| The Lord told Moses on Mt. Sinai to tell the children of Israel that when they came to the land that He was giving them, the land should keep a sabbath to the Lord. Six years they were allowed to sow their field and prune their vineyard and gather its fruit. In the seventh year there should be a sabbath of solemn rest for the land, a sabbath to the Lord. They were not allowed to neither sow their field nor prune their vineyard. Whatever grew of its own accord of their harvest, they were not allowed to reap, nor gather the grapes of their untended vine because it was a year of rest for the land. The sabbath produce of the land should be food for them, their male and female servants, their hired man, the stranger who dwells with them, their livestock and the beasts that are in their land. All its produce should be for food. The Israelites were to count seven sabbaths of years, seven times seven years. The time of seven sabbaths of years should be forty-nine years to them. Then they were to cause the trumpet of the Jubilee to sound on the tenth day of the seventh month. On the Day of Atonement they were to make the trumpet to sound throughout all of their land. The Israelites were to consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty throughout all the land to all of its inhabitants. It was to be a Jubilee for them and each of them was to return his possession and to his family. This meant that slaves were freed and debts were forgiven. In the Jubilee fiftieth year, the Israelites were not to sow nor reap what grew of its own accord, nor gather the grapes of their untended vine. The Jubilee was to be holy to them and they were to eat its produce from the field. In the Year of Jubilee, each of them should return to his possession. If they sold anything to their neighbor or bought anything from their neighbor, they were not to oppress one another. According to the number of years after the Jubilee they could buy from their neighbor and according to the number of years of crops, he could sell to them. According to the multitude of years, they could increase its price and according to the fewer number of years, they were to diminish its price. He would be selling to the neighbor according to the number of the years of the crops. If the next Jubilee was a large number of years away, prices were higher. If the next Jubilee was close, then the prices were lower. So, they were selling based on the number of harvests until the next Jubilee. Therefore, they were not to oppress one another, but they were to fear their God. God said, “For I am the Lord your God.” |
| God said that the Israelites were to observe His statutes and keep His judgments, and perform them. If they did so, they would dwell in the land in safety. The land would yield its fruit, and they would eat their fill and dwell there in safety. If the people asked what they were going to eat in the seventh year since they couldn’t sow nor gather produce, the Lord said that He would command His blessing on them in the sixth year, and the land would bring forth produce enough for three years. They could sow in the eighth year, and eat old produce until the ninth year until its produce came. They were to eat of the old harvest. God always makes provisions for His people. Land was not to be sold permanently, because the land belongs to God. The people were strangers and sojourners with God. In all the land of their possession, they were to grant redemption of the land. If an Israelite brother became poor and sold some of his possession and if a redeeming relative came to redeem it, he would be allowed to redeem what his brother had sold. If the man has no one to redeem it, but became able to redeem it himself, then he was to count the years since its sale and restore the remainder to the man to whom he sold it, that he may return to his possession. For instance, if the poor man sold land and they were midway to the next Jubilee when he could afford to buy it back, then he would pay half the price it was sold for to the purchaser. If he is not able to buy the land back, then the purchasers would keep the land until the Year of Jubilee. In the Year of Jubilee it should be released and he should return it to the seller. We continue in Leviticus 25 next week. To God Be The Glory! Click “Be Encouraged” for Spiritual, Encouraging and Inspirational Uplifting. Be Encouraged Click here to visit Bible Reading Made Different |