Did the Lord Jesus Take the Realm of the Dead with Him at His Ascension?

Wherefore He is saying, Ascending on high, He captures captivity
And gives gifts to mankind.
Ephesians 4:8

That this would be about people who were carried along from the realm of the dead into heaven is an explanation often “read into” this passage. The context of Ephesians 4 points in another direction. The prisoners of war (“captivity”) here stand for the Ecclesia, which shares the position of Christ “on high.”

In Ephesians 4:1 Paul writes: “as the prisoner in the Lord, I am entreating you…”

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