Luke and the Poor
Even though each of the Synoptics demonstrates a concern for the poor and dispossessed, such people are a special concern for Lk. No passage demonstrates this more clearly than the Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus (16.19-31), which is unique to Lk's gospel. Lazarus was a very poor man, and he was given nothing by the rich man who "was dressed in fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day" (16.19). After the deaths of the rich man and Lazarus, the rich man ended up in Hades, while the Lazarus "was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham" (16.22). We read,
In Hades, where he was being tormented, he looked up and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side. He called out, "Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger into water and cool my tongue; for I am in agony in these flames." But Abraham said, "Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in agony" (16.23-25).
When the rich man requested that Lazarus be sent to warn the rich man's brothers, Abraham refused:
"They have Moses and the prophets, they should listen to them." [The rich man] said, "No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent." He said to him, "If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced, even if someone rises from the dead."
The message is clear: Jesus has prophetically required that the poor be treated with compassion. Later in the gospel Jesus says,
How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God."
We can also see Lk's concern for the poor in two of the Beatitudes that are paralleled in Mt's Sermon on the Mount:
Matthew
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God (5.3).
Luke
Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God (6.20).
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled (5.6).
Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled (6.21).
There are a number of other passages in Lk that highlight this concern for the poor and the outcast. Lk's gospel strongly emphasizes Jesus' compassion.
