1 And the LORD spake unto Moses in mount Sinai, saying,

2Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye come into the land which I give you, then shall the land keep a sabbath unto the LORD.

3Six years thou shalt sow thy field, and six years thou shalt prune thy vineyard, and gather in the fruit thereof;

4But in the seventh year shall be a sabbath of rest unto the land, a sabbath for the LORD: thou shalt neither sow thy field, nor prune thy vineyard.

5That which groweth of its own accord of thy harvest thou shalt not reap, neither gather the grapes of thy vine undressed: for it is a year of rest unto the land.

6And the sabbath of the land shall be meat for you; for thee, and for thy servant, and for thy maid, and for thy hired servant, and for thy stranger that sojourneth with thee.

7And for thy cattle, and for the beast that are in thy land, shall all the increase thereof be meat.

8And thou shalt number seven sabbaths of years unto thee, seven times seven years; and the space of the seven sabbaths of years shall be unto thee forty and nine years.

9Then shalt thou cause the trumpet of the jubile to sound on the tenth day of the seventh month, in the day of atonement shall ye make the trumpet sound throughout all your land.

10And 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.

11A jubile shall that 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.

12For it is the jubile; it shall be holy unto you: ye shall eat the increase thereof out of the field.

13In the year of this jubile ye shall return every man unto his possession.

14And if thou sell ought unto thy neighbour, or buyest ought of thy neighbour's hand, ye shall not oppress one another:

15According to the number of years after the jubile thou shalt buy of thy neighbour, and according unto the number of years of the fruits he shall sell unto thee:

16According to the multitude of years thou shalt increase the price thereof, and according to the fewness of years thou shalt diminish the price of it: for according to the number of the years of the fruits doth he sell unto thee.

17Ye shall not therefore oppress one another; but thou shalt fear thy God:for I am the LORD your God.

18Wherefore ye shall do my statutes, and keep my judgments, and do them; and ye shall dwell in the land in safety.

19And the land shall yield her fruit, and ye shall eat your fill, and dwell therein in safety.

20And if ye shall say, What shall we eat the seventh year? behold, we shall not sow, nor gather in our increase:

21Then I will command my blessing upon you in the sixth year, and it shall bring forth fruit for three years.

22And ye shall sow the eighth year, and eat yet of old fruit until the ninth year; until her fruits come in ye shall eat of the old store.

23The land shall not be sold for ever: for the land is mine, for ye are strangers and sojourners with me.

24And in all the land of your possession ye shall grant a redemption for the land.

25If thy brother be waxen poor, and hath sold away some of his possession, and if any of his kin come to redeem it, then shall he redeem that which his brother sold.

26And if the man have none to redeem it, and himself be able to redeem it;

27Then let him count the years of the sale thereof, and restore the overplus unto the man to whom he sold it; that he may return unto his possession.

28But if he be not able to restore it to him, then that which is sold shall remain in the hand of him that hath bought it until the year of jubile: and in the jubile it shall go out, and he shall return unto his possession.

29And if a man sell a dwelling house in a walled city, then he may redeem it within a whole year after it is sold; within a full year may he redeem it.

30And if it be not redeemed within the space of a full year, then the house that is in the walled city shall be established for ever to him that bought it throughout his generations: it shall not go out in the jubile.

31But the houses of the villages which have no wall round about them shall be counted as the fields of the country: they may be redeemed, and they shall go out in the jubile.

32Notwithstanding the cities of the Levites, and the houses of the cities of their possession, may the Levites redeem at any time.

33And if a man purchase of the Levites, then the house that was sold, and the city of his possession, shall go out in the year of jubile: for the houses of the cities of the Levites are their possession among the children of Israel.

34But the field of the suburbs of their cities may not be sold; for it is their perpetual possession.

35And if thy brother be waxen poor, and fallen in decay with thee; then thou shalt relieve him: yea, though he be a stranger, or a sojourner; that he may live with thee.

36Take thou no usury of him, or increase: but fear thy God; that thy brother may live with thee.

37Thou shalt not give him thy money upon usury, nor lend him thy victuals for increase.

38I am the LORD your God, which brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, to give you the land of Canaan, and to be your God.

39And if thy brother that dwelleth by thee be waxen poor, and be sold unto thee; thou shalt not compel him to serve as a bondservant:

40But as an hired servant, and as a sojourner, he shall be with thee, and shall serve thee unto the year of jubile.

41And then shall he depart from thee, both he and his children with him, and shall return unto his own family, and unto the possession of his fathers shall he return.

42For they are my servants, which I brought forth out of the land of Egypt: they shall not be sold as bondmen.

43Thou shalt not rule over him with rigour; but shalt fear thy God.

44Both thy bondmen, and thy bondmaids, which thou shalt have, shall be of the heathen that are round about you; of them shall ye buy bondmen and bondmaids.

45Moreover of the children of the strangers that do sojourn among you, of them shall ye buy, and of their families that are with you, which they begat in your land: and they shall be your possession.

46And ye shall take them as an inheritance for your children after you, to inherit them for a possession; they shall be your bondmen for ever: but over your brethren the children of Israel, ye shall not rule one over another with rigour.

47And if a sojourner or stranger wax rich by thee, and thy brother that dwelleth by him wax poor, and sell himself unto the stranger or sojourner by thee, or to the stock of the stranger's family:

48After that he is sold he may be redeemed again; one of his brethren may redeem him:

49Either his uncle, or his uncle's son, may redeem him, or any that is nigh of kin unto him of his family may redeem him; or if he be able, he may redeem himself.

50And he shall reckon with him that bought him from the year that he was sold to him unto the year of jubile: and the price of his sale shall be according unto the number of years, according to the time of an hired servant shall it be with him.

51If there be yet many years behind, according unto them he shall give again the price of his redemption out of the money that he was bought for.

52And if there remain but few years unto the year of jubile, then he shall count with him, and according unto his years shall he give him again the price of his redemption.

53And as a yearly hired servant shall he be with him: and the other shall not rule with rigour over him in thy sight.

54And if he be not redeemed in these years, then he shall go out in the year of jubile, both he, and his children with him.

55For unto me the children of Israel are servants; they are my servants whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.

COMMENTARY by Dr. Dave Burnette

Written By: God through Inspiration

Penned By: Moses

Date Penned: (1445-1444 BC)

Overview: A Handbook for the Priests and Levites (c 1-27)

Theme: Living a Holy Life (c 18-27)

Message: The Year of Jubilee (v 1-55)

Leviticus 25 Commentary

(25:1-7) Resting Every Seventh Year - The sabbath year provided one year in seven for the fields to lie fallow (unplowed). This was good management of natural resources and reminded the people of God's control and provision for them.

(25:8-17) The Year of Jubilee - The Year of Jubilee was meant to be celebrated every 50 years. It included canceling all debts, freeing all slaves, and returning to its original owners all land that had been sold. There is no indication in the Bible that the Year of Jubilee was ever carried out. If Israel had followed this practice faithfully, they would have been a society without permanent poverty.

(25:23) God Owns it All - The people would one day possess land in Canaan, but in God's plan, only God's ownership was absolute. He wanted his people to avoid greed and materialism. If you have the attitude that you are taking care of the Lord's property, you will make what you have more available to others. This is difficult to do if you have an attitude of ownership. Think of yourself as a manager of all that is under your care, not as an owner.

(25:35:55) God's Plan for the Poor - The Bible places great emphasis on assisting the poor and helpless, especially orphans, widows, and those with disabilities. In Israelite society, no paid work was available to women; thus, a widow and her children had no livelihood. Neither was there work available for those with serious disabilities in this nation of farmers and shepherds. The poor were to be helped without being charged any interest. Individual and family responsibility for the poor was crucial since there was no government aid.

(25:35:37) God's Command to Help the Poor - God made it clear that neglecting the poor was a sin. Permanent poverty was not allowed in Israel. Financially secure families were responsible for providing help and housing for those in need. Many times we do nothing about poverty, not because we lack compassion, but because we are overwhelmed by the size of the problem and don't know where to begin. God doesn't expect you to eliminate poverty, nor does he expect you to neglect your family while providing for others. He does, however, expect that when you see an individual in need, you will reach out with whatever help you can offer, including hospitality.

(25:44) God's Plan for Slaves - Why did God allow the Israelites to purchase slaves? Under Hebrew laws, slaves were treated differently from slaves in other nations. They were seen as human beings with dignity, not as animals. They took part, for example, in the religious festivals, and they rested on the Sabbath. Nowhere does the Bible condone slavery, but it recognizes its existence. God's laws offered many guidelines for treating slaves properly.

LIFE APPLICATION by Dr. Dave Burnette

Each day we walk through the Bible chapter by chapter making an application of our text to help us grow in the Lord. Many applications can be made from each day's text. Today we continue in the book of Leviticus with Chapter 25 and in today's text we see a continued look In this Priest Handbook of the Lord and see the offerings, sacrifices, feasts, and festivals that define the Law and the Character of God. We see that sin has a price and there is forgiveness of sin which points to Jesus-Christ. The ultimate sacrifice for all mans sin. Today we look at the year of Jubilee a time to celebrate the goodness of the Lord and to forgive all debts. In making application we see how we reap what we sow but our goal is to not dominate over others financially but to look out for the poor and disabled giving to them as to the Lord. This does not give those who wont work a handout but rather compassion and to the needy as it related to their ability and need. How about you? Do you have compassion on the poor and needy? If blessed of the Lord do you share in the principle of jubilee and forgiveness to those who cant pay you? Let us learn from today's principle of Jubilee and forgive others who are indebted to us.

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