598th Post Jesus Said Concerning Parables Con't. - Parables Concerning First to be Last Con't. - Parables About the Rich Man and Lazarus Luke 16: 19 - 31, 2nd Post.

Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus Luke 16: 19 - 31 Continued Second Post.
In this parable we have two people, the rich man and Lazarus. Jesus tells us that the rich man had the best of life and Lazarus the worst.  Why did the rich man find himself in torment in Sheol (Hades)?  On the surface this parable seems to say that if you are rich, you will end up here.  Is this what this parable really says, I don't think so.  Jesus gives us more information in this story.  We learn that the rich man was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day.  This means he had way more than what he needed to live on and lived very comfortably.  To this scene Jesus adds Lazarus, who was laid at the gate of the rich man.  This means Lazarus could not even get around by himself, but had to count on others to move him.  Jesus did not say for how long Lazarus stayed at the gate of the house of the rich man.  Lazarus laid there waiting to eat just the crumbs that fell from the rich man's table.  We are not told how successful Lazarus was at getting the crumbs or how often he got fed.  Jesus then tells us that dogs came and licked the sores on Lazarus.  Dogs usually do not have a good meaning when the word is used.  Jesus did not say if these dogs were wild or part of the rich man's household.  The fact that dogs were the ones that recognized Lazarus' situation and tried by licking his sores to relieve Lazarus' suffering is quite interesting.  This gives us a clue that the rich man did not treat Lazarus as well as he could have.  I believe this is why the rich man found himself in torment in Sheol (Hades).   You need to remember that this parable is still part of the teaching Jesus started in Chapter 13 of Luke, "Repent or Perish".  What happens to us after we die has been the subject of conversation from the time the first person died until now.  Here we have an opportunity to see what Jesus had to say on the subject.  In this parable, Jesus describes Sheol (Hades), of the Old Testament.  Sheol means the place of the dead.  Continued next post.