Leviticus 25
25
The Sabbath Year
1 # ch. 26:46 The Lord spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai, saying, 2“Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When you come into #Ex. 23:10, 11; [ch. 26:34, 35; 2 Chr. 36:21]the land that I give you, the land shall keep a Sabbath to the Lord. 3For six years you shall sow your field, and for six years you shall prune your vineyard and gather in its fruits, 4but in the seventh year there shall be a Sabbath of solemn rest for the land, a Sabbath to the Lord. You shall not sow your field or prune your vineyard. 5#[2 Kgs. 19:29]; Isa. 37:30You shall not reap what grows of itself in your harvest, or gather the grapes of your undressed vine. It shall be a year of solemn rest for the land. 6The Sabbath of the land#25:6 That is, the Sabbath produce of the land shall provide food for you, for yourself and for your male and female slaves#25:6 Or servants and for your hired worker and the sojourner who lives with you, 7and for your cattle and for the wild animals that are in your land: #ver. 12all its yield shall be for food.
The Year of Jubilee
8“You shall count seven weeks#25:8 Or Sabbaths of years, seven times seven years, so that the time of the seven weeks of years shall give you forty-nine years. 9Then you shall sound #[ch. 23:24; Isa. 27:13] the loud trumpet on the tenth day of the seventh month. #ch. 23:24, 27On the Day of Atonement you shall sound the trumpet throughout all your land. 10And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and #Isa. 61:1; Jer. 34:8, 13, 15, 17; Ezek. 46:17; [Isa. 61:2; 63:4; Luke 4:19] 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 #ch. 27:24; Num. 36:4you shall return to his clan. 11That fiftieth year shall be a jubilee for you; in it #ver. 4, 5 you shall neither sow nor reap #[See ver. 5 above]what grows of itself nor gather the grapes from the undressed vines. 12For it is a jubilee. It shall be holy to you. #ver. 6, 7You may eat the produce of the field.#25:12 Or countryside
13 # [See ver. 10 above] “In this year of jubilee each of you shall return to his property. 14And if you make a sale to your neighbor or buy from your neighbor, #[ch. 19:33]you shall not wrong one another. 15#ch. 27:18, 23You shall pay your neighbor according to the number of years after the jubilee, and he shall sell to you according to the number of years for crops. 16If the years are many, you shall increase the price, and if the years are few, you shall reduce the price, for it is the number of the crops that he is selling to you. 17#ver. 36, 43; ch. 19:14, 32You shall not wrong one another, but you shall fear your God, for I am the Lord your God.
18 # See ch. 18:4, 5 “Therefore you shall do my statutes and keep my rules and perform them, and then #ch. 26:5, 6; Deut. 12:10; [Prov. 1:33; Jer. 23:6; Ezek. 34:25, 28]you will dwell in the land securely. 19#Ps. 85:12; Ezek. 34:26, 27 The land will yield its fruit, and #ch. 26:5; Deut. 11:15; [Joel 2:19, 26] you will eat your fill #[See ver. 18 above]and dwell in it securely. 20And if you say, #[Matt. 6:25, 31; Luke 12:22, 29] ‘What shall we eat in the seventh year, if #ver. 4, 5we may not sow or gather in our crop?’ 21I will #Deut. 28:8command my blessing on you in the sixth year, so that it will produce a crop sufficient for three years. 22#[2 Kgs. 19:29] When you sow in the eighth year, you will be eating some of #ch. 26:10the old crop; you shall eat the old until the ninth year, when its crop arrives.
Redemption of Property
23“The land shall not be sold in perpetuity, for #Deut. 32:43; 2 Chr. 7:20; Ps. 85:1; Hos. 9:3; Joel 2:18; 3:2the land is mine. For you are strangers and sojourners with me. 24And in all the country you possess, you shall allow a redemption of the land.
25“If your brother becomes poor and sells part of his property, #Ruth 2:20; 3:9, 12; 4:4, 6; Jer. 32:7, 8then his nearest redeemer shall come and redeem what his brother has sold. 26If a man has no one to redeem it and then himself becomes prosperous and finds sufficient means to redeem it, 27let #See ver. 50-52him calculate the years since he sold it and pay back the balance to the man to whom he sold it, and then return to his property. 28But if he does not have sufficient means to recover it, then what he sold shall remain in the hand of the buyer until the year of jubilee. In the jubilee it shall #ch. 27:21 be released, and #ver. 13, 41he shall return to his property.
29“If a man sells a dwelling house in a walled city, he may redeem it within a year of its sale. For a full year he shall have the right of redemption. 30If it is not redeemed within a full year, then the house in the walled city shall belong in perpetuity to the buyer, throughout his generations; #[See ver. 28 above]it shall not be released in the jubilee. 31But the houses of the villages that have no wall around them shall be classified with the fields of the land. They may be redeemed, and #[See ver. 28 above]they shall be released in the jubilee. 32As for #[Num. 35:2]; See Josh. 21:2-40the cities of the Levites, the Levites may redeem at any time the houses in the cities they possess. 33And if one of the Levites exercises his right of redemption, then the house that was sold in a city they possess shall be released in the jubilee. For the houses in the cities of the Levites are their possession among the people of Israel. 34But the fields #Num. 35:2; 1 Chr. 13:2; [Acts 4:36, 37]; See Josh. 21:11-42; 1 Chr. 6:55-81of pastureland belonging to their cities may not be sold, for that is their possession forever.
Kindness for Poor Brothers
35“If your brother becomes poor and cannot maintain himself with you, #Deut. 15:7, 8; [Ps. 41:1; 112:5, 9; Prov. 14:31; Acts 11:29; 1 John 3:17]you shall support him as though he were a stranger and a sojourner, and he shall live with you. 36#See Ex. 22:25 Take no interest from him or profit, but #ver. 17, 43; Neh. 5:9; [Mal. 3:5]fear your God, that your brother may live beside you. 37#[See ver. 36 above]You shall not lend him your money at interest, nor give him your food for profit. 38#ver. 42, 55; ch. 22:32, 33; 26:13I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt to give you the land of Canaan, and to be your God.
39 #
Ex. 21:2; Deut. 15:12; 1 Kgs. 9:22; 2 Kgs. 4:1; Neh. 5:5 “If your brother becomes poor beside you and sells himself to you, you shall not make him serve as a slave: 40he shall be with you as a hired worker and as a sojourner. He shall serve with you until the year of the jubilee. 41#[See ver. 28 above] Then he shall go out from you, #[Ex. 21:3] he and his children with him, and go back to his own clan and return #ver. 13, 28to the possession of his fathers. 42For they are #ver. 55; [Rom. 6:22; 1 Cor. 7:23]my servants,#25:42 Hebrew slaves whom I brought out of the land of Egypt; they shall not be sold as slaves. 43#[Eph. 6:9; Col. 4:1] You shall not rule over him #Ex. 1:13, 14; Ezek. 34:4 ruthlessly but #ver. 17, 36shall fear your God. 44As for your male and female slaves whom you may have: you may buy male and female slaves from among the nations that are around you. 45#Isa. 14:1, 2; 56:3, 6You may also buy from among the strangers who sojourn with you and their clans that are with you, who have been born in your land, and they may be your property. 46You may bequeath them to your sons after you to inherit as a possession forever. You may make slaves of them, but over your brothers the people of Israel #Ex. 1:13, 14; Ezek. 34:4you shall not rule, one over another ruthlessly.
Redeeming a Poor Man
47“If a stranger or sojourner with you becomes rich, and #ver. 25, 35, 39your brother beside him becomes poor and sells himself to the stranger or sojourner with you or to a member of the stranger’s clan, 48then after he is sold he may be redeemed. One of his brothers may redeem him, 49or his uncle or his cousin may #See Neh. 5:1-5 redeem him, or a close relative from his clan may redeem him. Or if he #ver. 26, 47grows rich he may redeem himself. 50He shall calculate with his buyer from the year when he sold himself to him until the year of jubilee, and the price of his sale shall vary with the number of years. The time he was with his owner shall be #Job 7:1; Isa. 16:14; 21:16rated as the time of a hired worker. 51If there are still many years left, he shall pay proportionately for his redemption some of his sale price. 52If there remain but a few years until the year of jubilee, he shall calculate and pay for his redemption in proportion to his years of service. 53He shall treat him as a worker hired year by year. #[See ver. 46 above]He shall not rule ruthlessly over him in your sight. 54And if he is not redeemed by these means, then #ver. 41; Ex. 21:2, 3he and his children with him shall be released in the year of jubilee. 55For it is #ver. 42to me that the people of Israel are servants.#25:55 Or slaves They are my servants whom I brought out of the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.
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The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
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Leviticus 25
25
1The Lord told Moses on Mount Sinai, 2“Tell the Israelites: When you enter the land that I'm giving you, the land itself must also observe a Sabbath rest in honor of the Lord. 3Six years you can cultivate your fields, take care of your vineyards, and harvest your crops. 4But the seventh year is to be a Sabbath of complete rest for the land, a Sabbath in honor of the Lord. Don't plant your fields or care for your vineyards. 5Don't harvest what may have grown up in your fields, or collect the grapes from your vineyards that you haven't cared for. The land is to have a year of complete rest. 6You can eat whatever the land produces during the Sabbath year. This applies to yourself, your male and female slaves, paid workers and foreigners who live with you, 7and to your livestock and the wild animals living in your land. Whatever grows can be used for food.
8Count seven ‘sabbaths’ of years, in other words, seven times seven years, so that the seven sabbaths of years come to forty-nine years. 9Then blow the trumpet all through the country on the tenth day of the seventh month, which is the Day of Atonement. Make sure this signal is heard throughout your whole country. 10You are to dedicate the fiftieth year and announce freedom everywhere in the country for all who live there. This is to be your Jubilee, when each of you is to return to reclaim your property and to be part of your family once more.#25:10. This meant that whatever property had been sold during the previous 50 years now reverted back to its original owner, and that anyone who had become a slave was set free and allowed to return to their own family. 11The fiftieth year will be a Jubilee for you. Don't sow the land; don't harvest what may have grown up in your fields, or collect the grapes from your vineyards that you haven't cared for. 12It is a Jubilee and it is to be holy to you. You can eat whatever the land produces. 13In this Jubilee Year, every one of you shall return to your own property.
14If you sell land to your neighbor, or buy land from him, don't exploit one another. 15When you buy from your neighbor work out how many years have passed since the last Jubilee, for he is to sell to you depending on how many years of harvest remain. 16The more years that are left, the more you shall pay; the fewer years that are left, the less you shall pay, because he is actually selling you a specific number of harvests. 17Don't exploit one another, but have respect for your God, because I am the Lord your God.
18Keep my rules and observe my regulations, so you can live in safety in the land. 19Then the land will produce good harvests, so you will have plenty to eat and live in safety there. 20But if you ask, ‘What are we going to do in the seventh year if we do not sow or harvest our crops?’ 21I will bless you in the sixth year, so that the land will produce a crop that will be enough for three years. 22As you sow in the eighth year, you will still be eating from that harvest, which will last until your harvest in the ninth year.
23Land must not be permanently sold, because it really belongs to me. To me you are only foreigners and travelers passing through. 24So whatever land you buy to own, you must make arrangements so it can be returned to its original owner.#25:24. “Returned to its original owner”: literally, “the redemption of the land.” 25If one of your people becomes poor and sells you some of their land, their close family can come and buy back what they have sold. 26However, if they don't have anyone who can buy it back, but in the meantime their financial situation improves and they have enough to buy back the land, 27they will work however many years it has been since the sale, and pay back the balance to the person who bought it, and go back to their property 28If they can't raise enough to pay the person back for the land, the buyer will remain its owner until the Jubilee Year. But in the Jubilee Year the land will be returned so that the original owners can go back to their property.
29If someone sells a house located in a walled town, they have the right to buy it back for a full year after selling it. It can be bought back any time during that year. 30If it isn't bought back by the end of a full year, then ownership of the house in the walled town is permanently transferred to the one who bought it and their descendants. It won't be returned in the Jubilee. 31But houses in villages that don't have walls around them are to be treated as located in the fields. They can be bought back, and will be returned in the Jubilee.
32However, the Levites always have the right to buy back their houses in the towns that belong to them. 33Whatever the Levites own can be bought back, even houses sold in their towns, and must be returned in the Jubilee. That's because the houses in the towns of the Levites are what they were given to own as their share among the Israelites. 34However, the fields surrounding their towns must not be sold because they belong to the Levites permanently.
35If any of your people become poor and can't survive,#25:35. “Can't survive”: literally, “his hand has failed.” you must help them in the same way you would help a foreigner or a stranger, so that they can go on living in your neighborhood. 36Don't make them pay you any interest or demand more than they borrowed, but respect your God so that they can remain living in your area. 37Don't lend them silver with interest or sell them food at an inflated price. 38Remember, I am the Lord your God who led you out of Egypt to give you the land of Canaan and to be your God.
39If any of your people become poor and have to sell themselves to work for you, don't force them to work as a slave. 40Have them live with you like a paid worker who is staying with you for a while. They are to work for you until the Jubilee Year. 41Then they and their children must be freed, and they can go back to their family and to their family's property. 42Israelites are not to be sold as slaves because they belong to me as my slaves—I led them out of Egypt. 43Don't treat them with brutality. Have respect for your God.
44Buy your male and female slaves from the surrounding nations. 45You can also buy them from foreigners who have come to live among you, or from their descendants born in your land. You can treat them as your property. 46You can pass them on to your children to inherit as property after you die. You can make them slaves for life, but you must not brutally treat any of your own people, the Israelites, as a slave.
47If a foreigner among you becomes successful, and one of your people living nearby becomes poor and sells themselves to the foreigner or to a member of the foreigner's family, 48they still have the right of being bought back after the sale. A member of their family can buy them back— 49an uncle or cousin or any close relative from their family can buy them back. If they become successful, they can buy themselves back. 50The person concerned and their buyer will work out the time from the year of the sale up to the Jubilee Year. The price will depend on the number of years, calculated using the daily rate for a paid worker. 51If there are many years left, they must pay a larger percentage of the purchase price. 52If there are only a few years remaining before the Jubilee Year, then they only have to pay a percentage depending on the number of years still left. 53They are to live with their foreign owner just like a paid worker, hired from year to year, but see to it that the owner doesn't treat him brutally. 54If they are not bought back in any of the ways described, they and their children shall be freed in the Jubilee Year. 55For the Israelites belong to me as my slaves. They are my slaves—I led them out of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.”
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com