” (Ep. 164).
Yet the phrase “he descended to hell” has always been bit controversial and people have wondered about its biblical warrant or lack thereof.
There is that tricky passage in 1 Pet 3:18-20, about Jesus preaching to the spirits in prison, but that’s a strange and difficult text open to a variety of interpretations, it doesn’t have to mean Jesus preaching in hell.
I hasten to add too that in biblical eschatology, there is a difference between the waiting place of the dead and the place of the wicked after the final judgment. First, there is Sheol (Hebrew) and Hades (Greek) which signifies the “waiting place of the dead” ahead of the final judgment. Second, there is Gehenna (“hell” or “perdition”) which is the final destination of the wicked after judgment, which is described with a wide variety of images and metaphors such as eternal darkness, locked outside in the cold with chattering teeth, and a lake of fire!
So there’s a difference between Hades (waiting place of the dead) and Gehenna (place of everlasting destruction).
Plus, what if hell doesn’t exist yet? In the Book of Revelation, John says that death and Hades will be thrown into the lake of fire (Rev 20:14). I take that to mean that hell has no occupants until the final judgment. So how could Jesus go to hell and preach to people chained there if there are no residents in hell yet?
But here’s the problem. Often Hades and Hell got mixed up! For instance, in the KJV of Matt 16:18 we read, “And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” But the Greek word here is hades not gehenna, which is why most translations say something like, “the gates of Hades will not overcome it,” or as I’d say, “The doors of death shall not withstand it.”
This is also why contemporary versions of the Apostles’ Creed have a much better rendition:
believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
So did Jesus go to hell? The answer is “No!” But it’s complex to explain why not, why this error was introduced, and what Jesus actually did between Good Friday and Easter Sunday. So let me break it down for you simply!
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