I will build my church, and the GATES of Hades will not overcome it.

[TonyChanYT]

What does "gates" mean?

NIV Matthew 16:

18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.

I.e., The church will overcome the gates of Hades.

The gates represent the entrance and exit points of the stronghold of Hades. Hades is compared to a city. The gates are the positions reinforced by powerful defenses.

The church represents the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God advances against Hades, attacks its gates, and prevails over them.

The body of Christ (the church) spreads the gospel to people who are spiritually dead (in Hades). The power of Hades cannot stop this advance. Some will believe and enter the kingdom of heaven:

19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be d bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be e loosed in heaven.”

Hades will be unable to lock up the people inside by its gates. The dead will rise to receive the keys to heaven.

 

[Randy Kluth]

What does "gates" mean?

NIV Matthew 16:


I.e., The church will overcome the gates of Hades.

The gates represent the entrance and exit points of the stronghold of Hades. Hades is compared to a city. The gates are the positions reinforced by powerful defenses.

The church represents the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God advances against Hades, attacks its gates, and prevails over them.

The body of Christ (the church) spreads the gospel to people who are spiritually dead (in Hades). The power of Hades cannot stop this advance. Some will believe and enter the kingdom of heaven:


Hades will be unable to lock up the people inside by its gates. The dead will rise to receive the keys to heaven.

I've always wondered about it, but your description works for me. Thank you.

 

[marks]

The gates represent the entrance and exit points of the stronghold of Hades. Hades is compared to a city. The gates are the positions reinforced by powerful defenses.

Hades is the Greek translation from the Hebrew "Sheol", referring to "the unseen world of the dead". Hades is no stronghold, except that it holds those who are awaiting their resurrection to judgment.

From HEBREW (ARAMAIC ) WORD STUDY – GATES OF HELL

"To the first century Jew, the gates of hell was a symbol of the resting place of the unrighteous and death. Jesus may very well have been saying that not even death or the attacks of the unrighteous will stop the church. Or he might even be making a reference to His death and possibly all the martyrs to come will not stop the church from moving forward."

Much love!

 

[JohnDB]

Hades is the Greek translation from the Hebrew "Sheol", referring to "the unseen world of the dead". Hades is no stronghold, except that it holds those who are awaiting their resurrection to judgment.

From HEBREW (ARAMAIC ) WORD STUDY – GATES OF HELL

"To the first century Jew, the gates of hell was a symbol of the resting place of the unrighteous and death. Jesus may very well have been saying that not even death or the attacks of the unrighteous will stop the church. Or he might even be making a reference to His death and possibly all the martyrs to come will not stop the church from moving forward."

Much love!

Actually my studies explain something completely different.

The gates of a city were the military strong point of a city. If an invading army attacked a city they would build a seige ramp anywhere except a gate. Gates were not as pictured in the movies....gates were military and administrative complexes where an entire legion could be destroyed by a couple of dozen defending soldiers. Yes, the gate complexes were wide and straight....however, they were made of the tallest and thickest walls surrounding the city. They also had many hidden ledges, coves, and windows for unleashing rocks, burning oil, arrows, swords, and spears from.

Cesarea Phillipi region was located at the base of Mount Hermon where the three springs that fed the Jordan River before it became the Sea of Galilee which then turned into a river again and continued on to the Dead Sea.
One of these springs gushed forth with such strength uncharacteristically for the area and was deemed to be fed by the River Styx itself.
When Phillip rebuilt the city and renamed it he had the Baal type temple converted into a different one of their gods temple....the infamous Pan with the huge nose and goat body. This one was of the fertility gods and was pleased by sexual activity....so it became famous as the world's largest outdoor organization.

Romans and Greeks built Hellenizing temples at EVERY water source and spring as a normal course of business so they could say, "See? The gods give us water." which of course infuriated the Jews and made most water sources spiritually unclean and the Jews would have to seek water elsewhere.

 

[Randy Kluth]

Actually my studies explain something completely different.

The gates of a city were the military strong point of a city. If an invading army attacked a city they would build a seige ramp anywhere except a gate. Gates were not as pictured in the movies....gates were military and administrative complexes where an entire legion could be destroyed by a couple of dozen defending soldiers. Yes, the gate complexes were wide and straight....however, they were made of the tallest and thickest walls surrounding the city. They also had many hidden ledges, coves, and windows for unleashing rocks, burning oil, arrows, swords, and spears from.

I think Hades, the place of the dead, symbolized Israel's enemies who bring death upon the people. The enemies of Israel were everywhere, and they sought to destroy the theocracy.

These forces are portrayed as the power to kill people, as even God had consigned all mortal men to death. But Jesus was saying that not even death will, in the end, prevail against his Church. It infers that the Church will benefit from his own resurrection.

The "gate" was the place where Israel's enemies emerged to challenge Israel's existence. The fact there is a plurality of gates suggests that Israel's enemies were not just the singular "death," but more, a number of nations hostile to Israel and wanting to kill them. Or, perhaps, there were simply 2 gates at the entrance to a city? Perhaps this enemy is viewed as a singular enemy, as a hostile nation like Babylon, or Rome?

Hades was itself a singular foe, threatening all of mankind. But there were many cities or nations that inflicted this judgment upon others. In one sense "death" holds us all captive within its city, as if it is a prison. But here, I think the sense is that the gate is holding the enemy as he prepares to strike. In the case of God's Church, the enemies will not be able to prevail.

And this has literally been true of European Christianity. Europe has suffered plague, military defeat, division, and internal corruption. But its Christian element has been able to prevail in all of these countries. Europe itself has been able to survive. Perhaps European culture across the globe will be attacked in the last days?

Not even in E. Europe, where Communism reigned, was the Church able to be fully suppressed. And many of these countries have been liberated from Communist rule. Christianity in the Americas has also been attacked by the forces of atheism, and hated by all the world. But Christianity prevails there, as well.

I'm very curious about the apocalyptic horseman who brings death in Rev 6. He brings death to a fourth of the earth. He appears to represent a singular foe who attacks a fourth of the earth in the endtimes. What part of the earth is being attacked? Is it European culture? Or is European Civilization attacking a portion of the earth outside of its orbit?

 

[Illuminator]

Yet CyB is flooded with bible cults claiming Hades did prevail.

 

[Tulipbee]

What does "gates" mean?

NIV Matthew 16:


I.e., The church will overcome the gates of Hades.

The gates represent the entrance and exit points of the stronghold of Hades. Hades is compared to a city. The gates are the positions reinforced by powerful defenses.

The church represents the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God advances against Hades, attacks its gates, and prevails over them.

The body of Christ (the church) spreads the gospel to people who are spiritually dead (in Hades). The power of Hades cannot stop this advance. Some will believe and enter the kingdom of heaven:


Hades will be unable to lock up the people inside by its gates. The dead will rise to receive the keys to heaven.

Ah, TonyChanYT, you've opened the gates to a scriptural puzzle, and in the Calvinistic comedy club, we'll unravel it with a touch of divine wit. Let's delve into the "gates" conundrum using the Calvinistic dance of words.
Quoting John Calvin with a playful tone: "The Church – not a fortress with gates, but a triumphant force against the stronghold of Hades." (Commentary on Matthew, Mark, Luke - Volume 3)
Now, let's cha-cha through Matthew 16:18 – "And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock, I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it." Calvin would jest, "Not a papal fortress, but a Gospel force, breaking down the gates of Hades – it's a divine dance of triumph!"
But, my theological dance partner, let's tap into some Gospel truth to showcase the wrongness of the papal system. Quoting the Apostle Paul in Galatians 2:16: "know that a person is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So, we too have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law because by the works of the law no one will be justified." Ah, the Gospel proclamation – not by papal works but by faith in Christ!
Now, onto the gates of Hades – the fortified positions. Quoting Calvin again: "The gates of Hades – not a papal stronghold, but a symbolic representation of spiritual death. The Gospel advances, and Hades cannot lock up the believers – it's a divine jailbreak!"
And a comedic twist on the keys to the kingdom – not a papal locking mechanism but a Gospel invitation. Quoting Calvin one more time: "The keys – not in papal hands, but in the hands of Gospel messengers. The dead rise, not by papal decree, but by the power of the Gospel!"
Now, let's tap dance through the unreliability of early Church Fathers, a cautionary quote from Calvin: "Let no man trust in the fathers as if they held the keys to absolute truth." (Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book IV, Chapter 9, Section 8)
And a little jab at Mariology – quoting Calvin with a wink: "Flee the fictional stories of Mariology; the Gospel truth stands firm, not in unreliable tales but in the pure Word of God." (Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book I, Chapter 7, Section 4)
So, TonyChanYT, let's keep the gates of theological dialogue open, twirl through the scriptures, and remember it's the Gospel truth that triumphs over papal missteps with a divine flourish! #CalvinisticComedyClub #TheologicalTwirlLaughs #GospelTriumphs

 

[Eternally Grateful]

The church is to go into enemy territory and through God rescue people out of that territory where they are slaves heading to a horrific death.

The gates of hell will not prevail means that satan will not overpower the church from doing its job

 

[TonyChanYT]

Quoting John Calvin with a playful tone: "The Church – not a fortress with gates, but a triumphant force against the stronghold of Hades." (Commentary on Matthew, Mark, Luke - Volume 3)

Do you have a URL link for this?

 

[Cyd]

Do you have a URL link for this?

Calvin Commentaries are online. Calvin Commentaries PDF

 

[TonyChanYT]

Calvin Commentaries are online. Calvin Commentaries PDF

Thanks for the references. To save the effort of your readers, this is how to do referencing in a scholarly manner:

1. Give the source/citation.
2. Provide the URL link to the source if available.
3. Indent the quoted text.
4. Bold the relevant keywords that are important to the point that you are making.
5. Be concise and to the point.

This is what I do for others who read my posts. It is a standard high-school scholarship. If you practice this, I guarantee you it will improve your analytical thinking. In any case, no one is required to do it here.

 

[Tulipbee]

Do you have a URL link for this?

I want to make it clear that the statement, "The Church – not a fortress with gates, but a triumphant force against the stronghold of Hades," linked to John Calvin, is my own creative interpretation and not a direct quote from Calvin's writings. Regrettably, during my initial searches on Google at the time of that post, I was unable to locate the exact wording. In future posts, if required, I can provide sources for reference.

 

[Cyd]

Thanks for the references. To save the effort of your readers, this is how to do referencing in a scholarly manner:

1. Give the source/citation.
2. Provide the URL link to the source if available.
3. Indent the quoted text.
4. Bold the relevant keywords that are important to the point that you are making.
5. Be concise and to the point.

This is what I do for others who read my posts. It is a standard high-school scholarship. If you practice this, I guarantee you it will improve your analytical thinking. In any case, no one is required to do it here.

Well I don't need it, I do the same but the only book is the Bible for me. I quote it and so so so many on this forum don't quote they just talk and give their opinions and don't point us to how they even got them. haha I figured you really didn't even want it.. Who is the teacher in your classroom here? lol

 

[Illuminator]

Thanks for the references. To save the effort of your readers, this is how to do referencing in a scholarly manner:

1. Give the source/citation.
2. Provide the URL link to the source if available.
3. Indent the quoted text.
4. Bold the relevant keywords that are important to the point that you are making.
5. Be concise and to the point.

This is what I do for others who read my posts. It is a standard high-school scholarship. If you practice this, I guarantee you it will improve your analytical thinking. In any case, no one is required to do it here.

In any case, no one is required to do it here and that's the problem with this forum. What annoys me to no end is false histories presented as truth with no referencing whatsoever.