This is the second in a two-part series on the whereabouts of Jesus between His death and resurrection.

In the previous column we addressed different views about where Jesus went between His death and resurrection.

Now, we briefly examine five New Testament passages that in some way touch on the subject. Keep in mind the most biblically faithful view: Jesus neither went to hell (Gehenna) nor to Hades (the temporary abode of the dead) but to heaven after His death.

Acts 2:27 – “Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption“ (KJV).

In this portion of Peter’s sermon on the day of Pentecost, he quotes from Ps. 16:10, a psalm of David and a Messianic psalm that Peter applies to Jesus.

The word translated “hell” in the King James rendering of Acts 2:27 is the Greek term Hades, which is similar to the Hebrew word Sheol. In both cases, it is a flexible term that most often refers to the temporary abode of the dead but can mean “grave.”

The New International Version (NIV) translates this, “Because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay.” This is preferable because the context emphasizes that Christ rose bodily from the dead as opposed to David, whose body is still there.

The Christian Standard Bible (CSB) renders this passage, “because you will not abandon me in Hades or allow your holy one to see decay.” This translation acknowledges that David’s soul went to Hades without assigning Jesus’ soul to the same place.
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This is the first in a two-part series on the whereabouts of Jesus between His death and resurrection.

One of the more puzzling questions about the redemptive work of Christ is where His soul went between death and resurrection.

The Gospel writers confirm that Jesus’ body was placed in a tomb after His death, and remained there until His resurrection.

But what about the immaterial part of Jesus – namely His soul and / or spirit?

One view is stated in the Apostles’ Creed: “He [Jesus] descended into Hell; the third day He rose again from the dead.”

The meaning of this phrase is much debated. The traditional interpretation is that Christ went to the abode of the dead to preach the gospel to Old Testament saints in order to set them free for the full experience of heaven.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church embraces this view, as do many Protestants.

However, theologian Wayne Grudem points out that the troublesome phrase, “He descended into Hell,” is a “late intruder into the Apostles’ Creed that never belonged there in the first place and that, on historical and Scriptural grounds, deserves to be removed.”
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