The Rich Man and Lazarus

Q: Does Jesus’ story of the rich man and Lazarus describe what happens when we die?

A: This is a very important question, since it is the one place in the Bible that might suggest that people go either to heaven or to hell when they die. Jesus’ story of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31) vividly describes a rich man living lavishly and feasting sumptuously, heedless of his future and thinking only of his present bliss, while poor Lazarus, full of sores and destitute, is laid at the gate of the rich man’s house, “desiring to be fed with the crumbs” that fall from his table (verse 21). When they die, Lazarus is “carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom” (verse 22) and the rich man is described as “being in torments” (verse 23).

Several points are worth noting. First, the larger context of the chapter deals with one’s use of financial resources, and Jesus begins this story the same way as He did His previous parable (Luke 16:19; cf. verse 1), suggesting that the story is not necessarily to be taken literally. Rather, it reflects popular ideas of the time about the afterlife, not unlike today’s widespread but unbiblical notion that Peter guards heaven’s gates and decides who can enter. Many unrealistic details signal that this story is not to be taken literally (for example, the rich man is calm while in torment, a drop of water could soothe his tongue, and a supposed spirit existence includes body parts).

Many unrealistic details signal that this story is not to be taken literally.

Second, the Greek word hadēs (verse 23), though translated in some versions as “hell” (e.g., KJV, CEV, NLV), refers—like its Hebrew counterpart Sheol—to the grave, where all the dead go to “rest” with their fathers. Such heroes as Moses (Deut. 31:16), David (2 Sam. 7:12), and Solomon (1 Kings 11:43) rest with their fathers, but so do wicked kings like Jeroboam (1 Kings 14:20), Omri (1 Kings 16:28), and Ahab (1 Kings 22:40). “The dead know nothing” (Eccl. 9:5); they descend “into silence” (Ps. 115:17). Both the evil and the good “sleep” in the grave (John 11:11-14; 1 Cor. 15:51) until the resurrection (Dan. 12:2; John 5:28, 29).

Third, the parable does not actually say that one is in heaven and the other is in hell, which would contradict the clear scriptural teaching that people receive their reward at the second coming of Jesus, not before (Matt. 16:27; 2 Cor. 5:10; Rev. 22:12). Both men are depicted (in traditional Jewish terms) in hadēs, or the grave (Acts 2:27; 13:36; Rev 1:18). Jesus uses popular misconceptions whereby one area of Hades (“Abraham’s bosom”) was for the righteous and another (“in torments”) for the wicked but was not intended as a literal description of the afterlife.

The key takeaways from this parable are: (1) those in genuine need, like Lazarus, are to be shown mercy; (2) the “great gulf fixed” reflects the biblical teaching that only in this life is one’s destiny determined; (3) we must heed the Scriptures as the all-important witness to the way of salvation (Luke 16:29-31); and (4) Jesus’ parable admonishes us to ensure our eternal destiny now.