church of Christ at 26th and Connecticut
Joplin, Missouri

Phone
417-781-2326

1819 E 26th
Jopin, MO  64804

   Worship Schedule

Sunday
    Bible Class              9 am
    Morning Worship    10 am
    Evening Worship      6 pm

Wednesday
     Devotional & Class   7 pm

Upcoming Activities

ABRAHAM’S BOSOM

Jesus said that a poor man named Lazarus “died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom” (Luke 16:22 NASB).  What exactly is the significance of “Abraham’s bosom”?  Various authors have had various (but not necessarily contradictory) thoughts.

1.      “A realm of great honor”

In his book, Discovering the Pearl of Great Price: The Parables of Jesus, our brother Eldred Echols wrote:

Ancient Hebrew tombs carry the inscription, “Asleep in the bosom of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” The expression is taken from their custom of a banquet host placing the most honored guest at his immediate right.  Since they reclined diagonally at the table, the guest’s head was then near the host’s chest.

Similarly, in the book, Notes From The Margin Of My Bible: Volume II, our brother Wayne Jackson noted:

A good commentary on this passage is found in John 13—the scene of the last supper—that evening meal which Christ had with His disciples before His arrest and trial.  Concerning that meal, it is said of the apostle John: “There was at the table reclining in Jesus’ bosom one of his disciples whom Jesus loved” (13:23).  In that ancient culture, people did not sit in chairs around a table as we do today.  Rather, the table was low to the floor and the guests “reclined” on pallets by the table side.

         If one was an especially honored guest, he reclined next to the host, and so, in the idiom of that day, he was said to be “in the bosom” of his host.  The expression thus came to denote a place of blessedness, honor.  Christ is described as being “in the bosom” of His Father (John 1:18), suggesting an intimate relationship between the Father and the Son.  And so the reference to Lazarus simply indicates that when he died, he was taken into a realm of great honor.

2.      “The love that Abraham had for Lazarus”

In his book, Beyond Death’s Door, our brother Owen Olbricht has written:

         “Abraham’s bosom” in Luke 16:22 is not to be thought of as a synonym for Paradise.  The righteous, like Abraham, all go to Paradise at death, but not necessarily to Abraham’s bosom.  The expression “Abraham’s bosom” merely indicates the love that Abraham had for Lazarus.  Nathan told how a poor man carried a lamb in his bosom (2 Samuel 12:3), showing his love and care for the lamb.  The disciple Jesus loved lay in Jesus’ bosom, or breast (John 13:23), an indication of Jesus’ love for that disciple.  Jesus is said to be in the bosom of the Father (John 1:18), an expression of God’s love for Jesus.  The rich man was not loved or honored by Abraham, as many Jews would have expected; rather, poor Lazarus received Abraham’s acceptance.

3.      “Gathered to his people”

Our brother Anthony Lee Ash made an interesting observation, saying, “Abraham’s bosom might be equivalent to ‘gathered to his people.’”  Notice these passages:

1.      “Abraham breathed his last and died in a good old age, an old man and full of years, and was gathered to his people” (Genesis 25:8 ESV; cf. 15:15).

2.      “These are the years of the life of Ishmael: 137 years. He breathed his last and died, and was gathered to his people” (Genesis 25:17 ESV).

3.      “And Isaac breathed his last, and he died and was gathered to his people, old and full of days. And his sons Esau and Jacob buried him” (Genesis 35:29 ESV).

4.      “When Jacob finished commanding his sons, he drew up his feet into the bed and breathed his last and was gathered to his people” (Genesis 49:33 ESV).

5.      And God told Moses, “die on the mountain which you go up, and be gathered to your people, as Aaron your brother died in Mount Hor and was gathered to his people” (Deut. 32:50 ESV; cf. Numbers 20:24, 26).