a TOUGH ONE (read if u have TIME!)

SOMeone FRom study camp asked this on our FOruM

i was reading this passage for QT the other day.

For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit, through whom also he went and preached to the spirits in prison who disobeyed long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at God's right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.

1 Peter 3:18-22

I don't understand... Jesus preaching the spirits in prison? Can anyone enlighten me as to what this passage may mean?


I made an attempt of answering it.. buuuuT I DONT knoW HAHA so what DO u THINK!

I wrote:
I read it from verse 17.

For it is better to suffer for doing good if that should be God's will than for doing evil. For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit, in which (the spirit in whom) he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison because they formerly did not obey, when God's patience waited in the days of Noah while the ark was being prepared in which a few that is eight persons were brought safely through water.

(will take me a while to explain thoughts)

Peter uses a similar example again in 2Peter2:4-5
For if God did not spare angels when they sinned but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until judgement; if he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly

OK firstly my understanding was that WHAT Peter was trying to GET at was that...We must obey GOd's will which is to do good and even suffer doing the good. WIth disobedience resulting in severe judgement.


We are given an example of Christ's suffering with his death on the CROSS, where he dies with the sins of the world. And although he physically DIED on the CROSS. And by doing that he followed God's plans to the end completing everything God willed for him to do. AND in the ESV instead of the WORD PREACHED.. it uses the word PROCLAIMED.. (or heralded) So Christ though dead physically, his spirit was able to PROCLAIM to the fallen angels the VICTORY and TRIUMPH of GOD!

- side note - last years Spring COnference we talked bout What JEsus said as he died on the Cross..in Mark15:34 Jesus says "My God, My God why have you forsaken me?" in John19:30 he says "It is finished." and in Luke23:46 "Father into your hands I commit my spirit." WHy the DIFFERENCE? well with all three accounts we see a more full picture. SO Jesus suffering on the CROSS with the SINS of the WORLD taking THE FULL WRATH of GOD is trully separated from God at that point in time because he has our sins. HEnce he says Why have u forsaken me. BUt then after taking the full wrath of God, he is able to say.. "IT IS finished" meaning WOO GOD is OVER did it.. we WON.. and THEN he says "Into your hands I commit my spirit." WHy i tell you this side note is to explain how although Jesus DIED physically his SPIRIT was active and with GOD, hence he was ABLE TO PROCLAIM through HIS SPIRIT the TRIUMPH of GOD and the TOTAL utter loss of those angels who are against GOd.

Now i say the Spirits are the fallen angels because after LOOKING up concordance on the word SPIRITS. Spirits are generally either demons or angels...

Genesis6:1-4 Describes of Angels who have deserted their posts and living among women they found attractive. Hence these DISOBEDIENT angels are the ones Jesus proclaim his victory to, and the angels that we read about in 2Peter who are locked away BECAUSE of thEir diSOBEDIENCe!

SO the 1Peter passage not only gives an example of Jesus as our greatest example of him suffering to do God's will, but also an example of what happend to even angels who disobeyed God.

AND on TOP of that! THE example emphasizes the importance of OBEYING God's will finally through the example of Noah. With him and his wife and 3 son's and their wives (8 ppl in total) listen to God, building the ark and so are saved as GOd brings them out of the waters. AND LIKEWISE Christ obeying God's will to death on the Cross is heralded KING OF KINGS and LOrD over all things even death in his resurrection.

WOW so yeh 1Peter3:17-20 is awesome that ONE example reveals how 3 different groups have acted in light of God's will and what has happend to them.

JESUS who went to die on the cross and then through his spirit he heralded his victory, signifying that GOD HAS won!
And the spirits that he heralded to were Angels who had disobeyed God previously in Noah's time who have been locked away.
While Noah is saved and brought up out of the waters by God because he listened to the will of God.

SO OBEY God's will! Even through suffering and continue to trust him because he will bring you out of it. BUT WARNING to those who do disobey, if even angels cant get away.. theeen....(scary music)!!

OOo and before u ask me bout vs21-22..

YES it does continue 1Peter2:21-22 continues with
Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you....

OO i like Peters argument its NICE and ROUNDED.

its like OBEY GOD and DO his WILL even if you suffer. AND so to obey his will what DO WE as CHRISTIANS do? WE follow JESUS. (looking up concordance again, Baptism is about Repenting and turning back to GOD and HOW do we DO THAT? well THROUGH JEsus who is the truth the way and the life.) and BY following Jesus we are baptised with the Holy SPIRIT so THAT WE can do GOD's will even through Suffering because JESus himself Suffered.

SO yeh and WHY does Baptism correspond to the verses before... IN BAPTISM we TURN back to GOD through JESUS. and BY FOLLOWing JESUS we are called to do GOd's will despite suffering. Because its by following and trusting Jesus we are SAVED.

and I Guess when you think oF BAPTISM its like a PHYSICAL way to communnicate to EVERYONE that YES you are following JESUS.. while Symbolically you are GOING DOWN to death (ie immersed in water) and THEN rising anew with Christ in his ressurrection. (coming out of water)

so Baptism => Following and Trusting JEsus => OBEYING and doing God's will.

PS: woow its SO nice and CYCLIC.. all fitting together this example does! Because Baptism also corresponds to NOAH who TRUSTED God with GOD bringing him THROUGH the FLOOODs of water to DRy LAND. WHich also emphasizes that we MUST trust and Obey God and only God can save us.


SORRY FOR the LONGNESS.. what DO u THINK?