Sally A. Brown, Professor Emerita, Princeton Theological Seminary
Many in our pews will be familiar with the story of the diminutive, wealthy chief tax collector, Zaccheus, who runs past the crowd and climbs a sycamore tree to get a glimpse of Jesus. Preachers may also be familiar with the interpretive “fork in the road” that confronts us in Luke 19:1-10. Is the meaning of Zaccheus’ name—“pure”—strikingly ironic, or is it surprisingly apt? The difficulty is with the present-tense Greek verbs in v 8. It reads, literally, “I’m giving half my goods to the poor, and if I have defrauded (overcharged) anyone, I’m giving back four times what I took.” In English, as in Greek, this can mean that Zaccheus is going to begin making this his practice, which makes this a dramatic conversion story. This is the way many English translations have treated it. Alternatively, Zaccheus may be revealing that this has always been his practice; the crowd has misjudged him! Either way, Zaccheus is describing justice-making generosity of astonishing proportions. Two factors should be considered as preachers decide to follow one, or both, of these interpretive paths.
First, Luke’s description of Zaccheus evokes both affinities and contrasts with figures we have met in ch 18. The crowd assumes he is a sinful man because of his occupation; this recalls last week’s reading, where a tax collector in the Temple beats his breast, praying, “Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner” (18:9-14). Like the ruler in 18:18-27 who asks Jesus how to be saved,” Zaccheus is wealthy; but unlike him, Zaccheus eagerly welcomes Jesus instead of sadly turning away from him. He then proves to be (or becomes) a model for wealth used to further God’s reign. Like the blind man Jesus has recently met (18:35-43), Zaccheus “cannot see” Jesus (19:3). Jesus calls each of them toward him. Zaccheus’ physically “sees” Jesus, and (if this is a conversion story), regains his spiritual sight.
Also significant is how we interpret Jesus’ response to Zaccheus’ announcement. Jesus declares, “today, salvation has come to this house[hold] . . . For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (vv 9-10). Jesus’ seeking and saving of the lost has been firmly established in ch 15 (parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son[s]). We could assume that Jesus is forthrightly recognizing Zaccheus’ new condition (“salvation has come,” v 9), clearly contrasted with his previous “lostness” (v 10). Yet, neither statement rules out the possibility that Zaccheus is a righteous man vindicated. The “salvation” that has come to the house may be a self-reference on Jesus’ part; Jesus is, indeed, “Yeshua,” “salvation” in Hebrew. Jesus may see Zaccheus as “lost” to the community that has presumptuously treated him as an outcast. Jesus restores Zaccheus, declaring that, “he, too, is a son of Abraham.” We recall the bent woman Jesus calls from the margins (as he does Zaccheus), restoring not only her body, but her dignity as a “daughter of Abraham” (13:10-17).
Whether we decide that Zaccheus has been “saved” from sin, or “saved” from the marginalizing disdain of his community, Zaccheus is a man of means who, at some point, commits himself to subverting a corrupt taxation system through acts of astonishing generosity. His story is good news, especially to listeners who, compared with others, are prospering. Wealth can corrupt or heal. It can become our undoing, or become our chance to undo, to some degree, the injustices of this world.
Insights into Biblical Greek Grammar and Syntax 