Jesus Christ Preached to the Spirits in Prison
1 Peter 3:18–20; 4:6
18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:
19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;
20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water. . . .
6 For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.
“While the Gospels do not mention details about Jesus Christ’s experiences between the time of His Crucifixion and His Resurrection, Peter provided the insight that Jesus ‘went and preached unto the spirits in prison; some of whom were disobedient in the days of Noah, while the long-suffering of God waited’ (Joseph Smith Translation, 1 Peter 3:19–20 [in 1 Peter 3:19–20, footnote 20a]).
“President Joseph F. Smith (1838–1918) was pondering the meaning of 1 Peter 3:18–20; 4:6 when he received a vision, now recorded in Doctrine and Covenants 138. In this vision he learned that following the Savior’s death, the Lord ministered in the spirit world, preparing the way for the gospel to be preached to the spirits of the wicked. President Joseph Fielding Smith (1876–1972) taught of the work that is taking place in the spirit world:
“‘In the justice of the Father, He is going to give to every man the privilege of hearing the gospel. Not one soul shall be overlooked or forgotten. This being true, what about the countless thousands who have died and never heard of Christ, never had an opportunity of repentance and remission of their sins, never met an elder of the Church holding the authority? . . .
“‘The Lord has so arranged His plan of redemption that all who have died without this opportunity shall be given it in the spirit world. . . . All those who did not have an opportunity here to receive it, who there repent and receive the gospel, shall be heirs of the celestial kingdom of God. The Savior inaugurated this great work when He went and preached to the spirits held in prison, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh (or in other words, according to the principles of the gospel) and then live according to God in the spirit, through their repentance and acceptance of the mission of Jesus Christ who died for them’ (Doctrines of Salvation, comp. Bruce R. McConkie, 3 vols. [1954–56], 2:132–33).
“Regarding this work in the spirit world, President Lorenzo Snow (1814–1901) shared his thoughts: ‘When the Gospel is preached to the spirits in prison, the success attending that preaching will be far greater than that attending the preaching of our Elders in this life. I believe there will be very few indeed of those spirits who will not gladly receive the Gospel when it is carried to them. The circumstances there will be a thousand times more favorable’ (“Discourse by President Lorenzo Snow,” Millennial Star, Jan. 22, 1894, 50). . . .
“The Savior’s preaching to the spirits in prison is an example of God’s fairness and justice. This doctrine of salvation for the dead makes it possible for all mankind to accept the gospel even though they may never have heard it in mortality. The doctrine of salvation for the dead is unique to Latter-day Saints.”
(New Testament Student Manual [Church Educational System manual, 2018], 505–6.)
