The Chosen Key Word in this Chapter is “Torment” it comes from the Greek Word “basanos” which means “torment, torture.”
Jesus tells a story about two very different men, and what happens to each of them after death. Welcome to Bible Life Basics Chapter Reviews, I am Chris and this is Luke 16.
Jesus tells the parable of a shrewd, dishonest steward about to lose his job, who reduces the debts owed to his master in order to secure favor with those debtors before he is dismissed. Surprisingly, the master commends his shrewdness, and Jesus uses this to teach that “the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light,” urging His followers to use worldly resources wisely for eternal purposes, since “no servant can serve two masters,” specifically God and money.
When Pharisees, who loved money, scoff at Jesus, He warns them that what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in God’s sight, and reaffirms that the law remains fully in force, that not one small stroke of it will fail, and that divorcing and remarrying constitutes adultery. He then tells the story of a rich man who lives luxuriously every day, while a poor beggar named Lazarus lies at his gate, longing for scraps from his table, covered in sores that dogs come and lick.
Both men die. Lazarus is carried by angels to be with Abraham, while the rich man finds himself in torment, “basanos” in Greek, meaning torment or torture. Seeing Lazarus far off with Abraham, the rich man begs for even a drop of water to cool his tongue, but Abraham explains that a great, uncrossable gulf separates them now, and that the rich man received his good things in life while Lazarus received evil things, and their positions are now reversed. When the rich man begs that Lazarus be sent to warn his five brothers, Abraham responds that they already have Moses and the prophets, and that even someone rising from the dead would not convince them if they refuse to listen to those.
The rich man never even noticed Lazarus starving at his own gate during his lifetime, yet in the afterlife, he immediately recognizes him by name. Indifference toward suffering right in front of us, this parable warns, carries far greater consequences than we tend to imagine while comfort makes it easy to look away.
Visit Us At: www.youtube.com/@BibleLifeBasics
Support Us On Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/BibleLifeBasics