Leviticus 25
25
The Sabbath Year
1Then#Or “And” Yahweh spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai,#Literally “the mountain of Sinai” saying, 2“Speak to the Israelites,#Literally “sons/children of Israel” and say to them, ‘When you#Plural come into the land that I am about to give to you,#Plural then#Or “and” the land shall observe a Sabbath for Yahweh. 3Six years you#Singular throughout this verse shall sow your field, and six years you shall prune your vineyard, and you shall gather its yield. 4But#Or “And” in the seventh year it shall be a Sabbath of complete rest#Literally “a Sabbath of ‘Sabbathation.’ ” “Sabbathation” is not a real word, but it is devised as an attempt to convey the sounds of the related nouns in the Hebrew phrase for the land—a Sabbath for Yahweh; you#Singular throughout this verse must not sow your field, and you must not prune your vineyard. 5You#Singular throughout this verse must not reap your harvest’s aftergrowth, and you must not harvest the grapes of your unpruned vines—it shall be a year of complete rest#Literally “a year of a rest period” for the land. 6And a Sabbath of the land shall be for food for you:#Plural for you#Singular here and through the rest of this verse and for your slave and for your slave woman and for your hired worker and for your temporary residents#Collective singular; Hebrew “temporary resident” who are dwelling as aliens with you; 7and all its yield shall be for your#Singular throughout this verse domestic animal and for the wild animal, which are in your land to eat.
The Year of Jubilee
8“ ‘And you#Singular throughout this verse shall count for yourself seven Sabbaths of years, seven times seven years, and they shall be for you time periods of#Literally “days of” years: forty-nine#Literally “nine and forty” years. 9And you#Singular shall cause a loud horn blast#Literally “a ram’s horn of a blast” to be heard on the seventh month on the tenth of the month; on the Day of Atonement you#Plural shall cause a ram’s horn to be heard in all your#Plural land. 10And you#Plural throughout this verse shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and you shall proclaim a release in the land for all its inhabitants. It is a Jubilee; it shall be for you, and you shall return. You must return—everyone to his property and everyone to his clan.#Or “each of you must return to his property and to his clan” 11You#Plural throughout this verse shall have the fiftieth year as a Jubilee;#Literally “a Jubilee it the year of the fiftieth year it shall be for you” you must not reap its aftergrowth, and you must not harvest its unpruned vines. 12Because it is a Jubilee, it shall be holy to you. You must eat its#That is, the field’s produce from the field.
13“ ‘In this Year of Jubilee each of you#Plural shall return#Literally “you shall return a man” or “you shall return everyone” to his property. 14And when you#Plural sell something to your#Singular fellow citizen or you buy from your#Singular neighbor’s hand, you#Plural must not oppress one another.#Literally “a man his brother” 15You#Singular throughout this verse must buy from your fellow citizen according to the number of years after the Jubilee; he must sell to you according to the number of years of yield. 16You#Singular throughout this verse must increase its price according to a greater number of years,#Literally “to the mouth of many of the years” but#Or “and” you must decrease its price according to a lesser number of years,#Literally “to the mouth of few of the years” because he is selling its yields to you. 17And you#Plural must not oppress one another,#Literally “a man his citizen” but#Or “and” you#Singular shall revere your God, because I am Yahweh, your#Plural God.
18“ ‘And you#Plural throughout this verse shall do my statutes, and you must keep my regulations, and you shall do them, so that#Or “and” you shall live securely#Literally “with confidence” on the land. 19And the land shall give its fruit, and you#Plural throughout this verse shall eat your fill,#Literally “to contentment” and you shall live securely#Literally “with confidence” on it. 20And if you#Plural should say, “What shall we eat in the seventh year, if#Literally “look” we do not sow and we do not gather its yield?” 21then#Or “and” I will command my blessing for you#Plural in the sixth year, so that#Or “and” it will make#Or “produce” the yield for three years. 22And you#Plural throughout this verse will sow in the eighth year, and you shall eat from the old yield;#The verse divides here until the ninth year, until the coming of its yield, you shall eat the old yield.
23“ ‘But#Or “And” the land must not be sold in#Or “for” perpetuity, because the land is mine, because you#Plural are aliens and temporary residents with me. 24And in all your#Plural property’s land you#Plural must provide redemption for the land.
25“ ‘When your#Singular brother becomes poor and he sells part of his property, then#Or “and” his nearest redeemer#Literally “his redeemer the nearest to him” shall come, and he shall redeem the thing sold by his brother. 26But#Or “And” if#Or “when” a man does not have#Literally “it is not for him” a redeemer, then#Or “and” he prospers#Literally “his hand produces” and he finds enough for his redemption, 27then#Or “and” he shall calculate the years of its selling, and he shall refund the balance to the man to whom he sold it, and he shall return to his property. 28But#Or “And” if his hand does not find enough to refund to him, then#Or “and” what he has sold#Literally “his thing sold” shall be in the buyer’s hand until the Year of Jubilee; and it shall go out of the buyer’s hand#Meaning derived from context; an alternative translation could be “shall not be released” (cf. NKJV, NRSV, ESV, NJPS) or “shall not revert” (NASB, NET) in the Jubilee, and he shall return to his property.
29“ ‘And if a man sells a residential house in a walled city,#Literally “a house of a dwelling of a city wall” then#Or “and” it shall be his redemption until completing a year after his selling;#Literally “a year of his selling” its redemption shall last#Literally “shall be” a year.#Literally “days” 30But#Or “And” if it is not redeemed before a full year has passed,#Literally “until the fulfilling of for him/it an entire year” then#Or “and” the house that is in the walled city#Literally “in the city that for it a wall” shall belong to the buyer in#Hebrew “for” perpetuity throughout his generations; it shall not go out of the buyer’s hand#Meaning derived from context; an alternative translation could be “shall not be released” (cf. NKJV, NRSV, ESV, NJPS) or “shall not revert” (NASB, NET) in the Jubilee. 31However,#Or “And” or “But” village houses that have no surrounding wall shall be considered open country;#Literally “the field of the land” there is redemption for it, and in the Jubilee it shall go out of the buyer’s hand.#Meaning derived from context; an alternative translation could be “shall not be released” (cf. NKJV, NRSV, ESV, NJPS) or “shall not revert” (NASB, NET)
32“ ‘As for#Or “And” the cities of the Levites, that is, the houses in#Hebrew “of” their property’s cities, it shall be a lasting redemption#Or “a permanent redemption”; literally “redemption of eternity” or “redemption of long duration” for the Levites. 33And whatever anyone redeems from the Levites then#Or “and” must go out of the buyer’s hand#Meaning derived from context; an alternative translation could be “shall not be released” (cf. NKJV, NRSV, ESV, NJPS) or “shall not revert” (NASB, NET) in the Jubilee, including a house’s selling in his city’s property,#Literally “the city of his property” because the houses in#Hebrew “of” the cities of the Levites are their property in the midst of the Israelites.#Literally “sons/children of Israel” 34But#Or “And” a#Hebrew “the” field of their cities’ pastureland must not be sold, because it is their property for all time.#Literally “a property of eternity it is for them” or “a property of long duration it is for them”
35“ ‘And if your#Singular throughout this verse countryman#Or “brother” becomes poor and if he becomes dependent on you,#Literally “and his hand is shaky with you” then#Or “and” you shall support him like an alien and like a temporary resident, and he shall live with you. 36You#Singular throughout this verse must not take interest or#Or “and” usury from him, but#Or “and” you shall revere your God, and your countryman#Or “brother” shall live with you. 37You#Singular throughout this verse must not give your money to him with interest or#Or “and” give your food for#Or “in” or “with” profit. 38I am Yahweh your#Plural throughout this verse God, who brought you out from the land of Egypt to give you#Literally “to you” the land of Canaan, to be as God for you.
39“ ‘And if your#Singular throughout this verse countryman#Or “brother” who is with you becomes poor, and he is sold to you, you shall not treat him as a slave.#Literally “you shall not let him work the work of a slave” or “you shall not enslave him the work of a slave” 40He shall be with you like a hired worker, like a temporary resident; he shall work with you until the Year of Jubilee. 41And he and his sons with him shall go out from you, and he shall return to his clan, and to the property of his ancestors#Or “fathers” he shall return. 42Because they are my servants whom I brought out from the land of Egypt, they shall not be sold as a slave.#Literally “a selling of a slave” 43You#Singular throughout this verse shall not rule over him with ruthlessness, but#Or “and” you shall revere your God.
44“ ‘As for#Or “And” your#Singular slave and your#Singular slave woman who are#Or “may be” (permission; cf. NASU, ESV, NRSV) or “can be” (ability) yours,#Singular from the nations that are all around you,#Plural from them you#Plural may buy a slave or#Or “and” a slave woman. 45And you#Plural throughout this verse may buy also from the children#Or “sons” of the temporary residents who are dwelling with you as aliens and from their clan who are with you, who have children in your land; indeed,#Or “and” they may be as property for you. 46And you#Plural may pass them on as an inheritance to your#Plural sons#Or “children” after you#Plural to take possession of as property for all time#Literally “to eternity” or “forever” or “for a long duration”—you#Plural may let them work. But#Or “And” as for your#Plural countrymen,#Or “brothers” the Israelites,#Literally “sons/children of Israel” you#Singular shall not rule with ruthlessness over one another.#Literally “a man over his brother”
47“ ‘And if the alien or#Or “and” the temporary resident who are with you#Singular throughout this verse prosper,#Literally “the hand produces” but#Or “and” your countryman#Or “brother” who is with him becomes poor and he is sold to an alien, a temporary resident who is with you, or to a descendant of an alien’s clan, 48after he is sold redemption shall be for him; one of his brothers may redeem him, 49or his uncle or his uncle’s son may redeem him, or one of#Literally “from” his close relatives#Literally “the direct relative of his flesh” from his clan may redeem him; or if he prospers,#Literally “his hand produces” he may redeem himself. 50And he shall calculate with his buyer from the year of his selling himself#Literally “his being sold for him” until the Jubilee; and the value of his selling shall be according to the number of years—it shall be with him like#Or “as” a hired worker’s days. 51If there are still many years, in keeping with them#Literally “to the mouth of them” he shall restore his redemption in proportion to his purchase price.#Literally “from the price of his acquisition” 52And if there are a few years left until the Year of Jubilee, then#Or “and” he shall calculate for himself; he shall restore his redemption according to the number of his years.#Literally “according to the mouth of his years” 53He shall be with him as a yearly hired worker;#Literally “as a hired worker of a year in a year” he shall not rule over him with ruthlessness in your#Singular sight.#Literally “to your eyes” or “for your eyes” 54And if he is not redeemed by#Or “in” any of these ways,#Bracketed words provided from the sense of the context then#Or “and” he and his sons with him shall go out in the Year of Jubilee. 55Indeed,#Emphatic use of כִּי, since there is no indication of direct causation to only what precedes in vv. 47–54; or “Because” the Israelites#Literally “sons/children of Israel” are servants for me; they are my servants whom I brought out from the land of Egypt. I am Yahweh your#Plural God.’ ”
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Leviticus 25: LEB
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Leviticus 25
25
“The Land Will Observe a Sabbath to God”
1-7 God spoke to Moses at Mount Sinai: “Speak to the People of Israel. Tell them, When you enter the land which I am going to give you, the land will observe a Sabbath to God. Sow your fields, prune your vineyards, and take in your harvests for six years. But the seventh year the land will take a Sabbath of complete and total rest, a Sabbath to God; you will not sow your fields or prune your vineyards. Don’t reap what grows of itself; don’t harvest the grapes of your untended vines. The land gets a year of complete and total rest. But you can eat from what the land volunteers during the Sabbath year—you and your men and women servants, your hired hands, and the foreigners who live in the country, and, of course, also your livestock and the wild animals in the land can eat from it. Whatever the land volunteers of itself can be eaten.
“The Fiftieth Year Is Your Jubilee Year”
8-12“Count off seven Sabbaths of years—seven times seven years: Seven Sabbaths of years adds up to forty-nine years. Then sound loud blasts on the ram’s horn on the tenth day of the seventh month, the Day of Atonement. Sound the ram’s horn all over the land. Sanctify the fiftieth year; make it a holy year. Proclaim freedom all over the land to everyone who lives in it—a Jubilee for you: Each person will go back to his family’s property and reunite with his extended family. The fiftieth year is your Jubilee year: Don’t sow; don’t reap what volunteers itself in the fields; don’t harvest the untended vines because it’s the Jubilee and a holy year for you. You’re permitted to eat from whatever volunteers itself in the fields.
13“In this year of Jubilee everyone returns home to his family property.
14-17“If you sell or buy property from one of your countrymen, don’t cheat him. Calculate the purchase price on the basis of the number of years since the Jubilee. He is obliged to set the sale price on the basis of the number of harvests remaining until the next Jubilee. The more years left, the more money; you can raise the price. But the fewer years left, the less money; decrease the price. What you are buying and selling in fact is the number of crops you’re going to harvest. Don’t cheat each other. Fear your God. I am God, your God.
18-22“Keep my decrees and observe my laws and you will live secure in the land. The land will yield its fruit; you will have all you can eat and will live safe and secure. Do I hear you ask, ‘What are we going to eat in the seventh year if we don’t plant or harvest?’ I assure you, I will send such a blessing in the sixth year that the land will yield enough for three years. While you plant in the eighth year, you will eat from the old crop and continue until the harvest of the ninth year comes in.
23-24“The land cannot be sold permanently because the land is mine and you are foreigners—you’re my tenants. You must provide for the right of redemption for any of the land that you own.
25-28“If one of your brothers becomes poor and has to sell any of his land, his nearest relative is to come and buy back what his brother sold. If a man has no one to redeem it but he later prospers and earns enough for its redemption, he is to calculate the value since he sold it and refund the balance to the man to whom he sold it; he can then go back to his own land. If he doesn’t get together enough money to repay him, what he sold remains in the possession of the buyer until the year of Jubilee. In the Jubilee it will be returned and he can go back and live on his land.
29-31“If a man sells a house in a walled city, he retains the right to buy it back for a full year after the sale. At any time during that year he can redeem it. But if it is not redeemed before the full year has passed, it becomes the permanent possession of the buyer and his descendants. It is not returned in the Jubilee. However, houses in unwalled villages are treated the same as fields. They can be redeemed and have to be returned at the Jubilee.
32-34“As to the Levitical cities, houses in the cities owned by the Levites are always subject to redemption. Levitical property is always redeemable if it is sold in a town that they hold and reverts to them in the Jubilee, because the houses in the towns of the Levites are their property among the People of Israel. The pastures belonging to their cities may not be sold; they are their permanent possession.
35-38“If one of your brothers becomes indigent and cannot support himself, help him, the same as you would a foreigner or a guest so that he can continue to live in your neighborhood. Don’t gouge him with interest charges; out of reverence for your God help your brother to continue to live with you in the neighborhood. Don’t take advantage of his plight by running up big interest charges on his loans, and don’t give him food for profit. I am your God who brought you out of Egypt to give you the land of Canaan and to be your God.
39-43“If one of your brothers becomes indigent and has to sell himself to you, don’t make him work as a slave. Treat him as a hired hand or a guest among you. He will work for you until the Jubilee, after which he and his children are set free to go back to his clan and his ancestral land. Because the People of Israel are my servants whom I brought out of Egypt, they must never be sold as slaves. Don’t tyrannize them; fear your God.
44-46“The male and female slaves which you have are to come from the surrounding nations; you are permitted to buy slaves from them. You may also buy the children of foreign workers who are living among you temporarily and from their clans which are living among you and have been born in your land. They become your property. You may will them to your children as property and make them slaves for life. But you must not tyrannize your brother Israelites.
47-53“If a foreigner or temporary resident among you becomes rich and one of your brothers becomes poor and sells himself to the foreigner who lives among you or to a member of the foreigner’s clan, he still has the right of redemption after he has sold himself. One of his relatives may buy him back. An uncle or cousin or any close relative of his extended family may redeem him. Or, if he gets the money together, he can redeem himself. What happens then is that he and his owner count out the time from the year he sold himself to the year of Jubilee; the buy-back price is set according to the wages of a hired hand for that number of years. If many years remain before the Jubilee, he must pay back a larger share of his purchase price, but if only a few years remain until the Jubilee, he is to calculate his redemption price accordingly. He is to be treated as a man hired from year to year. You must make sure that his owner does not tyrannize him.
54-55“If he is not redeemed in any of these ways, he goes free in the year of Jubilee, he and his children, because the People of Israel are my servants, my servants whom I brought out of Egypt. I am God, your God.
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.