First Peter 3:17-19 www.generationword.com

The point of verses 3:18-22 is that blessings or good things always happen when we do good. Even if we suffer for doing good at first the ultimate result is blessing. The principle of sowing and reaping will eventually occur. Jesus is used as an example of someone who did the ultimate good but received the ultimate suffering at first only to receive resurrection, exaltation, seating at the right hand of God with authority over all of creation. 3:14 is explained here that even when you suffer you are blessed.

3:17

“if” is in the 4^th class condition and it means it is not a probability but only a possibility.

The normal way things work out is that if you do good things now good things happen now.

3:18

“for” means “in exchange for”

“righteous” (“just”) and “unrighteous” (“unjust”) have no article (“the”) in the Greek meaning the character is being stressed.

“to bring” is prosagagh means

• “to lead, to bring, to introduce, to provide access to, to bring about a right relationship”.
• It is a technical term for One Who Gained an Audience in Court for Another.

“in order that” is the Greek ina and is used to express purpose or result. It is used in places for:

• Bringing a person before a tribunal
• Presenting a person at a royal court
• Denotes brings an sacrifice to God
• Used to refer to bring people consecrated to God.

“put to death in body” (sarch) stresses Christ’s physical death.

Christ’s “body” is contrasted to Christ’s “spirit” (pnuema)

• Romans 8:11 tells us that the Holy Spirit raised Jesus
• Here Peter could be talking about that same point of doctrine but he is not
• Peter is contrasting Christ’s flesh and spirit
• pnuema or “spirit” is not capitalized in the Greek. No words where. A Bible translation that capitalizes “Spirit” is not translating pnuema but is interpreting it for the reader to mean “Spirit” or “Holy Spirit”. They may be right but they may be wrong because the meaning is found in the context and is a matter of interpretation and not translation.

“made alive” is “zoopoietheis” in the Greek from “zoe” (“alive”) and “poieo” (“to make”)

• This means Jesus was dead and was made alive
• It does not mean he was energized (“energeo”)
• Dead does not mean to cease to exist. Dead or death is separation.
• Christ’s physical death separated his spirit from his body.
• Christ’s spiritual death separated Christ’s spirit from God (Father and Holy Spirit)

3:19

“through whom” is “en 'w” (“en hoi”).

• “Through” is a preposition.
• “Whom” is a relative pronoun.
• The pronoun refers back to Christ’s “spirit”
• It means “in which spirit” or “by means of which spirit”
• This is talking about Jesus’ activities before he was resurrected in his body. These events that about to be discusses occurred while Jesus was resurrected in his spirit but not yet in his body.

“went” is poreuqeis from poreuoma and means “one traveling” or “one going on a journey”

• So together what this says is “by means of which human spirit having proceeded”

Jesus went to sheol or hades at his death. See the diagram below

“spirits” is pneuma

• Never used of humans as a class or race
• Used as a reference to part of a human such as spirit, soul and body
• Used in Hebrews 12:23 as “spirits of righteous men”
• “spirit” used by itself refers to the species of demons or at times angels
• Angels in Hebrews 1:7; 1:14; 12:22
• Demons in Matthew 8:16; Luke 10:17, 20

Luke recognized a difference between Angels and Demons in Acts 23:8,9

Demons seek bodies for rest in Matthew 12:43-45

Angels are never seen possessing a body of man. Jesus did not cast out fallen angels he cast out fallen demons.

Genesis 6:1-6 describes fallen angels producing the Nephilim who were super humans of the ancient world. The Nephilim where destroyed in the flood and their disembodied spirits may have become what the Bible calls demons.

“Prison” is the abyss in Luke 8:31 and Rev. 9:1-12.

In 2 Peter 2:4,5 the prison is called by the Greek word “tartarus” which is on of the bottomless pits in the abyss.

“Preached” is the word “kerusso”

• It is used in secular Greek of an official announcement or proclamation made by a representative of a government.
• The word itself does not indicate the content of the message
• In Mark 16:15 the apostles are to “preach” the gospel or “proclaim” the gospel
• It is also used in Rev. 5:2

Hebrews 2:16 says Jesus does not help the angels but helps Abraham’s descendents

Victory over the fallen angels and the demons described in 2 Corinthians 2:14 and Colossians 2:15