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.
