The Rich Man in Hell
“And in hell he lifted up his eyes being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar
off, and Lazarus in his bosom.” Luke 16:23
Many dear Christian people who are themselves opposed to cruelty in every
form subscribe to creeds of the dark ages which misrepresent the heavenly
Father as taking fiendish delight in creating millions of humanity, with the
foreknowledge of an uncertain existence in the present life of a few years
and their eternal torture. It is claimed by foreordination, or at least fore-arrangement,
God planned that all except the saints shall spend an endless eternity in
the most horrible torture. Some say in physical and others say in worse mental
torture. These Christian friends have apparently failed to note that the Scripture
references which they believe teach eternal torment are all of a parabolic
or symbolic character; that there is not a literal statement to such an effect
from Genesis to Revelation. On the contrary, there are numerous Scriptures
which declare that the wicked shall be “destroyed,” “perish,” “die;” and that
God’s provision is that none can have eternal life except as a gift and favor
through Christ. “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal
life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23
The masses, disgusted with all doctrines, no longer hope for anything reasonable
or logical in religion. Some, devoid of heart and reason, are fully satisfied
to let doctrines alone. But others still hunger and thirst after righteousness
– truth. Their hearts cry out after the living and true God – a God of justice,
wisdom, love and power. They realize that the Bible must be his revelation
of his own character and purposes yet are free to acknowledge that they have
never been able to truly understand it or to harmonize its doctrines. The
message of present truth is for this latter class; and they are hearing it
and being blessed, refreshed, comforted, strengthened by it all over the world.
Coming to a clearer knowledge of the divine plan of the ages, they are finding
it soul satisfying and sanctifying. It is this class that we are seeking to
reach and to instruct more perfectly respecting the divine character.
A Parable or a Literal Statement
We remind you that in a parable the thing said is never the thing meant. For
instance, wheat and tares do not mean wheat and tares, but children of the
kingdom and children of the wicked one. Sheep and goats mean the Lord’s people
and those of a different spirit or disposition. So in the parable under consideration
we hold that the rich man and Lazarus and all the various things connected
with the story are parabolic. The majority of people, who seem anxious to
hold on to this parable as a proof text favoring the theory of eternal torment,
insist that it is not a parable, but a literal statement of facts. For instance,
it is not stated that the rich man was profane or immoral or wicked in any
ordinary sense of these words. The whole account is that he was rich, was
clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. Viewed literally
the implication would be that all the wealthy who wear purple apparel and
who have a bountiful supply of provisions will by and by spend an eternity
of torture, regardless of their moral characters. Surely such an interpretation
is irrational. Likewise of Lazarus we read not a word about his good qualities,
his purity of heart, his generosity to the poor, his reverence for God, etc.,
but merely that he was poor, lay at the rich man’s gate, desired to eat the
crumbs from his table and was full of sores. If these conditions are to be
understood literally, it would signify that moral and religious qualities
have nothing to do with our admittance to a heavenly state, but merely poverty,
sickness, etc., such as few of us could claim to have duplicated. Moreover,
a literal interpretation would imply Abraham’s literal bosom as the place
of bliss. And if Lazarus went there, and even two or three since, it would
leave no room for any of us, unless Abraham has a larger bosom and longer
arms than anyone we know. But, enough of this!
The Parable Briefly Explained
We offer a suggestion as to the meaning of the parable. We admit that, since
our Lord did not interpret it, anybody has the same right as ourselves to
seek to find and to make known an interpretation which will fit all the various
parts of the parable and be reasonable, Scriptural and harmonious. Yet we
have never seen any logical interpretation except that which we now present.
The rich man symbolizes the Jewish nation. For centuries that people were
God’s peculiar people, of whom he said, “You only have I known (recognized)
of all the families of the earth.” Amos 3:2
St. Paul tells us that the Jews had much advantage every way, “chiefly because
that unto them were committed the oracles of God.” (Romans 3:2) These divine
gifts, favors, blessings, promises, are all symbolically represented in the
rich man’s condition.
(1) His clothing of purple symbolically represented royalty. That nation God
had organized as his kingdom. As we read, “David sat on the throne of the
kingdom of the Lord,” and again, “Solomon sat on the throne of the kingdom
of the Lord in the room of his father David.” Although this kingly power was
taken away from them in the days of the king Zedekiah, nevertheless the scepter
of authority remained with them. “The scepter shall not depart from Judah
. . . until Shiloh come.” Messiah was therefore to come to that nation, that
it might have the great honor of being his kingdom, the channel of divine
blessing to the world. (2) The fine linen symbolically represented righteousness,
the righteousness which by divine arrangement was reckoned to that holy nation
“year by year continually,” for centuries, as a result of their atonement
day sacrifices. (3) The sumptuous fare represented the gracious promises of
God through the law and the prophets and his covenants with that nation. (4)
Lazarus, the poor beggar full of sores who ate of the crumbs, symbolized those
Gentiles who were outside of the Jewish covenant, “aliens and strangers from
the commonwealth of Israel.” They had not the health and fine linen symbolical
of justification and harmony with God. Their sores and rags represented their
degradation, sin and alienation from divine favor and forgiveness. The eating
of the crumbs from the rich man’s table represented that under divine arrangement
every promise and favor really belonged to the Jews, and that every blessing
granted to the Gentiles was from Israel’s fullness. Such crumbs of comfort
were the healing of the centurion’s servant and the Syro-Phoenician woman’s
daughter. When this mother asked relief for her child Jesus answered: “It
is not meet to take the children’s bread and to give it to the dogs.” The
woman accepted the answer without offense, knowing that it was the Jewish
sentiment in general, but she replied, “Yea, Lord; yet the little dogs eat
of the crumbs which fall from the children’s table.” Here she applied the
word dog to herself and other Gentiles, and the favor which she requested
she called a crumb from the Jewish table, following our Lord’s own suggestion
in the matter. (5) The dogs which licked Lazarus’ sores represented Gentiles
in general and that the class of them represented by Lazarus, anxious for
a share in divine mercy and grace, were companions of dogs, aliens, foreigners
from divine favor.
The Beggar and the Rich Man Die
The death which came to the rich man and to the beggar in the parable, represents
a decided change as respects divine favors and treatment on the part of both
parties. The rich man, the Jewish nation, took sick, and the dying process
began from the time of our Lord’s crucifixion. As our Lord declared, “Behold,
your house is left unto you desolate.” (Matthew 23:38) For forty years the
rich man, the Jewish nation, gradually died to all of the wonderful privileges
and blessings which had been theirs as God’s peculiar people. The death of
that nation occurred in the year 73, three years after Jerusalem had been
destroyed by the Romans under Titus. Never since then have they had national
life, instead they have been dead and buried, entombed in hades as a nation.
That is until the year 1948, when they became a nation again. This rebirth
of the state of Israel was a miracle of history (Ezek. 37:1-11; Luke. 21:29,
30). Never before has a nation been destroyed, its people been dispersed to
the ends of the earth, and then nearly two thousand years later, re-gathered
to their home land and re-established as a nation.
The death of the beggar occurred three and a half years after the cross, at
the end of Israel’s specified seventy weeks of special favor. “The middle
wall of partition” between Jew and Gentile was then broken down. The beggar
was no longer outside of the gate, the companion of dogs, but had full access
to the table of the Lord and to all the gracious promises and covenants it
held forth. Cornelius, the first Gentile convert, was received at this time;
and his acceptance marked the end of special Jewish privileges, the breaking
down of the “middle wall of partition.” Then and thenceforth every sincere
Gentile seeking fellowship with God and a share in his gracious promises had,
through Christ, exactly the same rights as had the Jew – no more, no less.
Indeed, the Jewish converts to Messiah became fellow members of this Lazarus
outcast class, which now, though no more glorious than before in the sight
of men, was specially favored of the Lord. Ephesians 2:15
The Beggar in Abraham’s Bosom
Abraham is styled the “father of the faithful,” and from this standpoint all
faithful to God are counted as his children – symbolically. This is the figure
used in this parable. The acceptance of Lazarus to Abraham’s bosom in the
parable means that all of that class outcast from the Jewish nation, but hungering
for the crumbs of divine favor and blessing and cleansing, were adopted as
Abraham’s seed or children of his bosom (he typifying God). Thus all Gentiles
accepting Christ are now children of Abraham, children of God by faith in
the blood of Christ. Our Lord Jesus is the Head of the seed of Abraham; and
all we as well as all faithful Jews accepting him and becoming his disciples
are counted members of his body. As the Apostle declares: “Now we, brethren,
as Isaac was, are the children of promise,” and, again, “If ye be Christ’s
then are ye Abraham’s seed and heirs.” Galatians 3:29; 4:28
All scholars will concede that the Greek word hades and the Hebrew word sheol,
rendered hell in our common version, really signify the death state, the tomb.
Various Scriptures tell us of the silence of sheol and hades; that there is
neither wisdom nor knowledge nor device there; and that the dead know not
anything. Scholars therefore have been perplexed greatly at the statement
of this parable that the rich man lifted up his eyes in hades, being in torments.
The difficulty dissolves as soon as we have the proper interpretation to the
parable and see that the Jewish people died as a nation and were buried as
a nation, but did not all die individually. The people of Israel, outcast
from their own land among all the nations of earth, are very much alive, socially
personally, having suffered for all these centuries.
The Rich Man Tormented in Hades
Less than one hundred years ago we had an exhibition of how this rich man
(Israel), dead as a nation, but alive as a people, has appealed to Father
Abraham to have Lazarus cool his tongue with a drop of water. Of course the
thought would not be that a spirit finger would take a drop of literal water
to cool a literal tongue. The interpretation must be looked for along the
lines of the parable. The fulfillment came when the Jews of this country in
a general petition requested the president of the United States to co-operate
with other “Christian nations” and intercede on behalf of their members in
Russia that they might have more liberty and less persecution, that their
torments might be cooled.
If we look for the rich man’s “five brethren” we find them. There were twelve
tribes of Israel, and, although all of these tribes were in a general way
represented in Israel in our Lord’s day, yet, strictly speaking, that rich
man was composed mainly of the two tribes of Judah and Benjamin. Now, if the
two tribes were represented in the one man, the other ten tribes would be
properly enough represented in his “five brethren.” The suggestion of the
parable that something be done for these five brethren is for the purpose
of showing us that nothing would be done for them. The answer of the appeal
was: “They have Moses and the prophets. . . . If they hear not Moses and the
prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rose from the dead.” Luke
16:29, 31
Here, dear friends, we have a consistent interpretation of this parable, and
it relieves our minds greatly. It assists also in illustrating to us the special
relationship of the Jews under the Law Covenant and the loss of this special
relationship by reason of their unbelief, which alienated them from the divine
favor of this Gospel age and constituted a deep and wide gulf between them
and the spiritual Israel class, represented in Lazarus in Abraham’s bosom.
We thank God that the promise of the Scriptures is that with the end of this
Gospel age this gulf of unbelief and consequent separation from divine favor
will be done away, and that Israel will be delivered from the torments of
these centuries and experiece a national resuscitation or resurrection under
the glorious privileges, favors and advantages of the New Covenant. “Even
so have these also not believed that through your mercy they also may obtain
mercy.” Romans 11:31
Israel’s New Covenant
God’s great covenant, the Oath-Bound Covenant, “In thee and in thy seed shall
all the families of the earth be blessed,” applies specifically to the Christ,
to our Redeemer and Lord, the Head, and to the “elect” church, the members
of his body.
All of the privileges of blessing the world belong to this class, but they
are received conditionally – that they will sacrifice their earthly rights
and interests that they may have instead spiritual and heavenly conditions.
Christ’s death and the death of these his elect members to earthly interests
constitute the terms upon which he and they shall be the Mediator of the New
Covenant for Israel, to give Israel a share on the earthly plane in the work
of blessing all the families of the earth under their New Covenant. Thank
God, this will mean restitution, uplifting out of sin and death conditions
not only for those who have not yet entered the tomb, but for all of the race
who will accept this favor of God through Christ, including those who have
gone into the tomb. All refusing this grace will die the second death, symbolized
by Gehenna.
What the Bible Says
The average man believes in hell, but thinks few people go there and that
nobody knows much about it. The Bible is the only authority on the subject,
and no one can know anything about it, aside from the Bible. When we consider
Christ’s statement that unless a man loves him more than “father, and mother,
and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also,
he cannot be my disciple,” (Luke 14:26) and reflect that probably not one
professed Christian in a hundred has reached either this standard or the other
one which he set in the same chapter, that “Whosoever he be of you that forsaketh
not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:33), it should make
us willing to consider carefully what is to become of the 9,999 out of 10,000
of earth’s population that do not meet these conditions.
We all know that “The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations
that forget God (Psalm 9:17); but how many of us know that they will be re-turned
there; that the passage, correctly translated, reads, “The wicked shall be
returned into hell, all the nations that forget God” – showing that there
are nations which go into hell once, come out of hell, learn of God, forget
him and are returned there. We may all know (Jude 11) that Korah, or Core,
went to hell; but how many of us know that he was accompanied to this place
by his house, by all his household goods, and two other establishments similarly
equipped? (Numbers 16:32, 33) We may all know that the Sodomites went to hell
(Genesis 19), but how many know that they were accompanied by the city in
which they lived and that there are other cities there? (Matthew 11:23) We
may all suppose that many heathen warriors of long ago went to hell, but how
many of us know that they took with them their weapons of war, and that their
swords are there now, under their heads, with what is left of their bones?
(Ezekiel 32:27) We may understand that the wealthy go to hell, but how many
know that in the same place are sheep, gray hairs, worms, dust, trees and
water? Psalm 49:14; Job 17:13-16; Ezekiel 31:16
We may all know that bad men go to hell, but how many of us know that the
ancient worthies, Jacob and Hezekiah, fully expected to go there, and that
faithful Job prayed to go there? (Genesis 37:35; Job 14:13) We may think that
those who go to hell go there to stay forever, but how many of us know that
Samuel said, “The Lord killeth and maketh alive; he bringeth down to hell
and bringeth up” out of hell, and that David said, that God has the same power
to aid those in hell that he has to bless those in heaven? (1 Samuel 2:6;
Psalm 139:8) We may think that those who go into hell never come out, and
that there is no record that any have come out, yet there are at least two
persons in history who have been in hell and come out of hell. One is Jonah,
who prayed in hell and was delivered from hell (Jonah 2:2); and the other
is Christ, whose soul went to hell, but “his soul was not left in hell,” for
God raised him up out of it. (Acts 2:31) And when Christ came out of hell
he brought with him “the keys of hell” and now has the power and the right
to set all its captives free. Revelation 1:18, 19
We may suppose that hell is to last forever, but the prophet speaks of its
coming destruction, and John the Revelator says that it is to be made to “deliver
up the dead” which are in it, and it, itself, is to be destroyed. (Hosea 13:14;
Revelation 20:13)
The last passage cited affords the explanation of the whole subject, for in
the margin opposite Revelation 20:13 the translators have explained that the
word “hell” means “grave.” Reversely, in the margin opposite 1 Corinthians
15:55, the translators have explained that “grave” means “hell.” The terms
are interchangeable and the meaning is the same. In the margins of the old
family Bibles, we are told in seven places, and in both ways, in both the
Old Testament and the New, that hell means the grave, and the grave means
hell. Psalm 49:15; 55:15; 86:13; Isaiah 14:9; Jonah 2:2; 1 Corinthians 15:55;
Revelation 20:13
Let Honesty and Truth Prevail
Having demonstrated that neither the Bible nor reason offers the slightest
support to the doctrine that eternal torment is the penalty for sin, we note
the fact that the various church creeds, and confessions, and hymn-books,
and theological treatises, are its only supports; and that under the increasing
light of our day, and the consequent emancipation of reason, belief in this
horrible fiendish doctrine of the dark ages is fast dying out. But alas! This
is not because Christian people generally are zealous for the truth of God’s
Word and for his character, and willing to destroy their grim creed-idols.
Ah no! they still bow before their admitted falsities; they still pledge themselves
to their defense, and spend time and money for their support, though at heart
ashamed of them and privately denying them.
The general influence of all this is to cause the honest-hearted of the world
to despise Christianity and the Bible; and to make hypocrites and semi-infidels
of nominal Christians. Because the nominal church clings to this old blasphemy,
and falsely presents its own error as the teaching of the Bible, the Word
of God, though still nominally reverenced, is being practically rejected.
Thus the Bible, the great anchor of truth and liberty, is being cut loose
from, by the very ones who, if not deceived regarding its teachings, would
be held and blessed by it.
The general effect, not far distant, will be, first open infidelity, then
anarchy. And luke-warm Christians, both in pulpits and pews, who know, or
ought to know better, are responsible for much of this. Many such are willing
to compromise the truth, to slander God’s character, and to stultify and deceive
themselves, for the sake of peace, or ease, or present earthly advantage.
And any minister, who will risk the loss of his salary and his reputation
for being “established” in the bog of error, by uttering a word for an unpopular
truth, is considered a bold man.
Responsibility of Christians
If professed Christians would be honest with themselves and true to God, they
would soon learn that “their fear toward God is taught by the precepts of
men.” (Isaiah 29:13) If all would decide to let God be true, though it should
prove every man a liar (Romans 3:4) and show all human creeds to be imperfect
and misleading, there would be a great creed-smashing work done very shortly.
Then the Bible would be studied and appreciated as never before; and its testimony
that the wages of sin is death (extinction), would be recognized as a “just
recompense of reward.”
A correct understanding of the subject of the herafter is almost a necessity
to Christian steadfastness. For centuries it has been the teaching of “orthodoxy,”
of all shades, that God, before creating man, had created a great abyss of
fire and terrors, capable of containing all the billions of the human family
which he purposed to bring into being; that this abyss, he had named “hell,”
and that all of the promises and threatenings of the Bible were designed to
deter as many as possible (a “little flock”) from such wrong-doing as would
make this gruesome place their perpetual home.
While glad to see superstitions fall, and truer ideas of the great, wise,
just and loving Creator prevail, we are alarmed to notice that the tendency
with all who abandon this long-revered doctrine of eternal torment is toward
doubt, skepticism, and infidelity. Why should this be the case, when the mind
is merely being delivered from an error do you ask? Because Christian people
have so long been taught that the foundation for this wicked blasphemy against
God’s character and government is deep laid and firmly fixed in the Word of
God – the Bible – and consequently, to whatever degree their belief in “hell”
is shaken, to that extent their faith in the Bible, as the revelation of the
true God, is shaken also; so that those who have dropped their belief in a
“hell,” of some kind of endless torment, are often open infidels, and scoffers
at God’s Word.
Gained by the Lord’s providence to a realization that the Bible has been slandered,
as well as its Divine Author, and that, rightly understood, it teaches nothing
on this subject derogatory to God’s character nor to an intellitent reason,
we have attempted to lay bare the Scripture teaching in regard to hell, that
thereby faith in God and his Word may be re-established, on a better, a reasonable
foundation. Indeed, it is our opinion that whoever shall hereby find that
his false view rested upon human misconceptions and misinterpretations will,
at the same time, learn to trust hereafter less to his own and other men’s
imaginings, and, by faith, to grasp more firmly the Word of God, which is
able to make wise unto salvation; and, on this mission, under God’s providence,
this little book is sent forth.