Did Jesus descend into Hell?

Congregational Question - Did Jesus descend into Hell?

The three official statements of faith used not only by the Lutheran Church but by most orthodox Christian churches; the Apostles Creed, the Nicene Creed and the Athanasian Creed, all have the statement that Jesus descended into hell. That may seem odd to us as we are used to viewing Jesus either on earth or in heaven looking down on us. A google image search on “Jesus in hell” or “Jesus descended into hell” provided only one fairly modern and poorly done painting on the subject. The word used for Jesus descent into “hell” is “Shoel” which is often translated as “land of the dead”. The very concept of hell as a place of torment is one that developed more fully after Jesus and was strongly influenced by the religion of Zoroastrianism. Given the development of the concept of hell at the time of Jesus and the words used, and the lack of early church artwork depicting this event, it would be quite easy to give an apologists answer that Jesus did not really descend into hell, but rather the land of the dead, a sort of purgatory, and there brought those destined to heaven into heaven. Though we really don’t know what hell is like any more than we know what heaven is like, I would like to take the approach that Jesus did indeed descend into hell itself. I base this less on Biblical clues of what Jesus did than on a theology based on Jesus actions and teachings while on earth.

While on earth, Jesus ministry reached out not just to those who lived well and were religious, but also, and especially to those who were in need of the good news of salvation. In fact Jesus often got in trouble with the religious authorities for hanging out with sinners and tax collectors and inviting them into the kingdom. After his entry into Jerusalem, he cleared the temple of the money changers and then openly healed the sick, blind and lame and welcomed children, all of whom were banned from the temple. Jesus began his ministry in Luke by stating that he came to bring good news to those most in need of good news. I believe that same ministry extended after his crucifixion as he descended into the very depths of darkness to bring the good news of God’s love. Given all that Jesus taught and stood for while on earth, what else could he do? Perhaps Heaven itself will not be complete until the last soul in hell responds to Jesus saying, “I love you, you are forgiven, come to the place I have prepared for you”. That is a God of Grace.