Lazarus and The Rich
Man - Part 1
Just as most Christians do not understand the story
of Lazarus and the rich man, as taught by Jesus in Luke 16, neither do
they understand about the Jews. this is a direct result of the erroneous
teachings of our Christian "Ministers." Therefore, we are going to deal
in detail herein with the story [parable] of "The Rich Man and Lazarus,"
as it was taught by Jesus and as recorded in Luke chapter 16 in the King
James Bible.
Most Christians have read a tract or heard a sermon
in which this story is used. Almost invariably the speaker or author will
say, "The rich man was being tortured in the fires of hell and Lazarus
was in heaven." They then insist this story "proves" their doctrine that
"after death most human beings will spend the eternal ages screaming and
crying in great heat and fire." Ignoring God's statement to the contrary:
"They have built also the high places of Baal, TO BURN THEIR SONS WITH
FIRE...which I commanded not, nor spake it, NEITHER CAME IT INTO MY MIND."
(Jeremiah 19:5)
At the present time thousands of tracts and books
are in circulation in Christendom which repeat the general claim that this
story told by Jesus to His disciples is simply about "the bliss of heaven
and the torment of hell."
Now, lets read the story from Luke 16. As we read,
please note, there are people, animals and objects in the story other than
the rich man and Lazarus. These are very seldom mention by our "Ministers"
and are even more seldom explained.
"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 man's TABLE:
moreover the DOGS came and licked his SORES. And it came to pass, that
the beggar died, and was carried by the ANGELS INTO ABRAHAM'S BOSOM: the
rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being
in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And
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. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou
in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things:
but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between
us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from
hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from
thence. Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest
send him to my father's house: For I have FIVE BRETHREN; that he may testify
unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. Abraham saith
unto him, They have MOSES AND THE PROPHETS; let them hear them. And he
said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they
will repent. And he said unto him, If they hear not MOSES AND THE PROPHETS,
neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead." (Luke 16:19-31)
In addition to the three men and hell, the following
are listed: purple, fine linen, gate, sores, crumbs, table dogs, angels,
water, five brethren, Moses and the prophets. Why did Jesus include these
if they have no meaning? Is this only a "story of hell and heaven?" Or
is it of something else?
Christ was careful to tell us that the "rich man"
was clothed in purple and fine linen. What does this fine linen have
to do with some man dying and going to hell? And why did Jesus say that
"he fared sumptuously every day?" What possible difference could that make.
Also, "There was a certain beggar." Why was he a beggar? Why was his name
Lazarus? Why did "he lay at his gate," that is at the gate of the rich
man's house." What were the crumbs from the rich man's table that Lazarus
desired?
Further, there is this detail that "dogs came and
licked his sores." What were the dogs, and why did Lazarus have sores?
If this man was just going to die and go to heaven, why in the world would
Christ waste time referring to dogs licking the sores of the beggar? It
states in verse 22 that the beggar died and was taken by the Angels into
Abraham's bosom. Perhaps you have never thought about or have been told
why the beggar was taken to "Abraham's bosom," rather than to heaven. This
is something that our "Ministers" should ALWAYS explain, but almost
never do.
The rich man also died, but apparently was not carried
anywhere. Instead, he "was buried, and in hell [this is from the word HADES]
he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and
Lazarus in his bosom." Is it not apparent from this that wherever this
man was, he was able to SEE, not only LAZARUS, who had been taken unto
Abraham's bosom, but ABRAHAM also! For the rich man 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."
Have you never wondered why the rich man would want
just the tip of Lazarus' finger in the water? A man "burning in hell" would
surely ask for a pail or an ocean of water, would he not? So it stands
to reason that there is something about this request which needs further
explanation.
The rich man goes on to say, "for I am tormented
in this flame." Our "Ministers" invariably explain this as being "the fires
of hell." As will be shown later, this word here translated "flame" is
used only seven times in the New Testament, in six places the Greek word
for FIRE is added to it, in order to make it mean a burning flame of fire
(Luke 16:14-flame, Acts 7:30, Hebrews 1:7, Revelation 1:14, 2:18, 19:12-flame
of fire).
Lazarus and the Rich Man - Part
2
In Luke 16:24 the word is used WITHOUT the additional
word meaning "fire." Therefore, it is very simple to see that this word
"flame" does not make it mean "fire." Why do our "Ministers" not explain
this as they go through the story? "But Abraham said, Son." Why did Abraham
call this man, the rich man, "Son.?" "Remember that thou in they lifetime
receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he
is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and
you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence
to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence."
Please note that Abraham has identified the rich man by the word
"Son," and yet he tells him that those who want to change sides cannot
do so. This implies that while they CANNOT, that some "would," or would
want to go there. Now why would ANYONE want to pass down from this "heaven"
of the so-called fundamentalists DOWN to a "hell?"
Then the rich man said, "I pray thee therefore, FATHER,
that thou wouldest send him to MY FATHER's house? "For I have five brethren."
now, brothers and sisters, if Jesus' story was merely to give an
example of two men dying, with one of them going to heaven and the other
going to a burning hell, why would He have described the man as having
five brethren? neither God nor Jesus put meaningless things in His Word!
The rich man wanted Lazarus to warn his five brethren
to repent, but Abraham refused. Why did Jesus say that the rich mans's
brethren had Moses and the prophets? And WHOSE resurrection would not convince
them to repent?
As we proceed in this study, by Pastor Sheldon Emry,
every effort will be made to try and show you the answers to the question
raised in this story, which are never or almost never answered by those
who preach that it is just a story of heaven and hell. It is our hope that
we have whetted your appetite enough to make you want to know the answers
to these questions in this strange story recorded in Luke 16.
We know that the dead know nothing, see nothing and
hear nothing, as proven in the Scriptures. Therefore these two men, to
be able to see and to talk they MUST still be alive, but dead in name only.
"The dead praise not the Lord, neither any that go
down into silence." (Psalm 115:17); "...but the dead know not any thing..."
(Ecclesiastes 9:5)
Then we have the testimony of Paul concerning David,
a man after God's heart, who was still in the grave in his day and time
and had not been taken to heaven: "Men and brethren, let me freely speak
unto you of the patriarch David, that he is BOTH DEAD AND BURIED, and his
sepulchre is with us unto this day." (Acts 2:29)
Now, let's determine who was the "certain rich man?"
"There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen,
and fared sumptuously every day." Why did Jesus describe this man as being
dressed in purple and fine linen? Some of you may remember an old saying
that was used in speaking of a high-class person, or nobility: "He must
have been born to the purple."
When the Midianites had conquered Israel, God raised
up Gideon to free Israel and destroy the power of the Midianites. When
the war was over, we read that Gideon collected all the Midianites' wealth:
"And the weight of the golden earrings that he requested was a thousand
and seven hundred shekels of gold; beside ornaments, and collars, and PURPLE
RAIMENT that was on the kings of Midian, and beside the chains that were
about their camels' neck." (Judges 8:26)
Notice that the kings of the Midianites wore purple.
At the crucifixion, Jesus was called by Pilate; to MOCK the Jews: "And
Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross. And the writing was, JESUS
OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS." (Mark 15:17-18)
In making fun of Jesus, the band [Jews — Soldiers
of the Chief Priests, Pharisees and etc.] put a purple robe on Him to represent
kingship, for purple is the color used by royalty.
Not only was the certain rich man dressed in purple
to represent rulership over the people, but he was also arrayed in FINE
LINEN. To explain this lets return to when the priesthood in Israel was
reestablished, God instructed Moses: "And take thou unto thee Aaron thy
brother, and his sons with him, from among the children of Israel, that
he may minister unto me in the priest's office, even Aaron, Nadab and Abihu,
Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron's sons. And thou shalt make holy garments for
Aaron thy brother for glory and for beauty. And thou shalt speak unto all
that are wise hearted, whom I have filed with the spirit of wisdom, that
they may make Aaron's garments...and his sons... And they shall take gold,
and blue, and PURPLE, and SCARLET, FINE LINEN." (Exodus 28:1-5)
Leviticus 6:10 and 16:4 also tells us that the priests
were to wear a robe of linen, and the high priest was to wear trousers
of linen. Ezekiel 9 and Daniel 10 and 12 tell us that the messengers of
God who gave these prophets visions from God Almighty were clothed in linen.
Revelation says: "...And the seven angels...clothed in PURE and WHITE LINEN..."
(Revelation 15:4-6)
Lazarus and the Rich Man - Part
3
In his little book, "The Man Without a Country," Edward Everett
Hale portrays in dramatic style what it would mean to be a man without
a native land or home, destined to wander from place to place throughout
life. Sir Walter Scott alludes to the lonely frustration of such a predicament
by the immortal words in his "Lay of the Last Minstrel:
"Breathes there the man with soul so dead,
Who never to himself hath said,
This is my own, my native land!
Whose heart hath ne'er within him burn'd,
As home his footsteps he hath turn'd
From wandering on a foreign strand!"
Blessed indeed, are those of whom God will say: "And of Zion it
shall be said, This and that man was born in her: and the highest himself
shall establish her. The LORD shall count, when he writeth up the people,
that this man was born there. Selah." (Psalm 87:5-6)
This blessing the Jews will never know as they are loyal to no
nation, and call no nation their home, not even the land of Palestine that
they have stolen from its rightful owners the Arabs. "Although the Jews
have appeared in the histories of other nations throughout the centuries,
they were never able or willing to establish a nation of their own. They
remain forever desolate in this regard. The only way the Jews got possession
of Palestine was by using other people to steal it from the Turks and Arabs
for them. The so- called 'Israeli' state is nothing but a parasitic state,
since it is occupied by parasites. The Jews get billions of dollars from
Germany as 'reparations' and 'restitution payments' for its alleged 'war
crimes' against Jews. They get billions more every year from the United
States. It (Israel) has to steal or buy technology from Western nations
as the Jews have not the creativity to develop their own. The Jewish state
of Israeli would collapse in a minute without the continued support, protection
and assistance from Jacob/Israel (The White Nations of Christendom). It
is not, never has been, and never will be a self-sustaining nation." (Charles
A. Weisman, Who is Esau- Edom?, pp. 27-28).
If this depicts the worth of the country a man claims as his own,
what of those who, for earthly gain prestige and the pleasures of life
for a season, jeopardize the continuity of their citizenship in the Kingdom
of God? For some the fateful day will most assuredly come when the verdict
will be pronounced that will mean loss of citizenship and exclusion from
His Kingdom. That there will be those who will be sentenced to make their
abode outside the realm of the Kingdom is quite clear from the Scriptures.
This will come to pass when God moves through His Son, Jesus Christ, to
cleanse the Kingdom of all evil.
"The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather
out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity;
and shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there will be wailing and gnashing
of teeth." (Matthew 13:41-42)
This ‘furnace of fire" will be severe tribulation, as the phrase
suggests; elsewhere the affliction coming upon those cast out of the Kingdom
is designated as a place called "outer darkness." (Matthew 8:12)
Citizenship in the Kingdom: Pride of citizenship in a nation is
wholly justifiable under the administration of men. But how much more important
it is to cover citizenship in the Kingdom of God over which Christ is to
reign forever. Nevertheless, there are those who are in the Kingdom by
birth but who, because of their treasonable conduct, both by acts of commission
and omission, are risking the loss of their citizenship. For those the
danger of ultimate exclusion from home, land and country is a very real
possibility when the Lord moves to cleanse His Kingdom of all unrighteousness.
Next to the value of the family is the importance of the government
under which the family resides, of which its members are citizens. A good
government exists to protect its citizens and provide for their general
welfare. To such a government all of its citizens owe their allegiance.
Our forefathers expressed well the purpose of government in composing the
Preamble of our Constitution: "We the people of the United States, in order
to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility,
provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure
the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and
establish this constitution for the United States of America."
But the mere writing of a constitution, no matter how carefully
drawn, would not, in itself, secure these blessings for a people, for they
are the attributes of righteousness in the administration of law. "It is
impossible to establish justice unless those entrusted with the enforcement
of law are just. It is impossible to have domestic tranquility unless there
is equitable taxation (which is not confiscation of property) and unless
there is the proper distribution of the right to labor and possess wealth
under a system of economics which would eliminate destitution and want;
otherwise there will always be fear and an apprehension of the future.
Certainly the general welfare cannot be promoted if one group of citizens
is penalized in favor of another and more favored group. Thus the functioning
of a righteous government is fundamentally administrative; that is, laws
must be administered that are just to all, from the humblest to the greatest
of all our citizens." (Digest of the Divine Law, by Howard Rand, Destiny
Publishers, Merrimac, Massachusetts 01860)
All men suffer today, both saved and unsaved, because as a nation
we refuse to recognize our need of the Kingdom and its administration of
the righteous laws of God. The proper administration of the laws of the
Kingdom will bring peace, prosperity and an abundance of the needs of life
to all of its citizens. If the Kingdom is non- essential, or subordinate
to personal salvation, then Christ and all the prophets were mistaken to
stress the doctrines of the Kingdom and the blessings that would accrue
to men when it is administered in perfection. Rather, they should have
stressed the personal phase of the Gospel alone in line with the teachings
and doctrines of many today.
But those who claim that personal salvation is the only thing
that mattes belie their words in their very actions. Let their wages be
withheld. Will they say it doesn't matter? Let famine come; will the fact
of personal salvation (There is no such thing as "personal salvation" it
is simply another ruse made up by the Jews and their Judeo-Christian lackeys
to deceive our people; for no where in the Scriptures is reference made
to "personal salvation") prevent them from suffering the pangs of hunger?
Let them be destitute of clothing and shelter in the cold and the storm;
will they be warm and safe from the tempest? Let the thief and murderer
walk in their midst; will they escape all this trouble? Let bribery and
graft deprive them of their possessions and comforts; will they be contented?
Let poverty and destitution be their lot; will they rejoice and be glad?
Let sickness lay them upon the bed of suffering and pain; will they be
at ease and rest? Did those Christians in Russia and Eastern Europe under
the rule of the antichrist Jews find freedom from persecution, death, torture,
famine, misery, disease, rape, thieves, murderers; were they happy and
rejoiced under their rule? If we preach personal salvation to them without
relieving physical suffering and troubles, will they still say, "It does
not matter?" No indeed! They will ask that we also administer to their
physical needs. This is the purpose of the Kingdom and its functions. Its
laws, when properly administered, will bring freedom from want and destitution,
will remove all sickness from our midst, and will bring such prosperity
that Amos' prediction will come to pass: "Behold, the days come, saith
the Lord, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the threader
of grapes him that soweth seed." (Amos 9:13)
Lazarus and the Rich Man - Part
4
How, then, are the blessings of liberty to be secured, with peace and
prosperity assured the citizens of a nation? Christ answered this question
when He said: "Seek ye first the kingdom of God (the gospel of which was
preached by both John the Baptist and Christ, but not by the Clergy of
Organized religion, Judeo-Christian ministers, priest, preachers, teachers,
evangelists and etc. today in the pulpits of America or on television or
radio), and his righteousness the perfection of the administration of His
commandments, statutes and judgments); and all these things (the necessities
of life, including peace and prosperity and all its accompanying blessing)
shall be added (that is, given) unto you." (Matthew 6;33)
The Kingdom of which Christ was speaking; that is, the Kingdom of God,
was established at Mount Sinai when Moses was instructed by God: "Thus
shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel...Ye
shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation." (Exodus 19:3,
6)
This is the Kingdom over which the Angel informed Mary Christ would
reign forever, of which Kingdom there would be no end. (Luke 1:33) This
is, also, why Christ told Pilate that the kingdom of the Jews was not His,
and that His kingdom was not there and then. Its enduring character is
typified by its emblem; the Stone, that Daniel saw smite the image upon
its feet, for Daniel was informed: "It shall stand forever." (Daniel 2:44)
The only logical conclusion that can be reached is that the Stone Kingdom
of Daniel is the Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, which is
none other than the House of Jacob organized into a Kingdom at Mount Sinai.
This is confirmed by Isaiah's great prophecy: "Unto us a child is born,
unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder:
and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The
everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." (Isaiah 9:6)
Following this identification of the Child born at Bethlehem as the
one destined to take the reins of government and rule in righteousness,
the prophet continues: "Of the increase of his government and peace there
shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order
it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth
even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this." (Isaiah
9:7)
It is from the Throne of David that perfect justice will issue forth
to bless the whole earth with peace. It is the Kingdom over which the Throne
of David rules that is spoken of as enduring forever and it is from this
throne Christ will reign when He returns to inaugurate His administration.
Citizenship in this Kingdom comes to the seed of Abraham through Isaac
and Jacob/Israel by right of birth. Under the terms of the Old Covenant,
however, citizenship could be forfeited for certain offenses, for which
the Bible declares a man would be "cut off" from among his people.
"The vision of Obadiah...concerning Edom (The jews)...arise ye (Children
of the House of Jacob), and let us rise up against her (Edom, the Jews)
in battle. Behold, I have made thee (God made the Jews small in number)
small among the heathen: thou art greatly despised (by all people everywhere).
The pride of thine heart hath deceived thee, thou that dwellest in the
clefts of the rock, whose habitation is high; that saith in his heart,
Who shall bring me down to the ground? Though thou exalt thyself as the
eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring
thee down, saith the LORD. If thieves came to thee, if robbers by night,
(how art thou cut off!) would they not have stolen till they had enough
(here God is saying that the Jews cannot ever steal or murder enough)?
if the grapegatherers came to thee, would they not leave some grapes (God
is saying that the Jews will leave nothing of value in any land they live
in)? How are the things of Esau (the Jews) searched out! how are his hidden
things sought up (The Jews themselves reveal all of their secrets, only
the rest of the world listens to the stupid ones; the scoffer, who, like
a chicken, when it rains they look up and are drowned in the propaganda
of the Jews)! All the men of thy confederacy have brought thee even to
the border: the men that were at peace with thee have deceived thee (the
very people that the Jews think are their allies have deceived them, and
will turn on them in a heart beat when an opposing force begins to gain
the upper hand on them, until that time they will simply sit back and watch
for their chance to help destroy the jews), and prevailed against thee;
they that eat thy bread have laid a wound under thee: there is none understanding
in him. Shall I not in that day, saith the LORD, (shall) even destroy the
wise men out of Edom, and understanding out of the mount of Esau (Here
it would appear that the prophet is talking about the present day state
of Israel, because the Jews have never had a nation of their own since
they crucified Christ)? And thy mighty men, O Teman, shall be dismayed,
to the end that every one of the mount of Esau (Nation of Israel) may be
cut off by slaughter. For thy violence against thy brother Jacob
shame shall cover thee, and thou shalt be cut off for ever. In the day
that thou stoodest on the other side, in the day that the strangers carried
away captive his forces, and foreigners entered into his gates, and cast
lots upon Jerusalem, even thou wast as one of them. But thou shouldest
not have looked on the day of thy brother in the day that he became a stranger;
neither shouldest thou have rejoiced over the children of Judah in the
day of their destruction; neither shouldest thou have spoken proudly in
the day of distress. Thou shouldest not have entered into the gate of my
people in the day of their calamity; yea, thou shouldest not have looked
on their affliction in the day of their calamity, nor have laid hands on
their substance in the day of their calamity; Neither shouldest thou have
stood in the crossway, to cut off those of his that did escape; neither
shouldest thou have delivered up those of his that did remain in the day
of distress. For the day of the LORD is near upon all the heathen: as thou
hast done, it shall be done unto thee: thy reward shall return upon thine
own head. For as ye have drunk upon my holy mountain, so shall all the
heathen drink continually, yea, they shall drink, and they shall swallow
down, and they shall be as though they had not been. But upon mount Zion
shall be deliverance, and there shall be holiness; and the house of Jacob
shall possess their possessions. And the house of Jacob shall be a fire,
and the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau for stubble, and
they shall kindle in them, and devour them; and there shall not be any
remaining of the house of Esau; for the LORD hath spoken it..." (Obadiah
1:1-21)
So keep the faith my brother and sister Israelites; the enemy may seem
powerful and God admits to this, but they are already beaten, they are
already destroyed; there is not one of them left. For the Word of the Lord
God Almighty has spoken.
Lazarus and the Rich Man - Part
5
In order to understand the Bible's teaching as to how the rich
man suffers from this "flame," we must first identify the rich man's "five
brethren" who were destined for the same suffering. The rich man said:
"...I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's
house: For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they
also come into this place of torment." (Luke 16:27-28)
Genesis 36 tells the story of a man who had five brethren. As
we read this genealogical account, we shall see how this fits the description
of the five brethren of Luke 16. "Now these are the generations of Esau,
who is Edom." (Genesis 36:1)
Edom means "red," and as we go along in this study we learn that
Edom fits into the Biblical description of Mystery Babylon of Revelation
18, which is "Red Communism."
"Esau took his wives of the daughters of Canaan; Adah the daughter
of Elon the Hittite, and Ahalibamah the daughter Anah the daughter of Zibean
the Hivite; And Bashemath Ishmael's daughter, sister of Nebajolh. And Adah
bare to Esau (1) Eliphaz; and Bashemath bare (2) Reuel; and Ahalibamah
bare (3) Jeush, and (4) Jaalam, and (5) Korah: these are the sons of Esau,
which were born unto him in the land of Canaan." (Genesis 36:2-5)
Thus Esau had five sons, and throughout the Scriptures will be
found occasional places where the word "brethren" includes parents and
children. So Esau clearly fits this description of having five "brethren"
in his house. (See Genesis 36:8, 36:19, 36:21, 36:43).
In the listed Scriptures we can see that "Seir," was the name
of the place where Esau-Edom settled, and is interchangeable with the name
"Edom." According to Genesis 36, Esau married into the line of the Canaanites,
and for some strange and prophetic reason Esau was therefore known by the
name Edom, which means red, and is now the color of world communism.
Please recall that the Edomites are the age-long enemies of Israel.
Esau's grandson, Amalek was the father of the Amalekites, who were the
first enemies to attack Israel after they came out of Egypt. God
said of the Amelikite branch of Edom: "...I will utterly put out the remembrance
of Amalek from under heaven...Because the Lord hath sworn that the Lord
will have war with Amalek from generation to generation." (Exodus 17:14-16)
Then we have the Book of Obadiah, the prophet, who tells in a
one-page prophecy of the House of Esau [which would include Amalek] being
burned in a flame: "The vision of Obadiah. thus saith the Lord God concerning
Edom; We have heard a rumor from the Lord, and an ambassador is sent among
the heathen. Arise ye, and let us rise up against her in battle. Behold,
I have made thee small among the heathen: thou art greatly despised." (Obadiah
1-2)
The next thirteen verses describe how Edom was to work against
Jacob-Israel all down through the ages. He accused Edom of coming against
Jacob and Judah in the day of their calamity; he accused them of trying
to conquer Jerusalem. Then beginning with verse 15, Obadiah shows that
this is an end-time prophecy (Obadiah 15). In other words, God said, the
thing you are attempting to do will turn and destroy you.
"For as ye have drank upon my holy mountain, so shall all the
heathen drink continually, yea, they shall drink, and they shall swallow
down, and they shall be as though they had not been. But upon mount Zion
shall be deliverance, and there shall be holiness; and the house of Joseph
a flame, and the house of Esau for stubble, and they shall kindle in them,
and devour them..." (Obadiah 16-18)
Can you not see, Esau in Obadiah and the rich man in Luke 16 were
to have an identical fate; they would both be in a "flame," Obadiah then
continues: "...and there shall not be any remaining of the house of Esau..."
(Obadiah 18)
That this is a prophecy that is yet to be fulfilled at the end
of the age is shown by the last verse in Obadiah, which reads: "...and
saviours shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the
kingdom shall be the Lord's." (Obadiah 21)
In Luke 16 the rich man appealed to someone in authority, "Father
Abraham," and asked him for a little water. We know the water represents
the Word of God, and that according to the Scriptures, if anyone asks for
the Word of God, that God will pour out His spirit upon them and give them
understanding of the Word.
"If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to
all men liberally...and it shall be given him." (James 1:5) Now this rich
man wanted only a tiny bit of the Word, hardly enough to make a difference.
If he was in such a flame, why did he want just a tiny drop of water on
his tongue? The scribes and Pharisees had the Scriptures at their disposal,
but they did not want more than a tiny bit of it. They preferred to follow
the "tradition of the elders."
"Then the Pharisees and scribes asked him, Why walk not thy disciples
according to the tradition of the elders...He answered and said unto them,
Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people
honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. Howbeit in
vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men...Full
well ye reject the Commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition...making
the word of God of none effect through your tradition..." (Mark 7:5-13)
This, while only believing and teaching a tiny portion of the
Scriptures. This, the rich man, who called Abraham "Father," can be identified
with both the Esau and the Pharisees. How can the rich man represent both
at the same time? The answer is found in Jesus' own words, as recorded
in John: "They answered him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage
to any man..." (John 8:33)
Jesus then admitted they were Abrahams' "seed." "I know that ye
are Abraham's seed..." (John 8:37) On the one hand, they were Abraham's
descendants [seed], even admitted to be so by Christ, yet they denied they
were ever "in bondage to any man," and Jesus did not contradict them. Therefore,
since they were never "in bondage to any man." they were not in the Egyptian
bondage with Israel. What people could be "Abraham's seed," yet not be
in the Egyptian bondage?
Lazarus and the Rich Man - Part
6
The descendants of Jacob's brother, Esau, of course! Although
Esau was Abraham's grandson, as was Jacob [they were twins], neither he
nor his descendants went into Egypt with Jacob and his children. After
Jesus confirmed the Pharisees' claim they were "the seed of Abraham," He
denied they were Abraham's Children: "...If ye were Abraham's children,
ye would do the works of Abraham." (John 8:39)
In this passage, by Jesus' own words with the Pharisees, we find
that the Jewish Pharisees could claim descent from Abraham, but could not
[ever] be called "the children of Abraham." This can be seen clearly in
(Genesis 21:12) and in: "And it came to pass after these things, that God
did tempt Abraham, and said unto him...Take now thy son, thine only son
Isaac..." (Genesis 22:1-2)
In other words, what God through the Scriptures is telling us
is, those who are descended from Abraham through Ishmael and Esau can claim
to be called the seed of Abraham, but "ONLY" those who are born of Isaac
and Jacob can be called the Children of Abraham! In fact, the Bible never
calls the Ishmaelites and Edomites nor any of the other six sons Abraham
had children, but both the Old and the New Testament Scriptures call the
Israelites children many hundreds of times. For example, Paul excluded
Ishmael and Esau with these words: "Neither, because they are the seed
of Abraham, are they ll children: but, in Isaac shall thy seed be called."
(Romans 9:7)
Thus, the Bible identifies the Jewish Pharisees as being the seed
of Abraham, but NOT Abraham's Children. We know, from historical sources
that nearly two centuries before Christ, the Judeans conquered the entire
Edomite nation and forced them to adopt the religion of the Judeans [See
Josephus, Ant., Bk. 13, ch. 15, par. 4].
Later, Herod, a half-Edomite, obtained rulership over the Israelites
in Palestine by killing all but one of the members of the Sanhedrin, the
judicial and religious body of the Judeans, replacing them with men of
his own race. Thus, the Edomites took civil and religious rule over the
Israelites. [Herod - the tetrach - king of Galilee; The Sanhedrin chief
priests, elders, scribes and Pharisees over Judea. So the Edomites ruled
over all of Palestine]. The Edomites were called "Ioudians," translated
"Jews," in the King James Bible, but Jesus bitterly denounced the Edomite
— chief priests, elders, scribes and Pharisees at every turn.
In the story Jesus relates that Abraham told the rich man: "And
beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that
they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to
us, that would come from thence." (Luke 16:26)
From this it would appear that the descendants of the people represented
by the rich man are totally prevented from coming to Abraham or "Abraham's
bosom." The "gulf" is "fixed," i.e., it cannot be breached, changed or
passed. Then there is the statement "neither can they pass to us, that
would..." meaning that some would not pass from this so-called "hell" even
if they could. Now, if this is, as our "Ministers" would have us to believe,
is a real "burning hell," would not every single one, without exception
wish to escape?
This phraseology fits the future state of the Pharisee descendants
of the Esau for he lost the Abrahamic Birthright when he sold it to Jacob
(Genesis 25:31-34). The New Testament verifies this in (Hebrews 12:16-17)
Esau's act of despising the birthright and selling it to his brother
Jacob [Israel] "fixed" the "great gulf" between his progeny and Jacob's
progeny who would inherit "Abraham's Birthright promises. This was put
into words by the Jewish writer, Maurice Samuels in his book "You Gentiles,"
on page 9 he writes: "I suspected from the first dawning of Jewish self-consciousness,
that between gentiles [Christians] and us Jews lies an unbridgeable gulf."
This total inability of the Edomite Jews to become Christian inheritors
of the Abrahamic promises is what Jesus was revealing when He related what
Abraham told the rich man. That there was no point in preaching a risen
Christ to the Edomites, as they could not inherit the Abrahamic Covenants
and Promises, in fact Jesus is telling us in so many words: THE JEWS
cannot be saved!!!
"Then said Jesus unto them [Jews]...where I [Jesus] am, thither
ye [Jews] cannot come [where Jesus is the Jews cannot go, in other words
cannot be saved]." (John 7:33-34)
For the "gulf" was "fixed." by God Himself.
That the Edomites [Jews] did not even believe Moses and the Prophets,
let alone a risen Christ, is clearly revealed by Jesus in Abraham's answer
to the rich man, after the rich man asked Abraham to send Lazarus to his
five brethren: "Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets;
let them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham [the rich man knew
that his brethren, The Jews, did not then, nor would they in the future
believe Moses and the Prophets]: but if one went unto them from the dead,
they will repent. And he [Abraham] said unto him [rich man], if they hear
[believe] not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though
one rose from the dead [Jesus rose from the dead, and still they - the
Jews - did not believe, thus fulfilling Jesus Words]." (Luke 16:29-31)
Now, some will say that Abraham's answer is an un-Christian reply,
so let's see how Christ Himself handled a similar situation. In John chapter
5, Jesus spoke to the scribes and Pharisees, whom we have already identified
as fitting the description of the rich man.
They hated Jesus and were plotting to kill Him. "Therefore the
Jews sought the more to kill him..." (John 5:18)
So He told them: "And ye have not his word abiding in you: for
whom he hath sent, him ye believe not. Search the scriptures; for in them
ye [Jews] think ye have eternal life [the way this is worded, is showing
Jesus again telling the Jews that they cannot be saved]: and they are they
which testify of me. And ye will not come to me [Jews-here again Jesus
says they will NOT come to Him], that ye might have life [again Jesus declared
that the Jews cannot be saved]." (John 5:38-40)
Think about it! Three times in just this one verse Jesus Christ,
in effect, said the Jews cannot be saved!!! This is a remarkable revelation
from Jesus Christ Himself. Then if that were not enough, Jesus again says
they will not believe: "Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father:
there is one that accuseth you, even Moses, in whom ye trust [or would
have men believe your claim to trust him]. For had ye believed Moses, ye
would have believed me: for he wrote of me (Genesis 3:15, Deuteronomy 18:15).
But if ye believe not his [Moses] writings, how shall ye believe my words?"
(John 5:45-47)
Lazarus and the Rich Man - Part
7
Jesus said that the scribes and Pharisees did have the Scriptures,
and they claimed to believe the writings of Moses. The rich man of Luke
16 also claimed Abraham as his father, and that his brethren had the writings
of Moses. But because they refused to believe Moses and the Prophets, they
would also refuse to believe Christ, though He rose from the dead.
Therefore, one must conclude, that the rich man of Luke 16 is
NOT just some wicked person, who died and then was tortured in a literal
fire. Instead, in the story, he represents [is symbolic] of a specific
people, the descendants of Esau, the age-old enemy of Jacob [Israel], known
in Jesus' time as the Jewish Scribes and Pharisees.
Modern "Ministers," by wrongly interpreting parts of the story,
and by not explaining other parts of it at all, completely hide from Judeo-Christians
the Truth Jesus was revealing in this parable, that not only are the people
known and called "Jews" are actually Edomites and not Israelites, and that
God Almighty has "fixed" a "great gulf" so that they will never become
believers or followers of Christianity.
In the parable, Jesus related that the rich man said in verse
30 that his brethren [Edomites; Jews, as we have seen] would repent "if
one went unto them from the dead." Jesus then relates that Abraham answered
in verse 31 that they would not repent, "though one rose from the dead."
It was Jesus Christ Himself who later rose from the dead and His Words
were proven true, when the Jews not only did not repent but they set about
persecuting and killing all who did believe and follow the Resurrected
Jesus.
Evidence abounds on every hand that their descendants have continued
to hate, ridicule, malign, murder [when provided with the opportunity to
do so], and secretly made and do still make war against the followers of
Jesus for almost 2000 years; That there has been no repentance by the Edomite
Jews and this parable taught by Jesus teaches quite plainly that there
will be none in the future.
Because of the false interpretation of this parable by "Ministers"
and Evangelists, most Judeo-Christians do not know that Jesus taught that
these Edomite Jews, who masquerade as Israelites, will not be converted,
neither can be, and that a great gulf is "fixed," so that they cannot cross
over. Their father Esau sold his, and their, birthright and they cannot
regain it, though the seek it with many tears!
Thus, because this parable is not taught correctly in our churches,
most Judeo-Christians are totally deceived about the modern Jews and their
true place in Bible Prophecy. May this study open your eyes to the truth.
Now let us turn to Lazarus and identify him. "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 man's table:
more over the dogs came and licked his sores." (Luke 16:20-21)
You have probably recognized already that Lazarus is Symbolic
of True Israel, which had been divorced from God and cast off over 700
years before Christ. The name Lazarus is the Greek form of the Hebrew name
Eleazar. Eleazar means "God is helper," and before Israel was divorced,
she used to be able to say of God: "...the Lord thinketh upon me: thou
are my help and my deliverer..." (Psalms 40:17)
However, after Israel's divorcement (Jeremiah 3:8), she was cast
off and made a "beggar." Therefore, in Luke 16 Jesus called Israel by the
Greek name LAZARUS, which means "without help" (Youngs Concordance). The
Greek word translated beggar in Luke 16 is only used in the Bible twice,
both times here in this parable. The word is ptochos, which means "to crouch,
cringing" only straitened circumstances [Strong's Concordance 4434, page
62, Greek Dictionary of the New Testament]. Not necessarily poor monetarily,
but one in a subservient state before another. Lazarus was not necessarily
poor monetarily, but he was in a subservient state.
Now this "beggar," Lazarus, had to beg for the crumbs from the
table of the rich man. The Pharisees of Christ's day had become wealthy
by means of usury, which they had learned in Babylon.
"And there was a great cry of the people and of their wives against...the
Jews...and I rebuked the nobles, and the rulers, and said unto them, Ye
exact usury...It is not good that ye do...I pray you, let us leave off
this usury...Restore...to them...their lands, their vineyards, their oliveyards,
and their houses, also the hundredth part of the money, and of the corn,
the wine, and the oil, that ye exact of them." (Nehemiah 5:1-11)
History tells us that the Pharisees set up their usurious banking
system throughout the Roman Empire, and this practice continued throughout
the middle age, finally climaxing in our present International World Banks.
In America today the Edomite Pharisees [Jews] are again removing
God's Word from our schools and from our government. They confiscate [steal]
billions of dollars from the taxpayers each year as usury payments, and
the people have to beg to obtain higher wages to pay the rich their USURY.
Just as the true Judeans of Christ's day had to crouch and cringe before
the Edomite Pharisees [Jews]. (See John 7:13, 9:22). And even today the
True Israelites of Christian Anglo-Saxons must beg from the banks to remain
solvent.
Christ pictured Israel in this parable as one who had to crouch
before the rich man. He further said that the "dogs came and licked his
sores." What or who are the "dogs?" Jesus identified them in Matthew 15:
"And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried
unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou son of David; my daughter
is grievously vexed with a devil. But he answered her not a word. And his
disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth
after us. But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep
of the house of Israel. Then she worshiped him, saying, Lord, help me.
But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread,
and to cast it to dogs." (John 15:22-26)
Here Jesus called the True Israelites children, but the Canaanite
woman, being a non-Israelite, he called a dog.
"And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which
fall from their masters' table. Then Jesus answered and said unto her,
O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her
daughter was made whole from that very hour." (John 15:27-28)
This passage verifies the Scriptural principle that non-Israelites
can come become Christians by faith in Jesus Christ. But they are not called
the Children of Abraham, but simply believers or Christians.
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