Let's Be Curious About Zach

A wee little man's story partially unpacked.

My experience with familiar Bible stories is that I tend to skim over them, but a few years ago, a friend speaking at Young Life Family Camp used a phrase that changed the way I engage with Scripture. Our camp speaker, Kristen said, “Let’s be curious together,” before reading and asking questions about the stories she shared. As she read, she asked what people might have been thinking, what the scene was like, and how Jesus interacted with others.

In my job with Young Life, I talk to teenagers about the Bible all the time, and I’m grateful for Kristen’s encouragement to “be curious.” Over the next few posts, I’d invite you to explore some stories with me with fresh curiosity.

There’s a story in Luke that is only ten verses long. If you’re like me, you’ve read it or heard it hundreds of times. You might have even sung a little jingle about a wee little man! But let’s dive into Zacchaeus' story with a fresh and curious mind.

His real name was Zacchaeus, and here’s what you need to know about him.

First, he was extremely short.

Second, nobody liked him! Why? Because he was a tax collector. He worked for the Roman government to collect taxes from his own people, but he also got rich by overcharging them. If you owed $100 in taxes, he made you pay $200, giving half to Rome and pocketing the rest.

What a jerk!

But let’s be curious. What was it like for Zacchaeus growing up? Did kids make fun of him for being short? Maybe he felt like an outsider, unable to compete in sports. Maybe he couldn’t get hired for manual labor jobs. Perhaps being a tax collector was his way of getting back at people who had looked down on him, or maybe it was the only line of work he could find.

Maybe he had the biggest house in town, but did anyone ever visit? Maybe he wore the finest clothes, but did anyone in town want to be seen with him?

I can imagine that even though he was rich, he might have felt awful about who he’d become. He might have felt guilty and lonely most of the time. At least, that’s how I would have felt.

You ever feel that way? Lonely? Like nobody likes you? Guilty about things you’ve done? I know I have.

Let’s pick up the story in Luke 19. Jesus is coming to town.

“He entered Jericho and was passing through. And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus. He was a chief tax collector and was rich. And he was seeking to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd, he could not because he was small in stature.” - Luke 19:1-3

Oh gosh! So, he wasn’t just short; he was a very small man. I’m sure Zacchaeus was like, “Thanks for writing that into the story, Luke!”

Now here’s something interesting. Jesus was passing through town. We don’t know if this was announced ahead of time—“Jesus is coming Tuesday!”—or if it just happened out of the blue. Maybe everyone was going about their ordinary day when a murmur started in the distance, growing louder. Before long, perhaps people were running toward the sound.

I imagine it like a parade forming as Jesus entered Jericho. A huge crowd gathered around him.

If we’re being curious, we should ask: Why did people flock to Jesus? What was it about him that made them want to see him?

For one, Jesus was an extraordinary teacher. The Bible says his teaching had authority, unlike any religious leader they had heard. And he wasn’t formally trained! He was a carpenter.

But that wasn’t all. People also wanted to see him perform miracles. People in Jericho that day heard stories that Jesus had healed people with disease, made paralyzed people walk, given sight to the blind, calmed a storm, walked on water, and even raised the dead. News about him spread like wildfire.

And then there were the things Jesus said about himself. He claimed, “The Father and I are one,” essentially saying, “I am God!” He forgave sins—something only God could do. Religious leaders were furious, but ordinary people couldn’t get enough of him.

Now, let’s be curious about those ordinary people in Jericho. They weren’t much different from us. Today, we debate politics, sports, and gossip. Back then, they probably had heated discussions about Jesus.

Some thought he was a fraud, that his miracles were just tricks. Others probably thought he was crazy—who claims to be God, especially when it angers powerful leaders? But then there were also those who, despite how wild it seemed, believed he might actually be the Messiah, Immanuel (God with Us), or as we like to say in Young Life, “God with skin on”.

One thing was certain: Everyone wanted to see Jesus.

Back to Jericho’s streets. Maybe Zacchaeus hears the noise growing louder. He sees people running in the same direction.

If I were him, I’d be too proud and nervous to ask what was happening. Who would talk to me anyway? Then maybe he overhears someone shout that Jesus is here.

What?! Jesus? In his town?!

Like everyone else, Zacchaeus likely thought, “I have to see this guy!” So he runs toward the crowd. But reality sets in—he’s too short. He won’t be able to see anything.

Then, he gets an idea! The crowd is moving in one direction, so he runs ahead and does something ridiculous.

“So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was about to pass that way.” - Luke 19:4

Can we agree this is odd? A grown man climbing a tree? But Zacchaeus was determined.

This is a tree in the current town of Jericho that some people believe was the actual tree Zach climbed that day.

Who knows if that’s true or not, but this is a sycamore tree. So this is what the tree would have looked like.

Did you notice Luke doesn’t say Zach climbed up a sycamore tree? It says he climbed up into a sycamore tree. That’s one of the things I think I normally look over, but there’s a difference between climbing up a tree and climbing into a tree, especially when you consider what this tree looked like.

I wonder if part of Zach’s quick thinking was that not only would he be able to see Jesus, but he’d also be able to hide from the crowd, among the leaves.

Can you picture him tucked deep into the leaves on one of the branches? Maybe it’s hard to see him. As the wind blows, we might catch a glimpse of his expensive robe or see his eyes peering through the leaves. When I consider everything about this scene, I bet that there was nobody in the crowd that day who knew Zach was in that tree. I think every eye in the crowd was looking at Jesus or looking down at the road or looking at other people as they talked about how cool it was that Jesus was in town.

I don’t think people were looking ahead and pointing and laughing at the little man in the tree. I bet he had climbed up there unseen and was waiting all by himself, away from the crowd, to see Jesus!

So as we picture the scene, Zach’s hidden up in this tree, and the loud crowd of people are making their way down the street. In the middle of the crowd is the man Zach wants to see. By this point, I picture it like a parade, tons of people walking down the street and before Zach knows it, the people in front of Jesus start to pass the tree. Perhaps Zach is moving small branches of leaves a little bit to get a clear view.

And then it happened! He sees a figure in the middle of the crowd who everyone is jostling to see and touch. That has to be Jesus! He’s right in the middle of the crowd and everyone is clamoring to touch him as they walk. The crowd is passing and everyone’s talking and yelling!

By this point, Jesus is almost right under the tree. Zach can clearly see him now. That’s definitely Jesus, he thinks to himself.

What a great story! Zach has accomplished his goal of seeing Jesus! His quick thinking worked. What a great day! In just a minute, the crowd will pass and he can climb down the tree and go back to his home or back to his work or back to whatever was ordinary for him to do.

But no!

Zach didn’t realize it at the time, as he sat up in the tree, but this was no ordinary day! This day would be the day Zach would point back to as the day his life changed forever!!!

And what happens next is… you’ll have to wait for my next post!

For now, let’s consider a few things. First, the contrast between Jesus and Zach couldn’t be more striking. Jesus is the man everyone wants to see, touch and be around and he’s in a crowd of people. Zach on the other hand is the man very few people want to be around and he’s hiding, all by himself, up in a tree.

Second, who do we believe Jesus to be? If we are honest, and if we were in the town of Jericho that day, would we have thought Jesus was a magician, a great teacher, an insane man, or who he was claiming to be?

And, I think there’s something to consider about ourselves when it comes to Zach. Do we have the same desire to get a glimpse of Jesus and are we willing to do something about that desire?

Finally, here’s a question to consider. Do you have a day in your life that was no ordinary day when it comes to Jesus?

I’m looking forward to exploring more of Zach’s (and a few other people’s) stories with y’all! Stay tuned…