The Rich Man and Lazarus

¹⁹ “There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and ^[a]fared sumptuously every day. ²⁰ But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, ²¹ desiring to be fed with ^[b]the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. ²² So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to ^(A)Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. ²³ And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.

²⁴ “Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and ^(B)cool my tongue; for I ^(C)am tormented in this flame.’ ²⁵ But Abraham said, ‘Son, ^(D)remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented. ²⁶ And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.’

²⁷ “Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house, ²⁸ for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’ ²⁹ Abraham said to him, ^(E)‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ ³⁰ And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ ³¹ But he said to him, ^(F)‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, ^(G)neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’ ”

The Parable of the Rich Fool

¹³ Then one from the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”

¹⁴ But He said to him, ^(A)“Man, who made Me a judge or an arbitrator over you?” ¹⁵ And He said to them, ^(B)“Take heed and beware of ^[a]covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.”

¹⁶ Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. ¹⁷ And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ ¹⁸ So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. ¹⁹ And I will say to my soul, ^(C)“Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; ^(D)eat, drink, and be merry.” ’ ²⁰ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night ^(E)your soul will be required of you; ^(F)then whose will those things be which you have provided?’

²¹ “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, ^(G)and is not rich toward God.”

^25 (A)For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost?

¹² Then He also said to him who invited Him, “When you give a dinner or a supper, do not ask your friends, your brothers, your relatives, nor rich neighbors, lest they also invite you back, and you be repaid. ¹³ But when you give a feast, invite ^(A)the poor, the ^[a]maimed, the lame, the blind. ¹⁴ And you will be ^(B)blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”

^31 (A)But seek ^[a]the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you.

³² “Do not fear, little flock, for ^(B)it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. ^33 (C)Sell what you have and give ^(D)alms; ^(E)provide yourselves money bags which do not grow old, a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches nor moth destroys. ³⁴ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

A Vital Church Grows

⁴⁰ And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, “Be saved from this ^[a]perverse generation.”

²¹ because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but ^(A)became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened.

^11 (A)Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of ^(B)evil against you falsely for My sake. ^12 (C)Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for ^(D)so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.