16:21Luke 16:21

Lazarus lay day after day at the rich man's gate, desperately poor and afflicted with sores, hungry and dependent on scraps falling from the table while dogs licked his sores.COL 260.2–3+4 Beside him the rich man lived in daily abundance and luxury with every want supplied, yet left Lazarus unaided though he could have relieved him without hardship.Ms 6, 1899, par. 1–5+4 His plenty was entrusted to him to care for the needy, and by spending it on himself and neglecting the suffering at his gate he proved an unfaithful steward.Ms 6, 1899, par. 1–5+4 Lazarus's misery did not measure his worth before God, for his patient faith fitted him for angels' company and an inheritance with Christ, while wealth and honor recommend no one to God.COL 260.2–3+4 The parable teaches that character formed in this life fixes eternal destiny, so that after death their conditions are reversed, the God-fearing beggar comforted and the self-serving rich man tormented with an impassable gulf between.COL 260.1+4

Lazarus was a poor beggar laid at the rich man's gate, covered with sores and longing to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man's table.COL 260.2–3+4 He begged for the scraps the rich man did not want and remained dependent on what fell, while dogs came and licked his sores.Ms 6, 1899, par. 1–5+4 His sores and the dogs licking them show his extreme misery and distress.Ms 6, 1899, par. 1–5+2

He had no friends, home, money, or food of his own, and remained hungry and suffering beside the house.ST Mar 22, 1883+2 Desperately poor, afflicted, and dependent on scraps, he was so loathsome in appearance that he was rejected by others.ST Mar 22, 1883+2 He was left there day after day in extreme misery.ST Mar 22, 1883+1

Some scraps were given to him by the servants, and without making an outward demonstration or pressing his claim he might otherwise have been driven from the gate.Ms 81, 1898, par. 9 His patient endurance of suffering was a witness and a test of faith.Ms 81, 1898, par. 9 At death he was carried by angels into Abraham's bosom.Ms 81, 1898, par. 9

Luke 16:21 sets extreme poverty and distress in sharp contrast to daily abundance and luxury, with Lazarus laid at the rich man's gate longing even for crumbs from his table while his sores were licked by dogs.Ms 81, 1898, par. 1–2+2 The rich man was a Jewish nobleman whose every want was supplied, while the poor sufferer hungered beside him and beside his house.Ms 81, 1898, par. 1–2+2 The rich man refused to share his abundance, and his selfish, luxurious life was followed by a reversal in which he himself suffered and longed for relief.ST Jun 21, 1899+2

The rich man had enough to relieve that suffering and could have helped without hardship, even by small self-denial, yet he left Lazarus unaided in that miserable condition.Ms 6, 1899, par. 1–5+4 Lazarus had no friends, home, money, or food of his own and remained day after day hungry and suffering beside the house where the wealthy man's needs were met.Ms 6, 1899, par. 1–5+2 The rich man allowed him to remain at the gate and did not use violence or drive him away, but he was selfishly indifferent to the need before him.COL 261.1+2 He used his entrusted blessings for selfish pleasure and neglected his responsibility to his needy neighbor, failing to comfort and help his suffering brother though he claimed to be a son of Abraham.Ms 6, 1899, par. 1–5+2

That failure was selfish indifference even without outward violence, illustrating responsibility toward suffering people within reach.COL 261.1+1 The crumbs that fell show how little was given to the poor man at the gate despite abundance.Ms 81, 1898, par. 8 Lazarus was left dependent on what fell from the rich man's table, longing for scraps while dogs came and licked his sores.Ms 81, 1898, par. 1–2+2

Lazarus lay in abject poverty at the gate, begging for crumbs the rich man despised, loathsome in appearance and rejected by others while suffering with sores.ST Mar 22, 1883+1 His miserable outward condition did not reflect his worth before God, for he possessed true faith and moral soundness that made him valuable to God.ST Mar 22, 1883+1 That faith and moral worth, which God valued above wealth and worldly honor, fitted him for the company of holy angels and for inheritance with Christ.ST Mar 22, 1883+1 Wealth and worldly honor do not recommend anyone to God, and people are not to be judged by riches or social standing.ST Mar 22, 1883+1

He represents those who have little in this world but trust in God and patiently endure suffering beside those whose every want is supplied.COL 260.2–3+1 Though lowly now and dependent on God, they will one day have their position reversed and be exalted above those who prosper in this life and hold high worldly positions but have not surrendered their lives to God.COL 260.2–3+1 His desperately poor and afflicted dependence on scraps does not make him worthless, for in the unseen world he stands above a rich man who misused what God had lent him.ST Jun 1, 1915+1 Poverty itself is not condemned and does not make a person worthless, nor is wealth itself sinful, but the rich man is condemned for using what was entrusted to him selfishly and neglecting the suffering poor.ST Jun 1, 1915+1

The parable stands as a lasting lesson for rich and poor that their conditions are reversed after death.STA 154.1+2 Lazarus was a poor beggar who feared God, longing for scraps and suffering with sores in stark contrast with the rich man's abundance, and afterward Lazarus is comforted while the rich man whose earthly comfort was spent on self is tormented.STA 154.1+2 Selfish pleasure is not the sum of happiness, for the rich man later would have given everything to exchange places with him.Ms 22, 1898, par. 31 The poor man had no earthly riches or comforts yet had a home in heaven, illustrating that those who trust Christ as personal Saviour, though humble in worldly circumstances, are heirs of God sharing an immortal inheritance with Christ.Ms 6, 1899, par. 25–27 Poverty itself is not sin, and even poverty brought on by recklessness can be pardoned when a person repents.Ms 6, 1899, par. 25–27

Lazarus lay outside the gate pleading for pity and help which the wealthy man had the means to give but neglected.14MR 57.3+1 Their story shows God's treatment of both classes: He blesses and commends the suffering faithful rather than those who spend on self-gratification what they should give to the poor, and wealth entrusted by God must be used to care for the poor.14MR 57.3+1 Poor Lazarus feeding on crumbs from the rich man's table is in a preferable condition to people who claim faith while accumulating earthly wealth.2T 196.2–197.1 Genuine faith would lead them to sell possessions, free themselves from earthly burdens, and transfer treasure to heaven where their hearts would be drawn.2T 196.2–197.1 Lazarus as a suffering brother made petitions for help and bore suffering with patience and resignation, while the rich man carelessly neglected him and failed to lay up treasure in heaven.Ms 81, 1898, par. 12–14 In sickness the positions are reversed, with the rich man finding no consolation from possessions, relatives, friends, or servants and impatiently longing for Lazarus to minister to him, calling continually for relief.Ms 81, 1898, par. 12–14

The rich man's abundance was not his own but entrusted to him by God to care for people in need, and it was his duty to help Lazarus and others like him lying at his gate longing for scraps while dogs licked his sores.Ms 6, 1899, par. 1–5+4 The contrast between desperate hunger and suffering on one side and daily plenty on the other exposes the failure of the wealthy to provide for the poor as a God-given responsibility.Ms 6, 1899, par. 1–5+4 His wealth and abilities were given for the good of humanity, yet he used them for himself and left Lazarus unaided, refusing tender sympathy and spending his means on self-gratification rather than blessing the suffering faithful.Ms 6, 1899, par. 1–5+4

Being rich is not condemned, but riches acquired by injustice or spent in selfishness are condemned.COL 266.1+1 The rich man is condemned for using what was lent him selfishly and neglecting the suffering poor at his gate, proving himself an unfaithful steward forgetful of his obligation and accountability to God.COL 266.1+2 Lazarus in want and suffering beside plenty belongs to the portrayal of the two classes as estimated in the unseen world, where poverty itself is not condemned nor wealth itself sinful.COL 266.1+1

Lazarus's suffering gave the rich man an opportunity to show love for God and neighbor through practical help including food, clothing, medical care, and spiritual care.Ms 6, 1899, par. 1–5 The more afflicted Lazarus was, the greater the sympathy and help he deserved, which the rich man could have given without hardship or by small self-denial after the example of Christ.Ms 6, 1899, par. 1–5 By withholding entrusted means he laid up nothing beside the throne of God.COL 266.1 Heavenly treasure is secured only by using money to do good and devoting life to seeking eternal riches that death cannot take away, while the one who hoards treasure for self had his good things in his lifetime and can carry none of it to heaven.COL 266.1

Earthly riches and honor are not true riches, and selfish pleasure is not the sum of happiness.Ms 22, 1898, par. 31+1 Those who spend entrusted resources on selfish gratification and sumptuous living instead of God's work will answer to God for their stewardship.Ms 22, 1898, par. 31+2 The suffering poor held a rightful claim on the rich man that he neglected while living as if all he possessed were his own.ST Jun 1, 1915+1 Having everything money could buy but lacking the riches that keep the account right with God, at death he is by irresistible power commanded to quit the premises where he is no longer steward, reduced to hopeless poverty and nakedness without the robe of Christ's righteousness woven in the loom of heaven, stripped of richest purple and finest linen, having brought nothing into the world and able to take nothing out, with probation ended.ST Jun 1, 1915+1

Neglecting needy people within sight and hearing imposes a serious responsibility, for the beggar was placed where the one entrusted with means had opportunity to offer help and sympathy.Ms 81, 1898, par. 5 Selfish indulgence while others lack food, clothing, and shelter is an offense to God.Ms 81, 1898, par. 5 The parable applies to those who receive temporal and spiritual blessings but use them for themselves and refuse to help those in need, enjoying good things while making no right use of them to carry out God's purposes.COL 267.3+2 Those who claim to be sons and daughters of God must not follow that example nor pass helpless, wretched, fallen, hopeless beings by, but must use what God gave to lift a standard against the enemy, restore the moral image of God in man, and communicate treasures of food and clothing and fitly spoken words with pitying tenderness lest the Saviour's pitying tenderness be in vain for want of human channels.COL 267.3+2

The rich man's intemperate, luxurious life led to the loss of his soul, so that when he later suffered he sought relief from Lazarus but had no knowledge of God.Ms 22, 1898, par. 27 Lazarus is pictured as a poor, loathsome man whose suffering could be comforted by seeing the rich man enter.COL 242 The parable as a whole exposes the consequences of how people respond to God and to others, showing God as the foundation of faith, goodness, and mercy, with Lazarus in need while the rich man has abundance.COL 242+1

The parable to which the beggar longing for crumbs and licked by dogs belongs shows that eternal destiny is decided in this life while grace is still offered.COL 260.1+2 Those who waste their opportunities in self-pleasing and covetousness cut themselves off from everlasting life.COL 260.1+2 By their own choice they fix an impassable gulf between themselves and God, and there is no further probation afterward.COL 260.1+1 In that parable the poor sufferer beside the rich man with every want supplied represents those who depend on God and patiently endure suffering, whose lowly position will one day be reversed when they are exalted above those who prosper in this life but have not surrendered their lives to God.ST Jun 1, 1915

Character formed in life determines fitness for the future, and the gulf between the righteous and the wicked cannot then be crossed.Ms 81, 1898, par. 34–36+1 The closing scenes of the rich man's history portray the closing scenes of this earth's history.Ms 81, 1898, par. 34–36+1 The rich man claimed to be a son of Abraham, yet he was separated from Abraham by an impassable gulf, which is a wrongly developed character and the gulf of disobedience and transgression.COL 269.3+1 Abraham served God in faith and obedience, while the rich man was unmindful of God and of suffering humanity at his gate, carelessly neglecting the suffering brother who made petitions for help and bore suffering with patience and resignation, and failing to lay up treasure in heaven.COL 269.3+1

The rich man longed to indulge appetite, loved worldly pleasure and display, had no inclination to war against the lust of the flesh, and chose the atmosphere of sin, though he still looked to Abraham for salvation and relief.COL 269.3+1 The same course is followed today by unconverted church members who take part in church service and falsely profess longing for God.COL 269.3 The soul longing after worldly pleasure and the mind full of love for display cannot serve God, and such a one is no more righteous in God's sight than the veriest sinner.COL 269.3 Such a one is suddenly snatched away by death and goes down to the grave with character formed during lifetime in copartnership with satanic agencies, and in the grave has no power to choose anything good or evil, for in the day when a man dies his thoughts perish.COL 269.3

The Jewish nation stood in the place of the rich man, entrusted with sacred truth and with means that God would have increased until it was sufficient to bless and enlighten the whole world and to relieve temporal and spiritual need.COL 269.1+1 Ignorance that put Abraham where God should have been, failure to allow God's Spirit to mold mind and heart, and separation from the Lord's arrangement perverted the whole life, left eternity out of the reckoning, and turned gifts that should have been used as God's stewards in truth and righteousness to selfish use with refusal to help those in need.COL 269.1+1 Had the exalted privileges been appreciated and the divine call answered, the position and future would have been altogether different, with true spiritual discernment shown; instead unfaithfulness brought ruin upon the whole nation.COL 269.1 The warning held in the hunger and suffering of Lazarus beside abundance was remembered when starvation and suffering of every kind came at the destruction of Jerusalem.COL 269.2

Then the people understood the parable, seeing that the want of Lazarus pictured their own calamity brought upon themselves by neglecting to let their God-given light shine forth to the world.COL 269.2 In the same way the colored people of the South lie like Lazarus full of sores at the gate of Dives, in destitution and in need of higher standards of education and home life and of moral uplifting.SBAWP 49.1–2 Dives is the white race, and especially Christian white people, at whose gate they lie, and woe will come to him if he does not heed them and bend a portion of his energies to lift them.SBAWP 49.1–2 Seeking supremacy as an end in itself and overriding justice loses what is sought, while honesty, justice, and effort to uplift them brings uplifting to himself.SBAWP 49.1–2