Luke 16:19-22 19Now there was a certain rich man, and he clothed himself in purple and fine linen, feasting every day sumptuously. 20And a poor man named Lazarus had been thrown at his gate, being covered with sores, 21and longing to be filled with the crumbs that were falling from the rich man’s table; but even the dogs were coming and licking his sores.
Jesus gave another parable to the gathered group, still addressing more specifically the Pharisees verse 14 but with the disciples present in verse 1. The story illustrates the problem of being a lover of money and not considering the heart of the law from the previous verses. The story has several sections to it. The first several verses set the scene with two characters. The first character is unnamed but described in three ways: rich, nicely dressed, and living a happy life by eating nice food. Fine purple linen was one of the most expensive and nice clothes of the first century. Royalty wore purple clothes. Having access to the best food and eating a lot of it everyday contrasts with how most people of that time just got by with just enough bread for each day. Jesus sets this man up in sharp contrast with the struggles of the average person of first-century Israel. These qualities are ones that most people want and do what they can to get them. The perception by many is that being rich can bring happiness. The listener or reader would be envious of the first character.
The contrast to the second character is extreme and vivid. The second character is named, which is the only time in Jesus’ parables that a person is given a name. The name Lazarus was common and means “God helps,” which is ironic in this story, at least at this point. It seems that God has abandoned Lazarus who is left to beg for even crumbs. Jesus’ description of Lazarus puts him at the bottom of the social ladder and shows how poor he was. First he was literally thrown (ebeblēto) in the way of cast aside as useless trash at the rich man’s gate. The rich man was wealthy enough to have some type of mansion with a nice gate. Someone had pity on Lazarus and tossed him as a place where he just might get some help. Second, Lazarus was in a bad spot physically with sores or ulcers all over his body. He could not afford medical care. Third, he was starving to death. He was hoping even for the scraps from the rich man’s table, the pieces of food that would be thrown out to the trash or compost pile. Poor nutrition can sometimes cause sores to develop. Fourth, the worst part of all of this is that the dogs were coming by and licking his wounds, which indicates his severe weakness. Dogs in the ancient world were not nice puppies sitting on laps; these dogs were like the street mutts that scavenge many poor neighborhoods of the world.
The two situations are extreme in their descriptions. Few people today are at either situation. The tension in the parable has been established with the vivid descriptions of these characters. One the one hand is the rich man, which many people dream to be like. One does not need to be wealth to pursue luxurious living, nice house, delicious food, and expensive clothing. Materialism can be a temptation for anyone on the economic scale. At the other extreme, street beggars are ignored and even despised and ridiculed. Homeless encampments have popped up in many places. In some places in the world, people of all ages, even small children, wander the streets looking for scraps of food. As readers, we are challenged at this point with whom we will side in this parable. Our natural inclination is to be attracted to the rich man. Jesus will surprise us as we continue to read the story.
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