This section in Luke's long narrative of Jesus' ministry as He travelled to Jerusalem (9:51-19:27) is climactic. It is a choice example of Jesus offering salvation to a needy person. Zaccheus accepted Jesus' offer and responded appropriately with joy and the fruits of repentance. He also gave an excellent example of how disciples should use what wealth they have. The section closes with a summary of Jesus' ministry that is really the key verse in this Gospel.
Zaccheus displayed traits of the tax collector in the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector (18:9-14). They shared the same despised occupation, the same sense of personal need, and the same childlike humility and receptivity toward God. He also resembles the rich young ruler (18:18-23). He, too, had wealth, but his response to Jesus was precisely the opposite of that other rich man. His salvation is a great example of the truth that with God all things are possible (18:25-27). Zaccheus, moreover, demonstrated the same faith in Jesus and consequent insight into his responsibility to follow Jesus and glorify God that the blind man did (18:35-43). His story brings together many themes that Luke interwove in this section in which he stressed the recipients of salvation (18:9-19:27).
"The incident contains several primary Lukan features: the universal appeal of the gospel (vv. 2-4); the ethical problem of wealth (v. 2); the call of a sinner' who was in social disfavor (v. 7); the sense of God's present work (vv. 5, 9); the feeling of urgency (immediately,' speusas, v. 5), of necessity (must,' v. 5), and of joy (v. 6); restitution, with goods distributed to the poor (v. 8); and, above all, salvation (vv. 9-10)."418
19:1 Probably the new Jericho that Herod the Great had built is in view (cf. 18:35). It stood immediately to the south of old Jericho. Jesus was passing through Jericho on his way to Jerusalem and the Cross.
19:2 Luke underlined Zaccheus' occupation and wealth, two things that Jesus had taught His disciple about earlier. Tax collectors represented social outcasts, but they typically responded positively to Jesus' ministry. Zaccheus was a chief tax collector (Gr. architelones), which probably made him the object of special hatred in Jericho. The wealth that he had accumulated through his occupation probably made his neighbors hate him even more. They probably ridiculed him for his name too. It is an abbreviated form of Zechariah, meaning "the righteous one."Tax collectors normally became wealthy by extorting more taxes from their fellow Jews than those that the Jews owed to Rome. Jericho would have been a main tax gathering site since many people who approached Jerusalem and Judea from the east passed through it. Rich people typically did not respond positively to Jesus' ministry. How will Zaccheus respond, as a typical tax collector or as a typical rich man?
19:3-4 Zaccheus' curiosity about Jesus was understandable since one of Jesus' disciples had been a tax collector (5:27-30). Moreover Jesus had a reputation for associating with people in his profession (5:29-30; 7:29, 34; 15:1). Luke's reference to his stature prepares the reader for his climbing a tree to see Jesus (v. 4). It is interesting that Zaccheus did something childlike, namely climbing a tree, since Jesus had formerly commended the tax collector in His parable for childlike faith (18:13). He had also taught the importance of childlike faith (cf. 18:16-17).
"The crowd as physical barrier and Zacchaeus' strange position up in a tree can serve as spatial symbols of his isolation from his community."419
19:5-6 Jesus initiated a relationship with Zaccheus. Since he called him by name He evidently knew about him, though Zaccheus had obviously not seen Jesus formerly. Jesus not only wanted to talk with him but to stay in his house. Jesus spoke as though He felt compelled to do this as is clear from the recurrence of one of Luke's favorite words, "must"(Gr. dei, cf. 4:43; et al.). "Today"further stresses urgency and the fulfillment of God's plan (cf. 2:11; 4:21; 19:9).420This attitude was typical of Jesus who sought out lost people. Zaccheus gladly and obediently responded to Jesus' offer.
". . . the coming of Jesus to share his home is a sign of fellowship and ultimately forgiveness."421
Verse 5 records an instance of divine sovereignty and verse 6 human responsibility.422
19:7 "They"(NASB) were the people in the crowd (v. 3). It was as though Jesus had become the guest of a Mafia godfather (cf. 5:29-30; 15:1-2). However table fellowship implied even more comradeship then than eating in someone else's home today does. Staying in a person's home amounted to sharing in his sins.423
19:8 Zaccheus' stood up to make his promises thus symbolizing their solemnity. He addressed Jesus as "Lord"implying respect and Jesus' deity (cf. v. 9). His statement was a response to Jesus' gracious initiative and the crowd's disapproving reaction. His plan to give half his wealth to the poor and to reimburse generously anyone whom he had cheated testified to the genuineness of his faith in Jesus (v. 9). The Mosaic Law only required adding 20% to the amount due when restitution was necessary (cf. Lev. 5:16; Num. 5:7). These were the signs of true repentance (cf. 3:8; 14:33; 18:22).
"Zacchaeus is an example of radical repentance, not of practical wisdom, and it is assumed that his response will leave him pretty much in the same financial state required of the rich ruler."424
Some commentators believed that the conditional clause "if I have defrauded anyone of anything"should better read "from whomsoever I have wrongfully exacted anything."This translation would indicate that Zaccheus had defrauded people.425However the NASB and NIV translators did not necessarily think that he had. Whichever is the correct translation, it seems clear that the main point is not the extent of Zaccheus' guilt but his attitude toward it.
19:9 Jesus' assessed Zaccheus' promises as an evidence of saving faith. Salvation had come to that house because Zaccheus had exercised saving faith and had thereby proved to be a genuine descendant of Abraham, the spiritual father of all believers.426His faith and works proved that he was a spiritual son of Abraham and not just one of his physical descendants (cf. Gen. 15:6; 22:1-19). Now he could enter the kingdom, not because he was a Jew physically but because he was a believer in Jesus.
"This ["He also is a son of Abraham"] will seem to be an irrelevant remark unless we recognize that the principal tension in the story is caused by the rejection of Zacchaeus by the Jewish community."427
19:10 Jesus summarized the present purpose of the Son of Man's ministry that found fulfillment in Zaccheus' salvation (cf. 1 Tim. 1:15). Jesus had sought out many, especially among the lost sheep of Israel. He had saved those who would accept His gracious offer of salvation. This verse is the key verse in the third Gospel because it expresses concisely the ministry of Jesus as Luke presented it (cf. 4:18-19; 15:5, 9, 24).
"This whole incident is the epitome of the messianic mission described in Luke 4."428
