Bible Verses About Parables

In time the beggar died and was carried away by the angels to Avraham’s side; the rich man also died and was buried.

“In Sh’ol, where he was in torment, the rich man looked up and saw Avraham far away with El‘azar at his side.

He called out, ‘Father Avraham, take pity on me, and send El‘azar just to dip the tip of his finger in water to cool my tongue, because I’m in agony in this fire!’

However, Avraham said, ‘Son, remember that when you were alive, you got the good things while he got the bad; but now he gets his consolation here, while you are the one in agony.

Yet that isn’t all: between you and us a deep rift has been established, so that those who would like to pass from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’

“He answered, ‘Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father’s house,

where I have five brothers, to warn them; so that they may be spared having to come to this place of torment too.’

But Avraham said, ‘They have Moshe and the Prophets; they should listen to them.’

However, he said, ‘No, father Avraham, they need more. If someone from the dead goes to them, they’ll repent!’

But he replied, ‘If they won’t listen to Moshe and the Prophets, they won’t be convinced even if someone rises from the dead!’”

Then Yeshua told his talmidim a parable, in order to impress on them that they must always keep praying and not lose heart.

“In a certain town, there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected other people.

There was also in that town a widow who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me a judgment against the man who is trying to ruin me.’

For a long time he refused; but after awhile, he said to himself, ‘I don’t fear God, and I don’t respect other people;

but because this widow is such a nudnik, I will see to it that she gets justice — otherwise, she’ll keep coming and pestering me till she wears me out!’”

Then the Lord commented, “Notice what this corrupt judge says.

Now won’t God grant justice to his chosen people who cry out to him day and night? Is he delaying long over them?

I tell you that he will judge in their favor, and quickly! But when the Son of Man comes, will he find this trust on the earth at all?”

Also, to some who were relying on their own righteousness and looking down on everyone else, he told this parable:

“Two men went up to the Temple to pray, one a Parush and the other a tax-collector.

The Parush stood and prayed to himself, ‘O God! I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity — greedy, dishonest, immoral, or like this tax-collector!

I fast twice a week, I pay tithes on my entire income, . . . ’

But the tax-collector, standing far off, would not even raise his eyes toward heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God! Have mercy on me, sinner that I am!’

I tell you, this man went down to his home right with God rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but everyone who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Therefore he said, “A nobleman went to a country far away to have himself crowned king and then return.