Research Paper On Zacchaeus

That Man in the Tree
Zacchaeus was the chief tax collector for Rome in the city of Jericho. In such a position, fraud was easily committed and apparently, in some cases, it was unintentional. A collector’s duty called for him to collect a quota set by the Roman government, any additional money that he collected belonged to him. The temptations and opportunities to enrich him were numerous; however, there is no evidence in scripture that Zacchaeus was a dishonest tax collector; nonetheless, the people could not imagine any goodness or generosity in one who served the Roman power.
When Zacchaeus stood before Jesus, he made a statement that no one believed except the Lord and He did not tell Zacchaeus to rid himself of his riches nor did
He correct him. Zacchaeus was not referring to a future purpose; he was speaking of a past rule of his life and Jesus knew that he was telling the truth; therefore, the Lord accepted him on that basis.
Perhaps, as some scholars believe, Zacchaeus was assuring Jesus that it would not be with ill-gotten gain that he entertained Him. Of course, Jesus already knew that and He also knew Zacchaeus was an honest man, even though he made his living in a very tempting difficult occupation.