1 Peter 3:18

Because Christ also suffered for sins once, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God; being put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit;

Suffered for our sins ... The great atonement of Christ is denoted by this. Paine pointed out that there are visible in this epistle "three stands of Peter's thought about the atonement."[26] It is compared to the paschal lamb (1 Peter 1:19), the suffering servant of Isaiah 53 (1 Peter 1:24), and to the scapegoat (1 Peter 1:24).

Suffered for sins once ... "Once" is the great New Testament word from the Greek [@hapax], meaning "once for all."[27] It is used of: (1) Christ's coming in human form (Hebrews 9:26); (2) Christ's death (Hebrews 9:28); (3) the deliverance to mankind of the faith (Jude 1:1:3); (4) the offering of Christ's blood in heaven (Hebrews 9:12,26); (5) the appointment to die (Hebrews 9:27); (6) God's shaking the earth and the heavens so as to remove them (Hebrews 12:27); and (7) the suffering of Christ for sins (1 Peter 3:18).

The righteous for the unrighteous ... Let it be strictly observed that Peter in this does not say, "That he might bring God to us," but "that he might bring us to God." There was nothing in the atonement that was designed to change God in any manner; for it was men who needed to be changed. The separation between God and man "is one-sided."[28] The suffering of Christ was not to satisfy God but for the purpose of getting the attention of rebellious men. God already loved humanity before the atonement was even possible.

Put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit ... The first clause is clear enough being a reference to the crucifixion of our Lord; but there is a wide disagreement among scholars as to the meaning of "made alive in the spirit."

Made alive ... It is amazing that some read this as if it meant "kept alive," or "continued alive"; whereas the true meaning of the words, as in the text, is "made alive," resurrected! "In the New Testament, these words are never used in the sense of maintained alive, or preserved alive."[29] Therefore, these words must be understood to mean the resurrection of the Son of God from the grave, the same being the only way in which Jesus Christ was ever "made alive."

But who did the making alive? This also is easily resolved. It was achieved by "the spirit of holiness" (Romans 1:4), as Paul said, significantly using the expression in connection with "the flesh" of Christ which was of the seed of David, much as Peter referred to "flesh" which was crucified. It was through that same "eternal spirit" that Christ offered himself to God (in the crucifixion) (Hebrews 9:24); and by that very same Holy Spirit that he was conceived in the womb of Mary (Matthew 1:20). In fact, the very Spirit which indwelt Christ throughout his earthly sojourn was the Holy Spirit dwelling in him without measure (John 3:31), and so uniquely associated with Christ that the Holy Spirit could not even come to the earth to dwell in the apostles until Christ should go back to heaven! (John 16:7). There is thus little doubt, therefore, that it was the Holy Spirit who raised Christ from the dead, and the translators could have saved a lot of misunderstanding if they had capitalized Spirit in this passage. We reject the intricate arguments from the "antithesis" in the Greek text which is said to refute this; because, as Barnes said, "So far as the mere use of this word (spirit) is concerned, it might easily refer to his own soul, to his divine nature, or to the Holy Spirit."[30] Men who speak learnedly about the alleged difference between the divine nature of Christ, his human soul, and the blessed Holy Spirit which was in Christ throughout his earthly sojourn are unconvincing.

But, did not Christ declare that he himself would raise himself up from the grave (John 10:17)? Yes, indeed; but there are hundreds of examples in the New Testament where something done by one member of the Godhead is attributed to another member of it. The resurrection of Christ is also ascribed to the Father (1 Corinthians 6:14; 2 Corinthians 4:14; Ephesians 1:20), thus being ascribed to all three, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.