Luke 19:4-12

⁴So he ran on ahead and climbed into a mulberry tree, to see Jesus, for he knew that he must pass that way.

⁵When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, be quick and come down, for I must stop at your house today.”

⁶So Zacchaeus got down quickly, and joyfully welcomed him.

⁷On seeing this, everyone began to complain, “He has gone to stay with a man who is an outcast.”

⁸But Zacchaeus stood forward and said to the Master, “Listen, Master! I will give half my property to the poor, and, if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will give him back four times as much.”

⁹“Salvation has come to this house today,” answered Jesus, “for even this man is a son of Abraham.

¹⁰The Son of Man has come to search for those who are lost and to save them.”

¹¹As the people were listening to this, Jesus went on to tell them a parable. He did so because he was near Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God was going to be proclaimed at once.

¹²He said, “A nobleman once went to a distant country to receive his appointment to a kingdom and then return.