Through the use of the tetratopic ligand 1,2,4,5-tetrakis(4-carboxyphenyl)benzene as a key building block, a permanently microporous metal-organic framework with Lewis acidic (porphyrin)Zn struts, ZnPO-MOF, can be made in high yields. ZnPO-MOF can efficiently catalyze acyl-transfer reactions primarily by preconcentrating the substrates within its pores, in stark contrast to analogous supramolecular systems.