Postmortem Punishment in the Parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man (Luke 16:19-31): Between Coherence and Indeterminacy of Luke’s Eschatology

Abstract

Taking as its point of departure the commonly recognized tension between the image of postmortem punishment in Lk 16:19-31 and other Lukan conceptualizations of the afterlife, the article examines the said image against the background of Luke’s overall eschatology. In the first step, both Luke’s bipolar ideological horizon and the conjunction of eschatology and wealth ethics are brought to light, demonstrating general coherence between the parable and Luke’s eschatological perspective. The parable’s presentation of the post-mortem punishment as immediate and final is affirmed. In the second step, elements of indeterminacy in Luke’s eschatological perspective are explored. Through the workings of metalepsis, the rich texture of Luke’s narrative is shown to generate additional possibilities for interpreting the rich man’s punishment. It follows that the precise nature of the punishment – its final as opposed to intermediate character – cannot be said to be completely unambiguous.