All About GOD - Growing Relationships with Jesus and Others
A Parable
The Rich Man and Lazarus
19 “There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. 20 But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, 21 desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell[d] from the rich man’s table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
24 “Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.’ 25 But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented. 26 And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.’
27 “Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house, 28 for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’ 29 Abraham said to him, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ 30 And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31 But he said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’”
Until about a year ago, I had always believed this to be a genuine testimony. No other parable in the Bible has names been given to the supposed character in which it speaks. I had never even heard that this was a parable. What are your thoughts on this? Do you believe it's a genuine testimony or is it another parable used to teach those who have ears?
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Colby on
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“There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen […] and there was a certain beggar named Lazarus” (Luke 16:19).
Tammy,
Jesus, as we read in the Gospels, used parables as his preferred means of teaching. He had his reasons for doing so. When questions were put to him, he would often reply, not with a direct answer but by telling a story. "Let me tell you a story about ..." Parables are stories that are not instantly understood. We have to listen to or read them carefully, teasing out their meanings, and unpacking their hopes. Parables are form of literature, like poetry, that demands a lot from the listener. They are said to have both "a revealing and a concealing" character. They have deep and rich layers of meaning.
The subject matter of the parable is always about the nature of the kingdom of God; that place that Paul the apostle suggests is "already, but not yet." The parables of Jesus are like listening to poetry; they change us, they move us to listen more carefully, to take comfort in the question of the words, and to find ourselves in the story see it as both a mirror and a light.
If I recall correctly, this is the only parable of Jesus where someone has a name. Why does Jesus give this man--who never speaks in the parable--a name? Why does he not give the rich man a name? And how does the rich man know his name if he ignored him so? Remember, in Hades, a rich man calls out to Abraham to send Lazarus with water for him and to warn his brothers. Interestingly, there is a saying that, "hell ist truth seen too late."
Who was Lazarus? A wretched and pathetic man, begging for scraps of food from the insensitive rich man who callously ignores him, finally dies and is taken by angels directly to "the bosom of Abraham." But that is not all, for Lazarus is here among us today. Do we see him or her? How do we respond?
He represents the lowest of the low in society; those living on the margins and as outcasts. They are the lonely, struggling, suffering and hurting. They are the homeless; the poor and persecuted; beloved children of God, precious in his sight. They very people that Jesus surrounded himself with and had a special place in his heart for when he walked among us.
Oh, and the name Lazarus ... it means the one that "God has helped."
In unpacking this story of Lazarus and the rich man, as told by Jesus long ago, what lessons can we learn about ourselves and apply today?
With love for you in Christ,
Colby
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Permalink Reply by Leonard T on
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Tammy,
The debate on this is actually quite old. There are people in both camps on this one. I personally see it as an account and teach it as such. Whether an account or parable there are still principles to pull out and apply to us today (which is basically what Colby included in his response).
Lord Bless,
LT
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Permalink Reply by Tammy on
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Thanks guys. I suppose I was always taught it was a true account because when I heard it as being a parable, I was quite surprised.
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Tammy and LT,
Frankly, I hadn't given it much thought until now whether or not the story of the rich man and Lazarus the beggar as told by Jesus was a parable or an account. You raise a good question, and as LT notes, it is the subject of an ongoing debate.
However, it does give rise to a follow-up question in my mind. Might we draw different conclusions from the story depending on whether or not Jesus intended it to be a parable or an account? If so, why, and what might those be?
Faith, hope and love,
Colby
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Colby,
At the top of the list for me is the view of Hades and Abraham's Bosom in a pre resurrection setting. If it is an account, we have a great view of what the existence of the dead was like before Jesus' resurrection. We get the picture of the chasm and on one side torment and on the other side paradise. Also at the top of the list if it is an account is that we see physically dead people alive and interacting in this realm. As a pure parable these things lose value as they become more symbolic and can carry other meanings. Since I have never studied it as a pure parable I cannot say what those meanings would be.
Lord Bless,
LT
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LT,
Thank you for sharing your insights into what this story brings when understood, not as a parable, but as an account. Thank you to Tammy for posting this question. As a consequence, I am prompted to do further study and dig deeper in Scripture.
Humbly and faithfully in Christ,
Colby
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The discussion I was having at the time this was presented as a parable was whether or not we went straight to heaven/paradise or do we sleep until Jesus comes. If you was making the argument that we sleep until the dead in Christ shall rise, it's a parable. I think seeing it as a true account could bring several conclusions.
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Permalink Reply by Amanda on
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Hi, Tammy. This account from Scripture was always preached to me as real and not a parable, even with the understanding that parables are true-to-life stories because that is the only way they can have meaning to the hearers -- they must illustrate true to life experiences.
I have always heard it preached (both in my childhood church and in every church I have ever attended, including the one I attend now) that since Jesus uses the names of Lazarus, Abraham, and Moses -- specific individuals, as you mentioned -- and since it doesn't really have the same form as other parables which Jesus told but is narrated like a real life story, and is even mentioning the prophets who were real people, then it is an actual account.
I am not sure if things have changed in the spiritual realm since the death, resurrection, and ascension of the Lord. It seems that at the time Jesus spoke these words, part of the suffering in Hades included being able to see Abraham and those "in his bosom."
Even so, I cannot imagine the torments of those facing God's wrath after death. May everyone who reads this account take a moment to re-evaluate their spiritual standing before God.
God knows hearts. The rich man failed to help Lazarus. That failure was rejection of God, too. After death our destiny is sealed.
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