The Watchtower Society and John and Morton Edgar - A2Z.org

(3) Jesus' statement regarding Abraham, Isaac andJacob, that God is not the God of the dead but ofthe living.The Rich Man and LazarusIt is evident from the whole setting of thispassage that it is a parable. Otherwise the logicallesson to be drawn from it is that unless we arepoor beggars, full of sores, we shall never. entereternal bliss; and that future torment will be' ourportion if we happen-to wear fine linen and purpleand fare sumptuously every day. Christ in thisparal~le mas teaching a great dispensational truth,~amely, the overthrow of Israel artd the a&eptanceof the Gentiles into God's favour. If you read carefullythe 32nd chapter of Deuteronomy, you will seethat Jesus was merely repeating in vivid .languagewhat n'Ioses had already said. See particularlyverses 20 to 29; and also Paul's quotation of the21st verse in Romans X., 19, where he shows thatMoses' prophecy referred to the overthrow of Israelconsequentupon the Lord Jesus' rejection of thenation.'L'he rich man represented the nation of Israel,which at the time when Christ was speaking wasfaring sumptuously every day on God's favours andpromises. The " purple " represented the fact that* the Jews were the Children of the Kingdom, thenation to which the Messiah belonged. . The " finelinen " symbolised the righteousness imputed tothem through the typical sacrifices of the Law.Lazarus represented those cf the Gentiles whofeared God, but were " aliens from the commonwealthof Israel, and strangers from the covenantsof promise, having no hop?, and without God in.the world "-Bphesians II., 12. The only favours26