Where was Jesus, and why was he absent for those three days? Most people are familiar with the fact that Jesus died on the cross, and most are familiar with the fact that He rose from the grave. Depending on how you measure it—either three complete days, three partial days, or at least three days to fulfill a Jewish day—the timeframe is generally understood. The question, however, remains: Where was He for those three days? And wherever He was, why was He there? Was there a specific reason for His location?

To answer this, we must return to the Scriptures, specifically the Old Testament. We previously discussed why Jesus declared “It is finished” on the cross, but one detail we neglected to cover—and wish to address now—is the specific location of Jesus during those three days. Let us first look at Leviticus 16. In this chapter, we identify three critical elements. First, there is the high priest, who must be atoned for so that he can stand before God to mediate or act as a go-between, speaking on behalf of humanity to God. In other words, he is the one who must make intercession for the people before the Lord.

Secondly, we need someone or something that must shed blood to serve as the propitiation—the payment, the sin debt, the cost for sin. Then, the third element is that all the sins of the people are confessed onto the head of a sin-bearer, or in this case, a scapegoat. Notice the order: you have a person in right standing to go before the Lord. This person takes the blood and sheds the blood of the offering. The final step is that the sin is borne by this scapegoat.

In Leviticus 16, after the high priest finishes atoning for the holy place, the tent of meeting, and the altar, he must offer the live goat. Aaron then lays both of his hands on the head of the live goat and confesses over it all the iniquities of the sons of Israel and all their transgressions regarding all their sins. He lays them on the head of the goat and sends it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man standing in readiness. Look at verse 22: “The goat shall bear on itself all the iniquities to a solitary land, and he shall release the live goat in the wilderness.”

Where exactly is this live goat going? That is the issue. It is going to a place where no one knows, and it is going to bear the sin of the people. This gives us an indication of what Jesus does. Jesus is the sin-bearer. Remember what John the Baptist says in John 1 when he sees Jesus: “Look, behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” Jesus is the one who bears the sin. All the sins of mankind are confessed onto the head of Jesus. He bears the sin; He becomes the object of sin. What does that mean? It means the sin must be taken away. In this case, the sin-bearer, the scapegoat, goes somewhere.

Before we explore that further, let us discuss something stated in John 3 that seems odd and peculiar. This occurs when Jesus is speaking to Nicodemus about salvation—the same conversation that gives us the famous passage, John 3:16. Prior to that, Jesus says one must be born again, using the phrase “born from above.” Jesus is bringing these different concepts together; he is speaking about the same instance but highlighting different elements. Nicodemus is thoroughly confused, thinking he must be born a second time physically. No, Nicodemus; Jesus is speaking about the heart being changed, regenerated, cleansed, born from above, and born of the Spirit.

When Jesus reaches John 3:9, He says, “How can these things be?” and Jesus replies, “Are you the teacher of Israel and you don’t understand these things?” Jesus is covering concepts that a teacher of Israel should know. He says in verse 11, “Truly, truly I say to you, we speak of what we know and testify of what we have seen, and you do not accept our testimony.” He then adds, “If I told you earthly things and you do not understand or you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things?”

This next part seems to drift, but it remains relevant to salvation. Let us recap: salvation is not simply the fact that you are not going to go to hell. Jesus dies, the blood is shed, and the payment is made so that you do not die and go to hell, but the goal is not merely to avoid hell; the goal is to be with the Father forever. Propitiation involves three things: a covering, a cancelling, and a reconciliation.

Covering means the sin must be covered. Cancelling means the debt must be erased, as there has been damage done and a price to be paid. The debt prescribed by God is blood. It cannot be the blood of bulls or goats, or some basic farm animal; it must be pure blood. It must be blood that thoroughly pays the debt—past, present, and future. The purpose of this is to bring about reconciliation—a joining or a bringing together. Remember when Adam and Eve sinned after the fall? There was an offering because God wants to be reconciled with His creation. In the book of Job, we see Job offering sacrifices. We do not know exactly how it was performed, but we know there was an offering to appease God so that a relationship could exist. God had such a strong relationship with Job that He was willing to test him before Satan to prove its strength. The same applies to Noah and Enoch. God desires a strong relationship with His people.

The Old Covenant method of atonement brought about a cancelling of the debt, a covering of the sin, and a temporary reconciliation. But it was only temporary because sin remained, and mankind still possessed a flawed heart. Here comes Jesus. He brings up this issue of salvation because, as He started in John 3, unless one is born from above, born of water and the Spirit, one cannot enter the kingdom of God. He cannot be saved. We know this is about salvation because, shortly after, we reach John 3:16, which speaks about believing in Christ for salvation.

However, Jesus says something odd in verse 13: “No one has ascended into heaven, but He who has descended from heaven, the Son of Man.” This seems out of place, but in actuality, it is not. He is making a point: salvation is not just about not going to hell; it is about eventually being with the Father. Someone has to go into heaven. Jesus is making the point that no one, at the time He is speaking, has ever ascended into heaven. You might pause and think, “What about Enoch and Elijah?” Did they not go to heaven? According to Jesus, no one has ascended—literally, oudeis, not one. Not Enoch, not Elijah.

What happened to them? The Bible simply says they existed and then they were no more. Enoch walked with God and was no more, for God took him. Elijah was taken up into the heavens, but that word also means “into the sky.” Did he go into the sky, keep going, and find his way into heaven? No, he went up until he disappeared. But where did he go? Consider this: before Jesus’s death, burial, resurrection, and ascension, we saw people who were dead show up—Elijah, Samuel, and Moses. After Jesus’s ascension, no one who was dead ever came back. Even Lazarus, who was raised from the dead, did not reappear after Jesus’s ascension. That never happened again.

That is why Jesus makes the point: no one has ascended into heaven except Him who descended. He is the only one who has been to heaven. This is important because Jesus’s goal is to reconcile man, not just in our minds or hearts, but to actually deliver us to the Father. So, what does this have to do with His death on the cross? When Jesus died, He did not go to heaven. You might ask, “Don’t passages speak about Jesus going to paradise?” Yes, in Luke 23:42, the thief on the cross says to Him, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And Jesus says to him, “Truly, truly I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

So, Jesus goes to paradise on the day of His death, and so does the thief. Does that violate what Jesus said in John 3? No, because at that point in time, no one had ascended. Jesus did not go to heaven when He died, and neither did the thief. They went to paradise. The question is not if they went to paradise, but where paradise was at that time. If we look at 2 Corinthians 12:4, Paul was caught up into paradise and heard inexpressible words. This paradise is in heaven. It seems to imply that at the time Jesus went, paradise was not in heaven.

How do we know this? After His resurrection, Jesus speaks to Mary in John 20. She sees two angels and then sees Jesus, but does not recognize Him. When He says, “Mary,” she turns and calls Him “Rabboni.” Jesus then says, “Stop clinging to me, for I have not yet ascended.” We know the word used is anabaino, meaning I have not gone up into heaven. I have not yet ascended to the Father. But He tells her, “Go to my brethren and say to them, I ascend to my Father and to your Father and my God and your God.” Jesus tells us that when He died, He did not ascend.

Where did He go? Jesus came to bring us to the Lord. There were people who died previously—faithful people—who had not gone into heaven. Jesus is the one who takes them there. Let us look at other passages. The Bible says in Acts 2:27, “Because you will not abandon my soul to Hades, nor allow your Holy One to undergo decay.” So, where was Jesus? The Bible says He went to Hades. Where is Hades?

Recall the story of Lazarus and the rich man. The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man died and was buried in Hades. Hades is another word for Sheol or the grave. The rich man lifted up his eyes in torment and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom. He cried out, “Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send Lazarus so he may dip the tip of his fingers in water and cool off my tongue.” The rich man could see Lazarus, but Abraham said, “Between us and you, there is a great chasm.” This chasm was fixed; no one could cross it.

It appears there was an abode for the dead—both those in the Lord and those who were not. Both were in the grave, but those not in the Lord could see those in the Lord at that time, yet could not reach them. On one side, there was torment; on the other, there was not. This is where the Lord went. We know He was buried, and Hades is where you go when you are buried. Hades, hell, and the grave often become synonymous.

To make it clear where Jesus went, remember Matthew 12:40: “For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” Where is the Son of Man going to be buried? In the heart of the earth.

In Ephesians 4, we read: “But to each one of us, grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore it says, when He ascended on high, He led captive a host of captives and gave gifts to men.” What does “He ascended” mean, except that He also descended into the lower parts of the earth? Some say this refers to the earth itself, but the plain reading suggests He descended into the lower parts of the earth. This aligns with Jesus saying He would be buried in the heart of the earth. He who descended is also He who ascended far above all heavens so that He might fulfill all things.

When He ascended, He led a host of captives. This is vitally important. After He was risen and subsequently ascended, He led these captives up. Let us go to 1 Corinthians 15:14: “If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain.” This is essential for our salvation. If the dead are not raised, then even Christ has not been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins.

The scapegoat and the sin offering signify that everything was done correctly. Jesus’s resurrection and ascension demonstrate that He did exactly what was required. If He had not risen, you would still be in your sins. Those who have fallen asleep—those who lived and died before Christ—would have perished. The Old Testament saints such as Enoch, Elijah, Moses, and Samuel would have died in vain. However, the Scripture says, “But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep.”

In 1 Peter 3:18, we read: “Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God.” This is the ultimate reconciliation. He was put to death in the flesh but made alive in the Spirit. In this state, He went and made proclamation to the spirits now in prison—the people who lived prior to the flood. What did He say? The Bible does not tell us. We know these were people who were disobedient when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah. He likely let them know that the message proclaimed to them was true and they had missed out.

In Colossians 1:18, Jesus is called the “firstborn from the dead,” so that He might have first place in everything. He is the first who has died to be raised, meaning there are others who will be raised. His death, burial, and resurrection were wonderful. He was ministering to spirits. We know He descended into paradise—into Abraham’s bosom—at that time. That place is no longer there as it was, because now, to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. In this dispensation, when you die, you immediately go to be with the Lord. But you do not proceed Jesus to the Father. He is the one who has now made a way.

The purpose of all these things is found in 2 Corinthians 5:18: “All these things are from God who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them.” Colossians 1:19 says: “For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross, whether things on earth or things in heaven.”

Although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death in order to present you before Him holy, blameless, and beyond reproach. The ultimate goal is that He would present you before the Father. He precedes us in death and in our ascension. We do not go there absent Him. During those three days, He went to speak to the spirits in prison and likely led the Old Testament saints to their destination. He conquered death. When He got up, He proved that death was defeated. When He ascended, He became the first fruit among those who fell asleep, reconciling us to the Father and taking us to be with Him.

Now, when you die, you get to go to be with the Father precisely because He did that. Going back to John 3:13, when He says no one has ascended into heaven but He who has descended, it makes perfect sense. No one had ascended at that time. After Jesus’s death, burial, resurrection, and ascension, no one comes back from the grave. We saw Moses and Elijah at the transfiguration, but we do not see them appearing afterward. We do not see anyone who has died after Jesus’s ascension returning. I hope this helps you understand where Jesus was, what He was doing, and the purpose behind His ascension. It is an awesome reason why He needed to ascend.