Bible person
Zacchaeus
The rich man who climbed the tree
Chief tax collector in Jericho; he climbed a fig tree to see Jesus and had his life transformed.
The man everyone hated
Chief tax collector in Jericho, Zacchaeus had grown rich collecting taxes for Rome, seen as a traitor and a thief by his own people.
Called by name
Short, he climbs a sycamore tree to see Jesus pass by. Jesus stops, looks up and calls him by name: “I must stay at your house today.”
The proof of change
The transformation is immediate and concrete: he pays back four times what he stole and gives half of his possessions to the poor. Jesus sums it up: “The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”
Did you know?
- Zacchaeus repays far beyond what the Law required (double), a gesture of genuine repentance. Luke 19:8
Where to read in the Bible
- Luke 19:1–10
Connections
- linked to Jesus of Nazareth · stated in the text · Luke 19:5
- in Jericho · stated in the text · Luke 19:1
- theme of Forgiveness · editorial reading · Luke 19:9