SSttaannddiinngg UUnnddeerr ttoo UUnnddeerrssttaanndd A Contextual Reflection on Zaccheus from

Names Matter In the Jewish world of the , children were expected to grow into the meaning of their name as part of their destiny. Thus, the naming of children, especially male sons, was a most sacred and solemn task. ’ Semitic name, Yeshua, which means the Lord rescues, is a great example. His name is inextricably tied to His destiny. Zechariah’s name in Luke 1 means whom Jehovah remembers.1 This meaning is an essential part of the irony of the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth’s life as it seems that God has long forgotten this devout couple (from their perspective) and their unfulfilled longings for a son.

Zacchaeus and His Name When Luke tells us about Jesus passing through on His way to Passover and the Cross in Jerusalem, he records Jesus standing under a sycamore tree and calling down a Chief Tax Collector named Zaccheus. We know nothing about the events, circumstances or issues surrounding Zaccheus’ birth. However, it seems reasonable to infer that Zaccheus’ father was an observant Jew because he gave his son a Hebrew name meaning the just one, righteous one, or pure one.2 This raises an intriguing question: How did someone with a name like that ever end up being a Chief Tax Collector working for Rome?

Jesus’ People Perspective Jesus always sees what a person can become in Him, not what he or she was before His call. As bad as a person’s history might be, that is never a showstopper as to what a person can become in God’s Kingdom (witness the demoniac in Luke 8 who became the first missionary of the !3) In this encounter, Zaccheus is the perfect name to dramatically illustrate God’s gracious purpose. Remember, spiritual journeys are like marathon races; what really matters is how you finish, not from where you started. In God’s plan, Zaccheus’ name signifies Heaven’s eternal destiny for him. But we’re getting ahead of our story.

A Tax Collector’s Reality Being a tax collector in Palestine in the First Century meant that you possessed considerable wealth, very few friends and absolutely no hope. Since Rome was considered to be the Kingdom of Evil,4 being a tax collector in Palestine meant that you had willingly sold your soul to the Devil to become a foot soldier in ’s army. This was beyond anathema to an observant Jew! With that decision, your family (and clan) immediately disowned you. Furthermore, Zaccheus would be viewed as the worse of the worst. As the Chief Tax Collector, he was responsible for recruiting and training other tax collectors, enticing them to likewise become traitors to their country and their religion.

In addition, Zaccheus’ social life was limited to other tax collectors, some Roman officials, and the usual social outcasts, e.g. prostitutes. In the capacity of Chief Tax Collector, he was living off a portion of the income derived by the ordinary tax collectors he recruited. Thus he didn’t know who, or how his tax collectors had specifically cheated merchants, traders and people in their inflated valuations of the goods that they then taxed. Because the rabbis declared that retribution was a prerequisite to being forgiven; by definition, Zaccheus had no way of ever making retribution to those (who he didn’t even know) who were cheated to generate his income. In this religious system, contrition was not enough for God’s forgiveness to be granted to you. It needed to be coupled with retribution. As a result, Zaccheus had no hope of every getting right with God. Have you ever thought of what it must be like to live each day convinced that you can never get right with God? What might that do to your soul? Such was Zaccheus’ daily reality as a Chief Tax Collector – a lot of money, very few friends and absolutely no hope.

Before digging into this text, let’s raise some questions that will be helpful in setting the stage for this passage: 1) Where are we? (a geography question), and 2) What happened here before? (a history question).

A Low City Geographically, Jericho is one of the lowest cities on the face of the earth. Being almost 1000 feet below sea level5 makes this city delightfully warm in the winter. Think of it as the Palm Springs of its day. In antiquity, Jericho was known for its date palm groves and balsam tree plantations. Since balsams emit a pleasing aroma, it was said of Jericho that when the wind blew, the city was infused with a sweet fragrance.

Before the birth of Jesus, Jericho was enlarged and beautified by as the site of his winter capital.6 It was a one-day’s walk from Jerusalem (which is 2500+ feet above sea level and often cold in the winter) down to Jericho along the Roman road on the southern rim of the Wadi Qilt. Thus it was an ideal location for the winter villas and gardens of the Jerusalem aristocracy (you can still see today the remains of Herod the Great’s palace).7 As a result, Jericho developed a strong “establishment” presence. That’s significant especially after Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead some 40 days earlier.8 Since then He has been a marked man and (so to speak) his “Most Wanted” poster is on every palm tree in this “establishment” city.

Jericho was strategically located on two major trade routes. As a result, it was a logical place to levy tariffs on goods coming and going on the Arabia-Damascus route. Also, being located near the jurisdictional borders of Judea and Perea, the city was a gateway to Western Palestine and Jerusalem making it an ideal place from which to oversee that region’s tax-collecting efforts.

History Often Matters In Jericho’s long history, two events stand out as being significant to this encounter of the Divine with Zaccheus:

O The conquest of Jericho under Joshua opened up the Promised Land to the Israelite nation. In a similar vein, Jesus is passing through Jericho on His way to Jerusalem and the Cross to open up the doors to an eternal Promised Land bringing with Him an aroma of forgiveness and acceptance to those without hope. In addition, Jesus’ Hebrew name, Yeshua, comes from the same Semitic root word as Joshua.9

O Jericho was the home of Rahab, the prostitute who befriended the Israelite spies when they first explored Canaan.10 From Matthew’s opening chapter, we know that Rahab (1:5) is part of Jesus’ lineage. Thus, Jesus is passing through the home of one of his ancestors who was a person of ignoble reputation. So we shouldn’t be surprised to find another outcast brought into the Kingdom in this place.

The Shocking Call of Levi Early in Jesus’ ministry, He called Levi, a despicable port tax collector in Capernaum, to become one of the Twelve.11 Therefore it should not be startling that as Jesus approaches the end of His earthly ministry, He reprises that shocking (to his disciples) call of Levi by welcoming an equally despicable Judean Chief Tax Collector into His fellowship. Repetition is always highly significant in the Scriptures.

Sycamore Trees The more one digs deeper into context, the more one marvels at how each and every word inspired by God’s Spirit is there for a reason. We may not always know the reason, but that does not detract from the fact that each word has been deliberately chosen to be part of the story line. So when Luke gives us the detail that Zaccheus was a short person who climbed up into a sycamore tree, we should assume that those two facts are important to this encounter. And rightly so!

This Middle Eastern sycamore tree is not like the sycamore species we see in North America. The Judean species is part of the mulberry-fig tree family and 1) it can grow into a very large, spreading tree; 2) its leaves are large with a dense foliage pattern; and 3) its major lower limbs are mostly horizontal branching off from the main truck about 6-10 feet above ground. Furthermore, its figs do not grow along the branches; rather, they grow out of the trunk. These figs are not appealing for human consumption because of their low sugar content.12 Over time the figs fall to the ground where the birds feed upon them and leave their droppings in exchange – a rather off-putting scene!

What is important to the text is that the rabbis of Jesus’ day considered the sycamore to be an “unclean” tree. Consequently, sycamores were not permitted to grow within 75 feet of a town/city limits.13 Furthermore, the rabbis ruled that if any part of a sycamore tree became unclean, that ritual impurity extended to the entire canopy of the tree.14 This in part explains why Zaccheus needs to remain hidden. He is an unclean person in an unclean profession. If detected in the tree, he will have made those walking under that tree ritually unclean.

Setting the Stage Luke sets the stage for Jesus’ encounter with Zaccheus by recording Jesus’ bringing sight to a blind man as He approaches Jericho. The crowd following Jesus is comprised of the typical peasants from the surrounding area (remember 80+% of the people in Palestine in the First Century are peasants living on the edge of poverty)15 along with Passover pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem. The one thing atypical about his Jericho crowd would be the presumed absence of the city’s ruling elite since in their eyes Jesus is now persona non grata in their “establishment” city. In bringing sight to a blind man as the prior event, Jesus seems to be setting the stage for His encounter with Zaccheus by suggesting that you are going to need new eyes to “see” and understand (from a Divine perspective) what I am going to do next.

Digging into the Story As Luke paints his narrative portrait of this encounter between Jesus and Zaccheus, he tells us (using the Wuest New Testament:16

And having entered, He was passing through Jericho. And behold, there was a man called by the name of Zaccheus. And he himself was the collector of internal revenue for the district, having other tax collectors under his supervision. And he himself was wealthy. And he was endeavoring to see who Jesus was.

Why was Zaccheus endeavoring to see Jesus? What drew him to want to gaze upon this very different rabbi who spoke with an authority like no other? What had he heard about this Rabbi Yeshua that would compel him to want to observe Jesus up close? Might the motivation be traced back to when Jesus called another tax collector (Levi) to leave everything and become His ? That calling of Levi would have been a paradigm-changing shock wave sent through the small, tight-knit tax collecting Palestine community. What kind of rabbi would ever do such a thing? And then there is Levi. How might he have changed? If I were Zaccheus, those would be compelling enough reasons for me to want to see this rabbi Yeshua up close, as well as this ex-tax collector, now disciple Levi.

And he was not able to do so because of the crowd, for he was small in stature. And having run on ahead, he went up a sycamore tree in order that he might see Him, because He was about to pass through that way.

Zaccheus has a problem. How can he see this remarkable rabbi up close? His lack of stature means he won’t be able to see over the crowds. Plus, he doesn’t want the public to see his curiosity. If the crowd recognizes him, who knows how they might angrily berate him. What to do? Zaccheus realizes that Jesus will soon be leaving Jericho heading for Jerusalem. He knows that route well. He reasons that if he can get “up stream” and in an inconspicuous place before the crowds get there, maybe he can carefully observe this remarkable rabbi. At least 75-feet from the city limits on the main road out of town he knows there is a sycamore tree that he can manage to climb into. Furthermore, the density of the foliage in that tree will afford him the secrecy he seeks. Seems like a workable plan.

And as He came to the place, Jesus having looked up, said to him, Zaccheus, hurry, come down at once, for today at your home it is a necessity in the nature of the case for me to be a guest. And he came down in a hurry and welcomed Him as his guest, rejoicing.

What a remarkable couple of sentences. First, Jesus demonstrates His all-knowing nature by 1) using Zaccheus’ name, and 2) discerning him through the dense foliage. Then Jesus shows (again) His willingness to become ritually unclean (and on the eve of Passover!) by declaring he will dine (recline) in fellowship with an unclean person in his unclean home. Welcome to the Kingdom of God! Yet there is even more. Did you note the manifest destiny nature of Jesus’ words to Zaccheus? It is a necessity that I dine at your house as a guest today. It is a divine mandate! I must do this! The relentless pursuit of God’s “fullness of time” grace is now entering Zaccheus’ life. The King of Glory is about to rescue yet another “lost sheep,” this one found in a sycamore tree!

One commentator observed that this is “one of the most important stories in the whole Bible, since it reveals the heart of Jesus’ mission and God’s purpose for the world.”17 This scene harkens back to Jesus’ “Rescue Manifesto” in Luke 4 when He returned to Nazareth and read from the Isaiah scroll.18 In that passage, Jesus declared He came to set the prisoners free. Now the time has come for Zaccheus to walk out of his “no hope,” death-row cell and become yet another “ex-con” mercifully ushered into the Kingdom of God.

And having seen this, they all went to grumbling in undertone mutterings with one another, discontentedly complaining, saying that He had gone in to be the house-guest of a man who was a notorious sinner.

Why is it that people trying so hard to be dutifully obedient can so easily have a problem when some long-vile, utterly corrupt person suddenly is welcomed into the Kingdom of God? Often it’s the “elder-brother syndrome” that we see at work in “The Prodigal Son.” That underlying resentment borne from a joyless sense of “obligatory obedience” (thank you Henri Nouwen) can so easily be our first fleshly reaction when we are coasting in the carnality of our faith rather than submitting ourselves in daily Spirit-filled living. Jesus is reminding us in this passage that no one is ever beyond rescue! The is for outcasts too! Luke tells us that Zaccheus rejoices over Jesus’ desire to be a part of his life. We need to always be willingly to join in with the heavenly chorus that always rejoices when the lost are rescued and restored.

And Zaccheus, having come to a standstill, said to the Lord, Behold, half of all my possessions, Lord, I now give at once to the poor. And since I have wrongfully exacted something from some individual, I now restore at once four times as much. And Jesus said to him, Today salvation came to this home, because he himself is also a son of , for the Son of Man came to seek and to save that which has been lost.

To the Hebrew worldview, the word repent means to fundamentally change the way you see things.19 In these verses, we see that Zaccheus had truly repented. The extravagant statements he makes regarding restitution demonstrate his sorrow and sincerity. As previously observed, it is literally impossible for Zaccheus to make exact retribution. He doesn’t even know whom his tax collectors have exploited, nor how. But in the Jewish way of expressing sincerity, he uses hyperbole to reveal his heart. And Jesus accepts his sincerity when He declares to Zaccheus that he (now) is a true (spiritual) son of Abraham. Note that Jesus declares him a restored son of Abraham even though Zaccheus has not yet undertaken any retribution. And to underscore His authority to grant this restorative sonship, Jesus invokes one of His favorite messianic terms for Himself, Son of Man, a remez20 harkening back to Daniel 7.

The Challenge Do we understand and grasp the full weight of this passage? Are we seeing this encounter through Jesus’ eyes and God’s heart? As one Scottish preacher observed with a wonderful play on words:

Stand under this tree with Jesus, stand under it, and keep standing under it until you understand it, you really and fully understand it from heaven’s perspective.21

Things to Ponder

O As you gaze upon this scene, can you identify with Zaccheus? Can you become him for a moment? How would you have felt, and what would you have thought when Jesus called you down? O Who are the Zaccheus’ in your life right now? Who might the Spirit be prompting you to call down on Jesus’ behalf out of his or her tree so that you can fellowship with them? O What might be going on in your life right now that Jesus needs to call you down out of the tree in which you are currently hiding from Him? O Can you willingly rejoice when some really “bad” people are suddenly brought into God’s Kingdom? It truly is a Gospel for outcasts too! As one theologian observed, “when the yardstick is the holiness of God, the difference between you and I and Adolph Hitler is lost in the rounding.” It’s all in how you look at it. Just a matter of perspective! O Jesus is always willing to make Himself “unclean” to remove barriers so as to restore fellowship with “outcasts.” How might that apply in your life? Your church’s life? O Where is God’s Spirit either dealing with you or nudging you right now as concerns this encounter?

© Doug Greenwold 2009

Notes and Sources

1 Gesenius’ Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon to the Old Testament (Eerdmans: Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1974), p. 245. 2 Alfred Edersheim, The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah (MacDonald Publishing), p. 490. 3 For a fuller treatment of Jesus’ encounter with the demoniac, see Doug Greenwold, Encounters with Jesus: The Rest of Their Stories, Chapter 9, “The Perfect Rescue,” (Bible-in-Context Ministries: Columbia, Maryland, 2008), pp. 77-84. 4 Dr. James C. Martin, et. al., Exploring Bible Times: The in Context, (Bible World Seminars: Amarillo, Texas, 2003), p. 123. 5 Walter A. Elwell and Philip W. Comfort, et. al., Tyndale Bible Dictionary (Tyndale House Publishers: Wheaton, Illinois, 2001), p. 686. 6 The Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible, Volume 4 (Abingdon: Nashville, 1962), p. 927. 7 “Jesus the Messiah: Overview of the Gospels” DVD, Image #105, “Herod’s Palace” (Preserving Bible Times: Gaithersburg, Maryland, 2003). 8 John 11:57 9 Walter A. Elwell and Philip W. Comfort, et. al., Tyndale Bible Dictionary, p. 739. 10 Joshua 2 & 6:23 11 Luke 5:27-29. For a fuller treatment of the calling of Levi, see Doug Greenwold, Encounters with Jesus: The Rest of Their Stories, Chapter 7, “He Chose Me!,” (Bible-in-Context Ministries: Columbia, Maryland, 2007), pp. 59-68. 12 I am indebted to Dr. Henry Wendt, Founder and President of Crossways International, Minneapolis, Minnesota for this observation. 13 Mishnah, Baba Batra 2:7, Danby (Oxford University Press: England, 1933), p. 368. 14 Mishnah, Danby’s note 6, p. 368. 15 K. C. Hanson and Douglass E. Oakman, Palestine in the Time of Jesus (Fortress Press: Minneapolis, Minneapolis, 1998), p. 104. 16 Kenneth S. Wuest, The New Testament: An Expanded Translation (Eerdmans: Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1961), p. 187 & 188. 17 Clinton E. Arnold, et. al., Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary, Volume 1 (Zondervan: Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2002), p. 463. 18 For a fuller treatment of Jesus’ return to Nazareth in Luke 4, see Doug Greenwold, Encounters with Jesus: The Rest of Their Stories, Chapter 3, “Mutiny on the Sabbath“ (Bible-in-Context Ministries: Columbia, Maryland, 2008), pp. 29-36. 19 For a fuller contextual treatment of “repentance,” see Doug Greenwold’s “ and Repentance” Reflection, number 608, June 2008, Preserving Bible Times. 20 For a fuller treatment of remez, see Doug Greenwold, Encounters with Jesus: The Rest of Their Stories, “Remez: A Helpful Interpretive Tool,” (Bible-in-Context Ministries: Columbia, Maryland, 2008), pp. 9-11. 21 I am indebted to Ron Scates, Senior Pastor, Highland Park Presbyterian Church, Dallas, Texas, for passing along Rev. Ross Mackenzie’s closing play on words as part of a 1976 Sunday morning sermon on Zaccheus delivered at the Westminster Presbyterian Church in Richmond, VA.