"Christ was put to death in the flesh." As concerns His flesh, His human nature, His life on this earth, He was put to death. "But quickened (made alive) by the Spirit." As concerns His spirit; His divine nature, His life as it was controlled by this spirit, He was quickened. Hence the man Jesus, put to death, was quickened on the third day, so that now He is in divine glory. In this divine glory the Man Jesus Christ, put to death, but quickened, went and preached to the spirits in prison who had been disobedient. This prison is hell. There are the spirits of unbelievers, the disobedient. To them Jesus Christ preached, living in divine glory. What did He preach to them? His victory. To the devils, too, He preached this. "He spoiled principalities and powers; He made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it." (Col. 2:15) Christ's descent into hell was a triumphal procession, His preaching in hell a cry of victory. Hell must know that He has conquered, and that, on the contrary, it has lost. This was the first act of the Exalted. If there are spirits in hell to whom Jesus preached His victory, then there are also spirits in heaven who were informed of His victory. The former wailed, and the latter rejoiced. Let us here on earth rejoice over the victory and the exaltation of our Saviour, that we may belong "to the spirits of just men made perfect" (Hebr. 12:23), joining them in their songs of praise when our earthly pilgrimage will have been ended.