8. But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Behold, half of my possessions, Lord, I shall give to the poor, and if I have extorted anything from anyone I shall repay it four times over.”
9. And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house because this man too is a descendant of Abraham.
10. For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost.”
11. While they were listening to him speak, he proceeded to tell a parable because he was near Jerusalem and they thought that the kingdom of God would appear there immediately.
12. So he said, “A nobleman went off to a distant country to obtain the kingship for himself and then to return.
13. He called ten of his servants and gave them ten gold coins and told them, ‘Engage in trade with these until I return.’
14. His fellow citizens, however, despised him and sent a delegation after him to announce, ‘We do not want this man to be our king.’
15. But when he returned after obtaining the kingship, he had the servants called, to whom he had given the money, to learn what they had gained by trading.
16. The first came forward and said, ‘Sir, your gold coin has earned ten additional ones.’
17. He replied, ‘Well done, good servant! You have been faithful in this very small matter; take charge of ten cities.’
18. Then the second came and reported, ‘Your gold coin, sir, has earned five more.’
19. And to this servant too he said, ‘You, take charge of five cities.’
20. Then the other servant came and said, ‘Sir, here is your gold coin; I kept it stored away in a handkerchief,
21. for I was afraid of you, because you are a demanding person; you take up what you did not lay down and you harvest what you did not plant.’
22. He said to him, ‘With your own words I shall condemn you, you wicked servant. You knew I was a demanding person, taking up what I did not lay down and harvesting what I did not plant;
23. why did you not put my money in a bank? Then on my return I would have collected it with interest.’