Taking stock in God’s trustworthy word

The Bible teaches us about Jesus. In Luke 16, Jesus tells a parable about a rich man and poor man. The rich man is nameless, but the poor man is named Lazarus. This is the only man in Jesus’ parables who ever receives a name, and his name means ‘God helps.’ The lives of these two men are very different. “There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man's table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores.” (Luke 16:19-21)

The rich man is clothed in purple and fine linen. This is not an insignificant detail. It is meant to point out just how rich he was. Purple dye was only available, in those days, through snails and shellfish and it was incredibly costly. It was usually reserved for royalty. The fine linen would have gone under the purple outer garment and, again, points to his wealth. We also see the rich man’s wealth in what he ate, he ate sumptuously. The word used here describes it as though this man had a feast – threw a huge festival like party – every single day.

The final clue we get as to his wealth is in the fact that he had a gate. Don’t think of this as a small gate that would be in front of a normal house. Lazarus is being placed there to beg for money so it must mean that this man had money and that he lived in an area where people with money would walk by. The word used for gate describes a very large gate, or gateway, and is used to describe the entrance to a walled city, a temple, or a palace.

Lazarus is described in just as vivid language. We are told that he was laid at the gate of this rich man. This most likely means that he was crippled. But we are not given the idea that there are those caring for him each day, laying him there gently. No, the phrase used here, from the Greek, is literally translated, “tossed toward the gate.” Moreover, while the rich man walked about in purple and fine linen, Lazarus laid there covered in seeping, open wounds. We also see that he had no food.

Lazarus desired to eat the scraps that fell off the table from the rich man’s sumptuous feast. Those scraps would most likely have been pieces of bread that were used to soak up what was left on the plate and then thrown under the table for the dogs. Jesus says the dogs licked his wounds. This was not meant to comfort the people who were hearing this story. The dogs in those days would have been guard dogs for the rich man; they were not the kind of pet that we think of today. We see that Lazarus is unable to defend himself from their licking him. Not only would this have caused greater infection to his already seeping wounds, but it also would have rendered him ceremonially unclean.

As different as their lives were, their fates after life were even more so. We read, “The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried, and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side.” (Luke 16:22-23) What follows is a discussion between the rich man and Abraham, first requesting that Lazarus bring him some cool water in his torments. When this is denied, he asks that Lazarus be raised from the dead to warn his brothers. Aside from the obvious pride necessary for this man to think he can make Lazarus his servant in the afterlife, Abraham tells him something profound: “If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.”

This time of the year there are bound to be discussions about Jesus and his birth, life, death, and resurrection. We might be tempted to try and debate people into the truth, but even Jesus says we should rely upon the Word of God. We shouldn’t try and debate with people about who Jesus was and what he accomplished. We should point people to God’s trustworthy word.

Pastor Everett Henes, the pastor of the Hillsdale Orthodox Presbyterian Church, can be reached at pastorhenes@gmail.com.