The Rich Man and Lazarus

Text and Content

This story appears only in the Gospel of Luke, 16:19–31. A certain rich man "was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day" (Luke 16:19). At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, "full of sores." Lazarus desired to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man's table, and the dogs came and licked his sores.

Both men died. Lazarus was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom, while the rich man was in torment in Hades. The rich man asked that Lazarus be sent to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool his tongue. Abraham replied that a great gulf was fixed between them, so that none could pass from one side to the other. The rich man then begged that Lazarus be sent to warn his five brothers. Abraham answered, "If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead" (Luke 16:31).

Background

Immediately before this story, Jesus taught about the use of wealth in the Parable of the Unjust Steward. The Pharisees, who were covetous, derided him (Luke 16:14). The story of the rich man and Lazarus belongs within this context.

Several expressions in the passage are understood as follows:

• Purple: Cloth dyed with costly dye, signifying wealth and high status.
• Lazarus: The Greek form of the Hebrew name Eleazar, interpreted to mean "God helps." This is the only story among Jesus' parables in which a character is given a name.
• Abraham's bosom: An expression understood to depict reclining at the place of honor at a banquet, or the rest enjoyed together with the patriarchs.
• Hades: The term translates the Greek hadēs.

Significance in the Whole of Scripture

Luke's Gospel repeatedly speaks of a "reversal" in which the poor are exalted and the rich are brought low (Luke 1:53; 6:20–25). This story carries the same theme. The rich man's fault is commonly understood to lie not so much in possessing wealth as in ignoring the neighbor at his gate.

The final verse is read in two ways. One reading holds that the law and the prophets—that is, the word of the Old Testament—are sufficient to lead people to repentance. Another interprets the saying as anticipating those who would refuse to believe in Jesus' coming resurrection. A similar teaching on wealth is found in the Parable of the Rich Fool.

Interpretations and Issues

• Parable or actual account: The text does not call this story a "parable," and one of its characters is even named. For this reason, some preachers regard it as an account of something that actually happened. Many interpreters, however, see it as a parable that borrows imagery familiar to Jews of the time.
• The afterlife: Many Protestant traditions take this story as evidence that consciousness continues after death and that a person's destiny is fixed at death (see Hebrews 9:27). Other interpretations hold that the point of the story concerns wealth and repentance and that it is not intended to describe the structure of the afterlife in detail. The Seventh-day Adventist Church and Jehovah's Witnesses, which understand death as a sleep, read the story as a symbolic parable.
• Distinguishing details not in the text: Calling the rich man "Dives" is a later custom derived from the Latin word for "rich"; it is not a name found in the text. In addition, the Lazarus of this story is a different person from Lazarus of Bethany, who was raised from the dead in John 11. Some interpreters, however, meditate on the saying "neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead" in light of the events of John 11.

In the Korean Church

In the Korean church, this passage is frequently used as a text for sermons on almsgiving, love of neighbor, and heaven and hell.