Tyndale Open Study NotesLeviticus 25

Just as seven days made a week ending in a Sabbath day, every seven years ended with a Sabbath year. After seven Sabbath years, or 49 years, came a special year called the Year of Jubilee. Like so many holy days, these times were meant for reflecting on Israel's shared identity and their relationship with God.

Every Israelite, both free and servant, had a place in God’s kingdom. So, those bound in servitude were set free during the Year of Jubilee (Leviticus 25:39–43). To reduce poverty and protect families, land sales were limited to fifty years. After that, the land returned to the original owner's family or clan.

The land belonged to God, and the Israelites were only "residents" (25:23). But it is unlikely that they actually used these laws. The best land ended up belonging to wealthy landowners (Isaiah 5:8–10; compare Amos 5:11).

during the Sabbath year, people did not formally farm or harvest the land. Landowners could gather what naturally grew for their daily household needs. They left any uneaten food for the poor and foreigners (Exodus 23:10–11). What remained provided food for both wild and domestic animals. See also Exodus 21:2; Deuteronomy 15:1–11.

there shall be a Sabbath of complete rest for the land: The idea of the Sabbath is that God rested, so people must rest also (see study note on Leviticus 19:30). This idea also applies to the land.

• The Year of Jubilee occurred every fiftieth year, releasing people from obligations and slavery. This year was also a Sabbath year, meaning no farming took place.

  Some scholars believe the forty-ninth year was both a Sabbath (seventh) and Jubilee (fiftieth) year. Counting fifty years would place the Year of Jubilee right after the seventh Sabbath year, leading to two years without harvests.

• During each Year of Jubilee, the land returned to the original clan or tribe that received it under Joshua (Joshua 13–21).

  Land had two purposes:

  1. It provided an economic foundation for living.

  2. It connected the landowner to ancestors. Through them it connected the land distribution under Joshua and the covenant with Moses.

  Returning the land intended to prevent powerful land monopolies that could exclude the poor.

• proclaim liberty in the land for all its inhabitants: See Leviticus 25:39–43, 47–55.

• return to his property and to his clan: If the original landowner had died, his heirs received the land.

The rules for the Sabbath year also applied to the Year of Jubilee.

the number of years: The law did not allow permanent sale of the land. It belonged to God, and Israel was simply allowed to use it (Leviticus 25:23). If the owner had to give up the land because of financial problems, he could lease it for up to forty-nine years, until the next Jubilee. The price depended on the lease length. At the end of that period, the land returned to the original owner's family.

it is Mine: Israel did not own the land in an absolute way. Their right to live there depended on the covenant, because God himself gave them the land (Deuteronomy 1:8, 39). From this idea of God’s ownership comes the call to care for the land as stewards and to share material resources with others.

The Hebrew word ga’al means "to restore something to its original or proper state." The noun form of this Hebrew root (go’el) refers to a close relative who will fix what is wrong.

This relative's duties included:

• redeeming a kinsman's property to keep it in the family (see Ruth 4:1–4; Jeremiah 32:6–15);

• searching for the kinsman's murderer and bringing him to justice (Numbers 35:19); and

• marrying his brother's widow to produce a male heir for the estate of the dead brother (Deuteronomy 25:5–10; see Genesis 38:6–30; Ruth 4:9–10).

A house in a village without walls was treated the same as land. The family could buy it back. If they did not, it returned to the seller’s family in the Year of Jubilee.

But a house inside a walled town was different. No farmland or pasture was included in the sale of such a house. A house could even be built on the town wall without touching the ground (Josh 2:15). For this reason, the land was not part of the property.

Such a house could not be bought back unless the new owner chose to sell it. It also did not return to the original family in the Year of Jubilee.

The tribe of Levi did not inherit land like other tribes. As the priestly tribe, they lived throughout the land (Deuteronomy 18:1; see Genesis 49:5–7; Numbers 35:1–8; Josh 21:1–42). The Levites could only inherit specific cities and the surrounding pasturelands (Numbers 35:2).

The Levites were an exception to land ownership rules. They carefully protected their small holdings. They could redeem their houses even in walled cities. They could not sell the pasturelands outside their towns.

destitute: Poor Israelites first asked their family for help (see study note on Leviticus 25:25). Second, they depended on the community. God commanded the people to help the poor instead of taking advantage of them.

The purpose of a loan was to help a poor person financially recover, not to profit from their vulnerability. Israelites could not charge interest on loans to Israelites. But Israelites could charge interest on loans to foreigners (Deuteronomy 23:19–20).

The mention of the land of Egypt reminded the Israelites that they were once slaves. They needed to help the poor among them because of God's covenant with them. Compare Exodus 20:2 and Deuteronomy 5:6, where God begins his covenant with them.

• The terms hired worker or temporary resident are used together, showing they were similar in Israel’s social and economic life. Both described day laborers who had no land of their own and depended on landowners for work (see Matthew 20:1–16; also see study note on Leviticus 19:13).

• Jubilee: See study note on Leviticus 25:8–17.

The same Hebrew word means both servants and slaves. The Israelites were God's servants, so they could not be slaves to other people. They could only serve temporarily to pay off a debt.

God created human beings in his image (Genesis 1:26, 27; Proverbs 14:31; 17:5). Fellow Israelites were in a covenant with God. So, even bondservants must receive respect. God's law includes many rules to protect them (see Exodus 21:20, 26–27). Everyone must treat others in a way that shows reverence for God (see Proverbs 14:31; 17:5; James 2:14–16; 3:9–10).

In Mesopotamia and Egypt, people treated slaves like property. They had no rights or protection. Among the Israelites, people could purchase non-Israelites as slaves. Yet God commanded that they be treated well and not abused. Sometimes a slave was even adopted into a childless family (Genesis 15:2–4).

Slavery continued in New Testament times. However, the Old Testament taught that all people share a common beginning because God created humankind. This belief laid the foundation for the later rejection of slavery.

Slavery began after the first humans sinned. This was the start of power-based relationships replacing those of friendship and communication (see Genesis 3:16).

In the New Testament, Christians promote fellowship and communication by calling themselves “a servant of Christ Jesus"(Romans 1:1; Colossians 4:12; 2 Peter 1:1). In Paul's teachings on "the body of Christ" (1 Corinthians 12:27; Ephesians 4:12), all Christians share a common identity (Galatians 3:28; Colossians 3:11; Philemon 1:16).

An Israelite who sold himself or a family member to a foreigner in Israel could buy himself or the family member back. If he lacked the resources to do so, he remained a slave in the seventh year. He had to wait for release in the Year of Jubilee (compare Exodus 21:2). While serving the foreigner, they must treat the Israelite slave as a hired servant, not as a slave (see Leviticus 25:53). The people of Israel belonged to God. No one could sell them as permanent slaves to anyone else.