Luke 16:23-26

“And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 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 cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.’” — NKJV (condensed)

Part of the Nature of Hell study.

The Common Reading

The rich man is in hell, fully conscious, suffering in flames, able to see, speak, remember, and feel pain. This proves the dead are conscious after death and that the wicked experience torment in fire. It is taken as a literal description of the afterlife.

What the Passage Actually Says

This Is a Parable

Luke 16 is part of a sequence of parables. The preceding chapters contain the Lost Sheep (15:3), Lost Coin (15:8), Prodigal Son (15:11), and Unjust Steward (16:1). The Rich Man and Lazarus follows the same literary form — a story with characters that illustrates a spiritual point.

Like the parable of the ten virgins (Matt 25:1) — where no one argues that Jesus is giving a literal description of oil lamp mechanics — this parable teaches through an imaginary scenario. The details serve the lesson, not a cosmological blueprint.

Basanos: Touchstone, Not Torture

The Greek word for “torments” is G931 basanos — literally a touchstone, a black stone used to test whether gold is genuine by rubbing the metal against it. The test damages the object — that is the semantic connection to “torment.”

The word emphasizes TESTING and VERIFICATION, not punishment for its own sake. The tester wants to extract or reveal something — to determine authenticity. This connects to the refiner’s $fire (Mal 3:2-3): the fire tests what is genuine. The rich man is being tested — and found wanting.

The Abarim Publications dictionary notes: “this word’s element of trial indicates both intent and suspicion on behalf of the one doing the testing, or the accuser in whose name he tests.” The accuser — H7854 satan.

This Is Hades, Not the Final State

The rich man is in G86 hades — the Greek equivalent of $sheol, the interim state of the dead. This is NOT the lake of fire, NOT gehenna, NOT the final judgment. Hades is temporary — Rev 20:13 says “Death and Hades delivered up the dead which were in them,” and then Hades itself is destroyed (Rev 20:14).

Whatever this parable describes, it describes an INTERIM condition — not the eternal state. Hades gives up its dead for judgment. What follows judgment is the “second death” (Rev 20:14) — not ongoing torment in Hades.

Abraham’s Bosom and Fire — Two Sides of Sheol

Both Lazarus and the rich man are in the same realm ($sheol / Hades), separated by a “great chasm” (G5490). This matches the OT picture: both righteous and wicked descend to sheol (Gen 37:35, Ps 9:17), but their experience differs. Deut 32:22 describes fire in the depths of sheol. The rich man is on the fire-side; Lazarus is on the comfort-side.

The Tension with Other Passages

If the dead are conscious in sheol, why does Scripture also say:

• Eccl 9:5 — “the dead know not anything”
• Ps 6:5 — “in death there is no remembrance of thee”
• Ps 115:17 — “the dead praise not the LORD”

The parabolic nature of the passage resolves this: Jesus uses a known Jewish literary framework (Abraham’s bosom was a common Pharisaic concept) to teach a moral point about wealth, Torah, and listening to Moses and the prophets (v.31) — not to provide a literal map of the afterlife.

The Actual Point of the Parable

The climax is v.29-31: “They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them… If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.”

The parable is about listening to Torah — not about the architecture of the afterlife. The rich man ignored Moses (Torah). The five brothers ignore Moses. Even a resurrection won’t convince them. Jesus is indicting those who have God’s word and ignore it.

Harmony

1. This is a parable — part of a sequence (Lost Sheep, Lost Coin, Prodigal Son, Unjust Steward). The details serve the lesson, not a cosmological blueprint.
2. G931 basanos = touchstone — a test for authenticity. The root concept is testing/verification, not punishment.
3. This is Hades (interim), not the final state — Hades is temporary and is itself destroyed (Rev 20:14). Whatever is described here is not eternal.
4. Both sides are in Sheol — Abraham’s bosom and the fire are two compartments of the same realm, separated by a chasm.
5. The point is about Torah — “they have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them” (v.29). The parable indicts those who ignore God’s word, not map the afterlife.

Greek Reference