• If you gather material riches around you, even if you live a “good” life by society’s standards, you sin by not sharing your wealth with those who really need it. You cannot ignore the needs of the poor.

• Do not excessively enjoy the temporary joys of life on earth (chasing food, honor, material wealth, etc.), because that will be your only reward, leaving you with nothing but suffering in the afterlife.

• After death, there is nothing else you can do to change your judgement. Do all the good you can while still alive on earth. God’s judgement is fair, any punishment will fit the fault.

• It is too late to learn the lesson after you have died. Do not rely on supernatural signs or visions to build your faith, God has given you enough through the Scriptures. 

St. Bede the Venerable connects the last parable to this one.

• Our Lord had just advised them to make friends with dishonest wealth (“mammon of unrighteousness”), at which the Pharisees mocked.

• This new parable confirms what He had just taught, using the example of a rich man.

The Rich Man and the Dangers of Luxury

St. John Chrysostom focuses on the word “was” in the first verse. 

• Jesus uses the past tense  “There was a rich man...” not present tense “is” because the rich man has passed away already.

• The rich man’s life is like a “fleeting shadow” because it was temporary and insignificant. 

St. Ambrose clarifies that it is one's character, not financial status, that determines one’s spiritual worth.

• Not all riches are inherently bad/evil. Riches become evil when they are used wastefully and in self-indulgence. 

• Not all poverty is inherently good. It is living a virtuous and holy life that makes living in poverty worthy of praise. 

St. Bede the Venerable explains the significance of the rich man's clothes. 

• Purple, normally worn by royalty, is a very expensive dye made from sea shells.

• “Fine linen” but St. Bede calls “byssus” (probably from the Greek) is a very fine luxurious white linen made from Egyptian flax.

• The rich man was not just wealthy; he was living a life of the highest possible luxury, dressing like a king every single day.

Pope Gregory the Great expands on the meaning of the rich man’s clothing. 

• If wearing fine and precious clothing were not wrong, then Jesus would not have said anything. 

• No one would seek out such expensive clothes unless it was for their excessive pride, wanting to look better than others. 

• The very act of wearing expensive clothes is for public show, revealing a heart focused on pride rather than on God.

St. John Chrysostom connects the rich man’s sins to his clothing and food. 

• Chrysostom points out the irony of the rich man's life by saying that "ashes, dust, and earth he covered with purple, and silk."

• By his mortal body, which is destined to decay, with expensive and luxurious fabrics, the rich man showed his great vanity.

• Our food and clothing should match each other in their simplicity. A person who eats humble food should not wear luxurious clothing, as both reflect a person's character.

Pope Gregory the Great warns of the dangers of luxurious feasts and banquets.

• It's nearly impossible to hold a banquet without sin, because two things almost always happen:

  1. The act of feasting itself is often tied to excess and wasteful indulgence.

  2. When the body is focused on physical pleasure, the mind becomes spiritually lazy and turns toward frivolous and shallow pursuits, making one more susceptible to sin.

St. Ambrose suggests that this may not just be a parable.

• The poor man is named specifically as Lazarus, so this might be a true story.

Lazarus's Suffering

St. John Chrysostom offers explanations for the use of the name Lazarus.

• A parable is an example, where names are typically not used.

• The name Lazarus means “one who was assisted” or “God helped.” This suggests that the poor man was helped by God. 

St. Cyril provides two points about the parable.

• The parable meant to convey a clear moral lesson: the wealthy who do not help the poor will face "a heavy condemnation."

• In the tradition of the Jews, there was a real man in Jerusalem named Lazarus, who was poor and sick. Jesus may have used his actual name to make the story more moving and effective.

Pope Gregory the Great gives insight on the significance of the mentioning of a specific name.

• Jesus mentions the name of the poor man, Lazarus, but not the name of the rich man. God knows and approves of the humble, even if they are nobodies in the world's eyes.

• The poor man's double suffering, his poverty and his sickness, made him even more "approved" by God. His trials purified him and made him a greater example of humility.

Pseudo-Chrysostom [1] focuses on the specific details of Lazarus's condition.

• Lazarus lay at the man’s door, so that the rich man could never say “I never saw him, no one told me.” He saw the poor man's suffering every time he left or returned, making his neglect a conscious act of cruelty.

• Lazarus was full of sores, symbolizing the mortality and decay of the human body, but the rich man still did not show any pity.

• The pain of Lazarus’s hunger was so great, that he "remembered not the pain of his sores" because Jesus then says the poor man would “gladly have his fill of the scraps.” 

• The rich man was so extravagant that he was throwing food away. What he considered a "loss" could have been a spiritual "gain" for him had he given it as alms. Even the smallest act of charity can be valuable.

St. Ambrose focuses on the simple, but chilling phrase, "and no one gave to him."

• This detail reveals the great "insolence and pride" of the rich. They are so unmindful of the suffering of humanity that they act as if they are above nature itself.

• Instead of being moved to pity, they are so detached that they "laugh at the destitute, they mock the needy, and rob those whom they ought to pity." 

  1. The fact that no one gave him anything shows that the rich man was part of a class that was not just indifferent to the poor, but actively cruel to them.

St. Augustine describes the sin of the wealthy as an “insatiable covetousness” that:

• “Fears neither God nor man.” It is so powerful that it ignores both divine law and human morality.

• Betrays all relationships. It doesn't respect family bonds ("spares not a father") or loyalty to friends.

• Targets the most vulnerable. It actively "oppresses the widow" and "attacks the property of a ward" (an orphan), preying on those who are least able to defend themselves.

• This sin is more than just a passive neglect of the poor; it is a fundamental corruption of the soul that breaks all moral and social bonds.

Pope Gregory the Great focuses on the symbolic meaning of the dogs.

• The dogs' presence is a witness to the fact that Lazarus was completely alone and "visited by no one." 

• While the rich man was surrounded by "flatterers," the poor man was so utterly neglected that only wild dogs were there to lick his sores.

• The dogs' action, in the absence of any human compassion, serves as a stark sign of the rich man's spiritual failure.

Pseudo-Chrysostom [1] highlights the contrast in the inhumanity of the rich and the compassion of animals.

• The sores on Lazarus's body, which were ignored by every human, were "tenderly" licked by dogs.

• This shows that the dogs had more compassion for the poor man's suffering than the people who were supposed to help him.

Pope Gregory the Great explains God's plan for Lazarus's suffering.

• Lazarus was permitted to lie at the rich man's gate so that the rich man's sin would be magnified. By seeing Lazarus's suffering daily and doing nothing, the rich man "increase[d] the vengeance of his condemnation."

• The poor man's suffering served a purpose for him as well. His poverty and trials allowed him to "enhance his reward" in heaven. By enduring his hardships with patience, he provided the reason for which he could be "approved" by God.

Lazarus's Reward

Pseudo-Chrysostom [1] focuses on Lazarus’s reward after his death.

• The two men died, but while one faced torment, the other was received by angels.

• Lazarus was “carried away by angels,” his “great sufferings exchanged for bliss.” 

  1. Carried because he is honored by the angels for his sufferings, he no longer needs to tire himself by walking.

  2. Not just one angel came to him, but many “angels” to form a “joyful band” that celebrated his coming into the “bosom of Abraham,” or Paradise.

• Lazarus's reward was not just for his poverty, but for his virtue. Despite his great suffering, he "despaired not nor blasphemed." His patient endurance earned him this heavenly reception.

St. Augustine warns against a literal, physical interpretation of "Abraham's bosom."

• It is a "childish mistake" to imagine a physical bosom (chest) that could hold the souls (or bodies) of many people.

• It is a "retired and hidden resting-place" where the souls of the righteous go after death.

• It is called "Abraham's" because he is the spiritual "father of many nations" and the first among those who are to be imitated for their superior faith.

• To be in Abraham's bosom means to be in a state of spiritual rest in the company of the faithful, with Abraham as their spiritual leader.

Pope Gregory the Great offers God's perspective as he “saw into their hearts.”

• God was not simply a passive observer of the poor man's suffering. He was using those trials to "exercise the poor man to glory."

• At the same time, God was "by endurance awaiting the rich man to punishment." 

  1. God was patient, giving the rich man time to repent and use his wealth for good.

• The next scene in the parable, where the rich man "cried" out. His torment is the result of God's patience finally giving way to judgment.

Hell and Judgement

Pseudo-Basil [2] gives a literal, physical description of hell that is otherwise abstract.

• A "common place in the interior of the earth," which is dark and "shaded on all sides." There is a "kind of opening stretching downward, through which lies the descent" for the souls of those who are condemned to perdition.

Pseudo-Chrysostom1 offers a metaphorical understanding of hell.

• Hell is like a king's prison, which is located "somewhere far off without the world." This explains why Jesus calls hell the "outer darkness."

• It is a place of ultimate separation, cast out and isolated from God.

Theophylact provides a spiritual, non-physical interpretation of hell.

• A transition from the visible to the invisible: It's a departure from the physical world.

• The "unfashioning of the soul": While on Earth, the soul is "visible" through a person's deeds. In hell, the soul of a sinner becomes "shapeless," losing its character, form, and spiritual identity.

• Hell as the spiritual decay and ruin of the soul, a condition where it loses all that gave it a virtuous shape.

St. John Chrysostom explains the torture of the rich man, made worse by his ability to see Lazarus.

• The rich man's suffering is intensified not just by his own pain, but by seeing Lazarus's happiness. Just as Lazarus's suffering was heavier when he saw the rich man's success.

• The rich man "raised his eyes" to look at Lazarus, a profound reversal of their earthly roles. On Earth, the rich man looked down on Lazarus; now, he must look up to him.

• The rich man's whole body is in "torments," but his eyes alone are free. This is a deliberate form of torture, as his sight is preserved so that he can be more deeply tormented by seeing the joy and honor that belong to someone else.

Pope Gregory the Great addresses the state of the righteous who died before Christ.

• If Abraham's bosom were in a place "below" hell, the rich man could not see him. This suggests that it is a separate, more remote location from hell, which allows the rich man to see across a great distance.

• Before Jesus's "intercession" (his death and resurrection), the gates of heaven were not yet open. The righteous who died were "kept back by the gates of hell" not to be punished, but to wait in a "more remote" place.

  1. The "guilt of their first fault" (original sin) prevented them from entering the kingdom until the "Mediator" had atoned for humanity's sins.

St. John Chrysostom explains the rich man's vision of Lazarus is a personalized form of divine justice.

• The rich man is not just tormented by seeing the righteous in general, he is tormented by seeing the one specific person he neglected. Chrysostom states, "all who are offended by us are exposed to our view."

• The rich man doesn't just see Lazarus with just any righteous person, but with Abraham:

  1. Who was a model of love and hospitality.

  2. Who would invite strangers in from his gate.

• The rich man, by contrast, was a man of cruelty who turned away the man who already lay "within his gate." Seeing Lazarus with Abraham is a brutal reminder of the specific virtue he failed to practice.

The Rich Man's Request

Pope Gregory the Great highlights the spiritual irony of the rich man's request.

• In hell, the rich man desperately seeks the help of Lazarus, someone he completely neglected on Earth.

• The rich man's punishment is not just physical torment, but spiritual humiliation. He now has to rely on the charity of the very person he denied charity.

Theophylact explains the mind of the rich man as he cries out from hell.

• The rich man directs his plea to Abraham, not to Lazarus, because he is ashamed to speak to the very person he had neglected.

• He assumes Lazarus would remember his injuries and refuse to help him, and in doing so, he "judged of him from himself."

• He projects his own former cruelty and lack of mercy onto Lazarus, failing to understand that Lazarus's character is not like his own. 

Pseudo-Chrysostom [1] breaks down the rich man's cry from hell.

• The rich man's "great cry" is a direct result of his "great punishments." His request for mercy is seen as a false repentance, driven by his torment, not by a genuine desire for forgiveness. 

• His request for Abraham to "send Lazarus" is foolish, as Abraham has no such power; he can only receive souls.

• The rich man, who never even looked at Lazarus, now desires the smallest part of him. The rich man, who was so used to luxury, now desperate for a single drop of water. This humility and need in hell are a direct result of his neglect on Earth.

• An analogy is provided to emphasize the main point:

  1. Just as in theaters, when the show is over and the audience leaves, everyone takes off their costumes. Those who seemed to be kings and generals are seen as they really are, the sons of gardeners and fig-sellers. 

  2. When life ends and death comes, we are seen as we really are. Taking off the masks of riches and poverty, our spiritual worth is judged by our deeds.

Pope Gregory the Great highlights the spiritual irony of the rich man's punishment.

• On Earth, the rich man "would not give to the poor man even the scraps."

• In hell, the rich man is now begging for the "least thing," a drop of water.

• The punishment perfectly fits the crime. The rich man's torment is the direct reversal of his earthly sin.

St. Basil explains how each torment is a fitting consequence for the rich man.

• For his gluttony and excessive feasting, he now has a "parched tongue."

• For the "tuneful lyre" and songs of entertainment, he now has only "wailing."

• For his worldly drinks, he now has an "intense longing for a drop" of water.

• For his vainglory and "curious or wanton spectacles" (public displays), he is punished with "profound darkness."

• For the "busy flattery" he received, he is now afflicted by the "undying worm" of eternal conscience.

St. John Chrysostom clarifies the central moral of the parable.

• The rich man was not tormented simply because of his wealth. The condemnation was for his lack of mercy.

• For his self-indulgence and his heartless refusal to help the poor man lying at his gate.

Pope Gregory the Great compares the rich man’s punishment to actual crime.

• His sin was not active theft, but passive neglect, failing to share his own wealth.

• If a person who simply hoards their money is condemned to hell, then "with what torments" will a person be punished who "robs another"?

St. Ambrose adds to the explanation of the rich man’s torment.

• As a "luxurious man," his greatest pain is being deprived of his pleasures. The lack of comfort and indulgence is a punishment in itself.

• The "water" he asks for is not just for physical thirst but for his soul, which is "set fast in sorrow." The requested refreshment is spiritual.

Pope Gregory the Great explains the reason for the rich man’s request.

• The rich man's tongue is being punished because it was a source of sin during his feasts.

  1. "Talkativeness is generally rife at the banquet," implying that the rich man's mouth was used for idle, boastful, or even sinful conversation.

St. John Chrysostom offers two interpretations of the rich man's tormented tongue.

• The rich man's tongue is punished because it was a source of sin. The tongue had "spoken many proud things" during his life. "Where the sin is, there is the punishment."

• The tongue is a source of both life and death. The rich man's tongue brought him spiritual death because he failed to use it for humble confession ("with the mouth confession is made to salvation"), instead using it for prideful speech.

• The rich man’s request is for a single drop of spiritual grace, which he failed to produce in his lifetime.

St. Augustine argues against a literal, physical interpretation of the rich man's torment.

• St. Augustine refutes the idea that the soul has a body with physical members like a tongue or a finger.

• Psalm 139:9, "If I take the wings of dawn," referring to a person. Just as we don't assume a person has physical wings, we shouldn't assume the soul has a physical tongue.

• Proverbs 18: 21, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” If the rich man's soul has a physical tongue, then by the same logic, that physical tongue must have physical hands, which is absurd.

St. Gregory of Nyssa uses the metaphor of a mirror to explain the nature of God's judgment.

• A mirror perfectly reflects the face before it, a joyful face produces a joyful image, and a sorrowful face produces a sorrowful one.

• God's judgment is like this mirror. It is a "just judgment" because it is perfectly adapted to and reflects our own "dispositions" or character.

• The rich man, who "pitied not the poor," is now denied pity himself. His lack of mercy is perfectly reflected in the judgment he receives from Abraham.

Abraham's Response

St. John Chrysostom examines Abraham’s response to the rich man.

• Abraham’s use of the word “son” shows his compassion, even toward a soul in hell. However, he gives no aid because the rich man, by his actions, has “deprived himself of cure.”

• When Abraham says “Remember,” he is not being cruel but is asking the rich man to face the consequences of his choices. He cannot have “both triumphed on earth, and triumph here.”

• Abraham refers to Lazarus’s sufferings as “evil things” from the rich man’s perspective. Lazarus did not consider his suffering to be evil, but endured it patiently. [3]

  1. The lesson for us is to be like Lazarus: when facing sickness or difficulty, we should “joyfully accept evil things in this life” with the hope of an eternal reward.

St. Augustine further explains what Abraham said to the rich man.

• The rich man is condemned because he loved the fleeting happiness of the world and boasted in it.

• Lazarus, on the other hand, "received evil things" not as a punishment for his own sin, but because the "perishableness of this life, its labors, sorrows, and sickness" are a "penalty of sin" that applies to all humanity. This penalty was incurred when Adam's transgression made everyone "liable to death."

St. John Chrysostom speaks of the concept of the earthly life being a form of divine reward or punishment that is completed before a person enters the afterlife.

• "You received good things in your life" is as though Abraham said that the rich man has already received his full reward on Earth.

• Similarly, Lazarus "received all" of his "evil" [3] in his lifetime through poverty and suffering. This suffering acted as a purification for him.

• So when the two men enter the afterlife, they are spiritually "naked." Lazarus "naked of sin," having atoned for any sins on Earth, which is why he is comforted. The rich man, "naked of righteous[ness]," having no good deeds to show, which is why he is tormented.

Pope Gregory the Great offers a two-part spiritual warning based on the parable.

• Whenever you enjoy worldly success, you should be fearful. Otherwise, your prosperity is your reward in this left, leaving nothing left for the next life.

• When you see a poor man doing something wrong, do not be afraid. Even the smallest fault can be cleansed by “the fire of honesty.”

St. John Chrysostom argues that it's nearly impossible for someone to enjoy both a comfortable, prosperous life on Earth and salvation in the afterlife.

• Even if a person avoids one kind of sin, another will take its place.

  1. Ambition, if one is not pressed by poverty.

  2. Anger, if one is not provoked by sickness.

  3. Pride, haughtiness, and vain-glory, which easily accompany success.

  4. If no temptations, then evil thoughts will overwhelm.

• One must work extremely hard to fight and control your vices. If one does not do these things, one “can not be saved.”

Pope Gregory the Great addresses the question of whether a righteous person can have good things on Earth and still be saved. 

• It depends on the attitude for the “good things” of this world. 

• Evil men place “their whole joy” in temporary, worldly happiness.

• Good men may have good things in this world, but they do not receive them as their reward, because they seek better things which are eternal.

• A good person who can be saved views the material goods of this world as not good, because they are not good when compared to the eternal goods which God promises.

The Significance of the Chasm

St. John Chrysostom explains the significance of the chasm between the rich and poor men. 

• After we have received God's mercy, our hope for salvation must come from our own endeavors, not from the merits of our family or friends. 

• The rich man's plea to "Father Abraham" is a useless attempt to rely on a spiritual connection, but it is to no avail.

Theophylact offers a non-literal interpretation of the "great chasm."

• The great chasm is not a physical chasm but a spiritual one, signifying the great "distance of the righteous from sinners."

• The separation is a consequence of their different "affections," the love for God and neighbor on one side, and the love for worldly things and self on the other.

St. John Chrysostom provides further insight on the great chasm.

• The chasm is “fixed” because it is permanent. It cannot be moved, loosened, or shaken. The state of souls on either side is fixed. [4]

St. Ambrose also provides additional meaning of the great chasm.

• After death, rewards cannot be changed. The spiritual state of a person is permanently sealed after death.

St. John Chrysostom explains the spiritual reason of being able to see across the great chasm but not being able to cross it.

• The saved can see across the chasm, to see what they have escaped.

• The condemned can see across the chasm, to see what they have lost.

• The joys of the saved enhance the torment of the condemned, the torments of the condemned are the joys of the saved.

Pope Gregory the Great offers a profound theological explanation for why the righteous cannot cross the great chasm to help the damned.

• The condemned want to cross to escape their suffering. The saved, who were compassionate in life, would presumably want to help the condemned.

• Crossing cannot happen. After death, the souls of the saved are so perfectly united with God's righteousness that their human compassion is superseded by a divine sense of justice.

Theophylact uses the parable of the rich man and Lazarus to argue against the idea of universalism.

• Universalism is the idea that at the end all people will be saved, an idea which the followers of Origen believed.

• The description of the great chasm being “fixed" and the statement that no one can cross it is a clear biblical argument for the permanence and finality of eternal punishment. [4]

St. Augustine uses the great chasm as a powerful lesson on the urgency of charity in this life.

• The unchangeable nature of the Divine sentence means that the righteous, even if they wanted to, cannot help the condemned after death.

• The time for mercy is now. We should help those we can in this life, because after we die, it will be too late to offer help even to those we love.

• A person’s ability to be received into heaven is a matter of "Divine permission" granted to those who have made themselves friends through their works of mercy in life.

The Rich Man's Final Plea

Pope Gregory the Great explains the rich man's motivation for his final request.

• The rich man, now fully aware that he cannot be saved, shifts his focus from himself to his family.

• His final act is not a self-serving plea for himself, but a plea for the salvation of his family, which shows his love for them even from hell.

St. Augustine offers two reasons for why the rich man asks that Lazarus be sent back to the living:

• The rich man recognizes that his own sinful life makes him an unfit witness to the truth.

• He understands that if he couldn't even get a small drop of water, a temporary relief from his suffering, it is impossible for him to be freed from hell for a greater purpose.

St. John Chrysostom points out a profound contradiction in the rich man's request.

• The rich man’s perverseness is in that he doesn’t see the truth, even in hell.

  1. He still clings to his earthly family, the relationships that led to his condemnation. 

• He calls Abraham "Father," and then asks him to send Lazarus to "my father's house," implying a different, earthly father.

Pope Gregory the Great explains the rich man's final request as a tragic, and ultimately useless, display of a lesson learned too late.

• The rich man has been taught "the exercise of charity" by his own punishment, but this lesson is "in vain" because he is now in hell and cannot act on it.

• The love he now feels is for his own family, revealing that his perspective is still self-focused, even in hell. His concern for them is born out of his own suffering.

• His request to send a witness to his "five brethren" is his final act of charity, a desperate attempt to spare them from the fate he now endures.

• St. Ambrose highlights the futility of the rich man's request.

• It is "too late for the rich man to begin to be master" (a master of wisdom or a teacher).

• He has no more "time for learning" the lessons he should have learned on Earth, nor does he have the "time for teaching" others.

Pope Gregory the Great explains that the rich man's punishment is intensified by his preserved knowledge and memory.

• The rich man is cursed with the memory of his past. He knows Lazarus, whom he once despised, and he remembers his family, whom he left behind.

• This memory is a source of suffering in two ways:

  1. Seeing the glory of those he despised, makes his own punishment worse.

  2. He is "harassed" by the fact that he is powerless to help the family he loves, a love that is now "unprofitable" because it's too late to act on it.

• Abraham's response, "They have Moses and the prophets, let them hear them," is an immediate rejection of the rich man's plea and a statement that the proper way to salvation is not through a supernatural vision but through the word of God, found in the Scriptures.

St. John Chrysostom explains the meaning behind Abraham's response.

• His family is God's concern, not his. God, who created them, has already "appointed them teachers" to guide them to salvation.

• "Moses and the Prophets" refers to the Mosaic and prophetic writings, the Scriptures. The rich man's family already possesses all the necessary wisdom and truth for salvation.

St. Ambrose explains that Jesus affirms the Old Testament as the foundation of faith.

• Jesus references "Moses and the prophets" to accomplish two things:

  1. To thwart the "treachery of the Jews," who were always looking for a new sign or miracle.

  2. To preclude the "iniquity of Heretics," particularly those who rejected the Old Testament and claimed it was inferior.

• Jesus is declaring that the Old Testament is a sufficient and divinely-inspired source for salvation.

Pope Gregory the Great explains the rich man's final plea is a direct result of his own spiritual blindness.

• He rejects Abraham's advice ("Oh no, father Abraham") from his own experience, having "despised the words of God" and "thought them fables" when he was alive.

• He judges them according to what he "felt himself," because he was not saved by the Scriptures, he falsely believes his brothers cannot be either.

St. Gregory of Nyssa uses the rich man’s final request to highlight the permanent state of the unrepentant soul.

• Lazarus is not "anxious about present things, nor looks back to aught that it has left behind." His suffering has purified him of all worldly attachments.

• The rich man is still "held down by his carnal life," even after death. His former worldly passions still cling to his soul.

Pope Gregory the Great explains the core logic of the entire parable's conclusion.

• Abraham's reply, "If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone should rise from the dead," is not a cynical dismissal but a profound theological truth. 

• If a person won't follow the "words of the Law," they certainly won't follow the more "sublime" and "difficult to fulfill" commands of the Gospel.

St. John Chrysostom explains why a resurrection from the dead is not enough to lead people to faith.

• The Jews saw people rise from the dead at the time of the Crucifixion and witnessed Lazarus's resurrection, but they still killed Jesus and persecuted the Apostles.

• The dead who rise are mere "servant[s]," but "whatever the Scriptures say, the Lord says." The author of the Scriptures is God Himself, the "Lord of the living and the dead," which makes His written word more trustworthy.

• If God had known that repeated resurrections would be better for humanity's salvation, He would have used them. 

• Repeated resurrections would still become ignored and lose their power, the devil would take advantage by using trickery or by having his own agents pretend to rise from the dead.

St. Augustine addresses how the dead can have knowledge of the living.

• The rich man's care for his brothers does not mean he knew what they were doing at that moment. Just as we can care about the dead without knowing their current state.

• Abraham could have learned about the rich man and Lazarus's life from Lazarus himself after he died.

• Angels, who are "ever present at the things which are done here," might inform the dead about earthly affairs.

• The dead may receive knowledge about past or even future events "through the revelation of the Church of God" or through a direct act of divine will (God telling them).

Allegorical Interpretations

St. Augustine provides an allegorical interpretation of the parable.

• The rich man may represent prideful Jews, "ignorant of the righteousness of God." 

  1. The purple and fine linen symbolize the "grandeur of the kingdom" of Israel.

  2. Sumptuous feasting represents their "boasting of the Law," which they used to swell their pride rather than for salvation.

• Lazarus, which means “God helps,” may represent some Gentiles. He has no spiritual resources (like the Law) to boast of, and so he is ready to be "relieved" by God's grace.

Pope Gregory the Great offers an allegorical interpretation of Lazarus's condition.

• The sores or "wounds" represent the sins of the Gentiles. When they turned to God, they were not ashamed to confess their sins, a confession like a "bursting forth of wounds."

• The "crumbs which fell from the rich man's table" represent the knowledge of the Law. Which the proud people did not share because they felt he was unworthy of it.

St. Augustine provides an allegorical interpretation of the dogs.

• The dogs licking the sores symbolizes the wicked men praising and approving of the very sins that a person who is confessing and "groaning in himself" would loathe.

Pope Gregory the Great gives another allegorical interpretation of the whole parable.

• A second interpretation of the dogs, sees them as preachers. As a dog's tongue licks and heals a wound, so do holy teachers bring healing to the soul's wounds (sins) by instructing people in confession.

• The rich man in hell is the condemnation of the unbelieving, while Lazarus being carried by angels is the rest of the faithful.

• The rich man lifting his eyes to see the righteous in their rest, are the unbelievers who are “afar off” because they cannot reach the bliss of the righteous. The sight is a torment for the unbelievers.

• The tormented tongue is the sin of the unbelievers, who held "the word of the Law" in their mouths but "despised to keep" it in their actions.

• When Abraham calls the rich man "son," it signifies that he still recognizes him as a descendant of the "unbelieving people" (the Jews). However, Abraham, representing the patriarchs, does not feel compassion to rescue him.

St. Augustine provides an interpretation of the rich man's "five brethren".

• The five brothers represent the Jews, who were spiritually bound by the Law given by Moses.

  1. Five referring to the five books (the Pentateuch) that Moses wrote, which contain the Law.

St. John Chrysostom offers a very complex, multi-layered allegorical interpretation.

• The "five brothers" are an allegory for the rich man's five senses, to which he was a slave.

  1. He could not love Lazarus (spiritual poverty and humility) because his senses were too consumed with worldly pleasures.

  2. These "brethren" sent him to condemnation. To be saved, these "brethren" must die to the world and rise again in Christ.

• Abraham’s response, "They have Moses and the Prophets" connects the prophets to Lazarus. Like Lazarus in their suffering, these prophets teach the five senses that they must die to the world to find life.

  1. Moses, who chose "the poverty of Christ" over worldly wealth.

  2. Jeremiah, who was cast into a dungeon.

• The five senses brought the rich man to spiritual death, but they can be resurrected through Christ, as "my eye sees Christ, my ear hears Him, my hands handle Him."

• Marcion and Manichaeus rejected the Old Testament. Having Abraham refer to "Moses and the prophets," Christ is affirming the authority of the Old Testament.

Pope Gregory the Great explains why the Jewish people failed to recognize Jesus as the Messiah.

• The Jews' problem was not that they didn't have the Scriptures. It was that they "disdained to spiritually understand the words of Moses."

• They read the Law literally and physically, they failed to recognize that Moses had been speaking of Christ all along.

St. Ambrose offers additional allegorical interpretation leading up to a powerful argument against Arianism.

• Not all poverty is holy, nor all riches vile. What truly matters is the spiritual state: "luxury disgraces riches, so holiness commends poverty."

• Lazarus as an "Apostolical man," a preacher who is poor in worldly eloquence but "rich in faith."

• The wounds on his body are the beatings and persecutions he receives from the Jews. 

  1. The "blessed dogs" who lick his wounds are preachers and followers who are nourished by the "crumbs" (the words of faith) that fall from his wounds.

  2. The dogs nourished by the wounds "guard the house" (the Church) and "keep off the wolf" (heresies).

• The Arians, as the rich man in "purple and fine linen," appear rich because they have worldly power, influence with kings, and "flowing discourses" full of complex but false arguments. 

  1. Rich heresy (strong and attractive false teachings) has produced many Gospels, while poor faith has kept only this one.

  2. Rich philosophy has made many gods, but the poor Church knows only one. 

• The apparent "riches" of heresy are actually spiritually poor, while the humble "poverty" of true faith is spiritually rich.

St. Augustine provides a highly symbolic and Christological interpretation of the parable.

• Lazarus lying at the rich man's gate represents Christ, who in His humility, "condescended to the proud ears of the Jews" by entering their world in a lowly form.

• Christ was seeking even the "least works of righteousness" from the proud Jews, who were too arrogant to perform even the smallest acts of charity that Christ, the beggar, was seeking.

• The wounds are the sufferings of our Lord. The dogs, whom the Jews considered unclean, are the Gentiles. They "lick the sufferings of our Lord" by lovingly and devoutly embracing the "Sacraments of His Body and Blood" throughout the world.

• Abraham's Bosom is the "hiding place of the Father," where Christ was taken up after His Passion. The angels who carried Lazarus are a symbol of the angels who announced to the disciples that Christ had been received by the Father.