ACC ~ 1 Peter 3 v18 - 22

OVERVIEW:

Christ is brought to life in our spirits (CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA, ANDREAS). So great was his passion that, however often human beings may sin, his one act of suffering is sufficient to take away all our transgressions (OECUMENIUS). Going in his soul, Christ preached to those in hell that he might save all who would believe in him (CYRIL OF ALEXANDRIA, PRUDENTIUS). They did not see but heard him (CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA). His incarnation was made ever more complete by his breaking down the gates of hell (ORIGEN, TERTULLIAN). Only the few who believed were saved, as in the case of Noah, who was a type of the church (BEDE, THEOPHYLACT). Those who believed he brought back with him, but those who did not believe, he cast back again into their previous state (SEVERUS, AMMONIUS). Just as in that baptism of the world by which the ancient iniquity was purged, the one who was not in the ark could not be saved, so now anyone who has not been baptized into Christ and within the ark of the church cannot be saved (CYPRIAN). We are saved by this baptism (ANDREAS) even if we must pass through fire (AUGUSTINE). Jesus has risen from the dead and ascended into heaven, where he reigns in glory, and by sharing in his death we have also risen spiritually with him and become fellow heirs of his eternal kingdom. He now sits at the right hand of the Father, lest you imagine that when he suffered he lost something of his glory (LEO, ANDREAS), the angelic powers and authorities being subject to him (CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA, BEDE).

3:18 | Christ Died for Sins Once for All

FOR OUR SINS. CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA: This is said in relation to our faith. In other words, Christ is brought to life in our spirits. ADUMBRATIONS.

PUT TO DEATH IN THE FLESH BUT MADE ALIVE IN THE SPIRIT. ANDREAS: Again Peter expounds Christ’s death and resurrection. Notice how he proclaims the mystery to us. For by saying that he died in the flesh and that he was made alive again in the Spirit, what he is really saying is that he died for the sake of our flesh, which is under the power of corruption, but that he rose again as God, for the word spirit means “God” in this instance. CATENA.

THE RIGHTEOUS FOR THE UNRIGHTEOUS. OECUMENIUS: The righteous person suffers for the salvation of others, just as Christ did. This is why Peter mentions our Lord’s example, since Christ did not die for his own sins but for ours. This is the point he makes by adding “the righteous for the unrighteous.” For as the prophet long ago foretold, Christ did not sin at all. Furthermore, in order to emphasize the effectiveness and completeness of Christ’s sacrifice, Peter adds the key word once. So great was his passion that however often human beings may sin, that one act of suffering is sufficient to take away all our transgressions. COMMENTARY ON 1 PETER.

3:19 | He Preached to the Spirits in Prison

THE SPIRITS IN PRISON. CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA: They did not see his form, but they heard the sound of his voice. ADUMBRATIONS.

TEACHING THE PATRIARCHS. TERTULLIAN: Christ descended into hell in order to acquaint the patriarchs and prophets with his redeeming mission. ON THE SOUL 55.2.

DESCENT INTO HELL. ORIGEN: If the passage about John the Baptist not being worthy to untie Jesus’ shoes possesses a hidden meaning, we ought not to pass over it. I think that the incarnation, when the Son of God takes on flesh and bones, is one of the shoes, and the descent into hell is the other. It is said in Psalm 16: “You will not leave my soul in hell.” And Peter, in his general epistle, mentions Jesus’ descent into hell. Therefore the one who can show the meaning of both sojourns in a worthy manner is able to unloose Jesus’ shoes. COMMENTARY ON JOHN 6.174-76.

SAVING ALL WHO WOULD BELIEVE. CYRIL OF ALEXANDRIA: Here Peter answers the question which some objectors have raised, namely, if the incarnation was so beneficial, why was Christ not incarnated for such a long time, given that he went to the spirits which were in prison and preached to them also? In order to deliver all those who would believe, Christ taught those who were alive on earth at the time of his incarnation, and these others acknowledged him when he appeared to them in the lower regions, and thus they too benefited from his coming. Going in his soul, he preached to those who were in hell, appearing to them as one soul to other souls. When the gatekeepers of hell saw him, they fled; the bronze gates were broken open, and the iron chains were undone. And the only-begotten Son shouted with authority to the suffering souls, according to the word of the new covenant, saying to those in chains: “Come out!” and to those in darkness: “Be enlightened.” In other words, he preached to those who were in hell also, so that he might save all those who would believe in him. For both those who were alive on earth during the time of his incarnation and those who were in hell had a chance to acknowledge him. The greater part of the new covenant is beyond nature and tradition, so that while Christ was able to preach to all those who were alive at the time of his appearing and those who believed in him were blessed, so too he was able to liberate those in hell who believed and acknowledged him, by his descent there. However, the souls of those who practiced idolatry and outrageous ungodliness, as well as those who were blinded by fleshly lusts, did not have the power to see him, and they were not delivered. CATENA.

REVERSING THE MANDATE. PRUDENTIUS:

That the dead might know salvation,

who in limbo long had dwelt,

Into hell with love he entered;

to him yield the broken gates

As the bolts and massive hinges

fall asunder at his word.

Now the door of ready entrance,

but forbidding all return

Outward swings as bars are loosened

and sends forth the prisoned souls

By reversal of the mandate,

treading its threshold once more.

HYMNS 9.70-75.

FORGIVENESS TO THOSE WHO BELIEVED. SEVERUS OF ANTIOCH: Forgiveness was not granted to everyone in hell, but only to those who believed and acknowledged Christ. Those who cleansed themselves from evil by doing good works while they were alive recognized him, for until he appeared in the lower regions everyone, including those who had been educated in righteousness, was bound by the chains of death and was awaiting his arrival there, for the way to paradise was closed to them because of Adam’s sin. Nevertheless, not everyone who was in the lower regions responded to Christ when he went there, but only those who believed in him. CATENA.

WHETHER JUDAS BELIEVED. AMMONIUS: The academician Caesarius asked me whether the chains of all the souls in hell were cut off when Christ went down there or not. I said that they were. How can that be, he said. Was Judas also set free? Yes, I said. For when the king of all is present, it is not possible for the tyrant and his servant, I mean death, to retain their captives any longer. So what did the Lord do? He died. He preached the way which leads to eternal salvation on earth, and to all who were in hell, so that they might believe in the Father and in him, who became man and died for us and who went down into hell by the power of the Holy Spirit. And those who believed he brought back with him, but those who did not believe, he cast back again into their previous state. … Did he also preach to Judas and give him a chance to repent? I said that I did not think so, for it is superfluous to preach to someone who already knows the truth. Not only had Judas been instructed in the mystery and accepted it, but he had even preached it to others and been considered worthy to receive divine grace, so that he could drive out demons and heal the sick. Later on he fell away by his own choice. Do not tell me that he did evil unwillingly, for no Christian does that. Even Judas never blamed others for his betrayal but recognized that it was his own fault. CATENA.

3:20 | In the Days of Noah

GOD’S PATIENCE WAITED. CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA: God is so good that he even works his salvation by means of patient instruction. ADUMBRATIONS.

NOAH WAS A TYPE OF THE CHURCH. AUGUSTINE: The question which you put to me about the spirits in hell is one which disturbs me profoundly. … What troubles me most is why only those who were imprisoned in the days of Noah should deserve this benefit. Think of all the others who have died since Noah’s time and whom Jesus could have found in hell. The meaning must be that the ark of Noah is a picture of the church, and so those who were imprisoned in his days represent the entire human race. In hell Christ rebuked the wicked and consoled the good, so that some believed to their salvation and others disbelieved to their damnation. LETTERS 164.

EIGHT PERSONS WERE SAVED THROUGH WATER. BEDE: By pointing out that only eight people were saved from the flood, Peter reminds us that in comparison to the large numbers of Jews, heretics and unbelievers which there are in the world, the number of God’s chosen ones is very small. As Jesus said: “The gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.” ON 1 PETER.

ONLY A FEW WHO BELIEVED WERE SAVED. THEOPHYLACT: Someone might easily ask: Who preached salvation before Christ, so that those who did not believe in him should be condemned? The answer to this, which Paul also adopted, is that those who lived before Christ had enough light given to them to enable them to distinguish good from evil. Because of this, if they chose to do evil, they are worthy of condemnation. Therefore Peter reminds us that they were rebellious, not merely from the time of the prophets but long before that, virtually from the creation of the world in fact. As he demonstrates, the way of salvation was proclaimed to them from the beginning, but they spurned it and preferred to go after vanities of one kind or another. The result was that of all the millions of people who lived at that time, only eight were saved, because they alone believed the message which they heard. COMMENTARY ON 1 PETER.

3:21 | Baptism Saves You as an Appeal to God

THE MEANING OF BAPTISM. CYPRIAN: Peter showed and vindicated the unity of the church by commanding and warning that we can be saved only through the baptism of the one church. Just as in that baptism of the world by which the ancient iniquity was purged, the one who was not in the ark could not be saved through water, so now anyone who has not been baptized in the church cannot be saved, for the church has been founded in the unity of the Lord, as the sacrament of the one ark. LETTERS 74.11.

A CLEAR CONSCIENCE. AUGUSTINE: If some people have the worst consciences, full of every fault and crime, unchanged by penance for their evil deeds, baptism nevertheless saves them, for on the basis of the foundation which is laid in baptism they will be saved, even if it is through fire. EIGHT QUESTIONS OF DULCITIUS 1.

SAVED THROUGH BAPTISM. ANDREAS: The water of the flood is a type of baptism because it both punished evil people and saved the good, just as baptism expels evil spirits and saves those who turn to Christ. This shows the great power of baptism, and how much we need it. CATENA.

3:22 | Christ Has Gone into Heaven

ANGELS AND AUTHORITIES. CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA: The angels are the first rank in the hierarchy of perfection, the authorities are the second, and the powers are the third. ADUMBRATIONS.

THE HOLINESS OF CREATURES IS BY GRACE. DIDYMUS THE BLIND: Just as all rational creatures are made by the Son of God, who is the Word, or Reason, so too is their salvation brought about by him. For those who possess holiness not by nature but by grace, because they are creatures, must be cleansed by him in order to obtain goodness. COMMENTARY ON 1 PETER.

TRANSFORMING AFFLICTION INTO TRIUMPH. LEO THE GREAT: While the strength of the angelic legions that waited on Christ was held in check, he drank the cup of sorrow and death, thereby transforming the entire affliction into triumph. Deceptions were overcome, and the powers of evil were suppressed. SERMONS 69.4.

CHRIST SITS AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD. ANDREAS: Look how clearly the dispensation of grace is set out for us. Peter recalls Christ’s death and resurrection and then goes on to mention his ascension as well, and the fact that he sits at the right hand of the Father, lest you imagine that when he suffered he lost something of his glory. CATENA.

WITH ANGELIC POWERS SUBJECT TO HIM. BEDE: There can be no doubt that the angels and the powers of heaven were always subject to the Son of God, but Peter wants to stress that the humanity which that Son assumed has also been taken up into that glory, so that now it is greater than any angelic dignity or power. ON 1 PETER.