A basic Christian belief is that Jesus Christ died on the cross about 3:00 P.M. on Good Friday. The Bible states that He rose from the dead early on Easter Sunday morning. Where was He during those intervening hours?
Jesus, who is fully God and fully human, experienced death, as we all must. After He drew His final breath, His soul joined others in the realm of the dead. However, Jesus' soul was linked to His divinity. He descended to the region of the dead as Savior to proclaim the good news to the spirits imprisoned there.
Jesus' death did not only benefit those who would live after Him, but also those who had preceded Him on earth: Abraham, Moses, the prophets, John the Baptist, and other righteous souls.
The Bible calls the abode of the dead "Hell", in Greek "Hades" and in Hebrew "Sheol", because all the souls who died before Good Friday were deprived of the vision of God, hence they did not yet possess perfect happiness. Furthermore, all the deceased were not in the same place.
Through the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, Jesus gives a glimpse of conditions in the afterlife before His resurrection. (Luke 16: 19-31) The rich man, who had been cruel and selfish in life, was in Hades where he was undergoing terrible torment. Lazarus, who had been a righteous man, but who had suffered miserably during life, was comfortable in Abraham's bosom.
The two locations, Hell or Hades, and the place where Abraham and Lazarus dwelt, were entirely separate. Although the residents of each place could communicate with each other, the conditions in each area were vastly different.
Jesus did not go to Hades where the damned were confined. He went to the abode of Abraham, Lazarus, and the other righteous souls. On that day, the good news of the Gospel was proclaimed even in the underworld, and great joy abounded among those who had been saved.
In the Book of Revelation, John reports that Jesus said to him, " Do not be afraid: I am the first and the last, and the living one. I was dead, and see, I am alive forever; and I have the keys of Death and Hades." Rev.1:17-18
Possession of keys symbolizes the ability to come and go at will. In the hours between Jesus' death and resurrection, He completed the final phase of His mission. His soul, united with His divine nature, descended to the realm of the dead, where the souls of the just were waiting for Him. He announced the good news of the Gospel to them, and led them to their eternal home in heaven.
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