Luke 16:19-31
The Rich Man and Lazarus
Read the passage
19Now there was a rich man dressed in purple and fine linen, who lived each day in joyous splendor.
20And a beggar named Lazarus lay at his gate, covered with sores
21and longing to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.
22One day the beggar died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. And the rich man also died and was buried.
23In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham from afar, with Lazarus by his side.
24So he cried out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue. For I am in agony in this fire.’
25But Abraham answered, ‘Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things. But now he is comforted here, while you are in agony.
26And besides all this, a great chasm has been fixed between us and you, so that even those who wish cannot cross from here to you, nor can anyone cross from there to us.’
27‘Then I beg you, father,’ he said, ‘send Lazarus to my father’s house,
28for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also end up in this place of torment.’
29But Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let your brothers listen to them.’
30‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone is sent to them from the dead, they will repent.’
31Then Abraham said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’”
Berean Standard Bible
Read aloud
There is a rich man dressed in purple and fine linen who feasts every day. At his gate lies a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores. He longs to be fed with what falls from the rich man's table, and dogs come and lick his sores.
Lazarus dies and is carried by the angels to Abraham's side. The rich man also dies and is buried. In Hades, he is in torment. He looks up and sees Abraham far away with Lazarus beside him.
The rich man cries for mercy and asks Abraham to send Lazarus to cool his tongue because he is in agony in the fire, but Abraham says the rich man received good things in life while Lazarus received bad things. A great chasm now separates them, and no one can cross it.
The rich man asks that Lazarus be sent to warn his five brothers. Abraham answers that they have Moses and the Prophets; they should hear them. If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.
The reversal exposes how little the rich man's comfort told him about his standing before God. Lazarus now receives comfort, while the man who had so much cannot obtain even a drop of water. His brothers still have what they need to respond: God's word and the opportunity to hear it. Jesus' hearers have that opportunity too.
How We Know
Deuteronomy 15:7–11 commands God's people not to harden their hearts or close their hands toward the poor, but to give generously. It supplies a concrete example of what hearing Moses requires. The rich man's brothers do not need a new command brought back from the dead before they can respond to the needs around them.
Questions
1 What is the contrast between the two men?
AnswerThe rich man feasts in luxury while Lazarus lies hungry and sick at his gate, longing for crumbs and receiving no recorded help.
2 Where is Lazarus after death?
AnswerHe is carried by angels to Abraham's side, while the rich man is in Hades and sees him from far away.
3 Why can no one cross the chasm?
AnswerAbraham says a great chasm has been fixed, so those on either side cannot cross to the other.
4 What do the rich man's brothers already have?
AnswerThey have Moses and the Prophets. Abraham says that refusal to hear God's word will not be solved by an even more spectacular sign.
What This Means for Us
The rich man's sin is not described as one dramatic crime. He lives comfortably beside visible suffering and never lets Lazarus become his neighbor. Indifference can be morally serious even when it leaves no public scandal.
The story is not a map of every detail of the afterlife. It is a warning to hear God's word now and to let the needy person at the gate interrupt our comfort.
Prayer
God of mercy, keep our household from becoming comfortable beside suffering. Give us eyes to see the people at our gates, courage to share what we have, and hearts willing to hear Your word today. Amen.