![]() ![]() Good people who work hard and live righteously can expect to be rewarded with means likewise, people with means are seen as good (smart, hardworking, righteous) because they were able to acquire wealth. It is common to equate wealth with virtue, whether today or in the ancient world. Jesus’ follow-up response to the Pharisees includes the parable of Lazarus and the rich man. This, too, elicits criticism from the Pharisees, who are identified in verse 14 as “lovers of money,” a label linking them to Jesus’ words in verse 14 about serving two masters. Chapter 16 shifts Jesus’ audience to the disciples, his followers and potential coworkers, and he tells them the parable of the dishonest steward. This text follows the parables in Chapter 15 of the lost sheep, coin, and son, which are addressed to the Pharisees and scribes in response to their grumbling about Jesus’ choice of company: tax collectors and sinners. In Luke 16:19-31, whether parable or literal account, Jesus clearly taught the existence of heaven and hell as well as the deceitfulness of riches to those who trust in material wealth.The opening verse of this pericope, 16:19, has the same phrase as 16:1, the opening of last week’s text “There was a rich man …” The repetition of the phrase, in a Gospel full of references to wealth and its use, suggests engagement with this figure is important for faithful proclamation. ![]() Parable or not, Jesus plainly used this story to teach that after death the unrighteous are eternally separated from God, that they remember their rejection of the Gospel, that they are in torment, and that their condition cannot be remedied. Even if it is not a "real" story, it is realistic. The important thing is that whether the story is a true incident or a parable, the teaching behind it remains the same. They do not consider the above arguments strong enough to warrant classifying the story as anything but a parable. They point out that Jesus’ standard practice was to use parables in His teaching and that the story of the rich man and Lazarus follows a string of parables in Luke 15 – 16. In contrast, others maintain that this story is a parable and not an actual, real-life incident. The setting for most of the story is the afterlife, as opposed to the parables, which unfold in earthly contexts. The story of the rich man and Lazarus presents spiritual truth directly, with no earthly metaphor. Third, this particular story does not seem to fit the definition of a parable, which is a presentation of a spiritual truth using an earthly illustration. ![]() Such specificity would set it apart from ordinary parables, in which the characters are not named. Second, the story of the rich man and Lazarus uses the actual name of a person. Many other of Jesus’ stories are designated as parables, such as the sower and the seed (Luke 8:4) the prosperous farmer (Luke 12:16) the barren fig tree (Luke 13:6) and the wedding feast (Luke 14:7). First, the story is never called a parable. Those who interpret this narrative as a true incident have several reasons for doing so. Some take the story of the rich man and Lazarus to be a true, historical account of events that actually occurred others consider it a parable or allegory. Luke 16:19-31 has been the focus of much controversy.
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