![]() The story centers on the reversal of fortunes that takes place after Lazarus and the rich man die. When Lazarus maintains that his brothers will change their ways if someone comes to them from the dead, Abraham replies if they have not listened to Moses and the prophets, they definitely will not be convinced by someone being raised from the dead, an allusion perhaps to Jesus’ resurrection (9:22 Acts 1:22). This response is congruent with Luke’s emphasis on the continuity between Jesus’ teaching and that of Moses and the prophets (see 24:26-28 44-48 see also 16:16-17). Abraham replies that they already have Moses and the prophets to warn them. The rich man then begs Abraham to send Lazarus to warn his five brothers about Hades (16:27-41). A “great chasm” now exists between the two, which cannot be crossed. In their lifetimes, Lazarus suffered bad things and he experienced good things, but now Lazarus is comforted and he is in agony. The rich man asks Abraham to send Lazarus to ease his pain in Hades, but Abraham responds that this cannot be done. By contrast, the rich man finds himself in Hades, a place of torment and eternal punishment (10:15).Ī conversation ensues between the rich man and Abraham (16:24-26). After his death, Lazarus is carried away to an honored place beside Abraham, God’s friend and the father of Israel (3:8 13:28-29). Conversely, Lazarus was covered with sores, was hungry, and had only dogs to lick his sores. ![]() In his lifetime, the rich man ostentatiously displayed his wealth with beautiful clothes and lavish feasts. The story begins with a drastic reversal that happens after these two men die (16:19-23). By contrast, Lazarus is the only name given to anyone in Jesus’ parables it means El-azar, “God has helped.” (There appears to be no connection between this Lazarus and the resuscitated man in John 11:1-44.) The rich man has no name, although he’s been given various names in later history such as Dives, which means “rich” in Latin. The fates of these two individuals after death are very much tied to their experiences of wealth and poverty in this life. As much as we would like to spiritualize the story of the Rich Man and Lazarus, it is very difficult to explain away its central message, especially given what Luke has to say about money and possessions elsewhere in his Gospel.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |