Luke 16:27

Luke 16:27, in plain English

When the rich man realizes he can't be helped, he begs: 'At least send Lazarus to warn my brothers!' He doesn't want them to end up where he is.

Why it's here

It's the first time he shows concern for someone else. But even now, he's still asking for Lazarus to be the one who goes.

Who's speaking

The rich man's plea shifts from himself to his family, but the dynamic with Lazarus hasn't changed.

Where it sits in the story

Too late for himself, the rich man desperately wants his brothers to know the truth before it's too late for them too.

The scholarly reading

Unable to help himself, the rich man shifts to intercessory concern for his five brothers, asking Abraham to send Lazarus to 'my father's house' (oikon tou patros mou) as a warning.

Language and setting

This request introduces the second half of the dialogue, which addresses the question of whether extraordinary signs can produce repentance — directly relevant to Jesus's audience.

Voice

The rich man pleads for his brothers, showing the first sign of concern for others — though even now, he wants Lazarus sent as an errand boy.

Significance

Realizing his own fate is sealed, the rich man begs Abraham to send Lazarus to warn his five brothers — so they won't end up in the same place.

25But Abraham answered, ‘Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things. But now he is comforted here, while you are in agony.

26And besides all this, a great chasm has been fixed between us and you, so that even those who wish cannot cross from here to you, nor can anyone cross from there to us.’

27‘Then I beg you, father,’ he said, ‘send Lazarus to my father’s house,

28for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also end up in this place of torment.’

29But Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let your brothers listen to them.’

Read all of Luke 16 — A shrewd manager, a rich man in torment, and Lazarus at his gate. Jesus draws a straight line between how you handle money and where you end up.