v1-4: While Jesus was in Jericho, Zacchaeus wanted to see Him, but was prevented from doing so by his height. He was a chief tax collector, and was wealthy, but had been dishonest in his work.

Luke writes of Zacchaeus running along the road, and then climbing a tree. This would jave been humorous to those who knew him, yet it is a detail from an eye-witness.

v5-6: The world loves crowds; Jesus loved people. Although He addressed groups, He calls each one by name; He knows each one completely. It is striking that the Lord Jesus invited Himself to Zacchaeus house, the only such in the gospels.

v7: All the people grumbled at Jesus going to Zacchaeus' home, not just the religious leaders.

v8: True conversion requires repentance. Zacchaeus brought forth fruit worthy of repentance. See 12.1-5, and chapter 15. Jesus change sour lives, including our attitude to money, Eph 4.28. The sequence here is helpful - Zacchaeus first provided restitution to those he had stolen from. From what was left, he gave half to the poor. (Had he done this the other way around, he would have given away what was not his to give.) The word translated "cheated" is also used in 3.14 of the soldiers who had come to John Baptist.

‘Because Jesus is now Lord in his life, he is free to give away his wealth in order to bless the poor and make restitution for past exploitation. What he says may have meant getting rid of everything in order to follow Jesus, We don’t know precisely. In fact, whether he did so or not is not crucial. The crucial point is that he had been freed from the tyranny of wealth and was now intent on using his resources in the service of the kingdom, Doing good to the poor is at the heart of kingdom activity.’ (Dewi Hughes)

v9-10: Christ was the shepherd, seeking the lost sheep of Israel (Matt 10.6). Although Zacchaeus was a Jew, he had to become a son of Abraham through faith.

v11: Another parable given for a specific reason. There was a misunderstanding of God's truth, and of Christ's mission. They thought that the kingdom of God would appear immediately (Acts 1.6). Here, the Lord teaches that the kingdom would come in the future, and that it will be a time of reward and judgment. (This parable is different to that in Matt 25.14-30, although the meanings are similar.)

v12: Christ described Himself, the king going away, to be appointed king, and then to return (in v15). His return, "my coming" (v23) was to be a motivation to His followers.

Under Roman rule, this practice was well-known. Indeed, Archelaus, a relative of Herod, went to Rome to receive kingly authority. It is interesting that Jesus was aware of this event; He was not ignorant of wider events. Archelaus owned a royal palace at Jericho, where this parable was delivered.

v13: Commanded and equipped; He gives His followers a task to fulfil, and we are fully equipped for what He has given us to do. The word 'occupy' (KJV) means to employ in business or in trading.

v14: The citizens, His own people (John 1.11) who would not receive Him, see John 20.9-19. Much of Jesus' teaching during this journey period relates to the rebellion of Israel. These rebellious citizens are slain in the parable, for they set themselves in opposition to the rightful king.

v15: The returning king came to judge His servant (Rev 22.12). His appointment as king was not decided by human opinion. Jesus Christ is exalted because God says so; it is not through our faith and will. His servants are accountable.

v16-19: Good servants were rewarded. "Your mina", a recognition that the money given to them was not their own. We can never boast of our own achievements. Compare 1 Cor 15.10, where Paul speaks of the grace of God working more effectively.

Our title to Heaven is totally of grace; our reward is to do with faithfulness. There are degrees of glory.

v20-26: The wicked servant was judged out of his own mouth. He suffered loss, and even what he had was taken from him. But he was not slain. Thus a distinction is made between the servant of God, even if he is lazy, and those who reject Him. His opinion of the nobleman, "you are a hard man," indicates a fear, rather than a love for him. There is perhaps a further lesson here that service from love is fruitful, but service from fear is not.

v27: Those enemies, who rejected the king, were slain.

v28-35: The final week of Jesus' earthly ministry began with the entry into Jerusalem.

v28-30: The provision of the donkey was probably something pre-arranged. Alternatively, it may have been that the Lord knew that the donkey was available. Either way, all things are "naked and open" to the Lord. We note too that all four gospel writers record this event (previously, only Jesus' baptism, and the feeding of the 5,000 are recorded by all four).

v31-34: "The Lord needs it"; as in 24.26,46, this was necessary, it had to happen. The Lord is truly the Lord, His word is powerful, and His word has to be fulfilled.

v35-37: Coats and palm leaves, over the donkey and spread across the road. Jesus travelled down the Mount of Olives, and up towards Jerusalem. At this point He was still outside the city. There was a sense that praise was inevitable.

From this point, much that Jesus said and did was very public, contrasted with His comparatively private ministry. The events that would follow during the next seven days had to be "seen by many."

v38: The praise was spontaneous and scriptural. The Messiah had come, fulfilling O.T. prophecy.

v39: The sword of division, as the Pharisees did not accept Jesus as the true king. Some people rejoiced, others rejected.

v40: Praise had to happen. If the people did not praise God, then, Jesus insisted, the very stones would do so.

v41-44: Jesus' second prayer for the city, see 13.34-35. Many were ignorant of the Saviour, blind to the blessings He had come to bring, and the peace He would bestow. As a direct result of their rejection of Jesus, Jerusalem would be destroyed; God had come, and then had missed Him. This incident is striking, since the crowd had become very noisy, in their welcome for the coming King. But now He stopped, and prayed and wept. Others doubtless saw the glorious city, 'Jerusalem the golden,' but Christ saw the unbelief prevalent there. The image of the scattered stones may also refer to Israel's subsequent scattering amongst the nations. "The time of God's coming" (or visitation) may be in wrath (Ex 32.34) or in mercy (Jer 29.10).

v45-46: Decisive action to deal with sins. Inaction and tolerance may have the effect of encouraging sins. The temple area had become a place of buying and selling, a "den of thieves". The Lord had every right to deal in this way; it was His house.

v47-48: Summarising the few days that Jesus taught in Jerusalem. There was powerful opposition from the religious leaders, but the ordinary people listened carefully to Jesus.

'When Jesus came to town, the working folks around; Believed what He did say. But bankers and preachers nailed Him on the cross, And they laid Jesus Christ in His grave.’ (Jesus Christ, by Woody Guthrie)