Discovery BoxLuke 16:23-28 
Context16:23 And in hell, 1 as he was in torment, 2 he looked up 3 and saw Abraham far off with Lazarus at his side. 4 16:24 So 5 he called out, 6 ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus 7 to dip the tip of his finger 8 in water and cool my tongue, because I am in anguish 9 in this fire.’ 10 16:25 But Abraham said, ‘Child, 11 remember that in your lifetime you received your good things and Lazarus likewise bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in anguish. 12 16:26 Besides all this, 13 a great chasm 14 has been fixed between us, 15 so that those who want to cross over from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us.’ 16:27 So 16 the rich man 17 said, ‘Then I beg you, father – send Lazarus 18 to my father’s house 16:28 (for I have five brothers) to warn 19 them so that they don’t come 20 into this place of torment.’
1 sn The Greek term Hades stands for the Hebrew concept of Sheol. It is what is called hell today. This is where the dead were gathered (Ps 16:10; 86:13). In the NT Hades has an additional negative force of awaiting judgment (Rev 20:13).
2 sn Hades is a place of torment, especially as one knows that he is separated from God.
3 tn Grk “he lifted up his eyes” (an idiom).
4 tn Grk “in his bosom,” the same phrase used in 16:22. This idiom refers to heaven and/or participation in the eschatological banquet. An appropriate modern equivalent is “at Abraham’s side.”
5 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous actions in the narrative.
6 tn Grk “calling out he said”; this is redundant in contemporary English style and has been simplified to “he called out.”
7 sn The rich man had not helped Lazarus before, when he lay outside his gate (v. 2), but he knew him well enough to know his name. This is why the use of the name Lazarus in the parable is significant. (The rich man’s name, on the other hand, is not mentioned, because it is not significant for the point of the story.)
8 sn The dipping of the tip of his finger in water is evocative of thirst. The thirsty are in need of God’s presence (Ps 42:1-2; Isa 5:13). The imagery suggests the rich man is now separated from the presence of God.
9 tn Or “in terrible pain” (L&N 24.92).
10 sn Fire in this context is OT imagery; see Isa 66:24.
11 tn The Greek term here is τέκνον (teknon), which could be understood as a term of endearment.
12 tn Or “in terrible pain” (L&N 24.92). Here is the reversal Jesus mentioned in Luke 6:20-26.
13 tn Grk “And in all these things.” There is no way Lazarus could carry out this request even if divine justice were not involved.
14 sn The great chasm between heaven and hell is impassable forever. The rich man’s former status meant nothing now.
15 tn Grk “between us and you.”
16 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate the rich man’s response to Abraham’s words.
17 tn Grk “he”; the referent (the rich man, v. 19) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
18 tn Grk “Then I beg you, father, that you send him”; the referent (Lazarus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
19 sn To warn them. The warning would consist of a call to act differently than their dead brother had, or else meet his current terrible fate.
20 tn Grk “lest they also come.”
