The Year of Jubilee, Search the Scriptures
MEMORY VERSE: “And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof: it shall be a jubilee unto you, and ye shall return every man unto his possession, and ye shall return every man unto his family” (Leviticus 25:10).
TEXT: Leviticus 25:1-55
This passage reveals two of God’s closely related ordinances for the children of Israel – the sabbatical year and the year of jubilee. These ordinances were God’s means of bringing about rest for the land as well as release and redemption for the children of Israel. The chapter begins with this recurrent phrase: “And the LORD spake unto Moses”. This phrase is used ninety-nine times in the Pentateuch.
It reveals God’s authorship and Moses’ faithfulness. Moses was faithful in declaring God’s counsel as it was received. He did not regard his convenience, the popular opinion or the opposition of the people when delivering the counsel of God. Even God attested to his faithfulness: “My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house”(Numbers 12:7). Ministers, today, should faithfully proclaim God’s word without fear or favor. Any attempt to distort, either by adding to, or removing from God’s commandments, for whatever reason, will amount to unfaithfulness.
1. SOVEREIGN PROCLAMATION OF THE SABBATICAL YEAR
Leviticus 25:1-7,18-22; Genesis 2:2,3; Exodus 23:10,11
The children of Israel were commanded to till the ground for six years and then allow it to lie fallow on the seventh year. This year was to be a Sabbath of rest for the land. The sabbatical year was God’s idea, it was amongst other things, God’s way of making the land to rest so as to regain its nutrients. God’s command was clear: “…thou shalt neither sow thy field, nor prune thy vineyard… thou shalt not reap, neither gather the grapes of thy vine undressed: for it is a year of rest unto the land” (Leviticus 25:4,5). However, they were permitted to eat the crops that grew of their own accord during the Sabbath year. Besides, God promised to bless them in the sixth year so that they would have enough to eat in the seventh year (sabbatical year), eighth year and up till the new harvest in the ninth year (Leviticus 25:18-22). Since they were not going to sow in the seventh year, they will not have any harvest in the eighth year; and what was sown in the eighth year would only be ready for harvest in the ninth year, hence God’s threefold blessing on the sixth year. This provision is a spectacular miracle to sustain an uncommon agro practice. From the divine institution of the sabbatical year, the following lessons can be gleaned:
One, God is concerned about everything He created. He instituted Sabbath for the land to enable it rest and regain its nutrients. In the same vein, He used the sabbatical year as an avenue to cater for the poor and for the beasts (Exodus 23:11). This was for the ultimate good of the Israelites because when the land is allowed to rest, its fertility will be renewed and will yield better thereafter.
Two, God commanded them to work for six years before allowing the land to lie fallow on the sabbatical year. God does not encourage laziness. Contemporary believers should avoid laziness in all aspects of their lives. Apostle Paul said, For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat (2 Thessalonians 3:10).
Three, it brings to fore the principle of rest after work. God rested from His work after creation (Genesis 2:2,3). Believers should also take time to rest because adequate rest will enhance both spiritual and physical productivity.
Four, there is final, eternal rest for all saints. It is a blissful rest with God. “There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest…” (Hebrews 4:9,11). Five, obedience and blessings. The children of Israel were to till the ground on the sixth year and expect God’s blessings that would sustain them up to the ninth year. God had earlier made a similar vision for them when He fed them with manna. They were to gather what they would need for the sixth and Sabbath day on the sixth day (Exodus 16:22,26). Indeed, God cares for His own people. God’s plan is that His children should enjoy a present moment-by-moment rest, free from the worry and anxiety that is so prevalent in the world, before entering the future rest reserved for the believers. But, in most case, people forfeit the promised rest because of disobedience to God. For instance, when the Israelites settled in the land of Canaan, they did not obey God’s directive to allow the land to rest every sabbatical year. This disobedience was a contributory factor to their going into exile for seventy years so that the land could enjoy its accumulated sabbaths (2 Chronicles 36:15-21; Leviticus 26:33-35,43).
2. SUCCINCT PURPOSES OF THE YEAR OF JUBILEE
Leviticus 25:8-13,28,40,4 1,54; Romans 8:2; 5:18, 19; Ephesians 3:12,13, 19; Matthew 11:28
The year of jubilee was divinely instituted; it was the year after every seventh sabbatical year. The sabbatical year was every seventh year and the year after the seventh sabbatical year, that is, the fiftieth year, was the year of jubilee. “A jubilee shall that fiftieth year be unto you…” The proclamation of jubilee was heralded by the sounding of the trumpet of jubilee on the tenth day of the seventh month (Day of Atonement). It is worthy of note that the year of jubilee actually begins on the first day of the seventh month but the activities of the year officially begin on the tenth day after atonement had been made. This portrays the truth that genuine repentance precedes true freedom. God instituted the year of jubilee for the following reasons:
One, release from bondage. In the year of jubilee, all Hebrew servants who were not earlier redeemed were released and allowed to go free “..and proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof… And then shall he depart from thee, both he and his children with him… then he shall go out in the year of jubilee, both he, and his children with him” (Leviticus 25:10,41,54).
Two, restoration of inheritance. Those who had sold their properties, largely because of poverty, could now return to their inheritance freely in the year of jubilee. “..and ye shall return every man unto his possession… and in the jubilee it shall go out, and he shall return unto his possession …and unto the possession of his fathers shall he return” (Leviticus 25:10,28,41).
Three. Reunion with family. Israelites who had earlier been sold or who sold themselves to servitude were freed and can then be reunited freely with their families in the year of jubilee. “..And ye shall return every man unto his family ..and shall return unto his own family…” (Leviticus 25:10,41).
Four, a year of rest for the land. The year of jubilee was also a Sabbath of rest. “A jubilee 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” (verse 11). The year of jubilee typifies what Christ did for us at Calvary. The sounding of the trumpet of jubilee that heralded the year of jubilee can be likened to Christ’s great proclamation on the cross: “It is finished”. Christ’s ultimate sacrifice brought us release from sin and satanic bondage (John 8:36; Galatians 5:1), restoration from the Fall (Romans 5:18,19), reunion with God and His family (Ephesians 2:12,13,19) and rest for our souls (Matthew 11:28). Sinners and backsliders are excluded from these privileges except they return to God, acknowledge, confess, repent, forsake their sins and believe in Christ as their Lord and personal Saviour.
3. SUNDRY PRECEPTS CONCERNING THE YEAR OF JUBILEE
Leviticus 25:14-17,23-55; Deuteronomy 25:15: Psalm 24:1: 1 Timothy 6:17-19; Colossians 4:1
The Precepts concerning the year of jubilee can broadly be divided into two: property law and laws regarding slaves. With regard to the former, the year of jubilee was to be used as a yardstick in fixing prices for the sale and purchase of possessions. The closer the transaction was to the year of jubilee, the lesser the price and vice versa (Leviticus 25:14-17). This is because in the year of jubilee, the land would be returned to its original owner. Therefore,
Firstly, a land purchased close to the year of jubilee would only be used for a short duration as compared to a land that was purchased long before the year of the jubilee. This is the principle of equity. Believers should emulate the Lord by applying this principle in their business transactions.
Secondly, no land could be permanently sold because God is the owner of all the land and the children of Israel were to be His tenants (Psalm 24:1). As a matter of fact, the directive to leave the land fallow in the sabbatical years reminded the Israelites that the land was not really their own. Believers should realize that whatever they have belongs to God; they are only stewards.
Thirdly, God also instructed them on how to handle the cases of the poor Israelites who sold their possessions as a result of poverty. The land could be redeemed by any of their close relatives or they could redeem it themselves if God prospers them. But if there is none to redeem the land, it will return to them during the year of jubilee.
Fourthly, when a house within a fenced city is sold, the seller could redeem the land within a year; if not, the land becomes the permanent possession of the buyer. Such houses could not be redeemed even in the year of jubilee (Leviticus 25:29,30). The only exception to this is the houses that belonged to the Levites (Leviticus 25:32,33). This teaches us that not everything that is lost can be regained. Hence, the need to jealously guard our integrity and spiritual experiences so as not to lose them.
Fifthly, the pastures of the cities belonging to the Levites were not to be sold. It was “their perpetual possession”. Believers should take heed lest they transact their souls, the truth and their spiritual birthright for pecuniary gains. God also gave them instructions concerning the impoverished and the slaves. The following precepts were given to the children of Israel in this regard.
One, the indigent Israelites were to be catered for by those who had the means. They were to allow them stay in their neighbourhood and not take any interest or profit from them. They were cautioned to fear God and avoid making merchandise of their vulnerable brethren. Believers who are well-off should learn how to distribute to the necessity of the saints “Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not high-minded…That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate” (1 Timothy 6:17,18).
Two, God gave precepts to Israelites who had Hebrew servants. They were not to maltreat them; rather, they were to take them as sojourners and hired servants and not as bondservants. Bond servants were the perpetual properties of their masters who had despotic powers over them. On the other hand, hired servants were more like employees, who were meant to receive wages for their work after a specified duration. Furthermore, the Hebrew servants were to be freed in the year of Jubilee. One of the lessons from this is that believers who have servants should treat them well, and are of the household of faith “Masters, give unto your servants that which is just and equal; knowing that ye also have a Master in heaven” (Colossians 4:1).
Three, they were also instructed on how to handle heathen slaves. They were to serve as bondmen and bondmaids and were the perpetual possession of their Hebrew masters. They were not to be released during the year of Jubilee.
Four, God also gave precepts concerning heathens who had Hebrew servants. Such servants could be redeemed by any of their close relatives or by they themselves. They were to be treated as hired Servants, and if nobody redeems them, they were to be released in the year of jubilee. A famous Bible commentator summarizes the year of jubilee as “the 50th year to proclaim liberty to all people and to start a business all over again as at the beginning. At this time all mortgages were cancelled, all servants released, and all bondages of men annulled. Debts were forgiven, and lands reverted to the original owners. The new start in business at the end of jubilee was based upon another year of release, 50 years in the future”. In Christ, true jubilee abounds.
QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW:
- What can Christian leaders learn from the faithfulness of Moses?
- What can we learn from the divine institution of the sabbatical year?
- What are the reasons God instituted the year of Jubilee and what does it typify?
- How can sinners and backsliders enjoy the privileges of Christ’s death and resurrection?
- Explain the precepts concerning the year of Jubilee and how believers can learn from it.
- What is the significance of the laws God gave to the Israelites regarding the redemption of properties?
- Enumerate the lessons from God’s precepts concerning the poor Israelites and the slaves.
