Luke 19:8 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, "Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold."

NIV: But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, "Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount."

NASB: But Zaccheus stopped and said to the Lord, 'Behold, Lord, half of my possessions I am giving to the poor, and if I have extorted anything from anyone, I am giving back four times as much.'

CSB: But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, "Look, I’ll give half of my possessions to the poor, Lord. And if I have extorted anything from anyone, I’ll pay back four times as much."

NLT: Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, '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!'

KJV: And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord; Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold.

NKJV: Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.”

Later, the apostle Paul will write, "God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance" (Romans 2:4). This certainly seems to be the case with Jesus and tax collectors. Since the beginning of His ministry, Jesus has shown kindness and grace to tax collectors, who were hated in that era. Enough of these men have responded with humble repentance that Jesus made a parable comparing them to the self-righteous Pharisees (Luke 5:27–32; 18:9–14).

Zacchaeus is a tax collector who takes money from other Jews for himself and the Roman government. He works for the Gentile occupiers and uses their authority to get rich off the money of his fellow Jews. His association with the Romans has made him unclean ceremonially and socially, and the crowd can't figure out why Jesus wants anything to do with him (Luke 19:1–7).

We don't know what kind of conversation Jesus and Zacchaeus had before this point, but it was powerful. Zacchaeus wholeheartedly repents of his sin. He not only offers to pay people back, but he also adds a fee equivalent to the strongest penalty found in the Mosaic law, one reserved for someone who stole an animal and didn't return it either because he sold the animal or it died (Exodus 22:1). And he promises to give half his possessions to the poor.

Zacchaeus is the foil for the rich young ruler who longed for eternal life but not at the expense of his worldly comfort (Luke 18:18–23). And he is a spiritual cousin to the blind beggar whose desire to meet Jesus resulted in life-changing sight (Luke 18:35–43).

Jesus is days from His experience on the cross. But even with such a short time to live, He seeks and saves the lost (Luke 19:10).

Luke 19:1–10 continues a pattern of stories which begin with a miracle and record Jesus teaching about the kingdom of God. Jesus has already healed blind Bartimaeus in the twin cities of Jericho (Luke 18:35–43). Now, He calls down Zacchaeus from a tree. The diminutive tax collector proves hungry for a chance to repent and follow Christ. The next, final story of the "travelogue to Jerusalem" (Luke 9:51—19:27) is the parable of the ten minas: an illustration of faithful living despite Jesus' imminent departure (Luke 19:11–27).

Jesus approaches Jerusalem by way of Jericho. Along the road, he encounters Zacchaeus: an unusually short man and infamous tax collector. Zacchaeus responds to Jesus' invitation and demonstrates humility and repentance. Jesus gives a parable explaining a believer's obligation to encourage the spread of the gospel. Jesus enters Jerusalem to great fanfare, upsetting local Pharisees. As He rides, Jesus weeps to think of the future destruction in store for the city. He once again drives corrupt businessmen from the temple grounds. His enemies are furious, but too afraid of the adoring crowds to take direct action.

Luke 19 finishes the "travelogue of Christ to Jerusalem" and introduces His first actions there (Luke 9:51—19:27). This long passage semi-chronologically records Jesus' journey to Jerusalem and the theological reasons why He must go to the cross. It finishes here, in this chapter, with Jesus meeting Zacchaeus and the parable of the ten minas. The chapter continues with Jesus' entry into Jerusalem as its king—the triumphal entry. Jesus mourns over Jerusalem, its rejection of their Messiah, and its coming destruction in AD 70. He also cleanses the temple and teaches there. In the next segments, Luke covers the last hours of Jesus' earthly life (Luke 22—23) as well as Jesus' resurrection (Luke 24).

Luke was a traveling companion of Paul (Acts 16:10) and a physician (Colossians 4:14). Unlike Matthew, Mark, and John, Luke writes his gospel as an historian, rather than as a first-hand eyewitness. His extensive writings also include the book of Acts (Acts 1:1–3). These are deliberately organized, carefully researched accounts of those events. The gospel of Luke focuses on the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ. Luke's Gentile perspective presents Christ as a Savior for all people, offering both forgiveness and direction to those who follow Him.