세리

Jewish agents who collected taxes for the Roman Empire, despised by their countrymen as collaborators and often guilty of extortion. Jesus scandalized religious leaders by eating with tax collectors (Matthew 9:10-13) and calling one — Matthew (Levi) — as his disciple (Matthew 9:9). Zacchaeus, a chief tax collector, experienced radical transformation after meeting Jesus (Luke 19:1-10). Jesus used the tax collector's prayer — 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner' (Luke 18:13) — as a model of genuine humility before God. These encounters demonstrate that no one is beyond the reach of God's grace.