by

Stanley Harris

In the Bible account of the rich man and Lazarus it is supposed by many that the one is in a horrible place of torment, and the other is in heaven. Also, in the story of the thief on the cross, it is presumed by many Christians that it teaches us that the thief went to heaven on the day that Jesus died. Do these Bible accounts really teach these things?

It is always wise to allow the Bible to explain itself. It is always unwise to take one or two texts of Scripture, and build a doctrine to the exclusion of all the other texts on a given subject. This is a case where the majority should rule. It is a fact that the Bible never contradicts itself when it is properly understood. Just as in the case of a jigsaw puzzle, you have to fill in all the parts before you can understand what the true picture is. May we never make the mistake of forming a doctrinal picture of the way we think things ought to be before we first study everything that the Bible has to say on a subject. As God says: "There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death." Prov. 14:12.

Do saved mothers go to heaven when they die, and do they see the writhings and hear the shrieks of their lost children down in hell? Pause a moment and think! Would you want to spend eternity in a heaven where you would be forced to gaze constantly upon your own lost loved ones, hearing them frantically screaming day and night for you to help them, and you unable to give them any relief? Would you be able to enjoy heaven if compelled to gaze constantly upon the indescribable agony of loved ones burning, yet never burning up.

Personally, I cannot bear to hear a dumb animal wail in pain for even an hour, much less someone that I love. If I had a neighbor who beat her child every day, and had to listen to that child scream in agony, I would consider that parent cruel and hateful. And yet, many so-called Christians accuse God of tormenting the lost with excruciating pain day in and day out for millions and millions of years without end. It is no wonder that one leading infidel said that If God is that cruel then he hated God.

Most of the clergy and churches teach the kind of heaven and hell that I have just described. Practically their only Bible support for this theory is the parable of the rich man and Lazarus.

Some claim that the use of the word "certain" in the account of the rich man and Lazarus as related by Jesus indicates an actual experience. This is quickly shown to be a false premise because Jesus used this same approach in several other parables. The parable of the prodigal son in the fifteenth chapter of Luke, is introduced as follows: "a certain man had two sons. Another was introduced with the words: "a certain king made a marriage for his son." Etc.

There are some who think that the Lazarus of the parable is the man that Jesus raised from the dead. This cannot be so for he was not a beggar, but was a well-to-do man. Furthermore, he was not dead at the time that Jesus told the parable.

Parables are always figurative in meaning, and are not to be taken literally. Jesus used them to teach the Jews things that He did not dare speak in plain literal language, or they would have killed Him before His time. Those who insist that Christ was speaking literally in this case are actually accusing Him of contradicting Himself, for He clearly taught that the punishment of the wicked would be in the end of the world.

Perhaps we should quote the words of Christ in regard to the time of reward and punishment. In Matt. 16:27 it reads: "For the Son of man shall come in the glory of His Father with His angels: and THEN (when He comes) He shall reward every man according to his works." We also find Jesus teaching that "The tares are the children of the wicked one; the enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world . . .As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; SO SHALL IT BE IN THE END OF THIS WORLD." Matt. 13:38-40. It is clear that Jesus taught that the wicked would be burned in the end of the world.

We also find that the apostles taught that the punishment of the wicked would be in the end of the world, or at the Judgment day. Peter clearly states that "The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to RESERVE the unjust UNTO THE DAY OF JUDGMENT to be punished." II Peter 2:9.

Jesus often used figurative language, or parables. The Bible contains much figurative symbols and stories. In Judges 9:7-15 we find a story that tells about trees talking. Now we all know that trees do not talk. Just about everybody uses figurative language. I once heard a woman say that her husband was a mule, but he certainly did not look like one. I have often heard the expression, "that woman is a cat." You have no doubt heard such expressions as, "he is an old dog," and "she looks like a painted desert."

What Jesus was actually teaching as he related this parable to the proud Jews, was that the Jews (who were symbolized as the rich man) would be lost as a nation, and the Gentiles (who were symbolized as Lazarus) would gain heaven.

The rich man who lived sumptuously every day was a fitting symbol of the Jewish nation. They had been the favorites of heaven, and had many blessings from the Lord. They had the oracles of God. They had prophets and miracles. They lived sumptuously on the gifts of God while the Gentiles had existed without any of these blessings. In the parable, Lazarus is associated with the dogs. According to the belief of the Jews, all Gentiles were barbarians and dogs. In the parable, Lazarus received only the crumbs that fell from the rich mans table. In actuality the Gentiles got nothing from the Jews in the way of the "bread of life" except a few crumbs. The Jews gave them nothing. Even if they begged for spiritual mercies, they got nothing except what they could glean for themselves.

Since there are many "immortal soul" advocates who insist that Jesus was stating facts that had really happened in the story of the rich man and Lazarus, let us suppose that it is literal. We will pretend that it is not a parable. We will go along with those who say that Jesus meant exactly what he said. However, I must insist that He did not say what is popularly believed!

Jesus said, "There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day. And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate full of sores, and desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich mans table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores." Luke 16:19-21.

Now we are particularly interested in what happened to these two men. "And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abrahams bosom: the rich man also died and was buried." (vs. 22.) Notice that they both died! Did Jesus say that the beggar went to heaven? The answer is NO! He said that the beggar "was carried by the angels into Abrahams bosom."

Let me say right here that taking this story literally creates a real problem at this point, for if the dead all go to Abrahams bosom he must have a tremendously large bosom. However, the dictionary tells us that a "bosom" is the breast of a human being, with arms as an enclosure; a loving embrace by the arms of one person about another; AN INTIMATE RELATIONSHIP.

So Lazarus was carried into AN INTIMATE RELATIONSHIP WITH ABRAHAM! Lazarus is here pictured as a Gentile who received salvation. Do Gentiles, upon conversion to Christ enter into an intimate relationship to Abraham? They certainly do! Paul says: "And if ye be Christs, then are ye Abrahams seed (children), and heirs according to the promise." Gal. 3:29. Lazarus became an heir of the promise made to Abraham. They (the Gentiles) will receive the same promise, which is the new earth and eternal life. God made this promise to Abraham in the twelfth and thirteenth chapters of Genesis.

The next question is, when was this beggar to inherit--to come into possession of eternal life in the promised land? Jesus did not cover this point in telling the parable. We must find the answer, not in human imagination or the false teaching of man, but in the Bible!

A son, who is heir to his fathers property cannot come into possession of it before his father inherits it. The beggar could not inherit this land and eternal life until his father Abraham received the promise.

When, then, did Abraham actually receive these promises? The startling answer of Scripture is-- HE DIDNT!--he has not, even yet in our day, inherited these promises!

In Acts 7:2-5 we have the sermon of Stephen the martyr who said: "Men, brethren, and fathers, harken; The God of glory appeared unto our Father Abraham . . and said unto him, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I will show thee. Then came he out of the land of the Chaldeans . . . into this land, wherein ye now dwell. (Canaan.) And He gave him none inheritance in it . . . yet He promised that He would give It to him for a possession, and to his seed after him."

We read in Hebrews 11 the following words: "By faith he (Abraham) sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise . . These all died in faith, NOT HAVING RECEIVED THE PROMISES, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth." (Heb. 11:8-13.)

Abraham died, but has not to this day inherited the promise! Abraham was still dead at the time of Christs earthly ministry for it says in John 8:52, "Abraham is dead." When will Abraham inherit the promise? At the time of the resurrection of the just, of course! At that same time we who are true Christians will all receive the inheritance, for we are all heirs with Abraham of the promises.

Again, I repeat, Jesus said that the beggar died. Like Abraham, he is still dead! Jesus said that after he died he was to be carried to Abrahams bosom. We know that he was not carried to heaven, but into the status of a son and heir of Abraham, to inherit the promised land and eternal life at the time his father Abraham comes into his inheritance--at the time of the Resurrection of the redeemed!

The parable says that Lazarus is to be carried there by THE ANGELS! When do the angels come down from heaven to carry the redeemed to their reward? It is at the second coming of Christ (Matt. 25:31). The Scripture reveals that Christ shall "send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together His elect from the four winds." Matt. 24: 31. Therefore, the saints will share the blessings and inheritance of Abraham when they are carried to be with him in the kingdom.

Well now you say, "Brother Harris, I see what it means for the saved to be carried to Abrahams bosom, but what about the rich man, what happened to him?"

Let us see what happened to the rich man. Jesus said of him: "The rich man also died, and was buried." (Luke 16:22.) Notice that Jesus did not say that the rich man was immediately taken to an eternally burning hell. He did not say that the body was buried but that the rich man himself was plunged immediately into a burning hell. He said that the rich man DIED, and was BURIED.

People are buried in a grave, and covered with earth. But the imaginary hell that was invented by Dante Alighieri accepted by the Roman Catholic church and later by most Protestants is never pictured as a place of buriel! But Jesus Himself said that this rich man died and was buried! In the next verse, Jesus said, "And IN HELL he lift up his eyes." (vs. 23.) His eyes had been closed in death, and in this place called hell he opens, or lifts up his eyes.

What kind of hell is this? Startling though it may seem, the rich man was buried in the same kind of "hell" Jesus was buried in! Peter said: "He (David) seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that His soul WAS NOT LEFT IN HELL, neither his flesh did see corruption." (Acts 2:31.)

So Jesus was buried in hell, and he too lifted up his eyes--when he was resurrected! This word hell is translated from the Greek word--Hades-- which means the grave. Now the word hell is translated from three different words in the New Testament. One of these words is "Gehenna." Jesus used the word "Gehenna" on another occasion to illustrate what happens to the wicked in the end of the world, for this word means fire. But the rich man went to hades, which is the grave. He was not cast into a fire.

Years ago the Englishmen spoke commonly of "putting their potatoes in HELL for the winter." They buried them in the ground! This is the hell that Jesus was buried in. It is also the hades, or hell In which the rich man was buried.

The next question to be answered is, "When does the rich man open his eyes?" Jesus does not say when the rich man "in hell," lifted up his eyes. We must find the answer to this question in other scriptures.

Daniel clearly reveals the time when the eyes will be opened as follows: "And many of them that. sleep (eyes closed) in the dust of the earth (buried in hades), shall awake (lift up their eyes) some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt." Daniel 12: 2.

Jesus said: "The hour is coming, in which all that are in the graves (hades) shall hear His voice, and shall come forth: they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil (the rich man and others), unto the resurrection of damnation." John 5: 28, 29.

Jesus clearly speaks of two resurrections-the resurrection of life, and the resurrection of damnation. The Bible teaches that the resurrection of the righteous is first, and takes place at the second coming of Christ. "Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection." Rev. 20:6. The Bible also makes it plain that the resurrection of the damned takes place at the close of the thousand years of the millennium. "But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished." Rev. 20:5. Therefore, the rich man along with all the wicked will not be raised until after the millennium.

None of the dead are conscious of what is going on in this world. They have no knowledge or wisdom. The Bible says: "For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not anything." Eccl. 9:5. They are totally unconscious! The dead are not aware of what the living are doing. "His sons come to honor, and he knoweth it not; and they are brought low, but he perceiveth It not of them." Job 14: 21. The Bible even declares that Abraham knows nothing of what we do today. (Isa. 63:16.)

Many people who have died have been brought back to life with the drug adrenalin, and other methods. They always say that they were totally unconscious--no dreams--no knowledge--just a total blank.

When the rich man lifts up his eyes at the resurrection of the damned, after the millennium, he will know nothing of the years that passed since he died. To him it will seem like just a fraction of a second has passed since the time that he died. It will seem to him that he had gone immediately to the state that he finds himself upon rising from the grave.

When the rich man awakes (lifts up his eyes) he will see Abraham inside the city of God with all the saints (including Lazarus) with him. "There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out." Luke 13.28.

The rich man now sees that he is to be cast into the lake of fire that will destroy him forever, and he is TERRIFIED! What happens when one is suddenly so horrified with fear? His mouth goes dry. His tongue sticks to his mouth and throat. The rich man cries out in his mental agony:

"Father Abraham have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame." Luke 16: 24.

Now if the rich man were in the kind of "hell" that most people believe in, his whole body would be on fire, and he would be calling for buckets of water to put the fire out instead of a drop on the end of a finger. Why did he call for water? To put out the fires of hell? Ah, no! He only wanted a drop of water to cool his tongue. Why did he want this drop of water? The answer is given in verses 24 and 25. He was tormented. The original Greek word from which "tormented" is translated is the word "Odunasai." This word is defined in Lidell & Scotts Greek-English Lexicon as "to cause pain, to pain, DISTRESS--From 'ODUNH--pain of body, but also 2, of MIND, GRIEF, DISTRESS."

When the rich man wakes up he is terrified and distressed. He is in a condition of weeping and gnashing of teeth, or great anguish. He realizes that he is mortal--not immortal like Lazarus and the rest of the redeemed. He knows that he is to be thrust out into the lake of fire, and that his mortal body will burn. When a man realizes he is guilty, and faces a just and terrible retribution, the very first part of the body to be affected is the TONGUE, which dries out, and seems to be on fire.

"Between us and you there is a great gulf fixed." Luke 16:26. The saints are inside the city with Christ, and the lost are on the outside. Thrust out. Not only are they separated like the wheat and the chaff, but they are separated by the fact that the saved are immortal, and the wicked are mortal. Immortality will keep the righteous from being burned. But those still in mortal flesh are subject to corruption and death. They can and will be burned by fire. The Bible says that the wicked are going to be devoured in fire. (Heb. 10:27.) It will be everlasting punishment as the Bible says, not "punishing," and the punishment, or wages of sin, is death.

The wicked are not immortal. Nowhere in the Bible does it say that they receive the gift of immortality. Over and over again the Bible teaches that those who are out of Christ will perish. John 3:16. They will burn to ashes. Malachi 4: 1, 3. They will be consumed. Ps. 37: 20.

Next In this parable we find the rich man making a final plea that Lazarus might be sent to his five brothers to warn them of the doom to come. These five brothers represent humanity. The human family is made up of five races (five brothers). There is the Caucasian, or white race; the Malay, or brown people; there is the Indian, or red people; the Mongolian, or yellow race; and finally the Negro, or black race. In other words these five brothers represent the entire world.

Abraham replied, "If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead." Luke 16:31. Now here it is in plain language. The parable of the rich man and Lazarus teaches the resurrection from the dead, and not instantaneous going to "heaven" or "hell."

Far from illustrating immortality of the soul and the lurid eternally burning torture of Dantes fabled "hell," Jesus illustrates death as total unconsciousness through the centuries--resurrection from the grave and restoration of consciousness. Finally, the parable teaches a second death for the wicked in the lake of fire, when their mortal combustible bodies will burn. Their punishment (death) is eternal for they will never rise up again. (Nahum 1:9.)

Jesus also teaches in this parable that those who refuse to hear Moses and the prophets (the Scriptures, both Old and New Testament according to II Tim. 3: 15) will have no hope of salvation. Those who refuse to believe In the Commandments of God are in great danger. Those who teach the pagan doctrine of immortality of the soul teach contrary to what Jesus taught. May God help you to heed all that Moses and the Prophets said. Jesus was the greatest of them all. Heed Him!

DID THE THIEF ON THE CROSS GO TO HEAVEN ON THE DAY THAT JESUS DIED?

Let me say right at the beginning that it was impossible for the thief to be with Christ in Paradise on the day that Jesus died, because Jesus did not go to Paradise on that day. The Bible tells us that Jesus rose three days after His crucifixion, and he appeared to Mary and said: "Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father." John 20:17,

Another very plain proof that the thief did not go to paradise on the day of the crucifixion is simply in the fact that the thief did not die on that day. In John 19:31-33 it says: "The Jews therefore . . . that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the Sabbath day . . . besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs of the first (first thief), and of the other (other thief) . - . but when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs."

Now you can see that the thieves did not die on the day that Jesus did. History tells us that those who were crucified in ancient times usually did not die for at least a week or two. The thieves were lowered to the ground according to the Jewish custom of not allowing the victims to stay on the cross during the hours of the Sabbath. They lay there with both legs broken. They could have lingered for two weeks or more. At any rate the thief in question did not die on the day that Jesus did, and therefore could not have gone to Paradise that day.

This all goes to prove that we ought to let the Bible explain itself. We should not jump to quick conclusions before searching the Scriptures to see if these things are so, as did the noble Bereans of old. Not only that, but the false teaching that the thief went to heaven on the day of the crucifixion contradicts the numerous texts in the Bible that tell us that the dead do not go to heaven when they die.

The whole problem connected with the text in question, which is found in Luke 23:43, has to do with a single comma. Some people feel that the punctuation marks in the Bible are inspired as well as the words. However, this is not so. The punctuation marks were not even added to the Scriptures until late in the 15th century. In fact, commas were not invented until 1490.

In this text concerning the thief on the cross, it is believed by many Bible scholars that one of the commas was placed in the wrong spot. Here is the text in question: "And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me In paradise." Luke 23:43. Those who put the commas in the Bible should have placed the comma after the word "Today" instead of before it. If this had been done, then the text would have been in harmony with the rest of the Scriptures. Those who place these commas had nothing to do with the writing of the Bible, and they were not inspired of God.

To show how a little comma can change the entire meaning of a sentence I shall illustrate in the following sentence with the comma moved just one place: WOMAN, WITHOUT HER, MAN WOULD BE A BEAST.

WOMAN, WITHOUT HER MAN, WOULD BE A BEAST.

You can see by this illustration how the moving of one comma just one place entirely changes the meaning of a sentence. I shall give one more such illustration:

"The teacher says my boy is no good."

"The teacher, says my boy, is no good."

It is clear from the teachings of the Bible that the thief did not go to heaven on the day that Jesus died. Therefore the comma in the text in question should be after the word "Today." If this is done, the text would read as follows: "And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee Today, shalt thou be with me in paradise." In other words, Jesus was saying to the thief on that day, when it appeared that all was lost, and it seemed that His cause was defeated. On that day of all days when the whole world (with the exception of a handful of followers) seemed to be arrayed against Him, and He hung on the cross in what appeared to be a failure. On that day, or, as Jesus said, Today I promise you that because of your faith, thou shalt be with me in Paradise.

In other words, Christ told the thief on that dark day that he would be with Him some day in the future in Paradise.

In the 1930 Revised Edition of the Concordant Version of the Bible we have a clearer and more correct translation of this text as follows: "And Jesus said to him 'Verily to you I am saying today, with me you shall be in paradise."

To sum up this matter let me say that Jesus was merely telling the thief on the cross that He was promising him on that day that he would some day be with Him in paradise. Again, I repeat, it was impossible for the thief to go to heaven that day, because other texts explain that he did not die that day. Also other texts reveal that Jesus did not go to paradise until three days later. So, again we find that it is best to let the Bible explain itself.

We find in the experience of the thief on the cross that he did not ask Christ to take him to heaven on that day. What he asked was: "Lord, remember me when thou comest Into thy kingdom." Luke 23:42. The question is, when will Christ come into His kingdom? He certainly has not received his kingdom of glory yet. Christ will not receive His kingdom of glory until the end of this sinful world. And so the thief on the cross hoped some day to be remembered when Christ would set up his kingdom.

We all should pray, "Lord, remember me when thou comest Into thy kingdom." Jesus will have to forget many because of their willful sins. May we not cause Him to forget us by our sinning. If we ever needed the Saviour to remember us, we need Him now, and every day. May we construe to pray: "Lord remember me."