Leviticus 25:19

25:8-22 The word jubilee signifies a peculiarly animated sound of the silver trumpets. This sound was to be made on the evening of the great day of atonement; for the proclamation of gospel liberty and salvation results from the sacrifice of the Redeemer. It was provided that the lands should not be sold away from their families. They could only be disposed of, as it were, by leases till the year of jubilee, and then returned to the owner or his heir. This tended to preserve their tribes and families distinct, till the coming of the Messiah. The liberty every man was born to, if sold or forfeited, should return at the year of jubilee. This was typical of redemption by Christ from the slavery of sin and Satan, and of being brought again to the liberty of the children of God. All bargains ought to be made by this rule, Ye shall not oppress one another, not take advantage of one another's ignorance or necessity, but thou shalt fear thy God. The fear of God reigning in the heart, would restrain from doing wrong to our neighbour in word or deed. Assurance was given that they should be great gainers, by observing these years of rest. If we are careful to do our duty, we may trust God with our comfort. This was a miracle for an encouragement to all neither sowed or reaped. This was a miracle for an encouragement to all God's people, in all ages, to trust him in the way of duty. There is nothing lost by faith and self-denial in obedience.

Some asked, What shall we eat the seventh year? Thus many Christians anticipate evils, questioning what they shall do, and fearing to proceed in the way of duty. But we have no right to anticipate evils, so as to distress ourselves about them. To carnal minds we may appear to act absurdly, but the path of duty is ever the path of safety.

And the land shall yield her fruit,.... That is, continually, and even in the seventh year, the sabbath of rest; for the land, though not manured, ploughed, and sowed, nor the vines, olives, and fig trees pruned, yet shall yield fruit as in other years, the Israelites observing the statutes and judgments of God: and ye shall eat your fill; feel no want of provisions, but have fulness of everything as at other times, and never make a scanty meal, having sufficiency and plenty of all things: and dwell therein in safety; not fearing enemies, nor being disturbed by them, nor carried captive.

17. Ye shall not oppress one another, but thou shalt fear thy God—This, which is the same as Le 25:14, related to the sale or purchase of possessions and the duty of paying an honest and equitable regard, on both sides, to the limited period during which the bargain could stand. The object of the legislator was, as far as possible, to maintain the original order of families, and an equality of condition among the people.

Overreaching and oppression God would avenge; they were therefore to fear before Him. On the other hand, if they kept His commandments and judgments, He would take care that they should dwell in the land in safety (secure, free from anxiety), and be satisfied with the abundance of its produce. In this way Leviticus 25:18-22 fit on exceedingly well to what precedes. (Note: To prove that this verse is an interpolation made by the Jehovist into the Elohistic writings, Knobel is obliged to resort to two groundless assumptions: viz., (1) to regard Leviticus 25:23 and Leviticus 25:24, which belong to what follows (Leviticus 25:25.) and lay down the general rule respecting the possession and redemption of land, as belonging to what precedes and connected with Leviticus 25:14-17; and (2) to explain Leviticus 25:18-22 in the most arbitrary manner, as a supplementary clause relating to the sabbatical year, whereas the promise that the sixth year should yield produce enough for three years (Leviticus 25:21, Leviticus 25:22) shows as clearly as possible that they treat of the year of jubilee together with the seventh sabbatical year which preceded it, and in Leviticus 25:20 the seventh year is mentioned simply as the beginning of the two years' Sabbath which the land was to keep without either sowing or reaping.)

[Bible] 25:17. Do not afflict your countrymen: but let every one fear his God. Because I am the Lord your God. 25:18. Do my precepts, and keep my judgments, and fulfil them: that you may dwell in the land without any fear. 25:19. And the ground may yield you its fruits, of which you may eat your fill, fearing no man's invasion. 25:20. But if you say: What shall we eat the seventh year, if we sow not, nor gather our fruits? 25:21. I will give you my blessing the sixth year: and it shall yield the fruits of three years. 25:22. And the eighth year you shall sow, and shall eat of the old fruits, until the ninth year: till new grow up, you shall eat the old store. 25:23. The land also shall not be sold for ever: because it is mine, and you are strangers and sojourners with me. 25:24. For which cause all the country of your possession shall be under the condition of redemption. 25:25. If thy brother being impoverished sell his little possession, and his kinsman will: he may redeem what he had sold. 25:26. But if he have no kinsman, and he himself can find the price to redeem it: 25:27. The value of the fruits shall be counted from that time when he sold it. And the overplus he shall restore to the buyer, and so shall receive his possession again. 25:28. But if his hands find not the means to repay the price, the buyer shall have what he bought, until the year of the jubilee. For in that year all that is sold shall return to the owner, and to the ancient possessor. 25:29. He that selleth a house within the walls of a city, shall have the liberty to redeem it, until one year be expired. 25:30. If he redeem it not, and the whole year be fully out, the buyer shall possess it, and his posterity for ever, and it cannot be redeemed, not even in the jubilee. 25:31. But if the house be in a village, that hath no walls, it shall be sold according to the same law as the fields. If it be not redeemed before, in the jubilee it shall return to the owner.

[Reformed Biblical] Leviticus 25:12 ## It shall be holy unto you: so it was, because it was sequestered in great part from worldly employments, and dedicated to God, and to the exercise of holy joy and thankfulness; and because it was a type of that holy and happy jubilee which they were to expect and enjoy by and under the Messias. ## The increase thereof; such things as it produced of itself; for the year before nothing was sowed. Out of the field; whence they in common with others might take it as they needed it; but must not put it into barns. See Lev_25:5 Exo_23:11. Leviticus 25:13 Leviticus 25:14 Neither the seller by requiring more, nor the buyer by taking the advantage from his brother’s necessities to give him less than the worth of it. Leviticus 25:15 Or, ## of years of fruits, or, of fruitful years ; for there were some unfruitful years, to wit, such wherein they were not allowed to sow or reap, &c. Leviticus 25:16 Or, for the number of the fruits. The meaning is, he selleth not the land, but only the fruits thereof, and that for a certain time. Leviticus 25:17 Leviticus 25:18 Leviticus 25:19 Leviticus 25:20 A like objection, see Exo_34:23,24. Leviticus 25:21 i.e. Give ## my blessing. Commanding is oft used in Scripture either for the performance of promised blessings, as Deu_28:8 Psa_111:9 133:3, or for the execution of threatened judgments, as Isa_5:6 Amo_9:4; both being acts of God’s providential will, as the command is of his legislative will.

[Reformed Biblical] rovidence, did lay up something of the fruits of former years against this time. Leviticus 25:22 ## Of o ld fruit; of the sixth year principally, if not solely. ## Until her fruits, i.e. the fruits of the eighth year. Leviticus 25:23 ## For ever, or, absolutely and properly , so as to become the propriety of the buyer; or to the extermination or utter cutting off , to wit, of the seller, from all hopes and possibility of redemption. For the land is mine ; procured for you by my power, given to you by my mere grace and bounty, and the right of propriety reserved by me, and to be disposed of by you only to such persons and in such manner as I shall have or dained. ## Sojou rners with me, i.e. in my land or houses: thus he is said to sojourn with another that dwells in his house. Thus the poor decayed Israelites and the strangers are s aid to live with them, i.e. with the other Israelites, to wit, in the land or houses here, Lev_25:35,36,40,44. Or, before me , in my sight, or in my account. Howsoever i n your own or other men’s opinions you pass for lords and proprietors, yet in truth, according to which my judgment always is, you are but strangers and sojourners, not to possess t he land for ever , but only for a season, and to leave it to such as