Second Death

Words matter. Words have meaning. Words shape how and what we think. Words reflect what we believe and how we act. Words may convey objective truths or absolute falsehoods. Word choices are vitally important, especially when expressed publicly. Words have the power to influence others in good or bad ways. God’s Word is so powerful it formed the world and all of creation and took on flesh^[1] to redeem it after the devil used words to corrupt it.

Some time ago, I heard a church^[2] sermon that publicly proclaimed that Christ died a second death to finish His victorious redeeming work:

"Now that he ascended, what is it, but he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth. When he descended into the lower parts of the earth, you know what that was? He descended into hell. And he died second death for me, for my sins, and for all the sins of the world, if you believe. All of them. That’s what he did. He died second death. And by commandment that’s been written in John, he was given commandment by God that he could lay down his life and take it up again. And he did that. He rose from that, and he rose victorious" ^[3] (emphasis added).

Perhaps the use of the phrase second death was a peculiar slip of the tongue, or simply a poor choice of words. Since most of the remainder of what is quoted from the sermon is essentially true, perhaps this was a minor mistake to be overlooked in forbearance.^[4] A couple of months later I heard the phrase again,^[5] that Christ died a second death. Repeating this phrase suggests it is not a slip of the tongue nor a poor choice of words. Continuing to use this phrase suggests an intentional use. It suggests a new innovative doctrine of Christ dying a second death has been adopted by the church. If this has become a new doctrine, it more than likely will sow seeds of confusion.^[6] Perhaps the root of such confusion is a misunderstanding of the concept of a second death and what happened when Christ descended into hell.

The meaning of the phrase second death must be understood along with the concept of a first death and with the biblical phrases first resurrection and second resurrection. The book of Revelation defines the second death as the lake of fire^[7] originally created for the devil and his fallen angels,^[8] a place of condemnation for those found without faith^[9] on the Last Day of judgment. A first resurrection^[10] occurs whenever a living person is brought to a spiritual faith in Christ through Holy Baptism and repentance. If that person remains in faith until their body dies, they will never be subject to the second death.^[11]

Make note of the vitally important consequence this reveals! Christ has no need to save those in faith from a second death. Therefore, there is no need for Christ to die a second death because the faithful are not subject to a second death! An application of these concepts and phrases can be illustrated using the examples of a believer and an unbeliever as judged on the Last Day. A believer’s body begins life in a spiritual first death,^[12] that is, they are born dead in their trespasses and sins^[13] until they are baptized into a life of daily repentance, which is their spiritual first resurrection.^[14] If they continue in steadfast faith until their body dies, on the Last Day, Christ awakens them to a second resurrection^[15] of body and soul. An unbeliever’s body also begins life in a spiritual first death.^[16] After their body dies (without faith) on the Last Day, Christ awakens them to a second death of body and soul.

It must be understood what happened when Christ descended into hell. To be fair, there are not many direct biblical references regarding Christ’s decent into hell. A direct reference can be found in 1 Peter:

"For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit, by whom also He went and preached to the spirits in prison, who formerly were disobedient, when once the Divine long suffering waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water. There is also an antitype which now saves us — baptism (not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, angels and authorities and powers having been made subject to Him" (1 Peter 3:18-22; emphasis added).

In Ephesians, Paul equates the glorious One who ascended with the same glorious One that descended, the supreme Victor, Ruler and Giver that fills all of creation:

"Therefore He says: ‘When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, And gave gifts to men.’ Now this, ‘He ascended’ — what does it mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things" (Eph 4:8-10).

And in his epistle to the Colossians he writes:

"And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it" (Col 2:14b-15; emphasis added).^[17]

The notion that Christ finished His atoning suffering in a second phase through an additional torment in hell is not a new innovation. This confusion was promoted briefly during the Reformation. In 1544 Pastor John Aepinus (1499-1553) in Hamburg, Germany taught this controversial interpretation, but stopped short of claiming that Christ’s decent into hell was part of a second death, presuming it was a prolongation of His first death. His Lutheran colleagues rebuked him, teaching that Christ descended into hell as part of His glorious "victory tour" to proclaim His triumph over sin, death, and the devil, leaving Satan without refuge from the judgment of God.

An Old Testament era wartime practice of a victor’s triumphal entry into a city was not uncommon. Accompanied by palm branches, musical instruments, and the singing of songs and hymns, they praised God for crushing and removing their enemy. Examples of elements of a victory tour are echoed in Matthew 21:1-17; Mark 11:1-11; John 12:12-18; Zechariah 9:9; 2 Kings 9:13; Judges 10:4; 12:14; 2 Samuel 16:2.

Martin Luther (1483-1546) preached on Christ’s decent into hell in his 1533 Torgau sermon:

"For there have indeed been many who have tried to grasp this [decent into hell] with reason and the five senses. But they have not succeeded or attained anything in so doing. Instead, they have only gone further astray from the faith."

"Christ went [to hell] and took his banner as a conquering hero and flung the door wide open with it… He also left death and hell again, brought life back again and opened heaven wide and thus publicly demonstrated His victory and triumph over death, the devil, and hell…"

"Therefore He is called in Scripture the ‘firstborn from the dead,’ as the One who forged the path for us and has gone before us to eternal life, so that we, through His resurrection, may also prevail and thus achieve a glorious victory over death and hell, that we, who were once their prisoners, might not only be redeemed, but also conquer and become lords, through faith, by which we are clothed in His resurrection and thus, by the same token, should also bodily and certainly rise and be exalted, so that all things must finally lie under our feet."

"Let us abide [in this article of faith]… for all our wisdom, well-being, and salvation rests in it. Where this article remains, there remains everything of which we are certain… On the other hand, if this article is absent or comes to ruin, then all our salvation and comfort and wisdom come to ruin, so that no one can any longer think or judge rightly concerning doctrine or life."^[18]

In Romans, Paul emphasizes Christ’s first death, never suggesting a second death:

"For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rom 6:10-11; emphasis added).

Likewise, the writer of Hebrews contrasts the completeness of Christ’s single sacrifice for sin with the (now obsolete) multiple temple sacrifices:

"Not that He should offer Himself often, as the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood of another — He then would have had to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many" (Heb 9:25-28a; emphasis added).

The writer of Hebrews continues emphasizing the completeness of a single sacrifice in Heb 10:2; 10:10-14.

There was no need for Christ to suffer a second time, His atoning sacrifice for the sins of the world was given and finished^[19] on the cross: "He said, ‘It is finished!’ And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit" (John 19:30). Words do matter, finished means finished! The Lutheran Reformers believed it was important enough to include this controversy^[20] in the 1580 Formula of Concord Article IX, citing Luther’s Torgau sermon, acknowledging his simple understanding as one that must be grasped through faith alone:

"It is enough if we know that Christ descended into hell, destroyed hell for all believers, and delivered them from the power of death and of the devil, from eternal condemnation and the jaws of hell" (FC Art. IX).

Does it matter what words are used to proclaim God’s Word? Is there any real harm in making poor word choices, whether intentially or by mistake? Indeed, publicly proclaiming that Christ died a second death has serious long-term consequences with the potential to corrupt sound doctrine. Consider these potential harmful outcomes: 1) It makes Christ a liar, when He said, "It is finished!" 2) The death of the God-man Christ on the cross was not a sufficient atoning sacrifice, still more was needed elsewhere. 3) The glory of the cross (the tree of life) is obscured. 4) It implies that God is powerless over Satan and hell. 5) It suggests there may be hope for unbelievers to escape a second death. 6) It promotes falsehood (Satan opposes the truth!) and confuses the history and doctrine of salvation.

Is this a simple misunderstanding of Scripture, or is it a symptom of deeper underlying problems within the economy of the church? How did the notion of a salvific second death infiltrate the church? What changes need to occur within the church to correct this and to guard against other falsehoods? Please reply and let me know what must be changed.

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[1] "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men" (John 1:1-4).
[2] Finnish Independent Apostolic Lutheran Congregation (I.A.L.C.)
[3] Sermon preached at I.A.L.C. in North York, Wisconsin on November 13, 2023.
[4] "With all lowliness and gentleness, with long-suffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" (Eph 4:2-3).
[5] Sermon preached at I.A.L.C. in Dayton, Minnesota on Jan 7, 2024. Also in Duluth, Minnesota on May 2, 2024; Deer River, Minnesota on May 26, 2024; Deer River, Minnesota on June 23, 2024; Duluth, Minnesota on July 7, 2024; Duluth, Minnesota on August 31, 2024; Eagle Lake, Minnesota on September 28, 2024.
[6] "For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints" (1 Cor 14:33).
[7] "Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire" (Rev 20:14).
[8] "Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels" Matt 25:41b).
[9] "Shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death" (Rev 21:8b).
[10] "This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years" (Rev 20:5b-6).
[11] "He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death" (Rev 2:11b).
[12] "At that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world" (Eph 2:12).
[13] "Who were dead in trespasses and sins" (Eph. 2:1).
[14] "Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection" (Rom 6:3-5).
[15] "And come forth; those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation" (John 5:29).
[16] "Having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart" (Eph 4:18).
[17] See also: Psalm 68:18-19; Col 2:9.
[18] Martin Luther, "Third Sermon for Easter Day", Torgau, 1533, translated by Paul A. Rydecki, 2023.
[19] "And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel" (Gen 3:15). See also: Ps 16:10; Ps 68:18-19; Matt 16:18b; Luke 12:5; Col 2:9; Acts 2:27.
[20] Friedrich Bente, Historical Introductions to the Lutheran Confessions: As Contained in the Book of Concord of 1580, Art. XIX. Controversy on Christ’s Descent into Hell.