Also if He was hiding the truth- what was the teaching of this parable
Why did Jesus give the poor man the name Lazarus? Because the name means "whom God helps".
Here's an article (fairly long) about this parable that I downloaded about 21 years ago:
The Rich Man and Lazarus
Luke 16:19-31
It is evident from the whole setting of this passage that it is a parable. Otherwise the logical lesson to be drawn from it is that unless we are poor
beggars, full of sores, we will never enter eternal bliss; and that future torment will be our portion if we happen to wear fine linen and purple and fare sumptuously every day. And, if taken literally, those who are poor are taken, not to heaven, but to Abraham's bosom. However, the context of this passage shows that Christ in this parable was teaching a great dispensational truth, namely, the change of favor from the Mosaic Law Covenant to the Covenant of faith. (Luke 16:16-18; Galatians 3:6-29) If you read carefully the 32nd chapter of Deuteronomy, you will see that Jesus was merely repeating in vivid pictorial language what Moses had already said. See particularly verses 20 to 29; and also Paul's quotation of the 21st verse in Romans 10:19, where he shows that Moses' prophecy referred to the overthrow of Israel consequent upon Jesus' rejection of that nation.
Jesus was evidently drawing upon something that was in the real world, the apostate Jewish belief which blended the Grecian philosophies into the Bible. The Jewish leaders knew of these beliefs and it was the Jewish leaders that he was addressing. He used their own beliefs, not to condone their apostate beliefs, but to illustrate the change he had just spoken of: "The law and the prophets were until John." -- Luke 16:16.
Some other reasons that this story should be viewed as a parable:
To think that Jesus was supporting the idea of eternal roasting after death by use of this parable is contrary to God's justice, for justice demanded the forfeiture of man's life for sin (Genesis 2:17), for "the wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23), and of God it is said (Psalm 145:20): "all the wicked will he destroy." Therefore, it would be an infraction of God's justice for him to preserve the wicked and eternally torture them.
Additionally, such a conclusion violates God's wisdom, for wisdom devises plans which useful ends are attained. There is surely no useful purpose in keeping the rich man eternally in a place of torture.
Of course, the parable says nothing about Lazarus remaining in hades for eternity, but as Revelation 20:13 shows, all in hades will be brought back for the judgment day, and then hades will be destroyed in the lake of fire. -- Revelation 20:14; See also Hosea 13:14.
If the Rich Man were in literal flames in hades, this could contradict the entire testimony of the rest of the Bible, which shows that sheol/hades is
nothingness, oblivion, silence, destruction. -- Ecclesiastes 9:10; Psalm 6:5; 115:17; 146:3,4; Isaiah 38:18; 63:16; Job 14:21; etc. This has been showned throughout this publication.
It would contradict God's stated purpose to bless mankind. -- Genesis 12:1-3.
It would contradict the ransom, which is clearly taught, for example, in 1 Corinthians 15:3,21,22, Hebrews 2:9; 1 Timothy 2:6, which scriptures teach that Christ died (not suffered eternal torment) for our sins according to the Hebrew scriptures. The prophecy of Isaiah 53:4-12 shows that our Lord would bear our penalty (which is death -- Genesis 2:17; Romans 6:23 -- not eternal torment), pouring out his soul to death. The effect of this ransom is to be the salvation of all men, not the eternal torture of the vast majority. (1 Timothy 4:10; 1 John 2:2).
The rich man of the parable represented the proud and self-righteous of the Jewish nation in our Savior's time, seeking righteousness by means of the Law Covenant. (Galatians 2:21; Philippians 3:9; Romans 9:31,32) The Pharisees seem to be particularly represented by the Rich Man. (Luke 16:14,15) The scribes and Pharisees sat in Moses seat' (Matthew 23:2) as the religious leaders and representatives in Israel. (Matthew 23:5-7) The Rich Man's clothing of purple and fine linen represented the honors and privileges accorded to the scribes and Pharisees. (Matthew 23:5-7) The fine linen represented the self-righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, which they claimed by the Law. (John 9:40,41) The purple clothing represented royalty -- not only was purple the royal color in our Savior's day, but we still speak of royal purple. (Judges 8:26; John 19:2,3; Mark 15:17,18) The scribes and Pharisees were sitting in Moses' seat, therefore they had the purple in the sense that to it belonged the honor of being the typical Kingdom of God, and the promises respecting the future dominion of God as the Kingdom of God. The abundance of food upon the Rich Man's table represented the abundance of divine promises and blessings and instructions given to the scribes and Pharisees. (Romans 9:4,5) It was this table of divine favors that the apostle referred to saying: "What advantage does the Jew have? Much in every way, chiefly because to them were committed the oracles of God." (Romans 3:1-3) This was the table respecting which the prophet and the apostle spoke concerning Israel: "Let their table become a trap and a snare to them." (Romans 11:9) In other words, the very bounties and blessings of God's revelations or oracles tended to make them not humble, but proud, and ultimately assisted in their stumbling and rejection of the Savior due to their insistence of their righteousness by works of the Law. -- Romans 9:30-32.
The scribes and Pharisees would not so much as eat with any they considered as sinners. (Matthew 9:11) They viewed Jewish sinners the same as if they were Gentiles, without law. Those who accepted the Messiah's teachings were of this lowly Jewish class. Matthew, one of his apostles, was a tax collector, others were common fishermen. (Matthew 10:3; Mark 1:16,19) None of them were recognized by the religious aristocracy of the time. They were looked down upon, declared not to be heirs with the holy Pharisees and educated Scribes and Doctors of the Law. The Pharisees even determined that Jesus himself was not only a friend of publicans and sinners but an injurious person who must not be allowed to live. (Matthew 12:14) From the Jewish leaders' standpoint Jesus and his followers were all outside the gates, excluded from the special privileges and blessings of God through the "righteousness" Law. These lowly Jewish followers of Jesus were the first of the Lazarus class.
The Lazarus class also later included those Gentiles of humble heart who accepted Jesus, thus becoming Jews inwardly and participants in the Abrahamic promises. (Colossians 3:11; Galatians 3:28,29; Romans 2:28,29; 10:12) As an illustration of how these fed on the crumbs that fell from the Rich Man's table let us remember Jesus' words to the Syrophenician woman, a Gentile who came to him entreating for the healing of her daughter. Our Master, to illustrate the relative position of the Jews and Gentiles from God's standpoint, said to her: "It is not proper to take the children's bread and give it to the dogs." (Matthew 15:26) In other words, Jesus was saying: It would not be proper for me to devote my time and energies to the blessing of yourself and daughter, who are Gentiles, because the Jewish nation is by covenant in the favored place with God. Any special blessings and favors that God has to give must be given to them first of all. Non- Jews are not to expect to get the favors I was sent to give to Israel.' We remember his words to the disciples also: "Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, for I am not sent but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." Matthew 15:24
The message and blessings and opportunities could not go to the Gentiles until first they had been offered to the Jewish table (occupied by the Rich Man) and had been rejected by all except a remnant the Jewish Lazarus class who would seek righteousness by faith. (John 1:11,12; Romans 1:15; 2:9,10; 11:5; Matthew 22:3-10) But mark that as Lazarus got some of the "crumbs," according to the parable, so did the Syrophenician woman. She exclaimed: "True, Lord. Yet the dogs eat of the crumbs that fall from their masters' table." (Matthew 15:27; Mark 7:28) Jesus answered her: "'O woman, your faith is great. Let it be to you even as thou desire.' And her daughter was made whole from that very hour." (Matthew 15:28) Jesus gave her the crumb of faith from the children's table -- the table being occupied by the Rich Man.
(To be continued.)
