At his death did Jesus go in to hell?

“He descended in to hell” (Apostles Creed)

Did Jesus really go to hell at his death on Good Friday? The Apostles' Creed, which guides our Christian beliefs state that Jesus, "was crucified, dead, and buried. He descended into hell. The third day he rose again from the dead." This statement of Faith affirms that Jesus "descended into hell" which would have taken place between His crucifixion and resurrection. How do we understand or interpret the word “hell” with the help of the Holy Scriptures?

The Holy Scriptures do speak about a place which is allotted for the dead. Accordingly, there are two Greek words used in the Scriptures:

•       “The first is Gehenna ("hell"), the place of post-resurrection torment (judgment), refers strictly to the everlasting abode of the unredeemed where they experience divine judgment in their individual resurrection-bodies.” It is a place of no return. The person is abandoned for ever.  Therefore this word has no reference to Jesus as his death and resurrection takes place before the resurrection of the dead (including you and me) which will take place at his second Coming.

•       The second Greek word is Hadas (from which we get the English word Hades). This is the zone assigned for the dead before Jesus' resurrection from the dead. The spirits of all who died. Both the righteous and the unrighteous seems to have departed to Hades. In Jesus’ own teaching, found in Luke 16:19–31 we are taught that, there are two chambers in Hades. The first is a chamber where the soul of the rich man is in torment and agony due to fire (Luke 16:23,24). The second chamber is called “Abraham’s bosom or side” to which the angels carried Lazarus the beggar (Luke 16:22). While the two chambers are within the distance of Abraham and the Rich Man could talk to each other, there is a “great chasm or abyss” which separated the two. That chasm prevented any physical contact or dealings between those in the two chambers. Therefore, the important question is to which chamber did Jesus enter at his death?

The repentant thief dying on the cross was promised by Jesus saying "Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise." Where was this Paradise where both the souls of the repentant thief and Jesus were going to spend after their physical deaths.? Most probably It is the above mentioned chamber described as Abraham’s bosom, a place of comfort and rest for the righteous dead, which Jesus here calls “paradise”. Before Jesus’ entry to Hades it was understood during the time of the Old Testament as follows: “No one can live forever; all will die. No one can escape the power of the grave.” (Psalm 89:48) – the grave was a place of no hope, no return and every one had to go there at their death where they experienced the power and the sting of death (grave). However, there was also a ray of hope that the righteous would be redeemed from the power of the grave as written in Psalm 49:15 “But God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol” – Sheol is the Hebrew word for Hadas in Greek (Hades in English).

With Jesus dying for the sins of the whole world, he then, goes to Hades the “City of Death” to defeat and remove its power over the dead. The hope and the prayer of the faithful to God as written in Psalm 86:13 “For great is your steadfast love toward me; you have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol” was fulfilled with the entry of Jesus to Hades. St. Paul confirms this in Ephesians 4: 8-10 in saying:

“When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people.”

 (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.)

“…..he took many captives” means Jesus Christ who descended to hades at his death, defeated and triumphed over sin, Satan, death, and the grave and indeed, every spiritual enemy that captivated God’s faithful. This is why we declare that “death holds no fear or power over us”

After his resurrection, Jesus ascends to heaven and brings the ransomed dead with him, so that now paradise (the bosom of Abraham) is no longer down near the place of torment, but is up in the third heaven, the highest heaven, where God dwells (2 Corinthians 12:2–4).

Now, when the righteous die, they are not carried by angels to Abraham’s bosom. Instead they depart to be with Christ, which is far better "I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better." Philippians 1:23 ESV). Then what happens to the wicked who are not in the bosom of Abraham? They will however, remain in Hades in torment, until the final judgment, when Hades gives up the dead who dwell there:

“The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:13–15).

Therefore when the Apostles Creed says “He descended in to hell” it is actually Hades and not that Jesus went in to hell.

Rev. Asiri P. Perera

April 14, 2020