THE RICH MAN AND LAZARUS
( LUKE 16:19-31 )
(December 1, 2003)
Introduction:
This account of the Rich man and Lazarus is to be distinguished from a parable not because a parable is not presenting a truth, but that the method Christ used with parables is missing here. He spoke in Parables to bring a spiritual truth to the masses in a manner they would easily be able to relate. Webster defines a parable as "a fictitious story with a heavenly meaning." Another Definition I heard while attending Bible school was, " a parable is an earthly story with a heavenly meaning." This account of the rich man and Lazarus does not meet the criteria of a parable in any manner. First, in parables names are not mentioned and secondly, one could hardly categorize this as an earthly story. Not only are Lazarus' name mentioned, but also Abraham's. The location of this account is in Hades, and therefore not earthly. There are many of the cults that discredit this account simply because of its literalness. Two of these cults that come to mind are the 'Jehovah Witnesses' and the 'Mormons.' Both of these so-called faiths teach that there is no hell and that the Greek word Hades simply means the grave. The errors of these cults teach damnable heresies too numerous to mention. The piety with which they come across makes them seem to be credible, however, only to the very immature and certain unbelievers. In studying the history of religion it is interesting to note that many of the so-called mainstream religions teach against the Biblical doctrine of a literal Hell. I have often noted in teaching on the subject of Hell that if I believed the tripe that these cults are teaching I would be inclined not to take Hell literally myself.
I will give my translation from the UBS (United Bible Society) Greek New Testament with the initials LGT (literal Greek translation) under the KJV (King James Version) in order to help clarify my exposition.
Exposition:
Verse 19, "There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day"(KJV).
LGT "Now a certain man was rich, and he dressed himself in purple and fine linen making a feast of joy every day in splendor."
The Greek word for 'rich' is 'plusias', which means he was distinguished for his riches. The next word to consider is 'clothed', 'enedidusketo'. This word in the Koine (every day common speech) Greek is in the imperfect middle voice meaning that the subject of the sentence not only receives the action of the finite verb, but also participates in the action. The English Grammar does not have a middle voice, as such, only the active and passive. So in the original the reading is 'he clothed Himself.' The significance here is that he and he alone is responsible for his own actions. He clothed himself in purple, 'porphuran'. The color comes from 'Purpura Murex', a species of shell-fish that yielded the purple dye, highly esteemed by the ancients, its tint being a bright crimson; in the N.T. a purple garment, robe of purple (Brown of JFB). Fine linen, 'busson', a species of fine cotton highly prized by the ancients. In Esther 8:15 we read, "That Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal robes of blue and white, with a large crown of gold and a garment of fine linen and purple; and the city of Susa shouted and rejoiced." The rich man would then daily eat as though it was a feast day every day, 'euphainomenos' (a present middle Participle) which means, 'to keep a day of rejoicing.' "Wanting for nothing which the appetite craved, and taste fancied, and money could procure" (David Brown D.D. of JFB). The rich man wore the finest purple robes and linen and anything his money could buy. 'and fared sumptuously every day'. The Greek word is an adverb 'lamprose' meaning splendid, magnificent, and sumptuous. This rich man is a prime example of conspicuous consumption in his day. The hard part of this whole scene to believe is that he lived like this on a daily basis, 'kath'hameran' every day.
The 19th verse can be read with a very high degree of accuracy as follows: "Now there was a certain or particular rich man who clothed himself in the grandest purple robes and the finest linen and ate the finest food money could buy, and lived every day magnificently or sumptuously.
Verse 20. "And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate (the rich man's gate), full of sores."
"And there was a certain beggar, 'ptokos' (a person of low condition, beggarly and poor) named lazarus, which was laid, 'ebeblato' (past perfect passive,) meaning he was laid (He had been flung there and was still there, as if contemptuous roughness is impliedPlummer),' at the gate, 'pulona' a gateway or portico of passage of the rich man, full of sores, 'heiekomenos' (perfect passive participle), to be afflicted with ulcers." "Open running sores which, as appears from the next verse, had not been closed, nor bound up, nor mollified with ointment." (David Brown)
There is good reason Jesus describes with such vividness the condition of the poor beggar. How totally self-absorbed the rich man who would pass by every day and give no heed to the poor beggar; he showed absolutely no mercy or sympathy. This will be very important for us to remember this when the rich man later in Hades makes an appeal for Abraham to send Lazarus back from Paradise to warn his brothers of the terrible torments he was experiencing. How could he have no compassion on earth and then be so filled with concern for his brothers in Hades. We will learn that it was simply a trick that he was perpetrating, more about this later.
Verse 21. " And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores."
And 'epithumone' (a present participle) to desire, long for, have an earnest desire, from 'epi' upon or unto and 'thumos' to lust for. Being a present participle it would read longing for or desiring to be fed,' chortasthanai' (1st aorist passive infinitive) to be fed from whatever fell, 'piptontone' (genitive neuter plural present participle) falling from the ta-ble of the rich man. Besides, even the dogs were coming and licking his sores. "A touch-ing act of brute pity in the absence of human relief. Thus have we here a case of heartless indifference, amidst luxuries of every kind, to one of God's poorest and most afflicted ones, presented daily before view." (David Brown)
Verse 22. "And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom; the rich man also died, and was buried."
"Now it came about, came to be, (that) the poor beggar died and he was carried,' apenekthanai' (1st aorist passive infinitive) from 'apo' upon 'phero' to carry. He was carried away (his soul not his body-Robertson) by the angels, 'eis ton klopon' (accusative singular) unto the bosom of Abraham. 'The bosom is described idiomatically, as a place of honor and close fellowship at a meal. Turn to John 13:23. Peter was 'reclining on Jesus' breast, literally, to dine in the place of honor. So Abraham's bosom is literally speaking, a place of honor among the righteous dead, by Abraham's side, in paradise.' (A Lexicon of The Greek New Testament)
"And the rich man also died and was buried, 'etephe' (2nd aorist passive) from 'thapto' to bury, put into a grave or tomb, (ALGNT). 'The rich man died, and was buried, his carcass borne in pomp to its earthly resting place (David Brown).'
Christ makes a clear distinction between the death of a believer and a non-believer. The beggar was victorious over death and was carried by the angels a changed individual to Abraham's bosom, 'to be absent from the body is to be present with the lord (II Cor. 5:8). In the case of the beggar the presence with the Lord was paradise the place of honor within the bosom of Abraham, because Christ had not yet died on the cross and received those departed saints into His presence. The poor beggar was certainly victorious over death because of his faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. I must point out another truth at this point or I might forget to bring it up later in the exposition. The Word of God teaches that we will all be changed, "Now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Behold, I tell you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable must put on the imperishable and this mortal will have put on immortality. But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, 'Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death where is your sting'? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the lord." (II Cor. 15:50-58.- The Old Testament Scripture Paul is quoting here is Isa. 25:8) We will note later on in this study that the rich man asks Abraham to send Lazarus to dip his finger in water and refresh his tongue. And then again he asks Abraham to send Lazarus back to warn his brothers of the awful torment of Hades. Now remember Lazarus had to be laid by others at the rich man's gate because he was too feeble to move about on his own. His corruption took on incorruption, the perishable took on the imperishable, and mortal took on immortality. "O death where is your vict-ory? O death where is your sting? What a wonderful hope we as believers have. "For me to live is Christ and to die is gain. To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord." What the rich man saw was a changed beggar; no longer a beggar, but a saint with all the privileges of his father Abraham. We can all rest assured in Christ that this hunk of clay will someday be an immortal shrine to the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The angels made a big deal of the beggar's death, and the unbelieving family and acquaintances of the rich man made a big deal of his death in the burial ceremony. The ceremony was a regal affair and was as conspicuous as the life the rich man lived. I will only say at this point that I believe that funeral services are in the main very pagan. I don't recall that there was a funeral service for our Lord, who could have been eulogized, but without any lies. Today a funeral service usually is spent eulogizing the dear departed loved one, or un-loved one. He or she was a saint in dying, but lived like the devil on earth. Of course nothing is mentioned of what a rascal the person was, only how wonderful they were. Don't get me wrong here, I think it is true that what we choose to remember about our loved ones that were fortunate enough to go to their reward before us are the good things, and the good times we had together. This is very healthy. I just don't believe it serves any worthwhile purpose for some man of the cloth to stand up and read a flowery picture of words trying to convince the people left behind how deserving the dear departed saint is of the future destiny. I have witnessed funerals of people who weren't even believers eulogized into heaven. I shudder to think of someone eulogizing my stinking carcass.
Verse 23. "And in hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom."
And in Hades or hell; the place of punishment; the lowest place or condition, not the final lake of fire, we read in Acts 2:27, "Because thou wilt not abandon my soul to Hades nor allow thy Holy One to undergo decay." This is a quote from Psalms 16:8-11 a Messianic Prophecy. Usually in the N.T. Hades is the temporary underworld prison where the souls of the ungodly await the judgment; personified as following along after death. "And I looked, and behold, an ashen (or silky pale) horse; and he who sat on it had the name death; and Hades was following with him. And authority was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by the wild beasts of the earth" (Rev. 6:8 ALGNT). He lifted up his eyes, being in torment, 'basanois' torture, torment, severe pain. Seeing Abraham from a distance, and Lazarus in his bosom, 'quite beyond reach, but not beyond view' (David Brown). There are some theologians who teach that paradise was not in the bowels of the earth before Christ died, based on the fact that the rich man looked up from Hades, teaching that paradise was somewhere in the second heaven. The one primary truth to consider is that the physical realm cannot be perceived by the spiritual realm. All we can trust in the matter of the spiritual realm is the Word of God, "But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised" (I Cor. 2:15 NASV). "The Greek word for 'natural' is 'psuchikos' (occupied with mere animal things, sensual). It refers to the man who is governed only by his environment, by his natural or animal instincts, by his fallen Adamic nature. It is man who is 'in Adam' and estranged from God because of Adam's sin. This man is unable to understand the things of the Spirit of God because his spirit has not been quickened by the Spirit of
God (Notes from Spiros Zodhiates, Th.D.)." We must be spiritually alive in order to be able to grasp the word of God. I believe the unbelievable because I believe the Bible is the Word of God. In Mathew 12:40 we read, "For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so shall the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." ('And the Lord appointed a great fish-Hebrew dag; this noun is a fish, even a large fish. The KJV correctly translates the passages in Jonah as fish. However, the KJV translators incorrectly rendered it as whales belly in Mt.12:40 (Zodhiates) to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the stomach of the fish three days and three nights'). I have a tendency to take Christ's words here literally rather than allegorically. In any case, we are assured by the apostle Paul that to 'be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.
Verse 24. "And 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."
And crying out 'phonasis' (1st aorist participle) he said, father Abraham, (being a Jew he could rightly claim Abraham as a father, physically, but not spiritually). Spiritually we are all children of Abraham by faith, "For this reason it is faith, that it might be in accordance with grace, in order that the promise may be certain to all the descendants, not only to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all"(Rom 4:16). The rich man was of the seed of Abraham, but so was Ishmael the bastard son of Hagar, the bond-woman of Sarah, "Now Sarai, Abram's wife had borne him no children, and she had an Egyptian maid whose name was Hagar. So Sarai said to Abram, 'Now behold, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children, Please go in to my maid; perhaps I shall obtain children through her.' And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. And after Abram lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Abram's wife Sarai took Hagar the Egyptian, her maid and gave her to her husband Abram as his wife. And he went into Hagar, and she conceived; and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her sight. And Sarah said to Abram, 'May the wrong done to me be upon you. I gave my maid into your arms; but when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her sight. May the Lord judge between you and me.' But Abram said to Sarai, 'Behold, your maid is in your power; do to her what is good in your sight.' So Sarai treated her harshly, and she fled from her presence. Now the angel of the lord found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur. And he said, 'Hagar, Sarai's maid, where have you come from and where are you going?' And she said, 'I am fleeing from the presence of my mistress Sarai.' Then the angel of the Lord said to her, 'Return to your mistress, and submit yourself to her authority.' Moreover, the angel of the Lord said to her, 'I will greatly multiply your descendants so that they shall be too many to count.' The angel of the Lord said to her further, 'Behold, you are with child, and you shall bear a son. And you shall call his name Ishmael, (the name means, literally, God has heard). Because the Lord has given heed to your affliction. 'And he will be a wild donkey of a man, His hand will be against everyone, and everyone's hand will be against him; and he will live to the east of all his brothers.' "Ishmael, the son of Sarai's and Abram's lapse into unbelief, was the progenitor of the Arab's, the traditional enemies of the Jewish people. Moreover Mohammed, the founder of Islam, whose adherents form Christianity's most difficult missionary problem, came from the line of Ishmael. Islam is the world religion closest to Christianity; thus it is the hardest to penetrate with Gospel of Christ". (The new Scofield reference Bible).
I realize I digress at this point, however, I feel it is a very important truth that must be addressed. We are seeing the results of this sin of Abram and Sarai every day in the news. The bombing of the Twin Towers coupled with the suicide raids on Jerusalem are all re-sults of this 'wild donkey-ass' of a nation, the Arabs, a.k.a. Ishmaelites. In my personal opinion, this world is not safe from terrorism until the Jews wipe the entire Arab nation off the face of the earth. Of course this is not going to happen until the Arab confederacy declares war on the Jewish nation and then, and only then, will the Ishmaelites be des-troyed. Then the end is near. For Christians it marks the beginning, to the unbeliever an eternal end. (A side note: I think the next event that will bring on war will be the bomb-ing of the Moslem Mosque by the Israeli army)
In Luke 3:8 we read, "Therefore bring forth fruits in keeping with repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, 'we have Abraham for our father, for I say to you that God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham." Again in John 8:37, "I know that you are Abraham's offspring; yet you seek to kill me, because My Word has no place in you." Being the seed of Abraham guarantees nothing in eternity anymore than being born to Christian parents. So you see how hollow the rich man's plea was to father Abraham. Abraham was his physical father, but certainly not his spiritual father. Have compassion on me 'have mercy on me who never showed mercy to my fellow Jew (brother), not daring to cry to God, he applies in his desperation to one who has no power to help him.' (David Brown)
And send Lazarus that he may, do what? Take him out of that place of torment? No! That he may dip the tip of his finger in water and 'katapsuche' to cool or refresh my tongue, because I am in great torments, 'odunamai' (present passive indicative) to be in agony or torments. He was receiving great agony in this flame. What does this wretched man ask? He asks the least conceivable and the most momentary abatement of his torment, that is all. The rich man was not in Hades because of his logic. He was there because of the most illogical of all choices, 'I will not have the Lord Jesus Christ as my Savior, period!' This request of the rich man was denied because it was unreasonable, but more specifically, it was impossible. More about the requests of the rich man later.
Verse 25. "But Abraham said, son, remember that thou in thy lifetime received thy good things and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented."
But Abraham said 'tecknon' child, giving credence to the rich man's claim as a Jew to be a child of Abraham, mnasthate' (1st aorist passive imperfect) you remember that 'apelabes' (2nd aorist active ind.) you received good things in your life, and Lazarus like-wise the bad things; but now 'parakaletai' (present passive ind.) He is being comforted. This is an interesting Greek word in the passive voice, meaning the subject, Lazarus, is receiving the action of the finite verb, comforted. The verb 'parakaletai' is from the noun 'paraklete' comforter, used in the N.T. for the Holy Spirit. The word 'paraklete' from 'para' along side, and 'kaleo' to call, literally, 'to call alongside for help.' So he is being comforted and you are in agony. I have to point out here that all five of the senses are in tact, in Hades and in paradise. The rich man can see, hear, taste, and I presume smell the sulfur. However, the important thing is that his reasoning capabilities were working overtime, as we shall soon see. Abraham didn't lament over the rich man's plight, but answered with calm collective logic, he continues:
Verse 26. "And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from thence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence."
And beside all this, between us and you a great 'kasma'=chasm or gulf 'estariktai' (a perfect passive from 'staridzo'= to stand or fix) has been fixed; so that 'oi thelountes' (active participle) so that those wishing 'diabanai' (2nd aorist infinitive) to come through or pass over from this place to you they are 'mae dunontai' not able; neither from there to us 'diaperosin' (present subjunctive) to pass over.
So the second part of the two-part reason Abraham was unable to help the rich man was it was impossible by Divine Decree. So, 1) it was totally unreasonable, and 2) it was totally impossible. It is interesting that not once did the rich man display any sign of remorse for his earthly life. How wonderfully logical is our heavenly Father, "It is appointed unto man once to die, after this, judgment" (Heb.9:27). Grace logic is all that is true, all else, is vanity. There are those who teach that they believe the reason God placed a great gulf between Hades and paradise is to keep Abraham from having compassion on the rich man and crossing over to help him. We will see how totally silly this reasoning is in a verse coming up. Abraham had the mind of Christ and responds later on from the Divine Viewpoint.
Verse 27,28. "Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house, for I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment."
And he said, 'eroto' (present active indicative) I beg you then, father, send Lazarus unto my father's house, for I have five brothers; that he may 'diamarturatai' (present active subjunctive) make a solemn affirmation or testify or warn them, in order that they come not into this place of torment.
Now it seems that the rich man has compassion for his brothers, doesn't it? Maybe the rich man is trying to use his worldly cunning to try the truth and its accuracy. The wisest of this worlds' wisdom is but foolishness with God. Abraham had the edge in this, for he was using the logic of Divine viewpoint. "There is no waking up of good in the heart of the lost, but, as Trench acutely remarks, bitter reproach against God and the old economy, as not having warned him sufficiently"(David Brown). Abraham's answer rolls back.
Verse 29,30. "Abraham saith unto him, they have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. And he said, nay, father Abraham; but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent."
But Abraham said, "they have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them." There are those who teach a progressive revelation (that the saints of today know more Revelation than the saints of the O.T. did). Now I believe this in an historical sense, but certainly not in a soteriological (the doctrine of Salvation) sense, that is, there are certain details relating to the life and death of Christ that only an historical account could give us invaluable information that was not prophesied nor limited out in the O.T. tabernacle and Levitical sacrifice. The O.T. sacrificial system was a foreshadowing or type of the death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord, and the prophets foretold and forewarned the people of the coming of the Lord, and all this revelation was sufficient to provide them with eternal salvation. All of the O.T. sacrifices were a type of what the Lord would accomplish, and the Lord being born of a virgin, living, teaching, and giving his life on the cross of Calvary, a ransom for all, a full atonement, penalty for sin paid, pardoning and giving the free gift of eternal life to all who might believe, was the fulfillment of these types. Also the prophets added some astounding particulars regarding Christ's first advent that was not covered in the sacrificial types. Now when Abraham says, "you have Moses and the prophets", this is certainly sufficient revelation to have saved the rich man from the torments of Hades, had he exercised his free will, and by faith received the offer made by Moses and the prophets. I don't believe it could be any clearer. Abraham is saying, "You have no excuse." Let them hear them, In other words, they have the same Divine revelation as all men have had from the beginning of time. Paul writes of this very truth in Romans 10:17-21, "But I say, surely they have never heard, have they? Indeed they have: 'Their voice has gone out into all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world." But I say surely Israel did not know, did they? At the first Moses says, "I will make you jealous by that which is not a nation (the Gentiles as a whole), by a nation without understanding will I anger you." And Isaiah is very bold and says, "I was found by those who sought me not, I became manifest to those who did not ask for me." But as for Israel He says, "all the day long I have stretched out My hands to a disobedient and obstinate people." Again in Rom.1:18-20, "For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known of God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so they are without excuse. I could spend a lot more time here, but the point is made. The economy of the O.T. did not depict a society of an ignorant pack of savages that were all lost in their ignorance. As a matter of fact the Garden of Eden was a perfect environment before sin and the Fall of Man. So, that progressive revelation might be true regarding the Mysteries of the N.T., but certainly not regarding salvation. Of course history will reveal details not discovered before, but on close examination of the Word of God, a lot of the these truths we simply missed by our own laziness. The rich man replied to Abraham's statement, 'let them hear them' is an emphatic no! Father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them (his five brothers), they will repent. Now this is totally silly based on the Scriptures we have just noticed. I believe the rich man, like his father the devil, is trying to build a case for his own human viewpoint righteousness by seeing if he could get Abraham to bend to his request and send Lazarus back from paradise on this so-called benevolent mission, then he would have something to accuse God of at the final 'Great White Throne Judgment'. I believe his defense would go something like this, 'My brothers had Lazarus come back from the grave and warn him of Hades, and all I had was Moses and the prophets, Your system is unfair. Of course we know this will never happen, because the word of God is perfect. Our Father in heaven could only answer such a ridiculous excuse with 'depart from me you worker of iniquity, you have no excuse, I never knew you.'
Verse 31. "And he said unto him, if they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rose from the dead."
How many times have unbelieving and believing creatures said it, show me a miracle so that I may believe. The followers of Jesus saw all the miracles, but only some believed, but never because of the miracles. The ones who believed in the miracles, believed in the Christ of the miracles, before He performed them. The Pharisees, Sadducees, and Scribes saw the miracles, but they would not believe.
I will point out here a principle of awesome proportions and importance. (By the way the only time I would ever dare to use the term awesome is as it relates to the only Awesome One). The greatest miracle will have no effect on those who are determined not to believe. But the Lord shuts us up absolutely to the revealed Word of God, as God's ordained means of all saving effect upon the heart and life. And if this be true, and it is, I must add that the right and the duty of all to 'search the Scriptures' for life and liberty in all Christian pursuits.
Share freely but cite the source: http://bbbiblehelps.epizy.com