What does the parable of Lazarus and the rich man mean?

Did Jesus intend the parable of Lazarus and the rich man (Luke 16:19-31) to give us a real-time view of the state of the dead now, either in heaven or an ever-burning hell? How does this parable fit with the teachings of other scriptures about the state of the dead?

Two fundamental rules of good biblical scholarship will help us to understand a difficult scripture almost every time. First, look at the immediate context. Second, look at the broader context of the entire BibleThe books (Greek, "biblia" ) that are acknowledged as canonical (authoritative) by the early Christian Church. It includes both the books of the ancient Hebrew prophets and those of the apostolic witnesses to Jesus Christ.. By contrast, attempting to understand a difficult passage by human reasoning is bad scholarship. Let's apply the proper rules systematically to the parable.

The immediate context (the verses before and after the parable) doesn't clearly provide us with further information, so let's go on to the second rule. Jesus said, "The ScriptureThe divinely inspired writings of both the Old and New Testaments. The term Scripture is used in the New Testament to refer to both the Hebrew Bible (Luke 24:44-45) and the new apostolic writings accepted as inspired (2 Peter 3:16; 1 Timothy 5:18). cannot be broken" (John 10:35If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken;
See All...). He meant that every section of the BibleThe books (Greek, "biblia" ) that are acknowledged as canonical (authoritative) by the early Christian Church. It includes both the books of the ancient Hebrew prophets and those of the apostolic witnesses to Jesus Christ. on any given subject must be in agreement with every other section that addresses the same topic.

What does the BibleThe books (Greek, "biblia" ) that are acknowledged as canonical (authoritative) by the early Christian Church. It includes both the books of the ancient Hebrew prophets and those of the apostolic witnesses to Jesus Christ. say about the state of the dead? A single phrase in Ecclesiastes 9:5For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.
See All... summarizes the BibleThe books (Greek, "biblia" ) that are acknowledged as canonical (authoritative) by the early Christian Church. It includes both the books of the ancient Hebrew prophets and those of the apostolic witnesses to Jesus Christ.'s teaching about the state of the dead: "The dead know nothing." (See also Ezekiel 18:20The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.
See All...; 1 Corinthians 15:22-23 [22] For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
[23] But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming.

See All..., 51-52; John 3:13And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.
See All..., 16; Acts 2:29Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch DavidKing of Israel, killed the giant Goliath with a sling and stones, a man after God's own heart, only turned from God in the matter of Uriah the Hittite (1 Kings 15:5), had an affair with Bathsheba, Messiah would come from line of David, main author of Psalms and highly musical., that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day.
See All..., 34; Romans 6:23For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
See All... and many other passages that show that the soul can die, that physical death is like sleep and that the dead will be resurrected in the future, that no one has gone to heaven, that sin leads to death—not eternal life in another place, etc.).

Reading this parable to mean that the dead are conscious in an ever-burning hell or in heaven would be a clear contradiction with the broader context of the entire BibleThe books (Greek, "biblia" ) that are acknowledged as canonical (authoritative) by the early Christian Church. It includes both the books of the ancient Hebrew prophets and those of the apostolic witnesses to Jesus Christ.. Indeed, it would be a misinterpretation.

However, we must understand that this is a parable—"an imaginary story…to illustrate and inculcate some higher spiritual truth" ( International Standard BibleThe books (Greek, "biblia" ) that are acknowledged as canonical (authoritative) by the early Christian Church. It includes both the books of the ancient Hebrew prophets and those of the apostolic witnesses to Jesus Christ. Encyclopedia, "parable"). If we take its lesson at face value, it is in complete harmony with the rest of the BibleThe books (Greek, "biblia" ) that are acknowledged as canonical (authoritative) by the early Christian Church. It includes both the books of the ancient Hebrew prophets and those of the apostolic witnesses to Jesus Christ.. Jesus' straightforward point is that it is too late to change one's behavior and character after death. His point is that we must live in a godly manner when we are alive, just as the man Lazarus did in the story.

We bring together all of the scriptures about the afterlife in our booklets HeavenThe Bible speaks of three heavens: (1) the atmosphere surrounding earth, that is, the sky (Acts 1:9-11); (2) space, including our solar system and the observable stars and galaxies (Genesis 1:14-18; Psalm 8:3); and (3) the location of God's throne, from where He governs the entire universe, called "the third heaven" (2 Corinthians 12:2). Solomon said: "God is in heaven and you are on earth" (Ecclesiastes 5:2). In the Bible , the context usually tells us which of the three "heavens" is being discussed. and Hell: What Does the BibleThe books (Greek, "biblia" ) that are acknowledged as canonical (authoritative) by the early Christian Church. It includes both the books of the ancient Hebrew prophets and those of the apostolic witnesses to Jesus Christ. Really Teach? and What Happens After Death? They also contain further background information about this parable.