A person who collected taxes for the government. In New Testament times the Romans collected a variety of taxes. Their own officers handled some of this work. Romans also delegated some tax collection to private individuals.
Individuals from the community could collect taxes and return an agreed sum to the authorities under contract. Dishonest individual collectors sometimes gathered far more than they had to pay. These individuals were much despised, especially the Jews who cheated fellow Jews.
Zacchaeus, a Jew, was a "chief tax collector" who amassed considerable wealth in the Jericho area (Luke 19:2–10). Such men were regarded as sinners and were often linked in the phrase "tax collectors and sinners" (Matthew 9:10–11; 11:19; Mark 2:15–16; Luke 5:30; 19:2–10).