Harmless-Innocent & "He Descended into Hell"

Dear Church Family,

In the adult Sunday school class this past Sunday, we devoted the time to answering two questions that had arisen the previous week.

1. In WCF 8.3, what does “harmless” mean?

First, we sought to answer the question regarding the definition of the word “harmless” in a particular portion of the Westminster Confession of Faith (WCF) that we had studied. The Lord Jesus, in His incarnation, is described as being “holy, harmless, undefiled, and full of grace and truth” (WCF 8.3). The first part of this description is a direct quote from the King James translation of Hebrews 7:26:

[KJV} Hebrews 7:26   ²⁶ For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens;

The Greek word that is translated here as “harmless” is “akakos,” and is also be translated as “innocent” or “blameless.” Similar to English, when one adds the letter “a” to the beginning of a word, it reverses or negates the meaning (for example: theist – atheist / typical – atypical / gnostic – agnostic). So, the Greek word “akakos” simply means “without evil.” This definition is confirmed when you see how the root word is used without the negating “a”:

{KJV] Hebrews 5:14 But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil “kakos.”

2. In the Apostles’ Creed, what does “He descended into hell” mean?

Since we publicly confess and recite the Apostles’ Creed, this question is an important one. First, it is helpful, though, to define some terms.

“The Intermediate State”

Simply put, the intermediate state refers to the disembodied existence of all people after they die, but before the resurrection of our bodies (at Christ’s return). The Westminster Confession of Faith summarizes the teaching of Scripture on this point in chapter 32, paragraph 1:

“The bodies of men, after death, return to dust, and see corruption: but their souls, which neither die nor sleep, having an immortal subsistence, immediately return to God who gave them: the souls of the righteous, being then made perfect of holiness, are received into the highest heavens, where they behold the face of God, in light and glory, waiting for the full redemption of their bodies. And the souls of the wicked are cast into hell, where they remain in torments and utter darkness, reserved to the judgment of the great day. Beside these two places, for souls separated from their bodies, the Scripture acknowledgeth none.” (WCF 32.1)

The last sentence was added, no doubt, due to some of the erroneous teachings of the Roman Catholic Church (RCC) that arose during the Middle Ages. Let’s consider two of them: purgatory and the Limbus Patrum.

Purgatory

According to the RCC, purgatory is not a place of punishment, but a place for final sanctification – a place where the faithful bear the temporal punishments for their sins: “All who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, Part 1, Section 2, Chapter 3, Article 12.III, 1030). Drawing on the intertestamental writings of the Apocrypha (2 Maccabees 12:42-45), the idea of purgatory is what gave rise to the selling of ‘indulgences’ which Martin Luther famously inveighed against; by giving money to the church, a person could supposedly reduce or eliminate the time that their loved ones would spend in purgatory.

The doctrine of purgatory finds no warrant in Scripture. And, what’s more, it is based on several faulty premises: that we must add our work (or suffering) to that of Christ; that our good works or suffering can be meritorious; and, that the Church can remit sins in an absolute judicial sense.

Limbus Patrum

According to the RCC, the Limbus Patrum, is the supposed place where “the souls of the Old Testament saints were detained in a state or expectation until the Lord’s resurrection from the dead. After His death on the cross Christ is supposed to have descended into the abode of the fathers, to release them from their temporary confinement and to carry them in triumph to heaven. This is the Roman Catholic interpretation of Christ’s descent into hades.” (Louis Berkhof, Systematic Theology, 687).

Other Terms

Hades - Hades (Greek), like Sheol (Hebrew), sometimes refers to hell (the place of eternal punishment), but usually it refers simply to “the place of the dead.”

Gehenna - Gehenna (Greek), always refers to “the place of eternal punishment.”

Bringing It All Together

As noted above in the quotation from Berkhof, the teaching that Christ “descended into hell” from the Apostles’ Creed has been combined with the idea of the Limbus Patrum. In this line of thinking, according to the RCC, the idea is that the Old Testament saints were kept in a ‘holding place’ (sometimes referred to as “Abraham’s bosom,” cf. Luke 16:23) from which Christ delivered them at the time of His death and resurrection. John Calvin referred to this notion as a fable, and a childish one at that (Institutes, II.16.9). Unfortunately, this Roman Catholic teaching is believed and taught by some Protestant evangelicals today (e.g., John MacArthur; Al Mohler).

In both the Old Testament (e.g. Ecclesiastes 12:7) and the New Testament (e.g. Philippians 1:21-26), we are taught that the souls of believers immediately enter into the presence of the Lord. This is one of the reasons for which the paragraph quoted above from the Westminster Confession of Faith (WCF 32.1) concludes with this statement: “Beside these two places [the highest heavens and hell], for souls separated from their bodies, the Scripture acknowledgeth none.”

So what do we mean when we confess in the Apostles’ Creed that the Jesus Christ, the Son of God, “descended into hell”? Well, the Reformed Catechisms actually give us two options. Consider the two different ways in which the Heidelberg Catechism (HC) and the Westminster Larger Catechism (WLC) understand this phrase:

The Westminster Larger Catechism seems to interpret “He descended into hell” as referring to ‘hades’:

WLC 50  Wherein consisted Christ’s humiliation after his death?

Answer: Christ’s humiliation after his death consisted in his being buried, and continuing in the state of the dead, and under the power of death till the third day; which hath been otherwise expressed in these words, He descended into hell.

The Heidelberg Catechism seems to interpret “He descended into hell” as referring to ‘gehenna’

HC 44  Why is there added, “he descended into hell?”

Answer: That in my greatest temptations, I may be assured, and wholly comfort myself in this, that my Lord Jesus Christ, by his inexpressible anguish, pains, terrors, and hellish agonies, in which he was plunged during all his sufferings, but especially on the cross, hath delivered me from the anguish and torments of hell.

Both John Calvin (Institutes, II.16.8-12) and Zacharias Ursinus (Commentary on the Heidelberg Catechism) argue that for this phrase ‘descended into hell’ to mean ‘the place of the dead’ or death, would be redundant (restating what is said with the phrase ‘was buried’) and that it actually “signifies those extreme torments, pains, and anguish, which Christ suffered in his soul, such as the damned experience, partly in this, and partly in the life to come” (Ursinus).

Thus, Calvin and Ursinus seem to agree with the Heidelberg Catechism and interpret ‘hell’ from this part of the Apostles’ Creed as “figurative Gehenna” (Christ did not go to hell, but experienced its torments). The WCF seems to interpret it as “hades” (Christ did not go to hell, but occupied death; He was ‘in the grave’). Personally, I believe that both interpretations are viable, as well as helpful.

Application

Far from teaching that Christ set the Old Testament saints free from a kind of limbo or that His spirit actually went to the place of eternal punishment, these Biblical understandings of Christ’s “descent into hell” give us great assurance and comfort as believers. Whether one understands “He descended into hell” to be a reference to Christ occupying the state of death (WLC) or experiencing the torments of hell (HC), His work was meritorious on our behalf. Christ experienced the penalty of death and all the torments of hell on our behalf. For a brief explanation of this from Guy Waters of Reformed Theological Seminary, see this four-minute video.

Thus, our understanding of the humiliation of Christ – including the time after His death in the grave – is a doctrine and an understanding of the powerful, gracious, and substitutionary work of our Savior. It ought to cause us to praise and thank Him, to bless and extol His name, to look forward to when we will see Him in glory, and to long for the resurrection of our bodies at His second coming!

The Lord be with you! 

Pastor Peter M. Dietsch