2 Maccabees 6:18-31
Psalm 3:2-3, 4-5, 6-7
Luke 19:1-10
Summary
Zacchaeus, the tax collector, found himself drawn to see Je-
sus, who was passing nearby. Because he was “short in stat-
ure,” he was unable to see over the crowd which had formed around Jesus. To
remedy the situation, Zacchaeus ran ahead of the crowd and climbed a tree. As
Jesus approached, he called to Zacchaeus to come down “for today I must stay
at your house.” Zacchaeus complies, recognizing that this is a life altering en-
counter with the Lord.
Reflection
I make countless choices every day. Some are insignificant – paper or plastic;
regular or decaf. Others, such as financial choices, may be very significant –
buy, sell or hold. What is true about each choice is that they validate that I am in
charge. I control my own life. In today’s reading it is safe to assume that Zac-
chaeus thought that he was in charge. He was about to learn otherwise.
Start by looking at Zacchaeus. He was a tax collector. He worked for the Romans
who were occupying his county as invaders. It is likely that he had very few
friends. The Romans would have looked down on him as puppet who served their
purpose by doing the dirty job of collecting tax and facing the contempt of the
resident population. Meanwhile, his neighbors would looked upon him as a col-
laborator with the enemy, a person to be despised and avoided. To make matter
worse, he was the “chief tax collector” and “a wealthy man.” He became rich by
contributing to the oppression of his own people. It is unlikely that he was ever an
invited guest in neighborhood homes.
Against this background, Jesus entered the picture. He was passing through
Zacchaeus’ town and there was a large crowd around. Zacchaeus was short. He
could not see over the heads of the crowd around Jesus and no one was about
offer a better spot to the “chief tax collector.” They would let him be frustrated
out on the fringe of the crowd, considering him unworthy of Jesus’ attention. But
Zacchaeus was “seeking to see who Jesus was.” He went to great lengths to run