Mark 15:33-47 makes it clear that Jesus died and was buried. The Creed not only affirms this, but adds: 

He descended into hell (or descended to the dead)

What Jesus did and where he went between his death and resurrection has long provoked argument and curiosity. Because Scripture only gives us glimpses, we have limited grounds for investigation, even as we humbly admit some things remain a mystery. In his helpful book, The Apostles’ Creed, R.A. Mohler notes the following (a paraphrase of p. 89-91):

In the Hebrew of the Old Testament, the realm of the dead is known as ‘sheol’. In the Greek of the New Testament, the term is ‘hades’. When hades was translated into Latin, then English, it was often translated as hell. This is problematic, as we often associate hell with the place of torment, whereas hades, as the place of the dead, contains both the faithful and unfaithful dead. In Luke 16:19-31, both Lazarus and the rich man are in hades, but one is in torment and the other is safe at Abraham’s side. The problem arises when people read Jesus’ descent to hell as a place where he is being punished or tormented. Scripture does not support this. Jesus generally uses the term ‘gehenna’ when he is referring to the place of punishment (Mark 9:43; Luke 12:5).

So, what did Jesus do; where did he go?

Read 1 Peter 3:18-22

While there is much debate and speculation around this passage, it is most likely that the imprisoned spirits of verse 19 are the rebellious angels or ‘sons of God’ from Genesis 6:1-6.

Given what Jesus had just achieved on the cross, what sort of proclamation would he have made (1 Pet 3:19)?