Luke 19:1 … Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through.
In Luke 9:51 (NLT), we read, “As the time drew near for Him to ascend to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.” A movement begins as Jesus leaves Caesarea Philippi and heads to Jerusalem and the cross.
Our Lord moved out of that area, through Galilee and Samaria; then He crossed the Jordan and continued down the east side until He was over against Jericho.
The movement here is through Jericho. He entered and passed through. He never spent a night in Jericho, for it was a cursed city. This was the first city that God had given to the people of Israel when they returned to enter the promised land after 40 years in the wilderness. It was the city from which nothing personal was to be salvaged, and a curse was placed on any person who would attempt to rebuild it. (Joshua 6:26)
Jericho: A Cursed City
In 1stKings 16:34, we read the following – It was during his reign that Hiel, a man from Bethel, rebuilt Jericho. When he laid its foundations, it cost him the life of his oldest son, Abiram. And when he completed it and set up its gates, it cost him the life of his youngest son, Segub. This all happened according to the message from the LORD concerning Jericho spoken by Joshua son of Nun.
Though eventually the city was rebuilt, it remained a cursed city. It was a city where there was great sin, a place where “gangsters” resorted. Our Lord, on the way to the cross, did not bypass Jericho, but purposely went through it because there was a sinner there who needed Him, a tax collector name Zacchaeus. This is why Jesus came to earth – for sinner such as you and I.
Jesus entered and passed through. What a picture it is of His entire mission and ministry to this world summed up in John 16:28 – “Yes, I came from the Father into the world, and now I leave the world and return to the Father.”
He came from Heaven’s glory to this sin-cursed earth, not to just a cursed city, but to a world on which the curse of sin rests. Anywhere you look today on this earth you can see the evidences and ravages of sin. He left Heaven’s glory, and He came to this earth for the same reason that He entered and passed through Jericho. He came not to get only one sinner, but to get any sinner would trust Him. At the time of this incident, Jesus was on His way to the cross to die for Zacchaeus and to die for a world of sinners. Such is the movement here.
In verse 2, we are given Zacchaeus’ entire biography with just 3 things. These facts … his name, job, and financial status – tell his story, and what a story it is!
His Name
The name is from “zaccai” and means – pure. That is not a name for a tax collector to have! It is like saying “black snow” or “white coal” or “cold fire” – the two terms are contradictory, an oxy-moron. Zacchaeus – a tax collector!
But, after all, it was his parents who gave him this name. When they looked down in the crib and saw the little guy, they said, – He is so sweet and pure there is only one name that fits – Zacchaeus – so they named him “Pure.”
Believe me, that was some name for a man to carry around, especially after he became a tax collector. You can well imagine what delight some people, and perhaps the other tax collectors, had in calling this man, who was an obvious sinner, Pure! He was anything but that.
His Occupation – Chief Tax Collector
Throughout the Gospels there is the grouping together of tax collectors and sinners, and the interesting thing is that the tax collectors are always mentioned first. This is because tax collectors were considered the worst kind of sinners – a traitor; and Zacchaeus was chief among the tax collectors.
The Romans had a system where they turned over the dirty business of collecting taxes to the natives of the countries they had captured.
Instead of using roughhouse methods of collecting taxes from a captive people, they found a traitor, someone who was willing to betray his nation for a price – a good price. A tax collector could buy a certain territory at a certain rate; then he could go in and collect taxes at whatever rate he chose.
Being a tax collector meant that at one time in his life he had been faced with a decision. A similar decision comes to every man and woman. Each of us must decide if we will be honest or dishonest in business – will we be pure or impure. There is no alternative. Every person is faced with that decision in this life.
This man, Zacchaeus, came to such a crossroad. Before him there were two ways he could go. One way was probably a continuation of his monotonous life, though honorable, would bring him no riches. The other way was to become a tax collector. Now, it he should be a tax collector, it would be a one-way street; he could never come back.
No tax collector could come back. He would cut himself loose from his nation and the minute he cut himself loose from his nation, which was Israel, he cut himself loose from his religion – from the temple, from the place of sacrifice, from any mercy whatsoever. In fact, he would cut himself loose from God. It was a dark night when Zacchaeus weighed his future. Either I can continue to be honest, serving God as I was brought up to do, or I can become a tax collector. I can get rich … it will pay me … I will get the things I want. But if do that, I will cut myself off from my nation.
I say it was a dark night because he made the wrong decision. He became a tax collector, and in time he became chief among the tax collectors. That means he was the biggest crook in Jericho, and there were some big-time crooks there.
His Financial Status – A Very Rich Man
He made his position pay. However, even though he had great wealth, he wasn’t satisfied in life. He was an up-and-outer rather than being a down-and-outer. Nobody cares about taking the Gospel to the rich; as they have everything – including more stress.
What Did Zacchaeus Want? … A Mercy Seat!
Our Lord knew Zacchaeus. We can read in John 2:25 (NLT), that no one needed to tell him (Jesus) about human nature, for He knew what was in each person’s heart.
In the chapter immediately preceding the record of His encounter with Zacchaeus, our Lord told a parable.
In Luke 18:9-14, Jesus told of two men who went to the temple to pray. One a Pharisee, and the other a tax collector.
Why Did He Beat His Chest? – He wanted and needed mercy.
Because he did not have access to the mercy seat. He repudiated his nation and his God when he became a tax collector. He was an outcast, and all he could do was stand outside the temple and cry for mercy.
What this tax collector is saying is – O God, make for me, a tax collector, a mercy seat where I can go; I have no place to go. I am shut out. Please show me mercy! … Here is a theory – what if that collector was Zacchaeus?
The word used here for mercy occurs in two places in the NT, here in Luke 18:13 and in Hebrews 2:17. The tax collector is seeking mercy as he could not go into the temple; and in Hebrews it refers to Jesus making propitiation for our sins. 1stJohn 2:2 tells us that Jesus is the propitiation for our sins (atoning sacrifice).
Luke 19:3-4 … Why try to see Jesus?
Zacchaeus could see, but his eyes were too close to the ground. He could not get them high enough so he could look over the crowd to see Jesus. He wanted to see Him. Why? Well, I’ll you why. There was one ray of hope that penetrated this tax collector’s soul. One day in the city of Jericho the word was passed along that the new Prophet from Galilee had chosen a tax collector by the name of Matthew to be one of His disciples. Further word was brought that the Prophet was receiving tax collectors and sinners, and that gave Zacchaeus a hope that he never expected to have. Therefore, when it was known that Jesus was coming through Jericho, Zacchaeus resolved to see him.
Jesus never spent a night in Jericho, and He did not linger there. He passed through hurriedly, and the crowds wanting to see Him lined the way. Now this little man Zacchaeus tried to penetrate the crowd but was unable to do so. He wanted to see Jesus. It was not idle curiosity, which is evident by the trouble he went to in order to see him. It is obvious that this man was not satisfied with his life. Zacchaeus was a success according to the world’s standards. The standard of the world is that if a man gathers it all here and takes nothing with him after this life, he is successful; if he gathers it all for the next world and has nothing in this life, he is considered a failure. But wealth had not brought satisfaction to Zacchaeus’ soul. He wanted to go back to God. Could there be a way back for even a tax collector? What would this new Prophet say?
Tree of Foolishness:
Zacchaeus was short and ran ahead of the crowd. We know from our study of the Prodigal Son, that men of that time did not run, nor did they climb trees. These activities were considered something kids did and adults would not be undignified by lifting their robes or having a chance to expose anything under them, even if it was just a leg.
The tree that Zacchaeus climbed is referred to as a “sycamore.” It was not a sycamore as we think of a sycamore, but rather a fig-mulberry tree.
In Luke 17:6, we read about having faith the size of a mustard seed and being able to tell a “sycamore” tree to be uprooted and planted in the sea. That word is different in the Greek than the word we read bout in Luke 19:4.
Greek: s???µ???a, a?, ? s???µ????
Transliteration: sykomorea sykaminos
Occurs: Just once in Luke 19:4 Just once in Luke 17:6
The word Luke uses in 19:4 could be a play on words by combing “syke” which is a fig tree and “moria” which means foolishness, thereby creating a new word, “sycamore” as the tree of foolishness.
Luke 19:5 – Summary
That was like cool spring water on parched lips. It was the best news Zacchaeus had ever heard. No prophet, no man of God, ever had been willing to stop and speak to Zacchaeus, much less enter his home. Who would be interested in the chief of publicans? Our Lord was.
If you think it was a struggle getting up in that tree, what do you think a little fellow coming down that slick trunk is going to do, especially when the Lord said, ?Make haste? He slid down the trunk and landed with a thud.
Luke 19:6 – Summary
Zacchaeus is rejoicing now. I think our Lord said to him, ?Zacchaeus, I knew you all the time. I know what trouble you had getting up in that tree. And Zacchaeus, I knew when you went yonder to the temple where you had no right to go. I saw you stand afar off and beat your breast and cry, God be merciful to me a sinner!’ Well, I have come to tell you that you, a publican, can have a mercy seat by which you can come back to God.
As they walked away together, notice the comments of the crowd:
Luke 19:7 Summary
You always have that crowd around—the critical, the self–righteous. The neighbors of Zacchaeus said, ?He is a sinner. In that town he was known as a sinner—and Jesus had entered his home as a guest! They were shocked beyond words.
Our Lord and Zacchaeus enter the house together, and the door shuts in our faces. I would like to gain entrance somehow and see what takes place, but the door is shut. We are outside with no keyhole reporter to get us any information. What does take place on the inside? I must confess that I do not know.
Luke 19-8 Summary
Time Lapse – after some time – an hour, or two, or three – the door opens.
Something happened on the inside. I do not know what was said, but the effect is revolutionary. Here is a man who has made his fortune by stealing, and that from his own people. His life has been devoted to one thing: getting all this world‘s goods that he could by any method. Now he says, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!”
What happened? I am not sure exactly what took place, for the door was shut; but I want to make a suggestion. Our Lord in other interviews had allowed the conversations to be recorded, and in every recorded interview our Lord talked about man‘s sin and God‘s salvation. He talked about man‘s inability and God‘s ability. He talked about man‘s unworthiness and God‘s worthiness.
For instance, in the third chapter of John, Jesus said to Nicodemus, ?You must be born again. Nicodemus was incredulous, but Jesus insisted, ?You must be born again. You have a need. Our Lord always mentioned man‘s need.
Then He always talked about God‘s ability to meet that need. To Nicodemus He said, ?And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.
Also, sin and salvation were the subject in the encounter with the woman at the well. The Lord Jesus talked to her about her need, and how tactful He was as He pinpointed her sin! Then He identified Himself as the Messiah, the One who could meet her need.
You will find that He used this same procedure as He dealt with the blind men. Also, it is the way He dealt with His own disciples. It was His method.
Do you think He broke this pattern when He went into the home of Zacchaeus? I do not think so. He spoke to Zacchaeus about the fact that he was a sinner, and surely with Zacchaeus He did not have to labor that point.
Zacchaeus recognized that he was a sinner, and Jesus talked to him about His ability to meet the need of a sinner, even an outcast publican. I know that our Lord talked about salvation because when He came out of the house of Zacchaeus, He said, “Salvation has come to this home today”
We see a tax collector, a sinner, this man Zacchaeus, step inside his house with the Lord Jesus Christ. The door shuts. The door opens, and this man steps out a new creation in Christ Jesus. He is not the same man who went in.
The Gospel In One Verse … Luke 19:10 (NLT)
“For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.”
This is the Gospel!
This is why Jesus came to earth!
He came for me!
He came for you!
He lived a sinless life!
He was crucified!
He paid the price for our sin(s)!
He was punished for our iniquities!
He was buried!
He arose on the 3rdday!
He is coming back!
The G.O.S.P.E.L
God’s – Only – Son – Provides – Eternal – Life
