First Epistle of Peter
CHRIST'S SUFFERINGS AND GLORY
Scripture Reading: 1 Peter 3:18 (KJV)
This verse, like verse 21 in chapter 2, pictures Christ as both example and substitute. Here He is pictured as suffering for well-doing and being blessed for it. Not only did this prove a blessing to Him, but to us as well. His suffering and death brought us salvation. The word "also" tells us that as we may suffer for well-doing and be blessed for it, even so Christ suffered and was blessed.
"hath once suffered"
The words "hath once" tell us that this work of Christ was done in the past, once for all; never to be repeated. That one sacrifice was sufficient to pay for all sins of all times. From Adam to the present day, every child of God has had his sins forgiven on the ground of that one sacrifice. His sufferings were in the past and completed once for all. Sinning goes on continually, but the sacrifice for those sins was completed once and for all. His suffering time is over and ours will soon be, too.
"suffered for sins"
There is much suffering for sin today. Sin brings its own reward. The drunkard suffers for his folly. The liar is sure to get into trouble. The thief will get caught sooner or later. There are myriads suffering today because of sin.
Christ suffered for sins too, but not His own for He had none. He suffered for our sins. His sufferings were substitutionary. He was indeed a teacher and to the Christian He is an example, but first of all He must be one's substitute. If He is not this to a lost sinner, His example will do one no good.
"the just for the unjust"
Christ was the only truly just man that ever lived. The greatness of man's injustice is shown by the fact that they crucified the just one. A fellow was heard to say, "Justice, justice, a man can't get justice in this world." Someone replied, "What do you expect, don't you know they crucified the only just man that ever lived?" He was just. From the day of His birth until He ascended to heaven He never did wrong. We are unjust. There perhaps is never a day in our lives but what we do something not 'just right'.
The work of Christ justifies the unjust and makes them just in Him. This is the subject of the book of Romans. The words "just" or "righteous" (which are the same in the original), appear dozens of times in Romans. Verse 26 of the third chapter might be called the text of the Roman epistle. "To declare at this time His righteousness: that He might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus."
"that He might bring us to God"
Because of the sufferings of Christ, this is the great blessing that follows to us. We need this. By ourselves we could never come to God. In John 14:6 the Lord Jesus says, "I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man cometh unto the Father but by me." Because of our sin we can only be "accepted in the beloved" (Eph. 1:6). Our good works could not avail. Some think that attendance, ritual observances, giving to the church helps us get to heaven. All this helps nothing as far as salvation goes. Christ brings one to God, but only through His sacrificial death.
No one else can take us to God. No preacher, priest or dead saint can do it. Not even the mother of the humanity of our Lord Jesus, Mary, can help bring us to God. "There is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus" (1 Tim. 2:5). "Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus" (Heb. 10:19). He brings us to God now for salvation and fellowship. The day will soon come, at His coming, when He will bring us to God to live with Him forever. That will be a wonderful day for Him and for us.
"being put to death in the flesh"
Men put Him to death. They drove nails through His hands and blessed feet. They hung Him on the cross to suffer, bleed and die. It was the most unrighteous act ever perpetrated in this world. It was a plain case of murder for no real reason.
Yet, He was a willing victim. If He had refused to go, not all the power of Rome or all the venom of the Jewish leaders could have gotten Him there. Apart from that death we could not be saved. Regarding Himself (sometime before His crucifixion), He says to His disciples, "All things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: and they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again" (Luke 18:31-33).
"but quickened by the Spirit"
This has been variously understood. Some say it should read, "but quickened as to the spirit", referring to His human spirit rather than the Holy Spirit. The word "quickened" means made alive. Only that which is dead can be made alive. He only died to the flesh. The last thing He said on the cross was, "Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit". His spirit certainly did not and could not die and so how could He be quickened to the spirit? It would seem as though some have tried to bring in the idea of quickened to His human spirit, in order to be able to teach some theory they might have about the next verse.
We believe the translators were right in capitalizing the word "Spirit" and thus making it refer to the Holy Spirit. That the Spirit had something to do with Christ's resurrection is evident from Romans 8:11: "But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you."
Scripture Reading: 1 Peter 3:19 (KJV)
We now come to a fairly controversial verse in 1 Peter. In some quarters it has become a battle ground. Many have read into it a second chance for the lost. Some have used it as an excuse to teach purgatory, putting into it what is not there. Others, trying to offset such teachings have also put into it things that are not in it.
If we simply take what it says, without adding anything, it does not seem to be such a difficult verse. Of course, no one should ever try and force one's view on anyone regarding anything, even though one feels correct in their view. Many mighty men in the Scriptures have written on this and have differed radically regarding their interpretation. This lesson will not attempt to go into it as thoroughly as some have, for this study is intended to be a practical exposition of 1 Peter, not a technical treatise.
"by which also"
No doubt this refers back to the Spirit of verse 18. It was by the Spirit that Christ went and preached to the spirits in prison.
Some may say, "Why was this necessary?" Of course, we cannot say other than the Spirit had much to do with Christ all the way through. First, Christ was conceived in Mary by the Holy Spirit. Then, at His baptism, the Spirit descended upon Him in the form of a dove. This evidently would signify His filling by the Spirit (Matt. 3:16). In Matthew 4:1 we read, "Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil." He cast out devils by the Spirit of God (Matt. 12:28). Then we read in our previous verse, "Quickened by the Spirit" – also noted in Romans 8:11. This relationship between Christ and the Spirit is not easily understood. We do not know why it was necessary for the Spirit to accompany Him on His journey to speak to the spirits in prison, but obviously it was.
"He went"
This would seem to be a personal going. The word "went" is a word in the Greek which means "made a journey" or "travelled". Someone once said that he believed that through the
Spirit in Noah, Christ preached to the spirits in prison. In other words, this was preaching by Noah before the flood. This might be a possibility if the verse read, "By the Spirit he preached to the saints now in prison". Furthermore, why should the apostle put it in this form at all? Why mention them as spirits and why say anything about the prison? It seems like a hard way to say that by the Spirit Noah preached to those living in his day. No, the Holy Scriptures teach us that Christ Himself made a personal journey to this prison and spoke.
Some might say, "Why should He want to go speak to those in that prison?" This we are not told. We are simply told that "He went". Perhaps it was to herald His victory over sin, death and Satan, but we are not told. He is not answerable to us. If He had wanted us to know for sure He could easily have told us. There perhaps is a hint in verse 6 of chapter 4. "For this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead." The gospel is the good news of His death, burial and resurrection. Perhaps this was heralded immediately after His resurrection in both heaven and hell by Christ personally.
Some might say, "Well when did He go?" This we are also not told. The so called apostles creed says, "He descended into hell," which puts it after His death, but before His resurrection. Peter here first mentions, "Quickened by the Spirit" which could refer to His resurrection. Then he mentions His going to preach to the spirits in prison. But Peter may not have had the order of time in mind and yet it would not seem His victory was really complete until after He was raised from the dead.
"and preached"
The Greek word for "preached" is different than what is usually used to indicate preaching the gospel. It is "kerusso" rather than "euaggelize". "Kerusso" means to "herald as a public crier". It would seem as though Christ felt it needful to make a public statement of victory to these spirits in prison.
This does not mean that these would be given another chance to be saved. If they were given a second chance then no doubt hell would have been emptied in a split second. No one down there would be stupid enough to reject the gospel. Men are often terribly stupid here on earth, but after feeling the pangs of hell for a second, they would be very glad to accept Christ and get out. One man foolishly said, "After Christ finished the work of the cross here, He descended into hell and set up the standard of the cross there". There is nothing in this verse to indicate that.
Abraham talked to the rich man in hell in Luke 16:23-31, but the rich man did not get out because of it. Abraham said, "And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence" (v. 26). Not much hope of a second chance there. The man who accepts Christ now while in this earthly scene is wise, but he that hopes for a chance after death is very foolish. There certainly is no ground for it in 1 Peter 3:19.
In Philippians 2:10 we read, "That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth." "Under the earth" refers to those in hell. Likely Christ made His appearance there soon after His resurrection and no doubt every knee bowed to Him.
"unto the spirits in prison"
Who are these spirits mentioned here? Could it be that these are the spirits of those who died before the time of the flood? These are especially the ones mentioned in verse 20. Verse 6 of chapter 4 would indicate that this was perhaps true of more than just those who lived in Noah's time. Some have tied to make verse 6 in chapter 4 mean something altogether different than our verse here in chapter 3. However, it is more likely that he is dealing with the same subject, although applying it more broadly.
There is a view that these disobedient spirits were not human spirits but fallen angels. They say "the sons of God" in Genesis 6 were angels who were disobedient in that they took human women for their wives and of them were born giants on the earth. However, since angels are always pictured in Holy Scripture as being of no sex, it is difficult to accept the teaching that those mentioned in Genesis 6 were angels (See Mark 12:25). Another view holds that these "sons of God" in Genesis 6 were not angels, but the sons of the line of Seth. This union of the children of God with wicked women of the world brought the wrath of God down in the form or the judgment of the flood.
"in prison"
The word "prison" here refers to "one guarded as in a cage" – wicked ones in a place where they are guarded. Some have said this is never used of humans in prison after death and so it must mean angelic spirits. However, it could just as easily be said the other way around, because neither is it used of angels in any other place. It is the general word used in the New Testament for any prison. It is the word used in connection with Peter in prison as well as Paul and others. There is no reason why it could not be a prison for human spirits as well as angelic, if it be God's will.
