Luke 19 - Jesus the King of Kings Rides Into Jerusalem on a Donkey!

Click Here to Listen To or Read Luke 19 

Zacchaeus the Tax Collector

Luke continues his emphasis of Jesus' inclusion of outcasts in his ministry. Zacchaeus was not only a tax collector, but the chief tax collector. In the minds of the Jewish people it didn't get much lower than him. Though Zacchaeus was a rich man, he wasn't very tall, which is why he needed to climb up a tree to catch a glimpse of Jesus walking by. 

As Jesus had a habit of doing, he picked Zacchaeus out of the crowd and said, "I want to go to your house today." What a day for Zachaeus! He had climbed up to just a get a chance to see Jesus and ends up having him over for dinner. Once again the religious leaders were not so happy with Jesus rubbing elbows with such sinners. But to make matters worse, he was even going to eat at this man's house. 

Zacchaeus' responded to Jesus' offer with repentance. Unlike the Jewish leaders, who saw no need to repent, Zacchaeus vowed to give half his possession to the poor, and any money he had gotten illegally, he promised to pay back four times over. When Jesus saw Zacchaeus' faith, he pronounced that he had been saved. He even called him a son of Abraham, which must have sent the Pharisees over the edge. 

The Parable of the Ten Minas

Jesus told this parable as he was nearing Jerusalem. It was about a king who was going away to a faraway land.  Before he left he entrusted ten of his servants with ten minas each. A mina was worth about 3 months wages, so it was quite a substantial amount of money. He simply told them to put it to work. 

One man took his 10 minas and made 10 more. He was rewarded by being given 10 cities. The second one earned five and likewise was given charge over five cities. But the last servant brought in nothing. When the king returned, he asked him about it, and the servant said he hid it in fear of the master. But the master said to him if he really feared him, the least he could have done was put it in the money market account and earn 1%. 

So he took the 1 mina from him and gave it the one who earned ten minas. Those who were faithful to invest the money the master had given them, were given much more. 

We might interpret this as Jesus was the king, who went away to a far place when he rose from the dead and asceneded into heaven. He gave each of us the gift of the Holy Spirit do use while he was gone. He told us to put our spiritual gifts to work. When he comes again, he will ask us what we did with the gifts we have been given. To those who are faithful, they will be given much more in the kingdom of heaven. We don't know what we will be doing in heaven, but many passages infer that our faithfulness with what God has given to us now on earth will determine what we will be doing in heaven. 

Jesus Comes to Jerusalem as King

It is probably not coincidental that this Sunday is Palm Sunday. Today we read about Jesus' triumphal entry in Jerusalem with the disciples and crowds waving their palm branches, as a sign of victory. Jesus had orchestrated the whole event and told them to go get a young donkey, which he would ride into Jerusalem. This fulfilled Zechariah 9:9 when the prophet wrote, 

"Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey."

As Jesus rode on it they laid cloaks to smooth the road he was on. The people joyfully cheered, "“Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!”“Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” This was the fulfillment of a prophecy from Psalm 118:26

The Pharisees were jealous of the attention Jesus was getting. They scolded Jesus and urged him to rebuke his disciples. But Jesus said, "If they keep quiet the rocks and stones would cry out!" 

Clearly Jesus is accepting the praise of the people. He is not denying he is the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Though he came in as a king on Palm Sunday, five days later he will be hung on a cross as a criminal. Wow how things changed in five days! Though many thought his kingship was over, it was just beginning. 


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