“Knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men…” – 2 Cor. 5:11
The parable of the “Rich man and Lazarus” (Luke 16:19-31) is one of the most sobering and consequential of the Scriptures. Yeshua’s concise and brilliant story ranges over the issues of life and death and of our ultimate destiny beyond the grave. It answers perennial questions about where people go when they die, and it gives counsel about how to plan for the inevitability of judgment. It forewarns of the terrifying prospect of hell and eternal torment while it comforts those who seek heavenly blessing and eternal life. It tells of an “unbridgeable chasm” that exists after death that prevents any return from our final destination, implying that what we believe and how we live in this life has eternal significance and consequences. Those who believe in God’s truth as revealed in creation, in history, in the testimony of Scripture, and above all in the revelation of Yeshua will find salvation, consolation, and everlasting fellowship in the Father’s House, but those who turn away from the message of life will be consigned to irremediable suffering, sorrow, and terrifying loss. In this short essay, I hope to discuss this parable in a manner that will encourage us to “make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to” (Luke 13:24).
By way of providing some context to the parable, note that the Pharisees at that time taught that obedience to God’s commandments led to prosperity and blessing, whereas disobedience led to poverty and curses, and they therefore apparently justified the accumulation of riches as a sign of divine approval. Because of this, when they heard Yeshua say that no one can serve both “God and mammon,” they scoffed, though he replied to them by saying: “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God” (Luke 16:13-15). He then went on to say that with his arrival a “new era” had arrived, “the time was fulfilled,” and the Kingdom of God was being opened up for all who were willing to enter. This new way, or new covenant, was offered to the needy, the broken, and to all who realized they were sinners in need of the promised divine redemption (Luke 16:16-18). It is part of the irony of the parable that Lazarus, the outcast, was the blessed one accepted into heaven, whereas the rich man, the Pharisee, was cursed and locked outside of heaven’s gate.
I should add that some read the parable as a morality tale about economics and social justice, saying that God condemns the rich and vindicates the poor, though the sin of the rich man was not in his possession of wealth per se, but in his misuse of it, since he withheld charity that the Torah required to help his needy neighbor. After all, wealth by itself is neither good nor bad but depends on how it is used. Abraham was a very wealthy sultan who is called the “father of faith,” the prototype of a hospitable and gracious man of God. Likewise the prophet Job was described as “perfect and upright, and one that feared God,” though he was the “wealthiest man in all the east” (Job 1:1,3). So it is a distraction to interpret the parable in “Marxist” terms to make it about the evils of economic disparities and inequalities. Moreover, justice and economic responsibilities such as employment wages, ownership, tithing, lending, giving charity, and so on are matters clearly defined in the law of Moses.
The parable obviously concerns more than issues of economic injustice, however, and this is evinced by Yeshua’s description of the spiritual condition of each man that was revealed after their death. As Yeshua tells the tale we are given a vision beyond the grave, seeing the consequences of how the decisions we make in this life will play out in eternity. The issue of social injustice is secondary at best; what is at issue is the ultimate destiny of the soul.
The parable begins: “There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day, and there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, who was laid at his gate, full of sores, who desired to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores” (Luke 16:19-21).
The story opens with this unnamed rich man living in luxury and opulence, elegantly attired and well-fed, going about his business, when a destitute, sickly, and disabled beggar named Lazarus was carried to his house and “laid at his gate.” Perhaps the citizens of the town had no other option than to drop Lazarus off at the rich man’s place, hoping that a man of his means would show compassion and help the poor wretch. For Lazarus’ part, he was nearly starving and hoped he might eat scraps from the man’s table that otherwise would be thrown in the garbage. Whatever else we can say, it’s clear that Lazarus was the embodiment of need: penniless, covered with putrefying ulcers, and unable to walk; his only companions were stray dogs who would lick his wounds…
The rich man, however, lived lavishly in his exclusive and “gated” home, and while he knew of the plight of Lazarus, he did nothing to alleviate his suffering. He offered no meal. He offered no shelter. He didn’t even offer a shekel or two to help the beggar buy some bandages or go see a doctor. His hardness of heart was wicked and clearly violated commandments of Torah to care for the needy brother and not to turn him away (Lev. 25:35; Deut. 15:7-8).
Lazarus, on the other hand, is depicted as a nobody, an outcast, a leper. However, he is a lowly man of faith, as indicated by his Hebrew name Elazar (אֶלְעָזָר) which means “God (אֵל) will help (עָזַר).” Lazarus represents someone “poor in spirit,” someone who mourns over his life, a humble and broken soul that hungers and thirsts for God’s righteousness and mercy, and so on (see the “Beatitudes” listed in Matt. 5:1-12).
The story continues. “And it came to pass that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died, and was buried; and in hell, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus upon his bosom” (Luke 16:22-23). This is another contradiction of the Pharisaical expectation. The soul of the outcast, the unclean leper, and the beggar who was not even given a proper burial, was collected by the angels of God and carried up to lean upon “Abraham’s bosom” (or chest) – a beautiful image of intimate embrace and comfort – whereas the rich man found himself in hell. This place of torment, called Hades (or she’ol in Hebrew), is a place of punitive confinement where the unrighteous dead are gathered to await their final judgment (Rev. 20:11-15). Note that the rich man was conscious; he could see Abraham with Lazarus by his side, and he remembered who Lazarus was…
So he cried out 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” (Luke 16:24). Note that the rich man called Abraham his “father,” perhaps alluding to an early mishnah of the sages that every son of Abraham is given a share in the world to come: כל ישראל יש להם חלק לעלם הבא. In other words, the rich man appealed to Abraham as his child, and asked him to command Lazarus to bring him some water to allay his suffering…
“But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things, but now he is comforted, and you are tormented. And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who would pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us'” (Luke 16:25-26).
There are a few things to note here. First, Yeshua was not teaching that those who have wealth and good things in this life are necessarily going to be tormented, nor was he saying that simply being poor and afflicted makes a person fit for heaven. As mentioned above, a wealthy person such as Abraham can be declared righteous while a poor person like Judas Iscariot can be treacherously wicked. Ultimately the destination for each soul is based on their faith in God, and that was likely Yeshua’s point to the Pharisees: temporal prosperity is not an indication of divine favor (Prov. 10:2), nor does it define what makes a good Jew (Rom. 2:28-29). Secondly we note the “great gulf” (χάσμα μέγα) is immovably fixed so that no one can cross over or escape from their destiny. After death, your fate is sealed. There is no going back; there are no “re-do’s”; there is no further chance to repent at that time… This is it. This is what has become of your life, and now all that’s left is God’s judgment.
Yeshua therefore teaches that hell is not some form of annihilation, nor is a place of “purgatory” wherein the soul suffers and learn to repent after death. No, “it is appointed unto man once to die, and after this is judgment” (Heb. 9:27). Hell is a dreadful eternal reality is terrifying to consider. Those who go to hell will be fully conscious and will experience and unending nightmare of regret and sorrow that will never be extinguished. Indeed, eternal torment is gruesomely likened to worms feeding upon rotting corpses in “Gehenna,” the Valley of Hinnom, an ancient garbage dump used to burn waste. Hell is likened to the state “where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched” (Mark 9:44; Isa. 66:24). Some have said the “worm” here likely is a metaphor for a guilty conscience that forever gnaws away with no end to the remorse. This is all terrifying to consider, dear friends…
The story continues: “Then he said (to Abraham),`I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him (i.e., Lazarus) to my father’s house, for have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment'” (Luke 16:27-28). The rich man now is beginning to understand his irretrievably lost condition, his need for deliverance, and yet it is too late for repentance. In a moment of apparent contrition, he beseeches Abraham to command Lazarus (whom the rich man never addresses directly) to go to his brothers and warn them of the danger that they too may end up in the same terrible place as he. Implicit in his request is the allegation that if only God would do a miracle like this, his brothers would believe, since he would have believed had God done this for him. In other words the man is indirectly accusing God of being unfair to him because he was not given enough reason to believe. In response, “Abraham said to him, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them’” (Luke 16:29).
And now we getting to the point of the parable that reveals the divide between the destinies of the righteous from that of the wicked. The rich man denied that the word of God was sufficient to save his brothers from perdition, and that some great miracle was needed instead. He therefore protested to Abraham saying, “No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.” The parable concludes emphatically with Abraham saying: “If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded even if one rises from the dead” (Luke 16:30-31).
So what are we to learn here? What conclusion might we draw? The parable teaches that Lazarus was accepted because he believed in the promise of God, whereas the rich man did not. Yeshua indicates this by having Abraham repeatedly say that salvation comes from listening to Moses and the Prophets, that is, believing in the testimony of the Scriptures and how they point to him (Deut. 18:15; Isa. 53; John 1:45; 5:46; Luke 24:27; 24:44). Again, when the doomed man objected that listening to God’s word was insufficient, he was rebuffed: “If they do not listen (i.e., ἀκούω, understand, perceive) Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be persuaded even if one rises from the dead.” Miracles are not enough. After all, even those who saw Yeshua raise Lazarus (of Bethany) from the dead refused to believe that he was Israel’s Messiah and Savior (John 11:40-53). So seeing isn’t believing, though believing God’s word enlightens the eyes of the heart to see. “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing comes from the word of God” (Rom. 10:17). Therefore it is understanding the word of God and believing its truth that saves the soul from death. Abraham believed the Lord (regarding the promised child) and the Lord declared him righteous for doing so (Gen. 15:6). This is the touchstone of faith (Rom. 4:1-13; Gal. 3:7-9; 3:29). Amen: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). So the destiny of each soul turns on the inescapable responsibility to believe in God and to trust in his promises (John 6:47).
“It is appointed unto man once to die, and after this is judgment” (Heb. 9:27). Each of us, then, must confront not only his own death, but also his own destiny… It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the Living God. Therefore we are admonished to “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you both to will and to do his good pleasure” (Phil. 2:12-13).
God has given many convincing proofs of his reality (Acts 1:3); he has implanted eternity within our hearts (Eccl. 3:11); he enables us to use logic and to clearly infer his power (Rom. 1:20); he testifies of his moral authority by the voice of conscience (Rom. 2:15); he reveals his glory in the splendors of creation (Psalm 19:1-3), and most especially, he reveals himself to faithful witnesses who have preserved their prophetic in the holy Scriptures (Matt. 5:17; Luke 11:49-51; John 20:31; Rom. 3:1-2; Rom. 15:4; 1 Cor. 10:11; 2 Tim. 3:16).
The gift of the Holy Spirit assures the heart and confirms the truth of God to those who listen and believe the testimony (John 14:26; John 16:13-14; 1 Cor. 2:10; 2 Pet. 1:20-21). We can know God as our “Abba” by the inner witness of the Spirit (Rom. 8:15). Our hearts experience real peace as we are transformed by the grace of his love. We trust that the Lord will shepherd our lives and faithfully bring us into glories of heaven when we die. Amen.
Addendum: Lazarus of Bethany…
There may be a connection between Lazarus of Bethany – the man Yeshua raised from the dead (as recorded in John 11) and the Lazarus named in this parable. First note that the raising of Lazarus is undoubtedly one of the greatest of all the miracles recorded in the New Testament, and of all miracles performed by Yeshua, this most clearly attested to his divinity and glory. Nevertheless, even after witnessing this miracle, many of the Pharisees remained faithless and the religious leadership thereafter conspired to kill him (John 11:46-56). By identifying the “rich man” in the parable with the religious leadership, Yeshua would be giving utmost warning that they were in utmost danger of blasphemy of the Holy Spirit’s witness, the unpardonable sin that leads to eternal death (Matt. 12:31-32).