“The Rich Man and Lazarus”
Description
"Come all thoughtless people by whom Adam came...." Listeners are reminded of Lazarus in heaven and the Rich Man in Hell. The song consists mostly of the lecture to the Rich Man which took place after he died.
Notes
Jesus's story of the rich man and Lazarus is found in Luke 16:19-31 (the Lazarus of John 11, 12 is unrelated).
It's worth remembering that this is not something that actually happened in the Bible; rather, it is a story Jesus told as a warning.
The status of this piece is extremely dubious; it was reportedly collected from the author. Our general policy is to exclude such songs. But the whole story comes at so many removes that we can't prove Miller's authorship (or even, I suspect, his existence).
I nonetheless incline to agree that the song is not traditional; it's too weak.
I don't know if this is the Ed Miller who is also credited with "The Triplett Tragedy," but time and place make it possible. - RBW
Cross references
- cf. "Dives and Lazarus" [Child 56] (subject) and references there
References
- BrownII 55, "Dives and Lazarus" (1 text)
- Roud #6567?
- BI, BrII055