Luke 19:5

Luke 19:5. Looked up, and said. The correct reading brings out more strikingly the recognition of Zaccheus by our Lord. The knowledge of his name is less remarkable than the knowledge of his heart. Previous acquaintance is out of the question (comp. Luke 19:3). Some suppose that the man well known in Jericho was seen by the crowd in this singular position, and his name being passed from mouth to mouth, sometimes with scorn and dislike, sometimes with merriment, was heard by our Lord. This inserts largely into the simple narrative, only to belittle it.

Today, etc. Possibly over night, but it is more likely that it was to be a mid-day rest, and that in the afternoon (Friday as we think) our Lord passed to the neighborhood of Bethany, where He supped in the house of Simon the leper after sunset on Saturday. The distance was not too great for an afternoon's walk.

I must. In our Lord's life, especially in this part so fully detailed, every event was ordered according to a Divine plan. This rest in Jericho served to fix the time of other events, such as the supper in Bethany, the entrance into Jerusalem (on the day when the Paschal Lamb was set apart for sacrifice), etc. Besides this, there was a moral necessity of love constraining our Lord to abide, in order to seek and save this publican, in whom there was a spiritual longing. All events work out God's purpose, but His purpose is to save sinners.