SUMMARY
While passing through Jericho, JesusJesus is the Messiah whose life, death, and resurrection are God's saving act for humanity. More spots ZacchaeusA wealthy chief tax collector in Jericho who came to believe in Jesus. More, a wealthy tax collectorTax collectors, sometimes called publicans, were unpopular because they were thought to be greedy and unscrupulous. Jesus, however, not only ate with tax collectors but also treated them sympathetically. The fact that he favored such tax collectors as Zacchaeus and Matthew annoyed many pious persons. ... More, perched in a tree and trying to get a good view of Jesus. After Jesus calls him down and tells him that they are going to his home, Zacchaeus speaks about making financial restitution, and Jesus declares that “salvationSalvation can mean saved from something (deliverance) or for something (redemption). Paul preached that salvation comes through the death of Christ on the cross which redeemed sinners from death and for a grace-filled life. More has come to this house.”
ANALYSIS
Although Zacchaeus appears only in Luke’s Gospel, his brief story has attracted a lot of attention. Luke’s powerful account connects to the context of the broader Gospel, drawing on many ideas that have already appeared throughout Jesus’ ministry. For one thing, Zacchaeus’s introduction (“he was a chief tax collector and was rich”) leads readers to view him in light of other characters. Previous passages in LukeThe "beloved physician" and companion of Paul. More have lumped “tax collectors” together with “sinners.” Jesus has been critical of the wealthy, and a rich ruler has balked at an invitation to follow Jesus (18:18-25). Just as people are wondering, “Who can be saved?” (18:26), Zacchaeus shows up as perhaps a very unlikely candidate.
An important question about this story is what Zacchaeus means by his words in 19:8. The verbs he uses when speaking to Jesus are in the present tense and can be understood as Zacchaeus claiming that he regularly gives to the poor and pays restitution. This would mean that Zacchaeus is defending himself against the accusations of others (19:7) and against a bad reputation that might have led the crowd to bar his view in 19:3. If this is the case, then Zacchaeus’s “salvation” involves the restoration of his honor within the community, and that restoration then reminds readers not to look upon the wealthy and automatically assume that they are corrupt or sinful. If, however, Zacchaeus in 19:8 announces that he is at this point in time changing his behavior and moving from corruption to benevolence, then his “salvation” involves a new way of living. He no longer serves his wealth (see 16:13) but generously gives a portion of it away to those who are poor and those who have been victimized by an oppressive economic system. Even such an unlikely candidate for salvation is not beyond the reach of Jesus’ efforts to reclaim the lost.
