He came to Jericho and intended to pass through the town. 2 Now a man there named Zacchaeus, who was a chief tax collector and also a wealthy man, 3 was seeking to see who Jesus was; but he could not see him because of the crowd, for he was short in stature. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree in order to see Jesus, who was about to pass that way. 5 When he reached the place, Jesus looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house.” 6 And he came down quickly and received him with joy. 7 When they all saw this, they began to grumble, saying, “He has gone to stay at the house of a sinner.” 8 But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Behold, half of my possessions, Lord, I shall give to the poor, and if I have extorted anything from anyone I shall repay it four times over.” 9 And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house because this man too is a descendant of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost.”
Jesus continues on the road to Jerusalem. As he passes through Jericho, this encounter with Zacchaeus shows why he is going there. His mission is to seek and to save those who are lost by calling them personally, entering their homes, and bringing them to repentance and new life.
Zacchaeus is introduced as a chief tax collector and a wealthy man. That combination tells us how people would have seen him. Tax collectors worked for the Roman authorities, collecting tolls, customs, and various dues; they often became rich by charging more than was required and keeping the surplus. In the eyes of many Jews, they were both collaborators and extortioners. Calling Zacchaeus a “chief” tax collector raises the tension further: he would have overseen others and likely shared in their gains as well. Yet this very man, so compromised in the eyes of the crowd, is said to be “seeking to see who Jesus was” (v. 3). His curiosity is active enough that he runs ahead and climbs a sycamore tree to catch sight of Jesus as he passes by.
Jesus takes the initiative. When he reaches the tree, he looks up and calls Zacchaeus by name: “Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house” (v. 5). The verbs matter. Zacchaeus is told to come down quickly, and Jesus says that he must stay there. This “must” echoes the sense of divine necessity often found in Luke when Jesus speaks about his mission; it is not a casual visit but part of God’s saving plan. Zacchaeus responds in the same way he was commanded: he comes down quickly and receives Jesus with joy (v. 6). The joy signals that he is already opening his heart to the presence of Jesus, even before we hear any explicit promise of repentance.
This is often how an encounter with Jesus unfolds. He draws near first and calls us in a concrete way. Then, inside, something begins to move: curiosity, attraction, or a quiet joy in his presence. Only after that interior opening do clear decisions follow, and a person begins to change how he lives. Grace comes first; conversion grows as we respond. When we notice this pattern in ourselves or in others—a new desire for Jesus, a growing joy in belonging to him, and then real changes in conduct—we are seeing the same saving work that began in Zacchaeus.
The crowd reacts very differently. Seeing Jesus go to the home of someone they call “a sinner,” they grumble (v. 7). Throughout Luke’s Gospel, this complaint recurs when Jesus associates with tax collectors and sinners (cf. Lk. 5:30; 15:1-2). The people’s reaction shows a tension running through the Gospels and already present in the Old Testament: God is holy and hates sin, yet he draws near to sinners to call them back. Zacchaeus becomes a living example of what the prophets longed for when they spoke of God seeking the lost sheep of Israel and giving them a new heart.
Zacchaeus then stands before the Lord and speaks in the present and future: “Behold, half of my possessions, Lord, I shall give to the poor, and if I have extorted anything from anyone I shall repay it four times over” (v. 8). He does not argue that he has always been just. Instead, he responds to Jesus’ nearness with concrete decisions. Giving half his possessions to the poor shows a radical change of priorities. Repaying fourfold goes beyond the ordinary requirements of the Law, where double or fourfold restitution is mentioned for certain thefts (cf. Ex. 22:1). His promise reflects the seriousness of his conversion: the wealth that was once obtained at others’ expense will now be used to repair harm and relieve distress.
Jesus then declares what has truly happened: “Today salvation has come to this house because this man too is a descendant of Abraham” (v. 9). Salvation is not just an inner feeling of peace; it is the restoration of relationship with God, expressed in faith and in changed actions. Calling Zacchaeus a “descendant of Abraham” is more than a reminder of his physical ancestry. In light of the wider biblical story, it recalls God’s promise that through Abraham and his descendants all the nations would be blessed (Gen. 12:1-3). Zacchaeus, who had lived as if wealth and power were his security, is now restored as a true son of Abraham, living in trust and obedience. The blessing promised to Abraham reaches him personally when he receives Jesus.
The final verse explains the whole scene and places it within the wider plan of God: “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost” (v. 10). The title “Son of Man,” rooted in the Old Testament (cf. Dan. 7:13-14), points to the one who receives authority and an everlasting kingdom from God. Here, the one with authority does not come to condemn Zacchaeus from a distance but to seek him out. The pattern runs through the entire Bible: from God searching for Adam and Eve in the garden after their sin, to the prophets describing God as a shepherd seeking lost sheep, to Jesus himself telling the parables of the lost sheep, coin, and son (Lk. 15). Zacchaeus’ story shows this divine search in a specific life. The same Lord who will give his life on the cross in Jerusalem is the one who looks up into a tree in Jericho, calls a compromised man by name, and brings salvation into his home.
In this passage, we see how God’s saving work unfolds in a person who was far from him: the desire to see Jesus, the Lord’s initiative in calling him, the joyful reception, the concrete change of life, and the public declaration that salvation has truly arrived. The story of Zacchaeus lets us see that Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem is not only about future events; even on the way, he is already fulfilling the mission for which he came: to seek and to save what was lost.
Lord Jesus, you came to seek and to save what was lost. Help us to recognize your coming into our lives, to welcome you with joy, and to allow your grace to change our hearts and actions in truth.
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Sources and References:
- The Holy Bible, New American Bible, Revised Edition (2011).
- Bernard Orchard et al., A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture (1953).
- Faculty of the University of Navarre, The Navarre Bible: Luke (Four Courts/Scepter).
- José Enrique Aguilar Chiu et al., eds., The Paulist Biblical Commentary (2018).
- Raymond E. Brown et al., The New Jerome Biblical Commentary (1990).
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