Act 3 – The Dialogues

To a first century hearer of the parable, the fates of the two would have been surprising for it went against the grain of the common wisdom: blessings in this life were a sign of God’s favor while illness, poverty, and hardship were a sign of God’s curses. Yet the one well “blessed” in his lifetime is now tormented in the netherworld (see the Note on 16:23 below) where he can see Lazarus and Abraham across the great chasm that divides them (v.26).

The First Exchange.  Some things never change. The rich man, who surprisingly knows Lazarus’ name, making his lack of charity perhaps worse, still thinks of Lazarus as someone below his station in life, someone to serve his personal needs: “Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am suffering torment in these flames” (v.24). The rich man stills thinks of himself as a “son of Abraham” since he addresses Abraham as “Father” (cf.  13:16; 19:9) Continue reading →