157th Post Jesus on Hell Con't. - Luke 16: 19 - 21.

Luke 16: 19 - 21. The Parable of The Rich Man and Lazarus
"There was a rich man who dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. At his gate laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores. and longing to eat what fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores."
This was spoken by Jesus toward the middle of his earthly ministry. Jesus is telling the story to show people the difference between heaven and hell in Sheol (Hades). I will explain this later in this parable. The rich man lived in luxury but did not share it with anyone. He believed his wealth was his to spend as he wanted to. His ability to make money was given by God, his brain etc. But the rich man did not share his wealth as God would have liked. The beggar is given a name "Lazarus" (not to be confused with the Lazarus that lived in Bethany, Jesus' friend), he was poor, and could not afford food nor medical attention. The Bible names certain people, based on their character, some are good and some are bad. Most of the people named in the Bible are good, though. Lazarus had no chair to sit on so he had to lay by the gate. Only the dogs seemed to care for Lazarus. When dogs are mentioned in the Bible, they are usually bad. Jesus did not say, but it could be that these dogs were owned by the rich man, and that is why they were around and not driven off as if they were in a pack of wild dogs. Isn't it interesting, that the dogs could see Lazarus' condition and had compassion on him. The rich man could have helped Lazarus, but refused. He was only interested in his own comfort and well being.