Victor Porton's Christian Weblog

Have you noticed reading the biblical story of Lazarus and a rich man that Abraham has eaten Lazarus when Lazarus has come to the paradise? Does this meant that for Lazarus it were badly in the paradise?

(Sorry for repost, I had a technical problem.)

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The following is the biblical story of Lazarus and a rich man from the Gospel of Luke, chapter 16.

Luk. 16
19 Now there was a certain rich man, and he was clothed in purple and fine linen, living in luxury every day. 20 A certain beggar, named Lazarus, was laid at his gate, full of sores, 21 and desiring to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man's table. Yes, even the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 It happened that the beggar died, and that he was carried away by the angels to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died, and was buried. 23 In Hades, he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far off, and Lazarus at his bosom. 24 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 in anguish in this flame. 25 But Abraham said, Son, remember that you, in your lifetime, received your good things, and Lazarus, in like manner, bad things. But now here he is comforted and you are in anguish. 26 Besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, that those who want to pass from here to you are not able, and that none may cross over from there to us. 27 He said, I ask 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, so they won't also come into this place of torment. 29 But Abraham said to him, They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them. 30 He said, No, father Abraham, but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent. 31 He said to him, If they don't listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if one rises from the dead.

So, careful reader, to where angels have carried dead Lazarus? They have carried Lazarus to the bosom of Abraham. Lazarus was eaten by Abraham.

So, was Lazarus at a pain being eaten by Abraham? No, Luk. 16:25 says about Lazarus here he is comforted. Lazarus was comfortably eaten by Abraham, without any pain. In the bosom of Abraham Lazarus was continuing to live. So it is in paradise, even to be eaten there is not a problem.

If an animal eats another animal, it is in great pain or at least is put to the death; it is destroyed. But if we for example eat soup with salt, the chemical structure of salt is not destroyed in our organism. Salt which we eat remains well in our bosom, maybe it even becomes more well there. It is because people are surpassingly greater than salt and it can become a part of our body without destroying.

Likewise we see that Abraham was surpassingly greater than Lazarus, as it were that Abraham has eaten Lazarus whole and Lazarus was not destroyed in Abraham's bosom but just has become a part of Abraham, like salt becomes a part of our organism when we eat it.

It can be compared with Abraham would be a nation and Lazarus would become an immigrant to that nation. Or it may be compared with a big corporation consuming a little corporation without destroying it.

So, the widespread idea that all people become equal in heaven is wrong. Abraham was so much greater than Lazarus that was able even to eat him whole. Some people are much greater than others.

Much worse than to Lazarus it were to the rich man about which is also said in this biblical story. In Luk. 16:23 it is said that this rich man was in torment in hell.

But to Abraham, I deem, it were so much better than to Lazarus as to Lazarus it were better than to that rich man which has come to the hell.