DIVES*

Traditional name of the rich man in Christ’s parable about the beggar Lazarus (Lk 16:19-31). It came from the Latin term dives, translating a Greek word for “rich,” “wealthy.” Though the rich man was not named in the parable, this name was already well accepted in the church by the third century. A second-century Egyptian scribe gave him the name “Neves,” meaning “nothing.” See Lazarus #1.