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''There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, 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 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; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 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. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence. 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. 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. And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead. '' (Translation according to the King James Version of the Bible)

The story was frequently told in an elaborated form in the Medieval period, and Lazarus was venerated as a patron saint of lepers by the Roman Catholic Church. The story was also sung to a folk tune in medieval England, and as a traditional spiritual. Vaughan Williams composed an orchestral piece based upon it.

The parable illustrates a theme common to several of Jesus's parables: the treatment of the least of society is the true measure of piety. The rich man's claims to external virtue and legal satisfaction could not compensate for his neglect of the poor man. Jesus taught, repeatedly, that the Kingdom of God is within the soul and not in the law, in contrast to the Pharisean understanding of the Messiah.

What makes this parable even more poignant is that the author of the Gospel is also the author of the Acts of the Apostles, which relates the events after the Resurrection. The readers are aware that not only do they have the words of Moses and the Prophets but that someone returned from death, too. Further, for early Christians, the parable answers the question of why, after the resurrection, Jesus did not preach and give new warnings to the living.

Doctrinally, the parable is an open question, as it may present an example of particular judgment, as opposed to general judgment or soul sleep. The story has the redeemed Lazarus with Abraham in a place of happiness (whether this place is limbo or not) and carried specifically by the messengers of God immediately after death and aware of the souls in Hell. Proponents of general judgment, for example Seventh-day Adventists) and Christian Universalists, argue that it is a parable referring to Jewish and Gentile views of the Messiah. Other advocates of general judgment simply say that it is a parable that is devoted to morality, not the afterlife, a position that proponents of particular and individual judgment reject.

References

External links

• [An In-Depth Look at the Rich Man and Lazarus]

Parables of Jesus - [http://encycl.opentopia.com/ edit]

>The Barren Fig Tree | Drawing in the Net | The Friend at Night | Good Samaritan | Good Shepherd | Growing Seed | The Hidden Treasure | Workers in the Vineyard | Leafing Fig Tree | The Leaven | Lost Coin | Lost Sheep | Marriage of the King's Son | Mustard Seed | Pearl | Pharisee and the Publican | Parable of the Talents | Prodigal Son | The Rich Fool | Lazarus and Dives | Faithful Servant | The Sheep and the Goats | Sower | Weeds | Ten Virgins | The Two Debtors | The Two Sons | The Unjust Judge | The Unjust Steward | Unmerciful Servant | The Vine | The Wicked Husbandmen | The Wise and the Foolish Builders

 

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