Peter says (1 Peter 3:20) that he 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. I'm not sure how to take this- did they get a second chance to be saved?
Also, how exactly did he bind Satan? Was this preaching that Peter mentions, somehow the mechanism by which that took place? I say that because in Luke 10 we are told that demons submitted to the disciples when they preached that the kingdom of God was near. Would you say that Christ preached to the spirits of all the people in Hades, including those from after Noah's time? Was that what bound Satan?
Thanks.
Hi Spud,
It is interesting to compare three passages in 1 Peter where the word ‘preached’ is used in most English translations. These are:
1 Peter 1:12. It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.
1 Peter 1:25. But the word of the Lord remains forever. And this word is the good news that was preached to you.
1 Peter 3:18-20. 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 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.
In the first two passages the Greek word translated as preached is the word ‘euaggelizo’ which means to ‘declare (or bring) glad (or good) tidings. So it is a word denoting the preaching of the Gospel.
However in 1 Peter 3:18-20 a different Greek word is used. I have no doubt that Peter deliberately chose this word because he wished to make it clear that this was not the same sort of ‘preaching’ as mentioned earlier. The word Peter used here is the word ‘kerusso’, which means ‘to make proclamation or to herald (as a public crier would do). A victorious general would proclaim his victory and the defeat of the enemy. In a Biblical context it could also apply to announcing a divine truth, and while this could mean the good news of the Gospel it could equally apply to a divine truth which is not necessarily good news for the hearers.
So my view is that it is incorrect to use this passage to suggest that those beyond the grave are given a further opportunity to hear the gospel and find salvation. Such an interpretation is not only in direct contradiction with other Scriptures (e.g. Luke 16:26 and Hebrews 9:27) but also conflicts with the overall thrust of 1 Peter.
I think it is preferable to understand this passage as Jesus going to make proclamation to the forces of evil and declaring that they had not won the victory as they imagined. Just when Satan and his minions were celebrating what they thought was their greatest victory, Jesus gate-crashed their party and proclaimed their greatest defeat. The cross had triumphed over the grave and sin and the way was now open for man to again be reconciled to God. Satan had been dealt a mortal blow. His victory celebration came to an abrupt and ignominious end.
The next challenge is to now go to 1 Peter 4:6 and work out how this fits in to the overall pattern of things. A topic for another day.
A final thought on the view of Satan being bound at the present time. Peter also says, ‘Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour’ If that is a description of Satan while bound, I would certainly have no wish to encounter him when he is not.
Enjoy your day, Dave