Luke 19 - Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?

Luke 19 - NIV

Luke 19 - Enduring Word Commentary

Zacchaeus the Tax Collector

19 Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. 2 A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. 3 He wanted to see who Jesus was, but because he was short he could not see over the crowd. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.

Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem and went through the town of Jericho, which was an important and prosperous city. As usual there was a large crowd following him. Zacchaeus was not only a tax collector, but a chief tax collector. The word is not used elsewhere in the bible, so commentators are not exactly sure what the role entitled, but it assumed that he oversaw a number of other tax collectors, which made him wealthy. 

He was intrigued by Jesus so he climbed up a tree to see him, as he was a short man. Though Zacchaeus had money and power, he did whatever it took to see Jesus. He was a true seeker. 

5 When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” 6 So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly. 7 All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.” 8 But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.” 9 Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

Jesus became aware of Zacchaeus and must have known his intentions and desire to know him, because he commanded him to come and even invited himself to his house. Zacchaeus was pleased to come down right away and host Jesus at his home. Of course the people (mostly likely the Jews) muttered under their breath that Jesus was once again rubbing shoulders with sinners. How could a rabbi even think of going to tax collector's home? 

But we see why Jesus went to the home of this man who sought him out so boldly. The man stood up in front of the crowd and repented of his sin. He committed to giving half of what he owned to the poor and pledged to pay back in spades all those who had cheated. Why did he do this? Because he believed in Jesus. While it does not say this specifically, it must be the case because Jesus says, "Today salvation has come to this house." 

Like the other people Jesus called, he left everything to follow him. Jesus also called him a "Son of Abraham", which was another radical thing to say in a crowd of Jews. The Jewish people prided themselves on being children of Abraham, but they forgot one very important thing. Abraham was justified by faith. Faith in God and looking forward to faith in the Messiah. 

The Parable of the Ten Minas

11 While they were listening to this, he went on to tell them a parable, because he was near Jerusalem and the people thought that the kingdom of God was going to appear at once. 

Jesus taught again using a parable, as the people started wondering if the kingdom of God was going to appear soon. It has already appeared in the person of Jesus, but they were looking for the Messianic kingdom, where the Jews would rule the world again like in the days of King David.

As Jesus neared the city, the disciples and others expected Jesus to show Himself as Messiah and the political savior of Israel (they thought the kingdom of God would appear immediately). Passover was coming soon. According to Josephus, more than two million pilgrims poured into Jerusalem in this season. There was also great messianic expectation, strengthening the idea that the kingdom of God would appear immediately. (Guzik)

12 He said: “A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return. 13 So he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas. ‘Put this money to work,’ he said, ‘until I come back.’ 14 “But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, ‘We don’t want this man to be our king.’15 “He was made king, however, and returned home. Then he sent for the servants to whom he had given the money, in order to find out what they had gained with it. 16 “The first one came and said, ‘Sir, your mina has earned ten more.’ 17 “‘Well done, my good servant!’ his master replied. ‘Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities.’ 18 “The second came and said, ‘Sir, your mina has earned five more.’ 19 “His master answered, ‘You take charge of five cities.’ 20 “Then another servant came and said, ‘Sir, here is your mina; I have kept it laid away in a piece of cloth. 21 I was afraid of you, because you are a hard man. You take out what you did not put in and reap what you did not sow.’ 22 “His master replied, ‘I will judge you by your own words, you wicked servant! You knew, did you, that I am a hard man, taking out what I did not put in, and reaping what I did not sow? 23 Why then didn’t you put my money on deposit, so that when I came back, I could have collected it with interest?’ 24 “Then he said to those standing by, ‘Take his mina away from him and give it to the one who has ten minas.’ 25 “‘Sir,’ they said, ‘he already has ten!’ 26 “He replied, ‘I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but as for the one who has nothing, even what they have will be taken away. 27 But those enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them—bring them here and kill them in front of me.’”

This parable is very similar to the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25, though it has a few differences. A mina was worth about three months wages, which is much less than the talents used in Matthew. Each one was given a mina and told to put the money to work. When the nobleman returned, he checked out what each of his servants had done with the money. Two of the servants took the mina and it grew exponentially. Their reward was they were given more authority to rule the cities of the nobleman. 

But the one servant was afraid and hid his mina. Or, some think he was just plain lazy and said he was afraid as an excuse. Whatever the case he did not do what the nobleman asked him to do, so it was taken from him and given to the one who earned ten minas. 

The bottom line is that when we are faithful with little, we are given more. God won't entrust us with larger matters of importance, until we have faithfully handled the ones he has given. We are also reminded that to whom much is given, much is required in Luke 12:48. 

We all have differing amounts of gifts and talents, but we will not be judged on someone else's gifts and talents, only our own. Each person will give an account of what they have done with what they have been given. They key principle here is that all of us have been given something. Our mission in life is to invest what we have been given to God's kingdom coming on earth as it is in heaven. This is what we pray every day, but we also have to do it. 

Jesus Comes to Jerusalem as King

28 After Jesus had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. 29 As he approached Bethphage and Bethany at the hill called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples, saying to them, 30 “Go to the village ahead of you, and as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. 31 If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ say, ‘The Lord needs it.’” 32 Those who were sent ahead went and found it just as he had told them. 33 As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, “Why are you untying the colt?” 34 They replied, “The Lord needs it.” 35 They brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. 36 As he went along, people spread their cloaks on the road. 37 When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen: 38 “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!”[b] “Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” 39 Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!” 40 “I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”

This is what is commonly called, "The Triumphal Entry". The expectation as Jesus came in is that he would be coronated as a king. Jesus came on a colt, not a warhorse. A colt was a symbol of peace. Jesus' entry was a very humble one. The disciples even took their own cloaks to make it more comfortable for Jesus to ride in. I am sure that did not look too "kingly". 

But the crowd was joyful, and their praises were befitting of the Messianic king as prophesied in the Old Testament. Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord is from Psalm 118:26, a psalm King David wrote. The Pharisees knew very well what these disciples were in effect saying. Their praising in loud voices showed their belief in Jesus as king. When they asked Jesus to rebuke the disciples, he told them that if they were silenced creation itself would sing His praises. I am sure that comment didn't sit well with the Pharisees. 

41 As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it 42 and said, “If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes. 43 The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. 44 They will dash you to the ground, you and the children your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you.”

If anyone were to claim Jesus was disdainful of the Jewish people, we see that when Jesus saw the city he wept over it. There were not many times Jesus wept. He also wept when his friend Lazarus died. Jesus came to bring them true peace. Not political peace, but peace with their Maker. Little did they know that about 40 years later the Romans would invade Jerusalem and ransack the town and the people. But because God respects free will it says the truth about Jesus was hidden from them. God allowed them to reject the true King and suffer the consequences.

"The name Jerusalem means “city of peace”; but the city of peace did not know the things that make for your peace. Jesus knew that their desire for a political Messiah would bring total destruction in less than a generation." - David Guzik

Jesus at the Temple

45 When Jesus entered the temple courts, he began to drive out those who were selling. 46 “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be a house of prayer’[c]; but you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’[d]” 47 Every day he was teaching at the temple. But the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the leaders among the people were trying to kill him. 48 Yet they could not find any way to do it, because all the people hung on his words.

Jesus was anything but peaceful when he entered the temple courts and saw the Jewish people gouging people out of their hard earned money at Passover. These men were using a religious festival to capitalize and make a profit on unsuspecting pilgrims. There is not much that makes Jesus more mad than people who misuse God's name to use and exploit others. Jesus quotes prophesies from Jeremiah and Isaiah, who predicted this kind of abuse of God's house would happen in due time. All of the leaders resented Jesus for these words. They knew what he was saying about them. They had to be profiting off of the moneychangers as well, or else they wouldn't have been so offended! 

Do ever use God's name in similar way today? Can churches get caught up in materialism and just keep building bigger buildings?