Luke 16:26

And besides all this, a great chasm has been fixed between us and you, so that even those who wish cannot cross from here to you, nor can anyone cross from there to us.’

Berean Standard Bible

Follow its threads on the canvas →

Study note

Setting — Abraham addresses the rich man in Hades, immediately after recounting their swapped earthly fortunes and before the man's request to send Lazarus.

The words — μεταξὺ (metaxu) = between, specifying the fixed location of the chasm that separates the two parties.

The thread — The text declares an unbridgeable divide that stops all crossing, paralleling the irreversible divine wrath in John 3:36 and the inescapable Sheol destiny in Psalms 49:14 and Psalms 50:22.

Why it lands — It requires the reader to accept that post-mortem conditions are permanent and that current revelation suffices for salvation, rendering future signs unnecessary.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Greek words

King James Version

And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.

Cross-references

John 3:36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life. Whoever rejects the Son will not see life. Instead, the wrath of God remains on him.”
Psalms 49:14 Like sheep they are destined for Sheol. Death will be their shepherd. The upright will rule them in the morning, and their form will decay in Sheol, far from their lofty abode.
Psalms 50:22 Now consider this, you who forget God, lest I tear you to pieces, with no one to rescue you:
Malachi 3:18 So you will again distinguish between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.”
Matthew 25:46 And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
2 Thessalonians 1:4 That is why we boast among God’s churches about your perseverance and faith in the face of all the persecution and affliction you are enduring.
James 1:11 For the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant; its flower falls and its beauty is lost. So too, the rich man will fade away in the midst of his pursuits.
James 5:1 Come now, you who are rich, weep and wail over the misery to come upon you.
Revelation 20:10 And the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur, into which the beast and the false prophet had already been thrown. There they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
1 Samuel 25:36 When Abigail returned to Nabal, there he was in the house, holding a feast fit for a king, in high spirits and very drunk. So she told him nothing until morning light.