rist, God and man in
one person, descended into hell_ but did not remain in it; as Ps. 16, 10
says of Him: 'Thou wilt not leave My soul in hell nor suffer Thine Holy
One to see corruption.' By the word 'soul,' He, in accordance with the
language of the Scripture, does not mean, as we do, a being separated
from the body, but the entire man, the Holy One of God, as He here calls
Himself. But how it may have occurred that the man lies there in the
grave, and yet descends into hell--that, indeed, we shall and must leave
unexplained and uncomprehended; for it certainly did not take place in a
bodily and tangible manner although we can only paint and conceive it in
a coarse and bodily way and speak of it in pictures." "Such, therefore
is the plainest manner to speak of this article, that we may adhere to
the words and cling to this main point, that for us, through Christ,
hell has been torn to pieces and the devil's kingdom and power utterly
destroyed, for which purpose He died, was buried, and descended,--so
that it should no longer harm or overwhelm us, as He Himself says, Matt.
16, 18...." (CONC. TRIGL., 1050)

219. Aepinus in Hamburg.

The two outstanding features of Luther's sermon are that Christ
descended into hell body and soul, and that He descended as a triumphant
Victor, and not in order to complete His suffering and the work of
atonement. The denial of these two points, in particular, caused a new
controversy, which however, was of brief duration only, and practically
confined to the city of Hamburg, hence also called the Hamburg Church
Controversy, _der Hamburger Kirchenstreit_. Its author was John Aepinus
[Huck or Hoeck; born 1499; studied under Luther; persecuted in
Brandenburg and banished; rector in Stralsund; 1532 pastor and later
superintendent in Hamburg; wrote 1547 against the Interim; sided with
Flacius against the Philippists; published books in Latin and Low
German; dealt with Christ's descent to hell especially in his
_Commentary on Psalm 16_, of 1544, and in his _Explanation of Psalm 68_,
of 1553; died May 13, 1553].

Aepinus taught that Christ's descent is a part of His suffering and
atonement. While the body was lying in the grave, His soul descended
into hell in order to suffer the qualms and pangs required to satisfy
the wrath of God, complete the work of redemption, and render a plenary
satisfaction, _satisfactio plenaria_. The descent is the last stage of
Christ's humiliation and suffering,