The Parable of the Rich Man and the Beggar
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The reality is that the dead "sleep" in a state of unconsciousness
until the day of judgement at the return of Messiah. The Bible is very
clear about that. But there are those who try to claim that the
parable of the rich man and the beggar proves we go to heaven
immediately when we die. As we shall see, this claim is without merit,
and those who make it don't believe the elements of the parable
themselves, but arbitrarily pick one element and say that that one
must be true.
Here is the parable:
*Luke 16:19--31*
`19' There was a */certain/* rich man, which was clothed
in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:
`20' And there was a */certain/* beggar named Lazarus,
which was laid at his gate, full of sores, `21' And
desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the
rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his
sores. `22' 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; `23' And in hell he
lift up his eyes, being in torments, and */seeth/* Abraham
afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. `24' 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/*. `25' 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. `26' 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. `27' Then he said, I
pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him
to my father's house: `28' For I have five brethren; that
he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this
place of torment. `29' Abraham saith unto him, */They have
Moses and the prophets/*; let them hear them. `30' And he
said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from
the dead, they will repent. `31' And he said unto him,
*/If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will
they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead/*.
Notes
~~~~~
"*/There was a certain rich man/*," v.19. From the very first words,
we are alerted we are dealing with a parable, a fictitious story which
has the sole purpose of making a point or teaching a moral. The
details of the story do not need to have any particular bearing on
reality, and the speaker of the parable is neither condoning nor
condemning the particulars of the story. For example, a parable in
which the characters are a slave and a slave owner, and which is meant
to teach about, say, the love of God, does not make any statement
whatsoever about the rightness or wrongness of slavery. That would be
a modern conception completely foreign to the teller of the parable.
"*/And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the
angels into Abraham's bosom/*," v.22. As we are dealing with a
parable, this verse does not tell us that when we die we are carried
by angels to the bosom of Abraham. The obvious explanation for these
elements is that the Jews of the time would most likely have had a
lively tradition of folklore, some of which involving angels and some
of which involving Abraham, who was seen as the father of the Jews.
Those who claim that this parable teaches that we go to heaven or hell
when we die, however, most often do not believe that angels carry us
directly to the bosom of Abraham! They are very selective about which
parts of the parable are true!
"*/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/*," v.25. If the details
of the parable are taken to be true, then it must be accepted that
those who enjoy good things in this life will go to hell and be
tormented to make up for it, and those who suffer bad things in this
life will go to heaven and enjoy good things to make up the deficit.
That, of course, is preposterous, and no one believes it. It is not
taught by Scripture, even though that very claim appears to be made in
this parable, if it is taken at face value.
"*/And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf
fixed/*," v.26. According to this, there must be a gulf between heaven
and hell, over which gulf it is possible to view in detail those who
are suffering and to hear their screams of agony. One would have to
say that this is quite an odd type of heaven indeed where people enjoy
comfort and bliss while being amused by those being tortured across
the gulf. This, again, is a preposterous idea which no one believes.
There are several elements of obvious unreality in this parable. For
example, a beggar would not be expected to be sitting at a rich man's
gate waiting for the crumbs from his table: he would more likely be at
the Temple or perhaps some other busy public place begging from the
public and making a good living. There is no basis for the rich man to
ask Abraham to send the */beggar/* to relieve his torment, when anyone
would have sufficed. Furthermore, while suffering in flames, asking
for someone to dip a finger in water and put it on the tongue would
hardly be of any help at all.
"*/And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets,
neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead/*,"
v.31. And here we have the sole purpose of the parable: to assert that
believers are to listen to Moses and the prophets (a merism meaning
the Hebrew Scriptures) for their salvation, and that apart from that,
even one rising from the dead (such as Yeshua!) would not convince
them.
In short, to claim that this parable teaches that we go to heaven or
hell when we die is merely clutching at straws in an attempt to use
the Bible to promote a doctrine it does not teach.
