sores. And it came to pass, that
the beggar died, and that he was carried away by the angels into
Abraham's bosom: and the rich man also died, and was buried. And
in Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth
Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said,
Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may
dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am
in anguish in this flame. 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. And besides all this, between us and you there is
a great gulf fixed, that they that would pass from hence to you
may not be able, and that none may cross over from thence to us.
And he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest
send him to my father's house; for I have five brethren; that he
may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of
torment. But Abraham saith, They have Moses and the prophets; let
them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one go to
them from the dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, If
they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be
persuaded, if one rise from the dead.--Luke 16:19-31.

Why does Jesus send the rich man to hell as if it were a matter of course?
No crimes or vices are alleged. It must be that a life given over to
sumptuous living and indifferent to the want and misery of a fellow-man at
the doorstep seemed to Jesus a deeply immoral and sinful life. Jesus
exerted all his energies to bring men close together in love. But wealth
divides. It creates semi-human relations between social classes, so that a
small dole seems to be a full discharge of obligations toward the poor,
and manly independence and virtue may be resented as offensive. The sting
of this parable is in the reference to the five brothers who were still
living as Dives had lived, and whom he was vainly trying to reach by
wireless. See verse 14 in explanation.

Is it fair to call the relations between the selfish rich and the
dependent poor "semi-human relations"?

Sixth Day: Get a Plank for the Deluge

And he said also unto the disciples, There was a certain rich man,
who had a steward; and the same was accused unto him that he was
wasting his g