There has been much debate over many years regarding the exact meaning of 1 Peter 3:19. Even Martin Luther commented, “A wonderful text is this, and a more obscure passage perhaps than any other in the New Testament, so that I do not know for a certainty just what Peter means.”
Below is an article written by Tony Payne of Matthias Media who’s conclusions are, in my view, helpful and well worth considering.
http://matthiasmedia.com/briefing/2000/03/on-the-trail-of-the-spirits-in-prison/
