Ephesians 4:9

“Now this, He ascended, what is it but that he also descended into the lower parts of the earth?”

“What is it”: “Must imply that He had already gone down” (TCNT). “What does it mean but that He had first descended” (Wey) “Furthermore, to emphasize this triumph, Paul pauses to dwell on the word ‘ascended' and to remind his readers that the glory of this victory can be measured only by the depth to which Christ descended” (Erdman p. 88). “He also”: The Jesus that sits at the right hand of God, is the same as the Jesus that came to this earth. You cannot make some artificial distinction between the "historical Jesus" and the "Christ of Glory". They are one and the same person. “Descended”: This implies. pre-existence (John 8:58; 1 Peter 2:6; John 1:1). “Lower parts of the earth”: Not only did Jesus completely humble Himself, live among men, and live in some of the most humble circumstances, even for human beings, but such. "descent" even resulted in His physical death, that is, this descent finally resulted in His being entombed in the earth (1 Peter 2:7). “This was the climax of Christ's humiliation; to be removed out of men's sight, as too offensive for them to look on--to be hidden away in the depths of the earth” (P.P. Comm. p. 148). From this phrase some get the idea that following His death Jesus "descended" into hell and rescued various individuals, yet Jesus did not go to hell when He died, he went to Hades (Luke 23:43; Acts 2:31). The people now in torment that heard Jesus' preaching (1 Peter 3:19), were not in hell at the time when heard, rather Jesus had preached to them through Noah while the ark was being constructed.