Question: What does the parable about Lazarus and the rich man teach us?

November 3, 2008

Question: In Luke 16:19-31, Jesus tells a parable about a rich man and a beggar named Lazarus:

19″There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 20 At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21 and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24 So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’ 25 “But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’ 27 He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father’s house, 28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’ 29 “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’ 30 ” ‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’ 31 “He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’ ” (NKJV)

What is Jesus saying in this parable, and does it tell us anything about the afterlife?

Answer: In many of Jesus’ parables, the moral is right at the end: “He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’ ” This parable is about what the hard-hearted need to convince them to turn to God - if they’ve rejected Moses and the Prophets (their writings in Scripture), they will also reject Jesus, who rose from the dead for them.

The parable uses Abraham’s side, hellish torment, and communication between the two as devices in the story to demonstrate the unchangability of the consequences of their decisions. Parables use odd concepts like these in order to make them easier to understand - the concepts aren’t meant to be used to draw conclusions about the afterlife.

If you have any questions about any of the messages or any question about the Bible at all, please leave a comment to any of our videos. We will make sure to address it!

Video length: 00:12:22| Download M4V (for iPod, PSP, etc) | Download MP3 audio

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