Luke 19:1 - Meaning and Application

Many people were no doubt brought to faith in Christ, though the Gospels do not record them. But some cases were unusual enough to be remembered, and Zaccheus was one of them. Christ passed through Jericho (Luke 19:1). That city had been built under a curse, yet Christ honored it with his presence, for the gospel removes the curse. It should not have been built in the first place, but once it stood, living there was not a sin.

Christ was traveling from across the Jordan to Bethany, near Jerusalem, where he would raise Lazarus to life. Even when he was on the way to do one good work, he found many more to do along the road. He did good for both people’s souls and bodies, and here we see one example of his care for the soul.

Notice, first, who Zaccheus was. His name shows that he was a Jew. Zaccai was a common Jewish name, and there was even a well-known rabbi by that name around that time. His job was important: he was the chief tax collector, a kind of receiver-general. Other tax collectors worked under him, and some think he farmed the customs duties. We often read of tax collectors coming to Christ, but here was one who stood above the rest in rank and authority and still sought him. God keeps his remnant among every kind of people. Christ came to save even the chief tax collector.

Zaccheus was also a man of means. He was rich. The lower tax collectors were often broken men with little standing, but the chief tax collector had built a good estate. Christ had just shown how hard it is for rich people to enter the kingdom of God, and now he gives an example of one rich man who had been lost and was found, though not by being reduced to poverty like the prodigal son.

Second, notice how Zaccheus came into Christ’s way, and what led to their meeting. He was eager to see Jesus, to find out what sort of man he was, since he had heard so much about him (Luke 19:3). It is natural for us to want a look at those whose names have filled our ears, because we think there must be something remarkable about them. At the very least, we like to say later that we have seen them. But the eye is never satisfied with merely seeing. We should seek to see Jesus with the eye of faith, to understand who he is. In worship and other holy duties, that should be our aim: we would see Jesus.

He could not get that wish because he was short and the crowd was large. Christ did not set himself up to be seen, carried on people’s shoulders as the pope is in procession. He and his kingdom did not come with outward show. He did not ride in an open chariot like earthly rulers. He came, as one of us, hidden in the crowd, for this was the day of his humiliation. Zaccheus was small in stature and stood below everyone around him, so he could not see Jesus. Many people who are short in body have large souls and lively spirits. Who would not rather be a Zaccheus than a Saul, even though Saul was taller than everyone else? Those who are short should not worry about adding height to themselves.

Because he would not be denied, Zaccheus forgot his dignity as chief tax collector. He ran ahead like a boy and climbed a sycamore tree to see Jesus. Those who truly want to see Christ will use the right means to do it. They will push through much trouble and opposition, and they will gladly take effort to find him. Those who feel small must take every help they can get to rise up and see Christ, and they should not be ashamed to admit they need help. Little is enough when it helps us reach him.

Third, notice the attention Christ gave him, the call he issued to him, and the power of that call (Luke 19:5, Luke 19:6). Christ invited himself to Zaccheus’s house, confident of a warm welcome there. Wherever Christ comes, he brings his own welcome with him. He opens the heart and inclines it to receive him. Christ looked up into the tree and saw Zaccheus. Zaccheus had come to look at Christ and meant to take notice of him, but he did not expect Christ to notice him. That was far above anything he deserved. See how Christ met him with his kindness and exceeded his hopes. See also how he encouraged the smallest beginnings and carried them forward. The one who wanted to know Christ would be known by him. The one who only wanted to see him was allowed to speak with him.

Christ called him by name, Zaccheus, for he knows his chosen ones by name, and they are written in his book. Zaccheus might have asked, as Nathanael did (John 1:48), “How do you know me?” But before he climbed the sycamore tree, Christ had already seen and known him. Christ told him to hurry and come down. Those whom Christ calls must come down, humbling themselves and not trying to climb to heaven by their own righteousness, that is, by their own supposed right standing before God. They must also hurry, because delays are dangerous. Zaccheus must not hesitate. He knew there was no question about whether he should welcome such a guest into his home. He must come down, because Christ meant to stay with him that very day, to be his guest for a time. He stands at the door and knocks.

Zaccheus was overjoyed to have such honor given to his house (Luke 19:6). He hurried down and welcomed Christ gladly, and that welcome in his house showed that he had welcomed him in his heart. When Christ calls us, we must hurry to answer. When he comes to us, we must receive him with joy. Lift up your heads, O gates. We should gladly receive the one who brings every good thing with him and, when he takes hold of the soul, opens up springs of joy that will flow forever. How often Christ has said to us, “Open to me,” while we, like the bride in the Song of Songs, made excuses (Song of Songs 5:2, Song of Songs 5:3). Zaccheus’s eagerness to receive Christ should put us to shame. We do not now have Christ to host in our homes, but we do have his disciples, and what is done to them he counts as done to himself.

Fourth, notice the offense the people took at this friendly meeting between Christ and Zaccheus.

The narrow-minded and critical Jews grumbled. They said Jesus had gone to be the guest of a sinful man, a man stained by sin. But were they not sinners too? And was not Christ’s mission in the world to seek and save sinners? Still, they thought Zaccheus was a sinner beyond all the other people in Jericho, not fit to be visited at all.

That complaint was very unfair. First, even if Zaccheus was a tax collector, and many tax collectors were bad men, that did not mean every one of them was bad. We must be careful not to condemn people as a group, or by rumor. At God’s judgment, each person will be judged as he truly is. Second, even if Zaccheus had been a sinner in the past, that did not mean he was still the same now. The Jews knew his former life was bad, but Christ may have known his present heart was good. God makes room for repentance, and so should we. Third, even if Zaccheus was still a sinner, they should not blame Christ for going to him. Christ was in no danger of being harmed by a sinner, but had every hope of doing good to one. Where else should a doctor go except to the sick? Yet we see how something well done can be badly understood.

Next, Zaccheus showed public signs that, though he had been a sinner, he was now truly sorry and truly changed, as Luke 19:8 says. He did not expect to be made right with God by his works, as the Pharisee did when he boasted about what he had done. Rather, by his good works he would, through God’s grace, show that his faith and repentance were real. Here he says what he has resolved to do.

He stood while saying it, so people could see and hear him, especially those who had grumbled at Christ for coming to his house. Repentance, like faith, is confessed with the mouth. He stood, too, because he was speaking deliberately and solemnly, almost like making a vow to God. He spoke to Christ, not to the crowd. They were not his judges. He stood, as it were, before the Lord’s court. Whatever good we do, we must do it as to him. We must appeal to him and seek to prove ourselves sincere in all our good plans and promises.

Zaccheus showed that there had been a change in his heart, and that is what repentance is. There was also a change in his way of life. His promises concerned duties toward other people, because Christ often placed great weight on those duties. They fit Zaccheus’s position and character, and in them the truth of repentance would show clearly.

Zaccheus had been wealthy. Up to that point he had used his wealth to build up treasure for himself and had done harm to himself. Now he decides that from then on he will use it for God and for others. “Look, Lord,” he says, “I give half my goods to the poor.” He does not say, “I will leave it to them when I die.” He says, “I give it now.” He may have heard of Christ’s test for another rich man, to sell what he had and give to the poor (Matthew 19:21), and how that man turned away from Christ because of it. Zaccheus is saying, “I will not do that. I agree at once.” Though he had not been generous before, now he will help the poor, and he will give even more because he had neglected that duty for so long, even half his goods.

This was a very large share to set apart for piety and charity, that is, for devotion to God and care for others. The Jews used to say that giving a fifth part of a man’s yearly income for holy uses was very fair, and the law allowed about that amount. But Zaccheus went much further and gave half to the poor. That would force him to cut back on needless spending, and by giving up his excess, he would be able to help many people. If we were more moderate and self-denying, we would be more generous. If we were content with less for ourselves, we would have more to give to those in need. He mentions this as fruit of his repentance. It is fitting for people who have turned to God to be generous to the poor.

Zaccheus also knew that he had not gained all his money honestly. Some of it had been gotten by unfair and unlawful means, and for that he promises to make restitution, that is, to pay back what he took. “If I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation,” he says, or if I have wronged anyone in my work as a tax collector by demanding more than was ordered, “I promise to restore four times as much.” That was the repayment a thief had to make (Exodus 22:1).

He plainly admits that he had done wrong. His work as a tax collector gave him a chance to do wrong, since he could put pressure on merchants to win favor with the government. Truly repentant people will not only confess in general that they are guilty before God. They will also look closely at their own special sins, especially those tied to their work and daily life.

He also admits that part of his wrong was done through false accusation. That was one of the temptations of tax collectors, and John the Baptist had warned them about it especially (Luke 3:14). They had access to the government, and many things could be twisted in favor of the taxes. That gave them a chance to satisfy personal hatred if they disliked someone.

He promises to restore four times as much, as far as he can remember or can find in his records that he has wronged anyone. He does not say, “If I am sued and forced to do it, I will pay back.” Some people are honest only when they cannot avoid it. Zaccheus will do it willingly. “It shall be my own act,” he says. Those who know they have done wrong cannot show the sincerity of their repentance without making restitution.

Notice this carefully. He does not think that giving half his estate to the poor will make up for the wrong he has done. God hates robbery offered as a burnt offering. We must first do what is right, and then love mercy. It is not charity, but hypocrisy, to give away what is not truly ours. We must not count as our own what we got dishonestly, or what is not really ours until our debts are paid and every wrong has been corrected.

Christ then approves and accepts Zaccheus’s conversion, and this also clears Christ from any blame for being his guest (Luke 19:9, Luke 19:10). Zaccheus is now declared to be a happy man. He has turned from sin to God. He has welcomed Christ into his house and become an honest, generous, good man. “Today salvation has come to this house.” Now that he is converted, he is in effect saved, saved from his sins, from their guilt, and from their power. All the blessings of salvation are now his. Christ has come to his house, and wherever Christ comes, he brings salvation with him. He is, and will be, the giver of eternal salvation to all who receive him as Zaccheus did.

But that is not all. Salvation has come to his house this day. When Zaccheus becomes a convert, he will be, even more than before, a blessing to his house.

He will bring the means of grace and salvation to his house, because he is now truly a son of Abraham. Like Abraham, he will teach his household to keep the way of the Lord. A man who is greedy for gain brings trouble on his own house and a curse with it (Habakkuk 2:9). But the man who gives to the poor does good to his own house, and brings blessing and at least some temporal salvation to it (Psalm 112:3).

When Zacchaeus is brought to Christ, his whole family also comes into a relation to Christ. His children are admitted as members of Christ’s church, and so salvation comes to his house. This fits the promise made to Abraham, which reaches publicans and Gentiles through faith, that God will be God to them and to their children. So when Zacchaeus believes, salvation comes to his house, just as it did to the jailer when Paul said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, and your house” (Acts 16:31).

Zacchaeus was born a son of Abraham, but because he was a tax collector, people treated him like a heathen. The Jews often grouped such people with outsiders (Matthew 18:17), and they avoided him. They would have expected Christ to avoid him too. But Christ shows that Zacchaeus, as a true penitent, is now right with God and with his people, as fit to be counted a son of Abraham as if he had never been a tax collector.

What Christ did for Zacchaeus in particular matched the great purpose of his coming into the world (Luke 19:10). Christ had used the same argument before when he defended eating with tax collectors, saying that he came to call sinners to repentance (Matthew 9:13). Here he says that he came to seek and save the lost.

The whole human race is described as one body, and it is in a lost condition. By the fall, the world of mankind became a lost world, like a city that has joined rebels, like a traveler who has lost the path in the wilderness, like a sick man whose disease cannot be healed, or like a prisoner after sentence has been passed on him. It is a sad and helpless state.

But the Son of God came with a gracious purpose, to seek and save, to seek in order to save. He came from heaven to earth, a long journey, to find what had wandered away and bring it back (Matthew 18:11-12). He came to save what was perishing, as if already cut off and ruined. He took up a cause that everyone else had given up as lost.

Christ came into this lost world to seek and save it. Saving was his aim, because there was no salvation anywhere else. And as he carried out that purpose, he used every fitting means to bring about that salvation. He seeks those who are not worth seeking. He seeks those who do not seek him and do not ask for him, as in the case of Zacchaeus here.