Ordinarily, poverty is anonymous, and wealth is acknowledged. Yet Lazarus is named, and the rich man is anonymous, anticipating the reversal that occurs at the end. Along with the parables of the Ten Virgins, Prodigal Son, and Good Samaritan, it was one of the most frequently illustrated parables in medieval art, perhaps because of its vivid account of an afterlife. Parable   Luke 16:19–31, New International Version:  Interpretations  There are different views on the historicity and origin of the story of the Rich Man and Lazarus.. The story is unique to Luke and is not thought to come from the hypothetical Q document. As a literal historical event  Some Christians view the story not as a parable, but as an actual event which was related by Jesus to his followers. This was generally the view of the medieval Church. Supporters of this view point to a key detail in the story: the use of a personal name (Lazarus) not found in any other parable. By contrast, in all of the other parables Jesus refers to a central character by a description, such as "a certain man", "a sower", and so forth.. Critics of this view point out that "The soul that sins, it shall die" (Ezekiel 18); "For dust you are and to dust you shall return" (Genesis 3:19).
Ordinarily, poverty is anonymous, and wealth is acknowledged. Yet Lazarus is named, and the rich old man is anonymous, anticipating the reversal that occurs at the end. Along with the parables of the Ten Virgins, Prodigal Son, and Good Samaritan, it was one of the most frequently illustrated parables in medieval art, perhaps because of its vivid account of an afterlife. Parable
 Luke 16:19–31, New International Version:
 Interpretations
 There are different views on the historicity and origin of the story of the Rich Old Man and Lazarus.. The story is unique to Luke and is not thought to come from the hypothetical Q document. As a literal historical event
 Some Christians view the story not as a parable, but as an actual event which was related by Jesus to his followers. This was generally the view of the medieval Church. Supporters of this view point to a key detail in the story: the use of a personal name (Lazarus) not found in any other parable. By contrast, in all of the other parables Jesus refers to a central character by a description, such as "a certain old man", "a sower", and so forth.. Critics of this view point out that "The soul that sins, it shall die" (Ezekiel 18); "For dust you are and to dust you shall return" (Genesis 3:19).