For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry. Was dead - Lost to all good - given up to all evil. In this figurative sense the word is used by the best Greek writers. See many examples in Kypke.
Related Commentaries of Luke 15:24
Luke 15:24
24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.