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1 Peter 3:19 – No Second Chance!

Posted on January 23, 2017 by Will

by which also He went and preached to the spirits in prison,

Truth to Learn

Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved!

Behind the Words

The grammatical construction of the beginning of today’s verse can suggest either “in which” or “by which.” After having studied many interpretations of this passage, I am convinced that Peter’s intent is “by which,” meaning “by which spirit he went …” Whether this means the spirit of Christ or The Holy Spirit (which has been the subject of much arguing) I don’t know; I don’t think it really matters, for it is the Spirit of God in either case.

The word “preached” is translated from kērussō, which means “to herald forth, to proclaim, or to announce publicly.”

The expression, “preached to the spirits in prison” can be translated as, “proclaimed to the spirits in the guarded place.” It is not likely that this was an evangelistic message else Peter would most likely have used the verb euangellō (good news declaring) rather than kērussō (proclaiming).

Meaning Explained

Though it is one of the shortest verses that we have looked at, this is a very difficult one to understand. It is the sole verse upon which the Roman Catholic Church bases its doctrine of purgatory (a temporary place of suffering from which some may be released). But before looking at this verse we must look at the end of the previous verse.

In the end of the previous verse Peter said that Christ was put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit. Some believe that this is referring to Christ dying in the flesh but living in the spirit. In fact, the Greek grammatical construction of the end of the previous verse suggests that it was “by the Spirit” that Christ was made alive again (in the flesh). The word translated “made alive” in the previous verse is the Greek word dzōopoietheis, which means “to make alive.” It can mean either giving initial life or giving life again after it has been lost. But either way, it can’t refer to Christ’s spirit being made alive since His spirit is eternal.

Finally, to get the full meaning of the current verse we have to join it to the next verse. The construction of this verse and the one following implies that the proclaiming occurred at the time when God was waiting in the days of Noah, but that the imprisonment of the spirits was contemporaneous with Peter’s time. In other words, Peter was saying that Christ proclaimed to the spirits who are currently in prison but the proclaiming occurred in the time of Noah.

We will get into this a bit more when we look more closely at the next verse. What I want you to come away with today is that this verse is in no way saying that Christ preached to the unsaved in purgatory giving them a second chance to be saved. There is absolutely no basis for the notion of purgatory in today’s verse … or anywhere else in the entire Bible.

Application

If you believe that you have to earn the right to be in heaven with God, and you believe that in purgatory you will have a second chance, or that you can work your way out of purgatory, you are in for a rude shock. You cannot earn salvation. You can only receive it as a free gift when you believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross to pay for your sins. Once this life is over, your choice is made … for eternity!

In God's service, for His glory,

Ephesians 2:17 – His Mouth Peace

Posted on September 28, 2011 by Will

Ephesians 2:17 – His Mouth Peace

And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near.

Truth to Learn

All Christians should be proclaiming peace with God through the gospel message of the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ as payment for our sins.

Behind the Words

The words “He came” are from the verb erchomai, which means “to come” or “to go.”

“Preached” is translated from euangellidzō, which is a compound verb made up of eu, meaning “good” or “well” and angellō, which means “to proclaim.” Thus, this word literally means “to proclaim the good news.” This is the word from which we get our English verb “to evangelize.”

“Peace” is translated from eirēnē, which we saw back in verse fourteen means “to be at peace with someone.” In the current verse, the best Greek manuscripts have the word eirēnē appears twice. Therefore, the verse should be translated:

And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and peace to those who were near.

The words “afar off” are from makran, which we saw back in verse thirteen. It means “a great distance away.”

“Near” is translated from the Greek word engus, which is based on the verb agchō, meaning “to squeeze.” Engus indicates that something is “nearby” or “close at hand.”

Meaning Explained

The current verse indicates a direct fulfillment of the words of Isaiah:

“I create the fruit of the lips: Peace, peace to him who is far off and to him who is near,” Says the LORD, “And I will heal him.” (Isaiah 57:19)

In verse fourteen we learned that Christ is our peace. In verse fifteen we learned that He made peace between Jews and Gentiles. Now we learn that Christ proclaimed (or announced) peace, both to those who were near and to those who were far away. In verse thirteen we learned that Gentiles are the ones who were once far away. By inference, we know that “those who were near” refers to the Jews.

There are a number of verses in the New Testament in which Jesus proclaimed peace, so it’s not hard to understand what Paul means by saying that he proclaimed peace to those who were near. But, we have to ask ourselves the question, “How did Jesus preach peace to those who were far off?” For the key to the answer to this question let’s look at John’s gospel. He recorded this statement that Jesus made to his disciples in the upper room after He was raised from the dead,

So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” (John 20:21)

Jesus sent his disciples (and by extension, you and me) into the world to proclaim the gospel of peace. That’s how He proclaims peace to those who are far off.

Application

You and I are the means by which Jesus Christ is still proclaiming peace to those who are far off. When was the last time you shared the Gospel message to people around you?

In God’s service, for His glory,

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

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1 Peter 4:6 – Dead, But Alive

Posted on February 12, 2009 by admin

1 Peter 4:6

For this reason the gospel was preached also to those who are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.

Truth to Learn

The ultimate price to pay for our faith (our life) may be what pleases God the most.

Behind the Words

There is a word that is left out of most translations, though is in the original Greek text, which lends meaning to the latter half of this verse. It is the particle men. When coupled with de, it produces what is called a correlative conjunction. The meaning is “on the one hand” (men), “but on the other hand” (de). Thus, the second half of this verse reads:

that on the one hand they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but on the other hand they might live according to God in the spirit.

Meaning Explained

Today’s verse is another tricky one so let’s look at it carefully. Peter starts out with the expression, “For this reason.” Peter is not referring to the thing just said, rather to the thing about to be said (the latter part of this verse).

The phrase, “was preached also to those who are dead …” is a somewhat debated expression that some believe refers to Christ going into Hell to preach to the dead spirits in prison (see notes on 1Peter 3:19,20). What this means instead is that the gospel was previously preached to those who are now physically dead (though spiritually alive). I believe that this interpretation is also borne out by the remainder of the verse.

Peter is saying that the gospel was preached in the past to some who are now physically dead; although, because they believed the gospel, they are spiritually alive. Therefore, they may have been judged by men and put to death for their faith and actions, but they continue to live spiritually (eternally) according to the judgment of God (they are declared righteous). This interpretation also fits in with what Peter has been talking about in the past few verses and seems to sum-up what he has been saying. And because it is summed-up, Peter goes on to another thought in the following verse.

There are many Christians who have been judged as heretics or as evil doers because they followed God’s teaching instead of what the church leaders claimed as truth. The Reformation is filled with such examples, and even in the early church many were put to death for holding forth the truth instead of the party line of the religious rulers. The Apostle Paul, himself, was responsible for such condemnation and martyrdom of believers before he was confronted by the truth on the road to Damascus.

Peter has been telling us that though we may go through suffering at times, even at the hands of those who think they are doing God’s work, we should take such suffering patiently just as Christ did when He suffered for us. And even if we are to lose our lives for our faithful witness, God will be glorified and will be pleased with us for being faithful unto death.

Application

Let us be faithful and suffer patiently. And, if we do suffer for being faithful, let it be because we are faithful to God rather than to ourselves or others around us.

In God’s service, for His glory,

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

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