Study of 1 Peter 3

The aim of this book is to prove that neither 1 §Peter 3:19 nor 1 Peter 4:6 refers to the Christian §doctrine the Descensus Christi ad Inferos . The §meaning of these two verses has long been debated, §and is very often seen as references to Christ s §descent into Hades. These questions will be answered §by means of a parallel study. The first part of this §book involves the doctrine of the Descensus ; §looking at its origin and its development. It is §argued in this section that the roots of this §doctrine can be found in Jewish-Christianity and not §pagan mythology as has been suggested. The second §part of the book then engages in the meaning of 1 §Peter 3:19 and 4:6. This section starts with an §introduction to 1 Peter, discussing all the §preliminary questions . This will be followed by a §structural analysis of 1 Peter. By means of an §analysis of these verses, §and the influence of the pseudepigraphal book 1 §Enoch, it is shown that these verses do not allow §themselves to be interpreted as references to the §Descent of Christ into Hades. The aim of this book is to prove that neither 1 §Peter 3:19 nor 1 Peter 4:6 refers to the Christian §doctrine the Descensus Christi ad Inferos . The §meaning of these two verses has long been debated, §and is very often seen as references to Christ s §descent into Hades. These questions will be answered §by means of a parallel study. The first part of this §book involves the doctrine of the Descensus ; §looking at its origin and its development. It is §argued in this section that the roots of this §doctrine can be found in Jewish-Christianity and not §pagan mythology as has been suggested. The second §part of the book then engages in the meaning of 1 §Peter 3:19 and 4:6. This section starts with an §introduction to 1 Peter, discussing all the §preliminary questions . This will be followed by a §structural analysis of 1 Peter. By means of an §analysis of these verses, §and the influence of the pseudepigraphal book 1 §Enoch, it is shown that these verses do not allow §themselves to be interpreted as references to the §Descent of Christ into Hades.