. . . what does Jesus mean by καὶ
πύλαι ᾅδου οὐ κατισχύσουσιν αὐτῆς (“and the gates of Hades will not defeat
it”)? The gates of Hades are typically equated with death in Greek literature.
In Matt 16:18, they represent an eschatological enemy that will be overcome.
Although scholars debate the exact identity of this enemy, a growing majority
follow Joel Marcus and others in viewing the gates as a metonym for the power
of Satan and his minions. In Marcus’ view, the gates represent the place from
which forces can march as long as they are open. Thus, the gates of the enemy
will be opened against the assembly – that is, make war against the assembly –
but Peter will be able to open the gates of heaven and unleash the victorious
power of God (16:19). Against this viewpoint, Jack Lewis reasonably outlines
the following trajectory from its history of interpretation:
The NT makes a clear distinction
between hadēs and geenna with the latter being the place of
punishment of the wicked…The KJV (as was natural) followed the older and common
usage of its time, making no distinction between the two concepts. The English
translations of the fathers have continued to use “hell” as the rendering of hadēs
into the twentieth century. When English did adopt a distinction between hadēs
and geenna, the ordinary person’s thinking did not change. He continued
to think in terms of geenna when reading Matt 16:18. That influence
persists even today. There lies the persuasion of “hell and all it can do” when
one reads Matt 16:18…This long exposition of material, much of which is what
Colin Brown designated “a hermeneutic without exegesis,” suggests to me that
current theologians ought to take notice of the change that has taken place in
the English language that now makes a distinction between ‘Hades’ and ‘hell.’
If one wants to expound a teaching that all that hell can do will never overcome
the Church, that is well and good. But Matt 16:18c should not be twisted into
being considered a prooftext for it. (Jack P. Lewis, “‘The Gates of Hell Shall
Not Prevail Against It’ (Matt 16:18): A Study of the History of
Interpretation,” JETS 38 (1995): 349–67, 352, 353, 366. His reference to
Colin Brown is to Colin Brown, “The Gates of Hell and the Church,” in Church,
Word and Spirit: Historical and Theological Essays in Honor of Geoffrey W.
Bromiley, eds. J. E. Bradley and R. A. Miller (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans,
1987), 15–43, 20.)
Lewis concludes, “In keeping with the
linguistic data, ‘gates of Hades’ is to be considered a figure of speech for
death, which cannot keep the Christ imprisoned.” (Lewis, “‘The Gates,’” 366–67)
Lewis’ stance has much to commend to
it, especially in light of OG Isa 38:10. See OG Isa 38:10 below:
Ἐγὼ εἶπα Ἐν τῷ ὕψει τῶν ἡμερῶν μου ἐν
πύλαις ᾅδου καταλείψω τὰ ἔτη τὰ ἐπίλοιπα
I said, “At the height of my days, at the gates of Hades, I shall abandon the
remaining years.”
In 38:10, the “gates of Hades” clearly
refer to Hezekiah’s impending death. This passage provides strong evidence for
Lewis’ view. However, his view also needs to be nuanced by the only other
instance of ᾅδης (“Hades”) in the Gospel (Matt 11:23). In 11:23, in the context
of eschatological judgment – and through language that alludes to the taunt of
the king of Babylon in OG Isa 14:13–15 – Jesus gives the following verdict:
καὶ σύ Καφαρναούμ μὴ ἕως οὐρανοῦ ὑψωθήσῃ
ἕως ᾅδου καταβήσῃ
And you, O Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? No! You will go down to
Hades.
In Matt 11:23, “Hades” does not simply
equate to “death.” The contrast with “heaven” is striking, and Hades is endowed
with eschatological weight. In other words, the “clear distinction” between
γέεννα (“Gehenna” or “hell”) and ᾅδης (“Hades” or “realm of the dead”) is
blurred in the Gospel. (Lewis, “The Gates,” 352. But note that this blurring
only goes in one direction in the Gospel: “Gehenna” does not simply connote
“the realm of the dead.”) Furthermore, the verb ἀποκτείνω (“to kill”)
manifestly casts antagonists as perpetrators and the people of God as victims
in the Gospel (10:28; 14:5; 16:21; 17:23; 21:35, 38, 39; 22:6; 23:34, 37; 24:9;
26:4). In other words, those who put to death (ἀποκτείνω) are equated with evil
forces. This equation is conceptually similar to the book of Revelation, where
Death and Hades are cast into the lake of fire (Rev 20:14) along with the devil
(20:10), the beast (19:20), the false prophet (19:20), and those not written in
the book of life (20:15).
In conclusion, in Matt 16:18, the
“gates of Hades” represent evil and the worst that evil can do to the assembly
of God – namely, kill. The assembly built by the resurrected Messiah will be
victorious. Peter is the rock. Jesus’ assembly is a temple, and the enemy will
not prevail. Now the scene is set for 16:19. (Timothy M. Rucker, The Temple
Keys of Isaiah 22:22, Revelation 3:7, and Matthew 16:19 [Wissenschaftliche
Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament 2. Reihe 559; Mohr Siebeck, 2021], 155-57)
