The Great Commentary (Mossman/Cobb English)

Andy behold, there was a man named Zacchoeus , which was the chief among the publicans . Christ gave sight to the blind man near Jericho; soon after, in Jericho itself, He converted Zacchseus, for no place, no road, no moment of time was idle to Christ, but all were made notable by divine jerries, benefits, and miracles, that He might teach us to do the same. “ Zacchseus." This name is as it were an omen of his future righteousness and purification, for Zacchseus in Hebrew is the same as just, pure, clear. The chiefs of the publicans had many publicans, that is collectors of the taxes, under them. These taxes the Romans and Tiberius had imposed on the Jews against their will. Hence the publicans were hated by the Jews and accounted infamous, being called Parisim, that is, robbers. The chief was called Gabba ; whence the word Gabella, the publicans being called Gabbaim. Angelus Caninus on Hebrew words in New Testament And he was rich. The chiefs of the publicans were not appointed unless they were rich, that they might advance money to the Roman ruler when he wanted it, and supply, in a great degree, the deficiencies of the publicans under him. S. Luke adds this to show better the grace of Christ and the virtue of Zacchseus, since he left his great wealth for the calling and love of Christ, and distributed it among the poor

And he sought to see. He took pains to see Jesus in person as he had heard of His reputation from th* fame of His Digitized by Google ZACCHAEUS desires TO SEE JESUS. 451 virtues and miracles. For we wish to see great men and to know them in person. But Zacchaeus, beside his natural wish, was impelled by one above nature, the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. He desired to see Jesus that he might be absolved of his sins by Him, and be justified and made holy. “He wished,” says S. Chrysostom in his Homily on Zacchaeus, “to know by sight one whom he had known before in imagination, to see the face of Him whom he had seen before in mind, to look upon Him as present whom he had never seen do any works ; that the love of Christ which he had conceived in his heart might be gratified to the full by the sight of his eyes.”

And he made haste , and came down — see the prompt obedience of Zacchaeus, which deserved salvation — and received Him gladly Zacchaeus received Christ into his house, and Christ in return bestowed on him salvation. “Zacchaeus rejoiced,” says Euthymius, “because he had not only seen Christ, according to his wish, but because he had also been called by Him, and had received Him as his guest, a thing he had never hoped for.”

And when they saw it, they all murmured. (“ All ” — the Pharisees, and the Jews their parasites, who hated the publicans.) They murmured, saying that he was gone , &c. The publicans were held by the Jews to be impious, unjust, wicked, and they often were such. Some think that “ sinner ” here means that Zacchaeus was a Gentile and idolater. Such is the opinion of Tertullian, SS. Cyprian, Ambrose, Bede, and from them Maldonatus. And that Zacchaeus speaks of a restitution of things exacted so unjustly, which was of a natural law, and not ordered by Moses. S. Chrysostom, in his sermon on Zacchaeus, says, “ He was a son of Abraham by faith, not by birth ; by merit, not by descent ; by devotion, not by race.” But the contrary is equally probable, perhaps more so, namely, that Zacchaeus was a Jew, not a Gentile. 1. Because, ver. 9, he is called a son of Abraham. 2. Because Christ only conversed with Jews, for He was sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel Hence He is called by S. Paul “ minister of the circumcision,” Rom. xv. 8. 3. Because Zacchaeus is a Hebrew name. 4. Because the Jews would not have been silent on the matter but would have brought it against Jesus that he held communion with the Gentiles when the Messiah was promised to the Jews alone

And Zacchaus stood and said unto the Lord. We cannot doubt that Christ as soon as He entered the house of Zacchaeus began, according to His custom, to teach and exhort both Zacchaeus himself and those of his household, to faith and repentance, and, if they Digitized by Google 454 repented, to promise them grace, righteousness, and salvation. He would also urge upon them contempt of riches and the world, and the acceptance of poverty and evangelical perfection, by following Him and giving their goods to the poor, that they might receive treasure in heaven, and a hundredfold in this life. S. Luke, for the sake of brevity, says nothing of this ; but from what follows, and from what he had frequently said before, especially xviii. 22, of the custom of Christ to teach and preach, He leaves it to be understood. For by these words of Christ Zacchseus was plainly converted to faith, repentance, poverty, and contempt of riches and the world. He said. Behold , Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. He therefore did not keep one half for himself but gave back to others what they had been unjustly defrauded of. For he adds, “ If I have wronged any man of any thing, I restore him fourfold.” " I give,” “ I restore,” that is, I am resolved from this time, and firmly determine to give and restore according to Thy doctrine and exhortation. On account of this efficacious resolution of the penitent Zacchseus, Christ added as a reward, “ This day is salvation come to this house.” So S. Ambrose, Bede, Euthymius, Tertullian in his fourth book against Marcion, Fulgentius in his epistle to Galla. It is a Hebraism, similar to that of Pharaoh, Exod. v. 10 : “ I give you not straw,” that is, I decree and command that straw is not given to you. Matt xxvL 18: “I will keep the Passover at thy house,” that is, I will, I determine to keep it. S. Cyprian, however, in his tract On Works and Almsgiving, has explained the words “ give * and “ restore,” by the perfect tense : “ I have given, I have restored,” as if Zacchseus had been converted previously by other discourses of Christ which he had heard. And if I have, &c. The Greek is f*vxo<£4rri j<ra, that is, accused falsely of fraud, calumny, or any other like offence. Zacchseus owns to the crime of defrauding, but in a slight degree : for when, for the sum defrauded he restored fourfold out of his own half of his property, it follows that he gained only an eighth part of his wealth by fraud ; so that, if he had eight thousand gold pieces, only one thousand was gained thus, the other seven being his own, either by inheritance, or some other just manner. Digitized by Google ZACCHAEUS DECLARES HIS HONESTY. 455 Observe the sudden and miraculous conversion of Zacchaeus, through the grace of Christ, so that he not only repented at once, but also resolved to put away all the wealth to which he had previously clung, for he set apart half for the poor and half for restitution. Thus he instantly embraced the precept of evangelical poverty, that he might forsake all things, and, as a poor man, follow the work of his hands. “ Hear a wonderful thing,” says S. Chrysostom, in his Homily on Zacchaeus, “ He had not yet learnt, and he obeyed. The Saviour by the rays of His righteousness, put to flight the darkness of Zacchaeus* wickedness.** And Bede, “ Behold, the camel has laid down his burden, and passed through the eye of the needle — that is, he gave up the love of riches, and received the blessing of the Lord’s adoption. This is the folly which is wisdom, and which the publican chose from the sycamore as the fruit of life ; restoring what he had seized, giving up his own, despising things seen.** And Theophylact, “ Behold his alacrity ; he began to sow not sparingly, nor did he give a few things but his whole life.** And S. Bernard (Serm. i, on Festival of all Saints), addressing his own Religious : “ Zacchaeus, whose praise is in the Gospel, gave the half of his goods to the poor, but I see here many Zacchaeuses, who have left themselves nothing of all their property. Who shall write a gospel of these Zacchaeuses, nay, of these Peters — who shall say in faith, ‘ Lord, behold, we have left all things and followed Thee?* But it is written in the everlasting gospel ; it is written and signed in the book of life, * Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.* ** “ I restore,** that is, I determine and firmly resolve to restore; nor can we doubt that he acted at once upon this resolve, and carried it out into actual practice. Fourfold. It was not by the law of nature, nor by that of Moses, that Zacchaeus bound himself to restore fourfold ; as both only oblige him to restore the original sum. He resolved to perform this great and superabundant act of restitution and justice of his fervent charity and repentance. This is in conformity with the law of Exodus xxiL i, which orders that a man who has stolen a sheep, should be condemned by the judge to restore fourfold. Zacchaeus said this, not from boasting and ostentation, but partly from the Digitized by Google 456 TX. fervour with which he had been inspired by Christ and the Holy Ghost, partly to refute the calumny of the scribes, who objected to Christ, that He associated with a sinner. For he shows that he was now no longer a sinner, but repentant and just — nay, more just than the just and holy. In trope, S. Chrysostom (. Horn . lxxviiL) teaches us that we must adorn the house of our souls with almsgiving and righteousness, like Zacchseus, if we desire to receive Christ as a guest

For the Son of Man is come to seek and to save. It is not wonderful that Christ converted and saved Zacchseus, and publicans and sinners, for, to this He had been sent by the Father, and to this He Himself had come into the world. As, then, the skill of the physician is shown in healing inveterate, hopeless, and desperate diseases, so the supreme virtue of Christ, the Arch-physician, shone out in curing those diseases of the soul, which by nature are incurable, like avarice in publicans. Thus He drew Zacchseus, the publican, not only to despise avarice and all wealth, but to embrace evangelical poverty. In the same way He called the publican and made him an Apostle. The history of Peter the Publican or Telonarius, who gave up all his wealth, and caused himself to be sold for a slave, and the money to be given to the poor, is a further case in point

And as they heard these things. Christ had made frequent mention of His kingdom, and had promised it to His followers. The Apostles hoped, therefore, that it would be brought to pass now, as He was going to Jerusalem, and that they as His friends would share in it, and reign with Him among the first The fame and glory of Christ, which had shone forth with so much brightness and brilliance from His recent miracles, and especially, the stupendous conversion of Zacchseus, increased this hope, from which, as Jesus was entering Jerusalem a little after, the Apostles set Him upon an ass, and cried to the same multitude, as if He were the Messiah and the King, about to be inaugurated in Jeusalem, “Blessed is the kingdom of our father David which cometh” — “Blessed be the Digitized by Google THE TEN PIECES OF MONEY. 459 King who cometh in the name of the Lord.”

He said therefore, A certain nobleman. Syriac, “The son of a great stock.” This nobleman is Christ in His human nature. For as S. Basil says in the Catena, Christ is noble not only in His Godhead, but also in His human nature, for He is of the seed of David, according to that which Daniel saw and heard. “ He gave to Him power, and honour, and a kingdom.” Eusebius adds, on this, “ He does not call Himself a king as yet, because in His first coming He did not discharge the duties of a king.” For although this kingdom was due to Christ from the beginning, because of His Hypostatical Union with the Word, yet He willed to merit it only by His passion and death on the Cross, and not to enter upon the possession of it till after His resurrection, according to the words in chap, xxiv. 26. Christ therefore went into a far country when, on the fortieth day from His death and resurrection, He went up into heaven, where He entered upon His kingdom, that He might thus be the King of the whole world ; and rule alike upon earth and in heaven. So Theophylact, Titus, Euthymius, and others. Christ therefore shall return from heaven to earth on the day of judgment, firstly, to show His kingdom visibly to all men ; secondly, to take final judgment, as well on His elect as on the reprobate, and those who are unbelieving and disobedient ; thirdly, to bring His elect into His heavenly kingdom, and make them partakers of His glory, as the Angels on His ascension declared to the Apostles, Acts i. 11. Christ shall then return, that He may unite the kingdom of earth to the kingdom of heaven, and show Himself the Lord of earth and heaven, and remove His faithful from earth to His kingdom in heaven

And he called, &c. That you may increase my gain and your own. “ Ten,” that is all his servants, for he gave to each man a mna as appears from what follows. Christ would have us continually traffic with the “mnas,” that is His talents, gifts, graces. Digitized by Google 460 which He has given us, that we may assiduously increase our gain of works and merits. He forbids us therefore to be idle ; so that our whole life ought not to be one of ease, but of continual trading in spiritual gain, which, says S. Gregory to Dominicus (lib. 1 Ep . 39), “ we truly carry on, if by our lives and words we bring profit to the souls of our neighbours ; if by preaching the joys of heaven we strengthen the feeble in the love of things heavenly ; if we bow down the bold and haughty by inflexibly proclaiming the punishments of Gehenna : if we spare no man for Truth’s sake : if, given up to heavenly friendships, we fear no human enmity.” He adds, “ But I fear the burthen of my weakness for this work. I see Him when He has received His kingdom, returning and bringing me to account, and with what heart shall I endure His presence, to whom, in return for the work I have undertaken, I bring no gain of souls, or almost none?” This he says. As much more humble, so much greater

But his citizens hated him , and sent . The Syriac, “The sons of his state:” The scribes and Jews, that is, hated Jesus, because He taxed them with their vices, and they sent an embassage after Him, saying, “we will not have this man (Jesus, who was poor, of small account, and the son of a carpenter) to rule over us.” This was fulfilled after the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ into heaven when they sent Saul to Damascus to take all who believed in Christ, and root out His faith, name, and kingdom. The same took place when the same men shut up S. Peter and the Apostles in prison, and scourged them, and when they stoned S. Stephen, and slew S. James, and persecuted the rest of the Christians, and still persecute them

And it came to pass . The Syriac and Arabic, “And when He had received the kingdom and returned.” “ This part of the parable,” says Euthymius, “is about the second advent, when He shall return with great power and glory, and sit upon the throne of His glory, for He shall then take account and render to every man according to his work.” So S. Augustine, Theophylact, Bede, and others. I have explained the rest, Matt xxv. 19

And another came , saying . Lord~ behold y here is thy pound Digitized by Google 462 “ I give it back to thee, whole, but without gain or increase.” “ To tie up money in a napkin,” says Bede, “ is to hide our gifts under the idleness of a lifeless torpor.” Yer. 27. — But those mine enemies (the Jews, His citizens, who would not have Him to reign over them) bring them hither — to my Tribunal, in the valley of Jehosaphat and Jerusalem — and kill them before Me? In the Greek, “ Kill them before my face.” Our Lord alludes to those victorious kings who slew and destroyed their conquered rebels. By this destruction Christ signifies the extreme judgment of the Jews and His other enemies, and their own condemnar tion to eternal death in Gehenna, and that a living and vital death, where they will be perpetually tormented by death-dealing flames, and yet will never die. Our Lord alludes to Titus, who slaughtered the conquered Jews. He describes precisely to the letter the condemnation of the Jews, and the Gehenna which He has appointed for them when He shall return from heaven to judge and condemn them and the reprobate

And when He had thus spoken. He went. From Jericho and the house of Zacchaeus, going up to Jerusalem, that He might here begin to fulfil His own words as to His Passion, Cross, Death, consequent Resurrection, Kingdom, Glory, and Judgment He preceded the Apostles in this journey, which they abhorred, as their Leader and Captain, to show them that He could go cheerfully and bravely to death, nay even as if He were about to provoke death to a conflict : for He was about, through death, to go to a far distant country, namely to heaven, to possess a celestial and eternal kingdom

To praise God with a loud voice (saying, Hosanna to the Son of David, Matt, xxl 9) for all the mighty works they had seen. Chiefly the resurrection to life of Lazarus, for it was because of this that the multitude came to meet Him. John xil 18. So Bede

Saying, Blessed be the King that someth in the name of the Lord. That is, our King, the Messiah or Christ, who was sent by God to save us and give us His blessing. Peace in heaven . That through Christ we may have peace with Digitized by Google CHRIST WEEPS OVER JERUSALEM. 463 God and the angels, who are offended at our sins, and therefore glory on high, to Him who dwells in the heavens. “ He is called the King,” says Bede, “ not to exact tribute or to arm a host, and visibly destroy His enemies, but because He rules our souls and leads us up into heaven.” “ Because,” he adds, “Christ shone forth in the flesh as the Propitiation of the whole world. Rightly therefore the Heavenly Host, that is the angels who sang at His birth and men who praised Him, when He was about to return to heaven, unite one with another in His praises.” Theophylact : “ It is shown that the former war, in which we opposed God, has vanished away, and that God is praised by the angels in such a Reconciliation. The same fact, also, that God walks in our land shows that He is in unity with us.”

And when He, &c. To show the bowels of His love to it. How dear to Him was the salvation of the Jews, for to this had He been sent by the Father as the Messiah and Saviour. He wept therefore among all the joys of His triumph, and amidst the happy declamations of those who congratulated Him and shouted Hosanna, that He might temper their joy, by a mixture as it were of gall He wept as well over the blindness, obduracy, and ingratitude of the people of Jerusalem, because they would not receive Him as their Messiah and Saviour, as for the vengeance of God towards them and the destruction of their nation by Titus ; and because He saw His own labours and sufferings for them frustrated and rendered of no effect These three causes wrung tears from Christ, from the vehemence of His grief So S. Cyril, Bede, Theophylact and others. In trope , Origen says, “ Christ fulfilled all the beatitudes in His own Person. He said, ‘Blessed are they that mourn/ and He therefore wept”

For the days shall come. The Greek reads, “Thy enemies shall cast up a bank about thee and compass thee round.” The Arabic, “ The days shall come in which thine enemies shall throw down thy standards, and shall surround thee.” How truly Christ foretold this appears from Josephus, who in Bk. vi. chap. 37, of his “Wars of the Jews,” says that Titus and the Romans erected three mounds round Jerusalem, and, in the space of only three days, surrounded the whole city with a wall of 39 stadia, so that there should be neither exit nor passage for any one. Christ alludes to Isaiah VOL. VI. 2 O Digitized by Google 46 6 xxix. i, 2, “Woe to Ariel,” &c. For Jerusalem, which before was strong and unconquered, was, as it were, Ariel — that is, the Lion of God, now deserted by me, and given over to destruction by the Romans, and to become, as it were, the ram of justice, and the sacrifice of divine vengeance. So Eusebius, S. Cyril and Theodoret on Isaiah xxix. i. And keep thee in on every side. To such a pitch of famine, and to such straits shalt thou be reduced that mothers shall devour even their own children. Josephus, “Wars of the Jews” chap. xiv. and following