Lazarus and Dives, illumination from the Codex Aureus of Echternach
Top panel: Lazarus at the rich man's door
Middle panel: Lazarus' soul is carried to Paradise by two angels; Lazarus in Abraham's bosom
Bottom panel: Dives' soul is carried off by two devils to Hell; Dives is tortured in Hades. The Codex Aureus of Echternach ( Codex aureus Epternacensis) ( Nuremberg, Germanisches Nationalmuseum, Hs See also Intermediate state Sheol|Hell in Christianity Hades is "the place or state of departed spirits"

Dives and Lazarus or Lazarus and Dives is a narrative^[1] attributed to Jesus that is reported only in the Gospel of Luke (Luke 16:19-31). Jesus of Nazareth (7–2 BC / BCE —26–36 AD / CE) This article is about the canonical books of the New Testament The Gospel of Luke (Gk Κατά Λουκάν Ευαγγέλιον) is a synoptic Gospel, and is the third and longest of the four canonical Gospels of the It is also known as "The Rich Man and the Beggar Lazarus. " The wealthy man is traditionally called "Dives", after the Latin word for "rich man" (though in the Biblical text he is only referred to as the rich man). ^[2] The story has been a favorite for artists and theologians, as it is the most vivid account of an afterlife to be found in the New Testament. AfterLife is a film drama set in Scotland directed by Alison Peebles made in 2003 about an ambitious Scottish journalist forced to choose between

The story

The story is as follows:

There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. Purple is a general term for the range of shades of Color occurring between Red and Blue. At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores and longing to eat what fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's Side. An angel is a Spiritual Supernatural being found in many Religions Although the nature of angels and the tasks given to them vary from tradition to tradition See also Intermediate state The phrase " Bosom of Abraham " refers to the place of comfort in Sheol (Greek hades The rich man also died and was buried. In Hell,^[3] where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. Abraham ( Ashkenazi   Avrohom or Avruhom; ابراهيم, {{Unicode|Ibrāhīm}}; Ge'ez: So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire. ' But Abraham replied, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us. ' He answered, 'Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father's house, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment. ' Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them. Moses ( Latin: Moyses,; Greek: grc Mωυσής in both the Septuagint and the New Testament; Arabic: ar موسىٰ Nevi'im (נְבִיאִים "Prophets" is the second of the three major sections in the Hebrew Bible, the Tanakh, between the ' 'No, Father Abraham,' he said, 'but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent. ' He said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead. This article concerns itself with Jesus Christ Christian, Islamic and other religious interpretations of resurrection in general '

– NIV

Early Christianity

Hippolytus of Rome (ca. The New International Version is an English Translation of the Christian Bible. For places named after the saint see Saint-Hippolyte Saint Hippolytus of Rome (c AD 200) describes Hades with similar details: the bosom of Abraham for the souls of the righteous, fiery torment for the souls of wicked, and a chasm between them^[4]. The soul, according to many religious and philosophical beliefs is the self-awareness, or Consciousness, unique to a particular living He equates the fires of Hades with the lake of fire described in the Book of Revelation, but specifies that no one will actually be cast into the fire until the end times. A lake of fire appears in both Ancient Egyptian and Christian religion as a place where after death the wicked are punished or destroyed The Book of Revelation, also called Revelation to John, Apocalypse of John ( pronounced, from the Ἀποκάλυψις Ἰωάννου

Medieval tradition

The story was frequently told in an elaborated form in the Medieval period, and Lazarus was venerated as a patron saint of lepers by the Roman Catholic Church. The patron saint of a particular group of people is a Saint who would protect and 'love' the group and its members ^[5] In the twelfth century, crusaders in the Kingdom of Jerusalem founded the Order of Saint Lazarus. The Crusades were a series of military campaigns of a religious character waged by much of Christian Europe against external and internal opponents This article is about the Christian kingdom For the history of the city see History of Jerusalem The Kingdom of Jerusalem was a Christian This article concerns the former religious catholic-founded secular order of knighthood

Chaucer's Summoner observes that "Dives and Lazarus lived differently, and their rewards were different. Geoffrey Chaucer (c 1343 – 25 October 1400? was an English author poet Philosopher, bureaucrat, courtier and Diplomat. The Summoner's Tale is one of The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer. "^[6]

In song

Richard Crashaw wrote a metaphysical stanza for his Steps to the Temple in 1646 entitled, "Upon Lazarus His Tears":

"Rich Lazarus! richer in those gems, thy tears,

Than Dives in the robes he wears:

He scorns them now, but oh they'll suit full well

With the purple he must wear in hell. Richard Crashaw (c 1613 - 25 August 1649) English Poet, styled "the divine" was part of the Seventeenth-century The metaphysical poets were a loose group of British lyric poets of the 17th century who shared an interest in metaphysical concerns and a common way of investigating them "

The story appeared as an English folk song (oldest written documentation from 1557^[7]), with the depiction of the afterlife altered to fit Christian tradition. The song was also published as the Child ballad Dives and Lazarus in the 19th century. The Child Ballads are a collection of 305 Ballads from England and Scotland, and their American variants collected by Francis James Child This article is about a traditional popular ballad about a legend ^[8] North American slaves sang a spiritual about Lazarus and Dives. Spirituals (or Negro spirituals) are songs which were created by African slaves in America. ^[9] In 1939, Vaughan Williams composed an orchestral piece based on this story, Five Variants of Dives and Lazarus. Ralph (reɪf Vaughan Williams OM (12 October 1872 &ndash 26 August 1958 was an English Composer of symphonies, Chamber music Five Variants of Dives and Lazarus is a work for harp and string orchestra by Ralph Vaughan Williams.

Interpretations

The parable illustrates a theme common to several of Jesus's parables: the treatment of the least of society is the true measure of piety. The rich man's claims to external virtue and legal satisfaction could not compensate for his neglect of the poor man. Jesus taught, repeatedly, that the Kingdom of God is within the soul and not in the law, in contrast to the Pharisean understanding of the Messiah. This article is about the concept of a Messiah in religion notably in the Christian Islamic and Jewish traditions

What makes this parable even more poignant is that the author of the Gospel is apparently also the author of the Acts of the Apostles, which relates the events after the Resurrection (or at very least, is aware of the resurrection). The Acts of the Apostles is a book of the Bible, which now stands fifth in the New Testament. This article concerns itself with Jesus Christ Christian, Islamic and other religious interpretations of resurrection in general The readers are aware that not only do they have the words of Moses and the Prophets but that someone returned from death, too. term " Torah " ( Hebrew: תּוֹרָה "teaching" or "instruction" sometimes translated as "Law" most commonly refers to Nevi'im (נְבִיאִים "Prophets" is the second of the three major sections in the Hebrew Bible, the Tanakh, between the Further, for early Christians, the parable answers the question of why, after the resurrection, Jesus did not preach and give new warnings to the living.

The parable is unique in that, unlike others where Jesus referred to the characters as "a certain man", "a sower", etc. , one of the characters was referred to by name. There is a minority view which holds that, because of this, the story isn't a parable, but a reference to a real beggar named Lazarus and a real wealthy individual.

Afterlife doctrine

Christians debate what the story says about the afterlife. AfterLife is a film drama set in Scotland directed by Alison Peebles made in 2003 about an ambitious Scottish journalist forced to choose between Most Christians believe in particular judgment and see the story as consistent with it. Particular judgment, according to Christian Eschatology, is the judgement given by God a departed Soul undergoes immediately after death in Eastern Orthodox Christians see the story as consistent with their belief in Hades, where the righteous and unrighteous alike await the resurrection of the dead. The Eastern Orthodox Church is the second largest single Christian Communion in the world See also Intermediate state Sheol|Hell in Christianity Hades is "the place or state of departed spirits" This article concerns itself with the belief in the final Resurrection at the End of time, commonly found in the Abrahamic religions. (The word translated as Hell in the story is Hades which means the physical grave. Hell, according to many Religious beliefs, is a location in the Afterlife, which may be described as a place of suffering Hades (from Greek, Hadēs, originally, Haidēs or, Aidēs, probably from Indo-European *n̥-wid- 'unseen' refers both to the ancient ) Western Christians usually interpret Lazarus as being in Heaven or Limbo and the rich man in Hell. See also Intermediate state Purgatory|Heaven|Sheol|Hades in Christianity|Hell in Christianity In Roman Catholic theology Limbo (Latin limbus

Instead of particular judgment, some Christians believe in soul sleep and general judgment only. See also Intermediate state In Christian theology, soul sleep is a belief that the Soul sleeps unconsciously between the Death of the General judgment is the Christian theological concept of a judgment of the souls of the dead by nation and as a whole Proponents of general judgment, for example Seventh-day Adventists and Christian Universalists, argue that this is a parable referring to Jewish and Gentile views of the Messiah. The Seventh-day Adventist (abbreviated " Adventist " Church is a Christian denomination which is distinguished mainly by its observance Universalism can be classified as a Religion, Theology and Philosophy that generally holds all persons and creatures are related to God or the Divine and Other advocates of general judgment simply say that it is a parable that is devoted to morality, not the afterlife.

In the secular view, the story represents the 1st-century Jewish belief in Sheol ("Hades" in Greek, as in this passage, meaning simply the grave). Sheol is where all the dead go. In Sheol, the dead are unaware of their situation. Some among the Jews believed in the hope of the resurrection from the dead, others believed death was final. In sheol there is no pleasure or pain as the dead can experience neither ["For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten" (ECC 9:5) and "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest" ECC 9-10]

In popular culture

Dives is also called Diversus in some versions, such as that performed by Steeleye Span on their album "They Called Her Babylon". Steeleye Span is a British Electric folk band formed in 1969 and remaining active today They Called Her Babylon is an album by the Electric folk band Steeleye Span.

The Christian metal band Whitecross performed a song called "No Second Chances" telling the story of Lazarus the beggar. Whitecross is a Christian metal band that formed in 1986 in Chicago, releasing their first recording the following year

In his novel, Moby Dick, Herman Melville alludes to Lazarus and Dives in Chapter Two as part of a metaphor describing a cold night in New Bedford. (Melville, Herman. Moby Dick, pp. 11-12.  )

Views of historicity

There are different views on the historicity and origin of the story of the Rich Man and Lazarus. ^[10] The story is unique to Luke and does not appear to come from the putative Q document, and therefore there have been questions about sources.

As a literal, historical event

Some Christians view the story of Lazarus and the Rich Man as an actual event which was related by Jesus to his followers. ^[11] According to this view, this story is not a parable but literal biography. Supporters of this view point to the amount of detail in the story. For example, in no other parable does Jesus give a character's name.

As a parable created by Jesus

Most Christians consider that this is a parable created by Jesus and told to his followers. ^[12] Proponents of this view argue that the story of Lazarus and the rich man has much in common with other stories which are agreed upon parables, both in language and content (e. g. the reversal of fortunes, the use of antithesis, and concern for the poor).

As a mixture of Jesus and early Christian material

A third view says that the bulk of the parable was told by Jesus but was supplemented with later additions of material composed by others after Jesus' crucifixion. In this view, the early part of the story (Luke 16:19-26) is a parable told by Jesus, while the concluding verses (27-31) represent material added to the story by early Christians. In these verses, the rich man requests Lazarus be raised from the dead so as to serve as warning to the rich man's living brothers. For proponents of interpolation, this is an allegorical reference to the rejection of early Christianity by mainstream Judaism. Judaism (from the Greek Ioudaïsmos, derived from the Hebrew יהודה Yehudah, " Judah " in Hebrew יַהֲדוּת Yahedut

As originated by Luke

A fourth view holds that the story was not told by Jesus. Proponents of this view suggest that it is significant that only the Gospel of Luke mentions Jesus telling the story (see Synoptic Gospels). The synoptic gospels are the first three Gospels of the New Testament in the Christian Bible. The story fits well with Luke's emphasis on care for the poor and therefore they suggest that it may be an authorial insertion.

See also

• Lazaretto
• List of names for the Biblical nameless

External links

• An In-Depth Look at the Rich Man and Lazarus from a Universalist Perspective
• A second In-Depth Look of the meaning of the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus

References

1. ^ Whether this account is a metaphor, parable, or biography is a matter of contention among Christians. A lazaretto or lazaret is a Quarantine station for maritime travellers This list of names for the Biblically nameless compiles names given in Jewish or Christian mythology for characters who are unnamed in the Bible itself
2. ^ Luke, chapter 16 verse 19. The Bible - Latin Vulgate. Vatican. Retrieved on 2006-06-30. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 350 - Roman usurper Nepotianus, of the Constantinian dynasty, is defeated and killed by troops of the Usurper - "homo quidam erat dives et induebatur purpura et bysso et epulabatur cotidie splendide"
3. ^ Greek: Hades
4. ^ Against Plato, On the Cause of the Universe
5. ^ Lazarus on the Catholic Community Forum. See also Intermediate state Sheol|Hell in Christianity Hades is "the place or state of departed spirits"
6. ^ The Summoners's Prologue and Tale , line 1877 - "Lazar and Dives lyveden diversly, And divers gerdon hadden they therby. "
7. ^ Francis James Child, The English and Scottish popular Ballads, Part IV, 1886; referring to (inter alia) Arber, Registers of the Company of Stationers
8. ^ anonymous; from Child ballad 56 A, from Sylvester: a Garland of Christmas Carols, from an old Birmingham broadside. Francis James Child ( February 1, 1825 &ndash September 11, 1896) was an American scholar educationist and folklorist, The Child Ballads are a collection of 305 Ballads from England and Scotland, and their American variants collected by Francis James Child Dives and Lazarus. The Oxford Book of Ballads, 1910. Bartleby. com. Retrieved on 2006-06-29. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 512 - A Solar eclipse is recorded by a monastic chronicler in Ireland.
9. ^ Poor man Lazarus. Repertoire. crescendoalpesto. ch. Retrieved on 2006-06-29. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 512 - A Solar eclipse is recorded by a monastic chronicler in Ireland.
10. ^ Multiple sources summarized at Jesus Database
11. ^ e. g. Webpage which argues that Lazarus and the rich man is literally true.
12. ^ eg The IVP Bible Background Commentary, Tom Wright's Luke for Everyone and Joachim Jeremias's The Parables of Jesus all refers to it as a "Parable"