This document provides commentary and analysis on the biblical passage of Luke 19:1-10, which describes Jesus encountering Zacchaeus the tax collector. It discusses how Zacchaeus repents by promising to repay those he cheated from his taxes four times over, and how Jesus says salvation has come to his house. The document argues that Zacchaeus' actions represent biblical reparations, and draws parallels to discussions around reparations for slavery and systemic injustice throughout history.

1. Luke 19:1-10
I’m SORRY, what can I
do to make this BETTER?!

3.  Who I am
 Warning
 Luke 19:1-10

4. Jesus entered Jericho and
made his way through the town.
There was a man there named Zacchaeus.
He was the chief tax collector in the region,
and he had become very rich.
He tried to get a look at Jesus,
but he was too short to
see over the crowd.
So he ran ahead and climbed
a sycamore-fig tree beside the road,
for Jesus was going to pass that way.
LUKE
19:1-4
(NLT)

5. When Jesus came by,
he looked up at Zacchaeus
and called him by name.
“Zacchaeus!” he said.
“Quick, come down!
I must be a guest in your home today.”
Zacchaeus quickly climbed down
and took Jesus to his house in great
excitement and joy. But the people
were displeased. “He has gone to be
the guest of a notorious sinner,”
they grumbled.
LUKE
19:5-7
(NLT)

6. Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood
before the Lord and said,
“I will give half my wealth to the poor,
Lord, and if I have cheated people on
their taxes, I will give them back
four times as much!” Jesus responded,
“Salvation has come to this home today,
for this man has shown himself
to be a true son of Abraham.
For the Son of Man came to
seek and save those who are lost.”
LUKE
19:8-10
(NLT)

7.  Original mission of Jesus
- Luke 4
 Stories before Zacchaeus
- Rich man and Lazarus
- Pharisee and tax collector
- Rich man who wants
to go to heaven

8.  Zacchaeus: pure/righteous
 Chief tax collectors:
sellouts/thieves
 Sycamore tree is symbolic
for Zacchaeus
 Complaining of the people is holy
 Zacchaeus’ 4-fold giving
is restitution
 Salvation is an act of repentance
and restoration

9. “The presence of Jesus
makes possible what is
humanly impossible.
A wealthy man gets through
the needle’s eye because
he is willing to let go of his
wealth. Furthermore, from
a political perspective,
Zacchaeus is no longer
a puppet of the Roman
regime, but is a real brother
or a son of Abraham.”

10. “Jesus tells Zacchaeus that,
with his promise to practice
mercy and do justice,
salvation has come to
his house. And we can see
that this is not a salvation
for the morrow, not one
that will take place only
after death, because Jesus
says that ‘today salvation
has come to this house’.”
Dr. Justo Gonzalez

11.  Zacchaeus AND the people
were lost and found
 Zacchaeus giving 4-fold
was an act of reparations
 Reparations - The making of
amends for a wrong one has
done, by paying money to
or otherwise helping those
who have been wronged
(Oxford Dictionary)

12.  Nehemiah 5
 1 Samuel 21
 Proverbs 14:9 - Fools mock
at reparation, but among
the upright there is favor.
(NET)

13. “According to Leviticus, when
someone realized he was guilty he
would bring a ‘reparation offering,’
a sin offering with an additional
tribute for restitution (Lev 5:1-6).
It would be left up to the guilty to
come forward; it was for the kind
of thing that only he would know,
for which his conscience would
bother him. Fools mock any need
or attempt to make things right, to
make restitution.” (NET commentary)

14.  400 year anniversary
 250 years of slavery
 Sharecropping
 Convict-leasing
 Jim Crow/Domestic terrorism
 Redlining/Gentrification
 Mass Incarceration
 Medical discrimination
 $2 to $16 trillion in lost wages
REPARATIONS for AFRICAN AMERICANS

15.  Germany/Israel (Holocaust)
 U.S./Alaska Natives (taking land)
 U.S./Japanese Americans (WWII)
 Georgetown/Glasgow University
(Use of endowment funds)
EXAMPLES of REPARATIONS

16. APPLYING a BIBLICAL FRAMEWORK
Lisa Sharon Harper

17.  We can cause harm
in our relationships
 Sometimes an apology alone
is not enough
 We can help restore our
relationships by making amends
REPARATIONS ON a PERSONAL LEVEL

18. 1. Justice & charity are not the same
“Reparations is not a function
of grace, charity or kindness
per se, but is a matter of justice.
It is something we ought to do
as a fruit of our repentance….
Reparations is the restoration
of shalom.” Duke Kwon
(Truth’s Table Podcast)
SEVEN POINTS of REFLECTION

19. 1. Justice & charity are not the same
2. Systemic Injustice is not natural
SEVEN POINTS of REFLECTION

20. 1. Justice & charity are not the same
2. Systemic Injustice is not natural
3. Reparations for one group does
not negate the systemic injustice
faced by other groups
SEVEN POINTS of REFLECTION

21. 1. Justice & charity are not the same
2. Systemic Injustice is not natural
3. Reparations for one group does
not negate the systemic injustice
faced by other groups
4. Reparations is not the opposite
of or opposed to forgiveness!
“Reparations is not retribution
but restitution”. Duke Kwon
SEVEN POINTS of REFLECTION

22. 5. Corporate/Generational
repentance is not centered
on individual sin
SEVEN POINTS of REFLECTION

23. 5. Corporate/Generational
repentance is not centered
on individual sin
6. We can disagree on the how
of repairing, but I’m not sure
there’s room to disagree on
the principle
SEVEN POINTS of REFLECTION

24. Thabiti Anyabwile
SEVEN POINTS of REFLECTION

25. 7. This is an opportunity for the church
- Ecclesiastical reparations
- Budget = priorities
- We can perform the 4-fold
actions of Zacchaeus in
a modern context
SEVEN POINTS of REFLECTION

26. Luke 19:1-10
I’m SORRY, what can I
do to make this BETTER?!

27. Benediction
Almighty God, who created us in your own image:
Grant us grace to fearlessly contend against evil
and to make no peace with oppression;
and, that we may reverently use our freedom,
help us to employ it in the maintenance of justice
in our communities and among the nations,
to the glory of your holy Name; through Jesus Christ
our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and
the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever…Amen.