The Apostolic Fathers on "the Gates of Hell" (Matt. 16:18)
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According to [*Britannica*](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Apostolic-Father) :
> *Apostolic Father*, any of the Greek Christian writers, several unknown, who were authors of early Christian works dating primarily from the late 1st and early 2nd centuries. Their works are the principal source for information about Christianity during the two or three generations following the Apostles....
> The Apostolic Fathers include St. Clement of Rome, St. Ignatius of Antioch, St. Polycarp of Smyrna, Hermas, St. Barnabas, Papias, and the anonymous authors of the Didachē (Teaching of the Twelve Apostles), Letter to Diognetus, Letter of Barnabas, and Martyrdom of Polycarp.
In Matt. 16:18 (D-R), it is written:
> And I say to thee: That thou art Peter; and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
QUESTION: What did the (or at least some of) the Apostolic Fathers have to say about the meaning of "the gates of hell" in this verse?
*Remark:* I may be wrong, but Matt. 16:18 might be the only place where "gates of hell" is directly mentioned in the New Testament. In the Old Testament, however, it (or something very much like it) is found on multiple occasions e.g., (from the *Douay-Rheims*):
> I said: In the midst of my days I shall go to the gates of hell: I sought for the residue of my years. *(Is. 38:10)* --- with the gloss adding: *"Hell": Sheol, or Hades, the region of the dead.*
> Their soul abhorred all manner of meat: and they drew nigh even to the gates of death. *(Ps. 107:18; see also verses 10, 14)*
> Have mercy on me, O Lord: see my humiliation which I suffer from my enemies. Thou that liftest me up from the gates of death, that I may declare all thy praises in the gates of the daughter of Sion. *(Ps. 9:14-15)*
Thank you.
Asked by DDS
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Oct 13, 2023, 02:23 PM
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