18 · Jesus' Parable

The Rich Man and Lazarus

Luke 16:19–31

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A wounded man sits with a dog outside a gate while a richly dressed man and his guests feast at a lavish table inside.

A rich man ignores Lazarus at his gate. After death, their situations are reversed.

What is the rich man's greatest failure?

Choose a perspective

There is no score – choose the perspective you find closest and discuss why.

Discuss: Can we wait for a clearer sign to avoid acting on what we already know?

After your discussion: compare with our assessment

Our assessment

B and C are closest to our understanding. B captures the contrast between the rich man's abundance and Lazarus's suffering right at his gate. C captures the ending: the man assumes a spectacular sign would change his brothers, while Abraham says those who do not listen to Moses and the Prophets will not necessarily be convinced even by a resurrection.

18 · Luke 16:19–31

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Text & context

Full translation

19 There was a rich man who dressed in purple and fine linen and feasted splendidly every day. 20 At his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores. 21 He longed to be filled with what fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In Hades, where he was in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus at his side. 24 He called out, “Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am suffering terribly in this flame.” 25 But Abraham said, “Child, remember that you received your good things during your life, while Lazarus likewise received bad things. Now he is comforted here, while you are in anguish. 26 And besides all this, a great chasm has been fixed between us and you, so that those who want to cross from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross from there to us.” 27 Then he said, “I ask you, father, send him to my father's house, 28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they too do not come to this place of torment.” 29 But Abraham said, “They have Moses and the Prophets. Let them listen to them.” 30 He replied, “No, father Abraham. But if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.” 31 Abraham said to him, “If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone rises from the dead.”

Translated from the Greek text – SBLGNT

What is happening here?
Jesus places two lives side by side. The rich man lives in abundance while Lazarus suffers at his gate. After death their situations are reversed. The story ends with the question of what it takes for people to listen and repent.
Notice this

Lazarus is named while the wealthy man is identified only by his wealth. This is a striking feature of the story. The rich man feasts every day. Lazarus lies covered with sores and longs for scraps. They are not far apart: Lazarus is at the gate. The text says the dogs lick Lazarus's sores. This intensifies his vulnerability, but it does not say they attack him. The one who lived in abundance is now in anguish, while the one who suffered is comforted. This fits Luke's recurring theme of reversals. The story genuinely contains themes of death, judgment, separation, comfort, and torment. But it is not written as a systematic geographical manual of the afterlife. Every narrative detail should not automatically become physical topography. The Greek word here is hadēs, not geenna, which appears in other sayings of Jesus. After death the rich man names Lazarus. Within the story, Lazarus therefore does not appear to have been completely unknown to him. The man asks Abraham first to send Lazarus with water and then to his brothers. It is a notable literary detail that Lazarus is still treated as someone to be sent on the rich man's errands. The story marks the post-death situation as no longer easily reversible, giving weight to response in the present life. The man thinks his brothers need a spectacular sign. Abraham says they already have teaching to hear, including strong commands concerning justice and care for vulnerable people. For a Christian reader the ending carries special literary resonance with Jesus' resurrection. Yet the point need not be reduced to a coded prediction: a spectacular miracle does not guarantee belief.

Language & translation

From the Greek

Λάζαρος -- Lazaros

Lazarus; corresponding to Hebrew Eleazar, roughly "God has helped"

πλούσιος -- plousios

rich

ᾅδης -- hadēs

Hades / realm of the dead

κόλπος Ἀβραάμ -- kolpos Abraam

Abraham's bosom / side

μετανοήσουσιν -- metanoēsousin

they will repent

Translation note

Independent English translation from the Greek text, using SBLGNT as the primary Greek edition.

Compare for yourself

Read the passage and mark each time the story describes what someone says, does, or refuses to do. Which of these actions seems decisive for the way Jesus concludes the story? Then compare your observation with A/B/C before reading our assessment.

    Continue the conversation

    Discuss further
    1. Why is Lazarus named while the rich man is not?
    2. What does it mean that Lazarus lies at the man's gate?
    3. How far should the story be used as a detailed description of the afterlife?
    4. What changes when we distinguish Hades from Gehenna?
    5. Why does the rich man think a greater miracle would change his brothers?
    6. Can people ask for more evidence when the real issue is unwillingness to act on what they already know?
    Parallel passages
    • Luke 6:20–26
    • Luke 12:16–21
    • Luke 16:1–13
    • Luke 18:18–30
    • Matthew 25:31–46
    Sources
    • The Greek New Testament: SBL Edition (SBLGNT), Luke 16:19–31
    • Standard Greek lexical resources for Lazaros, plousios, hadēs, kolpos, and metanoeō