Levítico 25
G. Campbell Morgan · Citado em PreceptAustin
Levítico 25
Morgan - It shall be a jubilee unto you.—Lev. 25.10. The provision for the year of jubilee was a method by which the people were perpetually reminded that all human inter-relations were dependent upon the deeper things of Divine authority and possession. The first part of this chapter gives the law of the land-sabbath. Every seventh year the land was to have rest from cultivation. Thus the Divine ownership was recognized, as men were forbidden to treat the land as their absolute property. There is no doubt that this requirement, in common with all others, was based upon the true method of dealing with the land. Every fiftieth year was one in which all sorts of human arrangements were interfered with. In that year, men dispossessed through adversity were restored to possession. In that year the slave was to be set free, and all men released from toil. The laws for this year were clearly set out, as they affected the land, dwelling-houses, and persons. They should be carefully pondered, for in them the foundations of the social order were firmly laid. By them we see how all human inter-relationships, both as to property and person, are conditioned by the fact that the fundamental ownership, both of property and persons, is that of God. The only right a man has in land is that of his own labour therein. The liberation of the slave proved that no one human being can have the right to possess, absolutely and finally, any other human being. The master has only a right in the work of his slave. The readjustment of the year of jubilee re-called men to the realization of the sovereignty of Jehovah, and of the limitations within which they lived. (Life applications from every chapter of the Bible by Morgan, G. Campbell ) Lawrence Richards - This Year of Jubilee (Lev. 25:8–55) It was to be a year for rejoicing, the Year of Jubilee. It was to be a year when every poor family won the lottery, and every rich man rejoiced for him. When Israel entered Palestine, each family was to be given its own land to cultivate. That land, and the crops it produced, was to support the family and be the source of its wealth. God said that such land must not “be sold permanently.” No family was to be thrust into poverty; each was to have and keep its own capital. But what would happen if a family did have reverses and became poor? First, others who could were to help out, by lending money without interest or selling food at no profit (vv. 35–37). Second, if desperate, a man might sell the right to harvest crops the family land would produce, but not sell the land itself (vv. 13–29). Third, if destitute, a person might even sell himself, but such a person could not be treated as a slave (vv. 39–53). But, when the 50th year came, the Year of Jubilee, everything was to be set right. Any debt the poor owed was canceled. Any land the family had sold was reclaimed. And anyone who lived in servitude was freed. No wonder “jubilee” has come to mean “jubilation,” and “rejoicing.” God truly does care about the poor. Through these unusual provisions of Old Testament Law, God showed His people how they could express concern for the poor too. Yet the Year of Jubilee that we read of here was never celebrated in Israel. Not once. When each 50th year came, the rich tightened their grip on their wealth. And the poor continued in their poverty. God’s people had the opportunity to fulfill a dream. But again and again they turned away. Today, when we read the ageless code that so beautifully displays God’s concern for the poor and the oppressed, we too are called to dream of a just and moral society. A community of faith in which people have priority, and concern for those less fortunate is a mark of the godly. Personal Application - What elements in this chapter’s plan for dealing with poverty can Christians adopt today? Quotable “It is not the Christian man’s part to think in this wise: what have I to do with this fellow? . . . Remember only those things which Christ hath done for thee, which should be recompensed, not in Himself, but in thy neighbour. Only see of what things he hath need, and what thou art able to do for him. Think this thing only, he is my brother in our Lord, co-heir in Christ, a member of the same body, redeemed with one blood, a fellow in the common faith, called unto the very same grace and felicity of the life to come.”—Erasmus of Rotterdam (Borrow the The 365 day devotional commentary) Ivan Steeds - Leviticus 25:8–24 CHRIST IN THE JUBILEE The main purpose of the jubilee was to give rest to the land. God rested from His work after the days of creation and gave commandment to man—six days he must work but the seventh day would be a Sabbath of rest. The God who first created and who sustains His creation through the spoken word of His own Son now teaches men how to respect the land to preserve its fruitfulness and secure its increase. Consider this in these days of industry and commerce, where increase and growth are the key objectives and little time is devoted to rest. Some of the sweetest enjoyment of Christ will be gained by the soul who ‘sits down’ under His shadow and enjoys the riches of divine provision, Song 2:3. In the year of jubilee every man was commanded to return to his possessions and his family. The God of heaven places great emphasis on our attitude towards, and responsibility for, our domestic circumstances. The Scriptures contain clear teaching on matters such as husband/wife, children/parents, work ethic and family values; the year of jubilee caused people to reflect on these things and take stock, to put matters right and enjoy a period of calm. Oppression was to cease, loss was to be taken when necessary and the commandment was backed by highest authority—‘I am the Lord your God’, v. 17. We would see Christ in this chapter and there is much to consider in this context. How righteous He was, rendering to Caesar things that were Caesar’s and unto God things that were God’s. His righteous anger was kindled when men failed to distinguish between the place set aside for holy activities and that of industry and commerce; instead they endeavoured to make gain in an unholy way, Mark 11. The care He had for His widowed mother was demonstrated on the cross; He was a Son who fulfilled all His obligations to His earthly parents. In Leviticus 25 we find an interesting compensation for those who honour God. When concern is raised over what they would eat in the seventh year, God gives a promise, ‘I will command my blessing upon you in the sixth year and it shall bring forth fruit for three years’, v. 21. To the burdened soul the Saviour says, ‘Come unto me … and I will give you rest’. Cyril Hocking - Leviticus 25:1–24 REST AND LIBERTY GOD is no hard taskmaster. Our chapter shows that He has more consideration for His people than we have one for another. Verses 2–7 tell of the sabbatic year, every seventh year being set aside for rest, v. 4. The land was to be left fallow, and no agricultural operations were to be carried out. In Exodus 20:10 a weekly sabbath was appointed for men and animals; now during this seventh year the land is included. The very natural question “What shall we eat the seventh year?”, v. 20, is answered by God’s bountiful provision in the sixth year, when the ground brought forth sufficient to cover three years, v. 21. This reminds us of a similar provision in relation to the supply of manna, Exod. 16:22. Law writes “Faith has the richest board. It works when God says work. It rests when God says rest, and in obedience thrives”. In practice, the sabbatic year was largely ignored by the people, and this was one reason for the 70 years of captivity, 2 Chron. 36:21. The year of rest was to be used in gaining a greater knowledge of God’s law, Deut. 31:10–13—did this fall into disuse too? The year of jubilee, vv. 8–24, followed seven successive sabbatic years. It was introduced by the day of atonement, v. 9, which involved mourning for sin, and the putting away of the sins by atonement. A proclamation of “liberty” was made, v. 10, and the process of buying and selling property was related to the nearness to the trumpet sound on the day of atonement, v. 16. Does the expectation of the trumpet affect us in our home and business ventures?, 1 Thess. 4:16. As, too, the presence of the Lord Jesus inaugurated a veritable year of liberty, Luke 4:18, 19, so, at His second coming in glory, the earth will celebrate its jubilee. Consideration of our chapter impresses upon us the following thoughts: (i) “The earth is the Lord’s”, Psa. 24:1. He has not given it wholly into the hands of men. (ii) God is able to provide. For the year of jubilee followed a sabbatic year, and for two years in succession no agricultural pursuits would be followed. His bounty is proved by the obedient, (iii) The jubilee relaxed the ties of bondage, and “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed”, John 8:36. WHAT GREATER JOY IS THERE than to see old scars transformed into catalysts of life? Mourning into dancing, ashes into beauty, water into wine. Shout the jubilee! Shout the jubilee! ISAIAH 61:3 Leviticus 25:10 'You shall thus consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim a release through the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you, and each of you shall return to his own property, and each of you shall return to his family. proclaim (KJV): Ex 20:2 Ezr 1:3 Ps 146:7 Isa 49:9,24,25 61:1-3 63:4 Jer 34:8,13-17 Zec 9:11,12 Lu 1:74 4:16-21 Joh 8:32-36 Ro 6:17,18 2Co 3:17 Ga 4:25-31 5:1,13 1Pe 2:16 2Pe 2:19,20 every man (KJV): Lev 25:13,26-28,33,34 Lev 27:17-24 ye shall return (KJV): Nu 36:2-9 LXE And ye shall sanctify the year, the fiftieth year, and ye shall proclaim a release upon the land to all that inhabit it; it shall be given a year of release, a jubilee for you; and each one shall depart to his possession, and ye shall go each to his family. CSB You are to consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim freedom in the land for all its inhabitants. It will be your Jubilee, when each of you are to return to his property and each of you to his clan. ESV And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you, when each of you shall return to his property and each of you shall return to his clan. KJV And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof: it shall be a jubile unto you; and ye shall return every man unto his possession, and ye shall return every man unto his family. NET So you must consecrate the fiftieth year, and you must proclaim a release in the land for all its inhabitants. That year will be your jubilee; each one of you must return to his property and each one of you must return to his clan. NIV Consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you; each one of you is to return to his family property and each to his own clan. NLT Set this year apart as holy, a time to proclaim freedom throughout the land for all who live there. It will be a jubilee year for you, when each of you may return to the land that belonged to your ancestors and return to your own clan. YLT and ye have hallowed the year, the fiftieth year; and ye have proclaimed liberty in the land to all its inhabitants; a jubilee it is to you; and ye have turned back each unto his possession; yea, each unto his family ye do turn back. Leviticus 27:17-24 ‘If he consecrates his field as of the year of jubilee, according to your valuation it shall stand. 18 ‘If he consecrates his field after the jubilee, however, then the priest shall calculate the price for him proportionate to the years that are left until the year of jubilee; and it shall be deducted from your valuation. 19 ‘If the one who consecrates it should ever wish to redeem the field, then he shall add one-fifth of your valuation price to it, so that it may pass to him. 20 ‘Yet if he will not redeem the field, but has sold the field to another man, it may no longer be redeemed; 21 and when it reverts in the jubilee, the field shall be holy to the LORD, like a field set apart; it shall be for the priest as his property. 22 ‘Or if he consecrates to the LORD a field which he has bought, which is not a part of the field of his own property, 23 then the priest shall calculate for him the amount of your valuation up to the year of jubilee; and he shall on that day give your valuation as holy to the LORD. 24 ‘In the year of jubilee the field shall return to the one from whom he bought it, to whom the possession of the land belongs. PROCLAIM LIBERTY IN THE YEAR OF JUBILEE Consecrate the fiftieth year - They were to set it aside as holy as removed from common use. Why? Because it was special and should be treated as such. In fact it was a shadow of a better Jubilee to come. It could have and should have been a reminder to Israel of the magnanimous nature of their (our) forgiving God and should have caused those in the Old Testament to consider the coming of the Messiah Who would quote Isaiah 61:1-2a+ in His first "sermon" given in His hometown Jewish synagogue... “THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME, BECAUSE HE ANOINTED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR. HE HAS SENT ME TO PROCLAIM RELEASE TO THE CAPTIVES, AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND, TO SET FREE THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED, TO PROCLAIM THE FAVORABLE YEAR OF THE LORD. And He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him. And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” (Luke 4:18-21+, cf Titus 2:14+) Comment: It is significant that Jesus ceased His quotation from Isaiah 61:2 before the phrase "And the day of vengeance of our God" which describes His Second Coming to defeat the Antichrist (Rev 19:11-21+) and all of His enemies. Isaiah 61:2 is therefore an excellent example of a time gap, which is not infrequent in Old Testament prophecies (cp Daniel 9:26+ and the time gap until Daniel 9:27+). Consecrate (Sanctify, make holy, consider holy - a command not a suggestion!) (06942) (qadash) means to set apart for a specific use. Removed from common use. To be holy. To show one's self to be holy. To consecrate or dedicate. To set apart a person or thing from all common or secular purposes to some religious use. Everything consecrated to God was separated from all profane use. The Septuagint translates qadash here with the verb hagiazo meaning to make holy, sanctify (e.g., every believer is one who has been sanctified - Acts 20:32). Qadash is used with various objects in addition to the fiftieth year: people of Israel - Ex 19:10, 14; Joshua 7:13 altar in the Temple - Ex 29:36; 1 Ki 8:64 priests - Ex 28:41; 29:1;1 Sa 7:1 mountain - Ex 19:23 Sabbath - Ge 2:3; Ex 20:8 new building - Neh 3:1 fast - Joel 1:14; 2:15 Webster's Dictionary definition #2 for consecrate is convicting - "make or declare sacred; esp devote irrevocably to worship of God by a solemn ceremony."
Levítico 25
Morgan - Recently I spent the afternoon over at Fisk University studying the history of the Negro Spiritual. Fisk University opened its doors in 1866, at the close of the Civil War. It was one of the schools established for liberated slaves by the American Missionary Association. As students and professors arrived on campus, they found themselves living in abandoned Union army hospital barracks built on the site of old slave pens. Among the arriving professors was a New York Yankee, a white man named White. As music instructor, George White became intrigued by the old plantation melodies and slave songs he overheard in the dorms and among the students between classes. White had trouble coaxing his students to sing him those songs; it seemed a particularly private type of hand-me-down music. There were no written scores or words—just plaintive strains passed voice to voice between the generations. Within a few years, the old buildings at Fisk started rotting. The university found itself in crisis, without even money to buy food for its 400 students. The Missionary Association decided to close the school. When White approached the trustees suggesting a series of fund-raising concerts, the board refused. White gave it a try anyway. “I’m depending on God, not you,” he told the board. Selecting nine students (most of them former slaves), White and his wife sold their jewelry and personal belongings to finance the first tour. On October 6, 1871, the singers boarded a train in Nashville for the Midwest. It was a hard trip, and at times the young people had to relinquish their seats to white folks. Other times they were evicted from trains or hotels. Sometimes the little group, braving threats, insults, obscenities, and indignities, sang in nearly empty halls and churches. George White agonized about naming his group; but one day, after spending much of the night in prayer, he found the answer. They would be the Jubilee Singers, the biblical year of Jubilee in Leviticus 25 being a day of liberation for slaves. The tide turned during the Christmas season that year when the Jubilee Singers gave a performance at the Plymouth Church in Brooklyn, New York. The pastor was Henry Ward Beecher. When it was finished, Rev. Beecher, deeply moved, stood and said, “Ladies and gentlemen, I’m going to do what I want every person in this house to do.” He turned his pockets inside out, giving all the money he had on his person that night to the Jubilee Singers. Others followed suit, and that night the offering was $1300! Newspapers picked up the story, and soon the Jubilee Singers had engagements around the world. That was the birth of the Negro Spiritual as a popular form of music. They were songs of slaves yearning to be free. As I studied all this, I realized how greatly needful it us for us to be free, and how tragic and horrible to be enslaved. Yet when we look at the Lord Jesus, we see someone who operated in reverse of those desires. He was willing to become a servant, to be a slave. He took the form of a bondservant. C H Spurgeon on the Year of Jubilee and its Relation to Isaiah 61:1-2 I. Jesus, in the first place, proclaims THE ACCEPTABLE YEAR OF THE LORD. Take the expression to pieces and it comes to this—the year of the Lord, and the year of acceptance. Now, what was the year of the Lord? There can be, I think, very little question that this relates to the jubilee year. Every seventh year was the Lord’s year, and it was to be a sabbath of rest to the land; but the seventh seventh year, the fiftieth year, which the Lord reserved unto Himself, was in a very marked and especial sense the year of the Lord. Now, our Lord Jesus has come to proclaim a period of jubilee to the true seed of Israel. The seed of Abraham now are not the seed according to the law, but those who are born after the promise. There are privileges reserved for Israel after the flesh, which they will yet receive in the day when they shall acknowledge Christ to be the Messiah; but every great blessing which was promised to Abraham’s seed after the flesh is now virtually promised to Israel after the Spirit, to those who by faith are the children of believing Abraham. Now, beloved, to all who believe, our Lord Jesus proclaims a year of jubilee. Let us dwell upon the four privileges of the jubilee, and accept with delight the proclamation which our Lord has made. In the year of jubilee, as we read in the twenty-fifth chapter of Leviticus, there was a release of all persons who had sold themselves for servants. Pinched by great poverty, and unable to meet their debts, it sometimes happened that men were compelled to say to their creditor, “Take us and our wives and children, and accept our services instead of money. We have no goods or chattels, and our land has been mortgaged long ago, but here we are; we cannot pay in any other way—give us food and raiment and lodging, and we will put ourselves under apprenticeship to you.” The law of Moses ordained that such persons were not to be treated harshly, nor regarded as slaves, but as hired servants, but still it must have been an unpleasant condition of servitude for a freeborn Israelite. How happy then was the morning when the jubilee trumpet sounded, and the generous law came into operation which said, “He shall serve thee unto the year of jubilee, but then shall he depart from thee, both he and his children with him.” From that moment he owed no more service, however great his debt might have been; he looked upon his wife and children and rejoiced that they were all his own and all free from the yoke, so that they could at once return to the possession of their fathers, all live in the cottage in which they formerly dwelt, and enjoy the piece of land which they formerly called their own. Liberty, that gladsome sound, liberty had come to them; no matter that they had long been under obligations to the creditor, those obligations ceased on the sound of the sacred trumpet. Beloved souls now present, proclamation is made to you in the Lord’s name that if you are under bondage to sin and to sinful habits, there is liberty for you; faith in Jesus will set you free. If you are in bondage under justice and the broken law there is deliverance. If you are under bondage through fear of death, or from the rage of Satan, our divine Lord and Master has come into the world on purpose to break these bonds in sunder, and to proclaim liberty to the captives. Ye need be bound no longer; if ye believe in Jesus ye are bound no longer, but ye are set free from all the bondage of the law, from the slavery of Satan and from the dread of death. Take the liberty which the great Lord freely presents to you, and be no longer slaves. Jesus has brought in redemption and finished atonement, and believers are free; come and rejoice therein. The next jubilee blessing was the redemption of alienated possessions. Every man had his own plot of ground in the Holy Land, but through the pressure of the times it sometimes happened that a man alienated his property: he was in need of ready money, his children wanted bread to eat, and he, therefore, parted with his land. It was gone: the vines and the figtrees, the corn and the oil, passed over to another; but it was not gone forever, he had no power to sell beyond the year of jubilee. When this joyful morning dawned he went back to his family estate; it was all his own again, clear of all encumbrances; the little homestead, and the farmyard, and the fields, and the garden, all had come back to him, and none could dispute his right. Just so my Lord and Master declares to all who believe in Him that the estate which Adam forfeited is restored to all for whom the Second Adam died. The alienated heritage is our own again. The great Father’s love, and favor, and care, yea, all things, whether things present or things to come, or life or death, all are ours, and we are Christ’s and Christ is God’s. If we are believers, and we are of the true seed of Israel, this day the Lord Jesus proclaims to us a restoration of all the lost privileges and blessings which originally belonged to manhood. Behold, believers, all covenant blessings are yours, rejoice in them! Partake of heavenly blessings freely. Let your soul rejoice in its portion, and delight itself in fatness. It followed, also, as a third blessing of the year of the Lord that all debts were discharged. The man who had sold himself had, as it were, made a composition of his debts by the sale of himself, and this implied a full and final discharge at the jubilee. The person also who had mortgaged his land up to the jubilee year had discharged his debts thereby, and when the man received back himself and his property, no further liability rested upon him, he was cleared of all charges. The jubilee did not give the man back himself and his land under a reserve, but unreservedly. If debt had still been due the release would have been a mere farce, since he would have had to mortgage his land and sell himself again directly to meet the demand. No, there was a full discharge, a canceling of all debts, a removal of all encumbrances upon the man and upon his estate, and he was free. What a joy this must have been! He who is in debt is in danger; a honest man sleeps on a hard bed till he has paid what he owes. He who is immersed in debt is plunged in misery, driven to his wits’ end, not knowing what to do. Happy is he that is delivered from debt once for all. Now behold, O believers in Jesus, your debts before the Lord are all discharged, the handwriting that was against you is nailed to the cross, receipted in the crimson lines of Jesus’ precious blood. Being justified by faith ye are clear before the sight of the Eternal; none can lay anything to your charge. What joyful notes are these! Jesus makes the proclamation, who will not believe it and be glad? A fourth blessing of the jubilee trumpet was rest. They had their lands, but they were not to till them for a year. No more the spade and the plow, the sickle and the flail—they were to put away instruments of labor, and rest for twelve months. Think of a whole year of perfect repose, wherein they might worship and adore God all the week round, make every day a holy festival, and the whole year a Sabbath of Sabbaths unto the Most High. Brethren, the Israelites had no small privileges under the ceremonial covenant, if they had lived up to it, but they failed to do so, for it has sometimes been questioned whether they ever kept a jubilee at all, and whether the Sabbatic year was ever once observed. If they had obeyed the Lord they would have been favored indeed: for in the matter of holidays and quiet resting times they were favored above all people. Think of one year in seven of absolute cessation from toil. What repose for them! And then they had also the year after the seventh seven, so that every man who reached the fiftieth year enjoyed two consecutive years of absolute rest from all labor, and yet knew no want, for the ground brought forth plentifully, and every man helped himself. Those who had land had a good store to last them through three years, and those who had none were fed by the spontaneous produce of the soil. We live not under such laws, and if we did I am afraid we should not have the faith to trust in the Lord and avail ourselves of the divinely appointed holiday. But, beloved, we rest spiritually. He that believes in the Lord Jesus Christ has entered into rest. Now no more does he strive to work out a righteousness of his own, for he has already a divine one, and needs no other. It is his pleasure to worship God, but he no longer trembles beneath His wrath; it is his delight to do His commandments, but he toils and frets no longer as a slave under the law; he has become a free man, and a beloved child, and the peace of God which passeth all understanding keeps his heart and mind. Being justified by faith he has peace with God, and enjoys his influences of the divine Comforter whose indwelling gives rest to the soul. The jubilee year, according to our text, was called “the year of the Lord”; and the reason for all the four jubilee blessings was found in the Lord. First, the servants were set free because God said, “they are my servants, which I brought forth out of the land of Egypt” (Lev. 25:42). Ah, poor burdened soul, if thou believest in Christ thou shalt go free, for thou art the Lord’s own—His chosen, His redeemed, and therefore He claims thee, and will suffer no other lord to have dominion over thee. The devil seeks to lay an embargo upon thee, and hold thee a slave, but Jesus saith, “Let go my captives, for I have redeemed them with my blood.” Jesus claims you, O penitent souls; He cries to sin as once the Lord said to Pharaoh, “Thus saith the Lord, let my people go.” Jesus says of each repenting soul, “Loose him and let him go, for he is mine. My Father gave him to me—he is my chosen, my beloved. Neither sin nor Satan, nor death nor hell, shall hold him, for he is mine.” The land also was set free for this same reason, for concerning it the Lord said, “The land is Mine” (Lev. 25:23). The freehold of the land was vested in Jehovah Himself, consequently He ordained that no man should hold any portion of it by right of purchase beyond the fiftieth year, for the land was entailed and must go back to those for whom He had appointed it at the jubilee year. So the blessings of the everlasting covenant are God’s and therefore He appoints them unto you poor believing sinners, and you shall have them, for the divine decree shall not be frustrated. As surely as He appointed Christ to reign, and placed Him on the throne, so does He appoint you to reign with Him, and you shall sit upon His throne though all the devils in hell should say you nay. So, too, the debts were all discharged, because on the day before the jubilee the great atonement had swept away all transgression and indebtedness towards God, and He would have His people forgive all the debts of their fellow men. All things are the Lord’s and He exercised His crown rights on the day of jubilee so far as to declare all debts discharged. “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof” was the motto of the jubilee, and sufficient reason for the canceling of obligations between man and man. As for rest, that came also, because it was God’s year, and was hallowed unto the Lord. “A jubilee shall the fiftieth year be unto you: ye shall not sow, neither reap that which groweth of itself in it, nor gather the grapes in it of thy vine undressed. For it is the jubilee; it shall be holy unto you: ye shall eat the increase thereof out of the field.” During man’s years the earth brings forth thorns and thistles, and man must earn his bread, with the sweat of his face; but when God’s year comes then the wilderness and the solitary place are glad, and the desert rejoices and blossoms as the rose. When the Lord’s own kingdom cometh then shall the earth yield her increase as she has never done before. My beloved, I trust you know the blessedness of living in God’s year, for you live by faith upon His providence, casting all your care upon Him, for He careth for you. This is the Sabbath of the soul, the counterpart of heaven. You behold the work of atonement fully accomplished on your behalf, and know yourselves to be delivered from all your liabilities to the law, and therefore your heart leaps within you. You are clean, delivered, set free, washed in the blood of the Lamb, and therefore do you come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon your heads. F. Whitfield They shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel Zech. 4:10 It is joy to the Christian to know that the plummet is now in the hands of our great Zerubbabel, and that when He comes forth, the world’s misrule shall be over. The false standards and false estimates of men shall be swept away. The standards of “expediency,” of “conscience,” of “every man thinking as he likes, if he is only sincere”—these, and all similar refuges of lies shall be like a spider’s web. The measure of all things will be Christ, and Christ the Measurer of all things. How everything will be reversed! What a turning upside down of all that now exists! Blessed day, and longed for—the world’s great jubilee, the earth’s long-looked-for Sabbath, groaning creation’s joy, and nature’s calm repose! Who would not cry, “Come, Lord Jesus, and end this troubled dream! Shatter the shadows of the long, dark night of sin and sorrow, sighing and tears, despair and death!” Leviticus 25:11 'You shall have the fiftieth year as a jubilee; you shall not sow, nor reap its aftergrowth, nor gather in from its untrimmed vines. shall : Lev 25:5-7 NLT - Yes, the fiftieth year will be a jubilee for you. During that year, do not plant any seeds or store away any of the crops that grow naturally, and do not process the grapes that grow on your unpruned vines. You shall have the fiftieth year as a jubilee; you shall not sow, nor reap its aftergrowth, nor gather in from its untrimmed vines - Let the land rest. Harrison has an interesting note - We don't know for a fact that the Year of Jubilee was ever actually observed. "Just how widely the concept of the jubilee year was observed through the history of the Israelites is difficult to state for lack of direct evidence." (Harrison) Leviticus 25:12 'For it is a jubilee; it shall be holy to you. You shall eat its crops out of the field. Lev 25:6,7 NLT - It will be a jubilee year for you, and you must observe it as a special and holy time. You may, however, eat the produce that grows naturally in the fields that year. 'For it is a jubilee It shall be holy to you - In other words you are to treat it as set apart to the Lord. You shall eat - Do not fret. The Lord will provide for your needs. Every generation needs to hear and heed these words "You shall eat!" Leviticus 25:13 'On this year of jubilee each of you shall return to his own property. Lev 25:10 27:17-24 Nu 36:4 RELEASE OF THE PROPERTY On this year of jubilee each of you shall return to his own property - NLT "In the Year of Jubilee each of you must return to the lands that belonged to your ancestors." Ryrie on Lev 25:13-17 Buying and selling land was to be carried on equitably, with due regard to how near the year of jubilee was, when the land would have to be returned to its original owner.