Luke 16:19

The Rich Man and Lazarus

16:19 “There was a rich man who dressed in purple ¹  and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously ²  every day.

Luke 16:23-25

16:23 And in hell, ³  as he was in torment, ⁴  he looked up ⁵  and saw Abraham far off with Lazarus at his side. ⁶  16:24 So ⁷  he called out, ⁸  ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus ⁹  to dip the tip of his finger ¹⁰  in water and cool my tongue, because I am in anguish ¹¹  in this fire.’ ¹²  16:25 But Abraham said, ‘Child, ¹³  remember that in your lifetime you received your good things and Lazarus likewise bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in anguish. ¹⁴ 

[16:19]  ¹ sn Purple describes a fine, expensive dye used on luxurious clothing, and by metonymy, refers to clothing colored with that dye. It pictures someone of great wealth.

[16:19]  ² tn Or “celebrated with ostentation” (L&N 88.255), that is, with showing off. Here was the original conspicuous consumer.

[16:23]  ³ sn The Greek term Hades stands for the Hebrew concept of Sheol. It is what is called hell today. This is where the dead were gathered (Ps 16:10; 86:13). In the NT Hades has an additional negative force of awaiting judgment (Rev 20:13).

[16:23]  ⁴ sn Hades is a place of torment, especially as one knows that he is separated from God.

[16:23]  ⁵ tn Grk “he lifted up his eyes” (an idiom).

[16:23]  ⁶ tn Grk “in his bosom,” the same phrase used in 16:22. This idiom refers to heaven and/or participation in the eschatological banquet. An appropriate modern equivalent is “at Abraham’s side.”

[16:24]  ⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous actions in the narrative.

[16:24]  ⁸ tn Grk “calling out he said”; this is redundant in contemporary English style and has been simplified to “he called out.”

[16:24]  ⁹ sn The rich man had not helped Lazarus before, when he lay outside his gate (v. 2), but he knew him well enough to know his name. This is why the use of the name Lazarus in the parable is significant. (The rich man’s name, on the other hand, is not mentioned, because it is not significant for the point of the story.)

[16:24]  ¹⁰ sn The dipping of the tip of his finger in water is evocative of thirst. The thirsty are in need of God’s presence (Ps 42:1-2; Isa 5:13). The imagery suggests the rich man is now separated from the presence of God.

[16:24]  ¹¹ tn Or “in terrible pain” (L&N 24.92).

[16:24]  ¹² sn Fire in this context is OT imagery; see Isa 66:24.

[16:25]  ¹³ tn The Greek term here is τέκνον (teknon), which could be understood as a term of endearment.

[16:25]  ¹⁴ tn Or “in terrible pain” (L&N 24.92). Here is the reversal Jesus mentioned in Luke 6:20-26.