Journal: Detroit Baptist Seminary Journal
Volume: DBSJ 26:1 (NA 2021)
Article: If Jesus Descended To Sheol, Then Old Testament Saints Also Descended To Sheol
Author: Mark A. Snoeberger

DBSJ 26 (2021) p. 35

If Jesus Descended To Sheol, Then Old Testament Saints Also Descended To Sheol

Mark A. Snoeberger1

Introduction

As was the case in the previous article of this journal, the question addressed in this article is the destination of the souls of Old Testament saints at death: Did they go (1) to an undifferentiated “place of the dead” to which all human souls descend, (2) to a “compartment” of this common place (viz., Upper Sheol) that serves as an antechamber for heaven, or (3) to the very abode of God, a place to which all elect souls ascend at death in every age.2 In this article I will be defending a variation of position (2), viz., that OT saints descended to a comfortable and restful, but less than wholly satisfying compartment of Sheol, from which our Lord Christ liberated them after his crucifixion (an event sometimes called the “harrowing of hell”).3

Since this question is one of Old Testament theology, one would expect that the preponderance of exegetical support for its answer would derive from the Old Testament. However, as my title suggests, I will be arguing that there are elements of NT exegesis and systematic theology that inform the answer as well. Specifically, if it can be argued successfully that Jesus descended into Sheol after his death in order to

DBSJ 26 (2021) p. 36

liberate the souls of OT saints held captive there, then it follows necessarily that they previously had gone to this place when they died.

A Very Brief Summary Of The Old Testament Material

Although this presentation is primarily a NT study, it is helpful, I think, to swiftly survey the salient OT references to Sheol that speak to its residents, both actual and potential.4 With most Hebrew lexicographers, I understand that while the word שְׁאוֹל occasionally stands as a metaphor for death, its primary function is to connote a place of detention for the souls of the dead. Its location is inconsequential, but it is vital to recognize that it is a location (not merely a state of being), and its location is distinct from the grave (a place for the bodies of the dead).

The majority of OT references to שְׁאוֹל speak of this place in decidedly negative terms: a place of fiery wrath (Deut 32:22), decadence (Isa 14:11), restriction (2 Sam 2...