The gates of hell shall not prevail

[beckrl]

Matthew 16:18
And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it

How do you interpret this scripture?

[sinceresoldier]

Beckrl, I assume you are looking for our interpretations for the 2nd half of the verse, correct? Or our interpretation of the entire verse?

[beckrl]

Well, the last part is what I was wanting to know how you interpret, but if you feel it applys to context then by all means give the meaning of the entire verse.

I will add this to help. I contemplating the words used gates of hell shall not prevail against it


We tend to view the gates of hell as something that could prevent people from entering into the Kingdom of God. Perhaps Satan used the gates of hell to keep people in the grips of death and the grave (hell) before Christ came? If this is true then all those OT saints, who died in faith before Christ came would still be held in bondage of death if Christ had not defeated death, and torn down the gates of hell (grave) that held them.

Satan has great power over mankind, even to the point of keeping those in unbelief in darkness. But Satan's power can never be more powerful than God's. Satan could not so blind the minds of man before he was bound that he could keep God's elect from faith. This is clearly demonstrated in several OT men/women of faith. But he did have authority over death and the grave before his binding. This is why Heb 11 tells us that OT saints died in faith without having inherited their eternal home. They could not inherit a home eternal in heaven, whose builder and maker is God until Christ came to set them free from bondage of death and the grave that Satan held them in.

So the strong man (Satan) does indeed have a house, his kingdom that must be plundered by Christ so the eternal Kingdom of God can be complete with both OT people of faith, as well as NT people of faith. This is what Christ meant when He said the strong man must first be bound before his house can be plundered. Satan's house/kingdom that he had power over, and enabled him to keep man in darkness is the pit (hell/grave) and death. Before ascending into heaven, Christ first descended into hell and set free those who died in faith, and took them with Him when He ascended to the right hand of God.

The bondage that Satan had power over before his binding was death that men their whole lifetimes feared. Christ opened the gates of hell so now His people need not fear death, because when we die in Christ, though our bodies still go into the grave, we never die, because death simply means being translated into the presence of Christ and His throne forever. The essence of who we are, our spirit (mind, heart) is never held captive in hell (grave) because Christ has set us free from death.

Isaiah 61:
1The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;

2To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;

3To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.

[sinceresoldier]

Hmm, I actually never looked at it that way. I will take another look at your interpretation though, quite interesting. I always interpreted "gates of hell shall not prevail against it" in the context of my understanding/belief of the first part of the verse and the revelation that the Father had given Peter. My interpretation of the first part of the verse is:

Christ built His Church upon the divine revelation/understanding of the Truths of God/Word of God, just as had been revealed to Peter by the Father, as mentioned in verse 17, which was the Rock that Christ spoke of, being the foundation later spoken of in the NT. With Christ being the Chief Cornerstone (Christ being the focus, center, most essential component) of that revelation/understanding according to Ephesians 2:19-22 in both the capacity of who our preaching points to, as well as Him being the chief layer, with the apostles and prophets, of the foundation of the Church. Again, that "understanding/foundation/Rock" being the Word of God and true preaching of it, pointing to the Living Word, being Christ and His redeeming Blood.

For the second half of the verse, gates of hell shall not prevail against it, I interpreted that to mean that no power of the enemy could ever stop salvation and the Church going on unto perfection. I used to hear the older folks around here say, "no matter how hell or high water comes my way, I'm going to still move on." I think that is a modern way of saying "the gates of hell shall not prevail."

I think in some way our interpretations intersect with regards to salvation... But I may not have explained my interpretation of the verse well enough and may seem to be way out in left field Just let me know But I'm gonna study your thoughts as well, thanks!

[beckrl]

Hmm, I actually never looked at it that way. I will take another look at your interpretation though, quite interesting. I always interpreted "gates of hell shall not prevail against it" in the context of my understanding/belief of the first part of the verse and the revelation that the Father had given Peter. My interpretation of the first part of the verse is:

Christ built His Church upon the divine revelation/understanding of the Truths of God/Word of God, just as had been revealed to Peter by the Father, as mentioned in verse 17, which was the Rock that Christ spoke of, being the foundation later spoken of in the NT. With Christ being the Chief Cornerstone (Christ being the focus, center, most essential component) of that revelation/understanding according to Ephesians 2:19-22 in both the capacity of who our preaching points to, as well as Him being the chief layer, with the apostles and prophets, of the foundation of the Church. Again, that "understanding/foundation/Rock" being the Word of God and true preaching of it, pointing to the Living Word, being Christ and His redeeming Blood.

I agree through the revelation of Christ we have been given the keys to the kingdom, by the preaching of the gospel. I would also relate that key that is given to us to preach the gospel as the one that the angel had which came down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit [hell/grave] and a great chain in his hand. (Rev.20:1) That key is through Christ and his death and resurrection.

All this is parallel with the gates of hell [death and the grave] in which Satan bound those of old until Christ came and set the captive free.
The essence of who we are, our spirit (mind, heart) is never held captive in hell (grave) because Christ has set us free from death.

For the second half of the verse, gates of hell shall not prevail against it, I interpreted that to mean that no power of the enemy could ever stop salvation and the Church going on unto perfection. I used to hear the older folks around here say, "no matter how hell or high water comes my way, I'm going to still move on." I think that is a modern way of saying "the gates of hell shall not prevail."

I think in some way our interpretations intersect with regards to salvation... But I may not have explained my interpretation of the verse well enough and may seem to be way out in left field Just let me know But I'm gonna study your thoughts as well, thanks!

Agreed I was just thinking of how the gates of hell will not prevail would apply. It's does with the old testament saints and with us, both have been set free from the grips of hell death and the grave.