He Went Down to the Dead and Rose Again from the Dead

He went down to the dead, the third day he rose again from the dead. 

Another version states: “He descended into hell. On the third day He rose again."

Scriptures
"The Son of man is to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him, and He will be raised on the third day." (Mt.17: 22-23).

"He went and made a proclamation to the spirits in prison." (1 Pet. 3:19).

"For the gospel has for this purpose been preached even to those who are dead, that though they are judged in the flesh as men, they may live in the spirit according to the will of God." (1Pe 4:6)

"...He also descended to the lower, earthly regions..." (Eph 4:9b, NIV)

"For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." (Mt 12:40)

“For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve.” (1 Co.15: 3-5).

“We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.” (1 Th.4: 14).

“That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Ro.10: 9).

“But God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen.” (Ac.10: 40).

Irenaeus of Lyons, Against Heresies 5, 31, 2 (C. 180 AD):
"For since the Lord went away into the midst of the shadow of death where the souls of the dead were, and afterwards arose in the body, and after the resurrection was taken up, it is clear that the souls also of His disciples, on account of which the Lord underwent these things, will go away into the place allotted them by God."

Cyril of Jerusalem, Catechetical Lectures 4, 11 (C. 350 AD):
"(Christ) descended into the subterranean regions so that He might ransom from there the just...David was there, and Samuel, and all the Prophets; and [John the Baptist], the same who, through his messengers, said: ‘Are You the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’ Would you not want Him to go down to free such men as these?"

Gregory of Nyssa, The Great Catechism 1 (Post 383 AD):
"God (the Son) did not impede death from separating His soul from His body according to the necessary order of nature, but has reunited them to one another in the resurrection, so that He Himself might be, in His person, the meeting point for death and life, by arresting in Himself the decomposition of nature produced by death and so becoming the source of reunion for the separated parts."

Augustine of Hippo, Commentary on Psalm 120 4 (Date Unknown):
"It is no great thing to believe that Christ died. This the pagans, Jews, and all the wicked believe; in a word, all believe that Christ died. But that He rose from the dead is the belief of Christians. To believe that He rose again, this we deem of great moment."

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Attribution notice: Most Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Other Scriptures taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version® NIV®, unless otherwise noted.

Author's Note: Also see Jesus Christ Descended Into Hell, which treats this topic more fully You may also access my complete blog directory at Writing for the Master.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

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Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.