Lectionary Reflection: 23rd Sunday after Pentecost

Luke 19:1-10

19:1 He entered Jericho and was passing through it.

19:2 A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was rich.

19:3 He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature.

19:4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way.

19:5 When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, "Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today."

19:6 So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him.

19:7 All who saw it began to grumble and said, "He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner."

19:8 Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, "Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much."

19:9 Then Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a son of Abraham.

19:10 For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.

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In their sermons on this passage, both Cyril of Alexandria and Augustine emphasize the humility that is required for us to see God in the world. Cyril offers an allegorical interpretation of Zacchaeus’ short stature. He observes that Zacchaeus was not only physically small, but also spiritually short of stature. Only by being raised up could he see Christ, and he needed to make himself foolish to raise himself up. Climbing up the sycamore tree was just such an act of foolishness. This act of humility demonstrated to Christ that the tax collector was ready for spiritual growth.

Augustine also targets this aspect of the text. He writes that people laugh at the lowly. As an example, he points to a person who does not insist on getting back at their enemies, choosing instead to leave the wrongs suffered in God’s hands. The hoi polloi laugh at such weakness. Augustine also sees an allegorical interpretation in the crowd who blocks Zacchaeus’ view of Jesus. The crowd of people blocks the sight of the one who wants to see the crucified God. But to his credit, Zacchaeus ignored the crowd and climbed a tree. The reason some people do not see Jesus is because they are ashamed to climb a sycamore tree. Zacchaeus was not ashamed. In his humility, he climbed up to see Jesus, and he was rewarded with the gift of Christ’s presence in his house.