John Calvin Commentary Luke 16:25

"But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things: but now here he is comforted and thou art in anguish." — Luke 16:25 (ASV)

Son, remember. The word son appears to be used ironically, as a sharp and piercing reproof to the rich man, who falsely boasted in his lifetime that he was one of the sons of Abraham. It seems as if pain inflicted by a hot iron wounded his mind when his hypocrisy and false confidence were placed before his eyes.

When it is said that he is tormented in hell because he had received his good things in his lifetime, we must not understand this to mean that eternal destruction awaits all who have enjoyed prosperity in the world.

On the contrary, as Augustine has judiciously observed, poor Lazarus was carried into the bosom of rich Abraham to inform us that riches do not shut the gate of the kingdom of heaven against anyone. Instead, it is open alike to all who have either made a sober use of riches or patiently endured the lack of them.

All that is meant is that the rich man, who yielded to the allurements of the present life, abandoned himself entirely to earthly enjoyments, and despised God and His kingdom, now suffers the punishment of his own neglect.

Receivedst THY good things. The pronoun your is emphatic, as if Abraham had said: You were created for an immortal life, and the Law of God raised you on high to the contemplation of the heavenly life; but you, forgetting so exalted a condition, chose to resemble a sow or a dog, and you therefore receive a reward that befits brutal pleasures.

But now he enjoys comfort. When it is said of Lazarus, on the other hand, that he enjoys comfort, because he had suffered many distresses in the world, it would be pointless to apply this to all whose condition is wretched. This is because their afflictions, in many cases, are so far from having benefited them that they should rather bring upon them more severe punishment.

But Lazarus is commended for patient endurance of the cross, which always springs from faith and a genuine fear of God. For the one who obstinately resists his sufferings, and whose ferocity remains unsubdued, has no claim to be rewarded for patience by receiving from God comfort in exchange for the cross.

In summary, those who have patiently endured the burden of the cross laid upon them, and have not been rebellious against the yoke and chastisements of God, but, amidst uninterrupted sufferings, have cherished the hope of a better life, have a rest laid up for them in heaven when the period of their warfare ends.

On the contrary, wicked despisers of God, who are wholly engrossed in the pleasures of the flesh and who, by a kind of mental intoxication, drown every feeling of piety, will experience immediately after death such torments as will efface their empty enjoyments.

It must also be remembered that this comfort, which the sons of God enjoy, consists in this: they perceive a crown of glory prepared for them and rest in the joyful expectation of it. Conversely, the wicked are tormented by the dread of the future judgment, which they see coming upon them.