The Sabbath Year
25: 1-7
The Sabbath year DIG: Who owns the Land of Isra’el? What would be the direct costs of this year-long Sabbath? What effects might such land management have on Isra’el’s economy? On their relationship with ADONAI? Why did that take faith for three years?
REFLECT: What most excites you about the Sabbath Land principle? If implemented today, would your life change? What would it mean for the poor and the needy? Can you imagine spending a whole year studying the Scriptures and teaching God’s Word to your children?
Parashah 32: b’Har (On Mount Sinai) 25:1 to 26:2
(See my commentary on Deuteronomy, to see link click Af – Parashah)
The Key Person is Moshe.
The Scene is the Tabernacle in the wilderness of Sinai.
The Main Events include instruction upon entering the Land, to take Shabbat, leave fields fallow the seventh year, and observe Jubilee the fiftieth year by returning all property to the original owners; special guidelines for a relative or the poor person himself to redeem what was sold; houses in walled cities redeemable only the first year; houses redeemable by Levites at any time; no charging interest from any of God’s people; no harsh treatment for hired servants; Israelites selling themselves to strangers redeemable or set free at Jubilee; children of Isra’el as God’s own servants; no idols; and commands to keep Shabbat and revere the Sanctuary.
The mitzvot of parashah b’Har grants us a glimpse of a different kind of economy. It is not Western capitalism. Neither is it socialism or communism or any other type of economic theory currently practiced in the world. God’s economy is one in which faith takes precedence over profit; Sabbaths are placed before harvests; the individual is more important than the bottom line; family heritage is prized above expansion and growth; and ADONAI is the owner of both land and human resources. In the economy of Torah, loans are made without interest, and debts are forgiven every seven years. The poor and the needy are continually at the center of concern (see Deuteronomy Cy – The Year of Release). It is a completely different kind of approach, and one that requires a generous portion of faith and trust.
Several of the mitzvot of Leviticus 25 belong to an ideal Torah economy that does not exist in our world, but all of these mitzvot find some practical application in our lives even today. Furthermore, these mitzvot of Torah economics are undergirded by deep spiritual fundamentals. Here we learn the mitzvot of remission and release, the institution of the kinsman redeemer, the sovereign proprietary rights of YHVH, His claim upon our lives, and every present concern He has for every individual. Here we learn that though redemption may be delayed, God sets a deadline for the final Day of Jubilee.484
Thus far in the Torah, the word Shabbat or other derivatives from its Hebrew root, frequently translated as rest (noun or verb), has been used over twenty-five times, and its usage is not over yet! It is, perhaps, one of the most frequent and primary teachings of Torah. Our present parashah opens with, still, another usage of this word. Only this time it does not refer to a specific day, as in previous passages. Instead, the present verses teach us about a seven-year cycle which the text calls a Shabbat. Moreover, this Shabbat is not primarily designated for people like the seventh-day Shabbat. This unique Shabbat is for the Land which YHVH gave to the people of Isra’el. They were instructed to let the Land rest every seventh year as a Shabbat for ADONAI.485
ADONAI spoke to Moses at Mount Sinai, “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When you enter the Land I am going to give you, the Land itself must observe a Sabbath to ADONAI. For six years sow your fields, and for six years prune your vineyards and gather their crops. But in the seventh year the Land is to have a year of Sabbath rest (a Sh’mittah, meaning the final year in the seven-year cycle, or the Year of Release), a Sabbath to ADONAI. Do not sow your fields or prune your vineyards. Do not reap what grows of itself or harvest the grapes of your untended vines. The Land is to have a year of rest. Whatever the Land yields during the Sabbath year will be food for you – for yourself, your male and female servants, and the hired worker and temporary resident who lives among you, as well as for your livestock and the wild animals in your Land. Whatever the Land produces may be eaten. (25:1-7). Just as the weekly Sabbath rest is an act of faith in God, so too the Sabbath Year is an act of faith (see Ep – Trusting God).
Rest! Rest! Rest! The Sabbath Year and the weekly Shabbat both share several things in common. First of all, they share a common Hebrew root between them translated rest. The main idea behind this root is that of rest, although other possible translations are to cease and to desist. Since this seven-year cycle is also called a Shabbat, it would, therefore, follow that whatever can be said about the weekly rest would also be said concerning the seven-year rest. Hence, by designating a rest every seven years as well as every seven days, the Holy One is continuing to emphasize that the primary nature of our relationship to Him is that of complete and absolute rest.
Of course, this concept sounds rather simple, but, in fact, most people fail to see it. In both Jewish and Gentile circles, many people are locked into a mindset which tells them that they must be continually doing mitzvot (or good works) in order to begin, maintain, or earn a proper and eternal relationship with ADONAI. However, beginning with the Torah’s teaching about offerings (see Ah – The Offerings from the People’s Perspective) and covenant (see Df – Covenant Loyalty to ADONAI), and continuing to the teaching about the once-for-all sacrificial atonement accomplished by Yeshua (see the commentary on Hebrews Cd – Messiah’s Sacrifice Was Once for All Time), the message which God has been trying to communicate to sinful mankind is that all we need to do is simply rest our souls, our lot, our life into His hands by faith. This is why the writer to the Hebrews tells us: Now we who have believed [in Yeshua] enter that rest . . . There remains, therefore, a Sabbath rest for the people of God; for anyone who enters God’s rest from his own work, just as God did from His (Hebrews 4:3 and 9-10). In other words, our relationship with the Eternal One can be summed up in one phrase: a Shabbat rest! And that rest can only be entered into by faith/trust/belief in Messiah.486
ADONAI’s Shabbat: But the similarity between the two kinds of Shabbat rests goes beyond that of merely rest. A careful reading of Chapter 23 reveals the fact that there is at least one Shabbat included in each of the feasts (mo’adim). But none of these Shabbat days are called a Shabbat to ADONAI. Only the seventh-day Shabbat and the Sabbath Year share this designation. In the case of the weekly Shabbat, it is called ADONAI’s because it was He who first ceased from His work and rested (see the commentary on Genesis Aq – By the Seventh Day God Had Finished His Work). Thus, Shabbat was God’s ideal from the beginning. He set the precedent. He established the pattern. He laid down the principle.
However, here, in Parashah 32, ADONAI’s Shabbat carries with it one additional feature: it is not first and foremost people that were the object of the Shabbat, but the Land. This raises an interesting question. To whom does the real estate called the Land of Isra’el actually belong? If the politicians could answer that question, it would solve a vast majority of the contemporary world problems! All the politicians would have to do is read the Torah. The answer is clear – the Land of Isra’el belongs not to the Jewish or Arab people primarily. It belongs to Ha’Shem Himself! It is God’s Land! He owns this treasured Land, YHVH has the right to decide who may or may not live in it.
As we know, the Torah indicates that the LORD gave the Land of Promise to the children of Isra’el to live in as an inheritance (Genesis 12:7). With this in mind, the idea implied by the institution of Shamittah can easily be seen. It is a tribute from the Jewish people who, every seven years, give back their homeland to the One from whom they received it. This expresses the conviction that the country can become the complete property of the Israelites only insofar as God grants it to them. Moreover, since ADONAI is the owner of this Land, He is the One who decides what should be done with the Land. It is not the absolute possession of man; it belongs to God, and is to be held in trust for His purposes.
Dear Heavenly Father, Praise You that You are the best caregiver to watch over all that we count as ours, whether people, property, or time. You know how to best care for each one. When we relinquish our right to control our own lives and instead trust and follow You, then we can have peace. We need to plan for our future and yet when things seem to go a different way than what we had hoped for, we can rest in You and follow Your ways in all we do.
You who planned how to place the stars in their perfect orbits are the Master Planner! You tell of the future kingdoms in Daniel 2 and 7 and each detail has come to pass exactly as You have said. Revelation 19 foretells how You will return from heaven with Your bride , and with the sword coming out of your mouth you will destroy all opposition. You are the King of kings and what a joy it is to give our hearts and our possessions for the King’s use. You are so gracious. When I give to You, You are pleased and will have an eternal reward for me. More important than having a beautiful home and many possessions here on earth, is to love You dearly now and to one day have a beautiful heavenly home with You. It is a joy for me to place all my possessions in Your care and to give generously to You – my loving and wonderful Heavenly Father! In Yeshua’s holy name and power of His resurrection. Amen
May we add one additional application to this idea? Since the Land belongs , in reality, to the Holy One, then those who are granted permission to live in it, must live in it according to the conditions which He has laid out. Thus, Torah must be the rule of life for its residents. Furthermore, those who rule this Land may not give it to others whom ADONAI does not designate as legal residents. This hold true no matter which generation is present here, but especially the current one whose inclination so far has been to let others rule sections of the sacred Land which the Holy One has stipulated only for the children of Isra’el and those who are Torarh-legal sojourners with Isra’el.487
Made for mankind: Before we leave our discussion of the Sabbath Year, there is another important point to make. Yeshua Messiah tells us that the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath (see the commentary on The Life of Christ Cv – The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath). Among other things, this would teach us that Shabbat has certain benefits for mankind, if we observe it unto the LORD. So, the same would also hold true for the Sabbath Year. We ask then, what benefits can the Sabbath Year have for us?
One obvious benefit is that the text indicates that the farmers get a whole year vacation. Leviticus 25:4 indicates that every seventh year the farmers were not to sow, reap, nor prune for one year. In fact, verse four says that the seventh year the Land is to have a year of Sabbath rest, a Sabbath to ADONAI. The same phraseology is also used to describe the rest on Yom Kippur.
Another benefit is that the Sabbath Year affords the Israelites an opportunity to see how much God can increase our faith. Some would no doubt ask, “But how would we eat?” The answer is “Fear not! YHVH has this one covered! In Leviticus 25:21 He tells us: I will order my blessing on you during the sixth year, so that the Land brings forth enough produce for all three years. The Word of God says that He would abundantly bless them in the sixth year so that the Land would produce enough for the three years to follow: the sixth, seventh, and the first year of the next cycle of seven, when they began to plant again.488 Until the produce of year two came in, they would eat the old, stored food (25:21-22). Harvested grain could last quite well for at least seven years (Gen 41:1-19 and 47:13-26). Just as the weekly Sabbath rest is an act of faith in God, so too the Sabbath Year is an act of faith (see Ep – Trusting God). However, the fruit and grain which grew by itself without plowing or sowing (common in Isra’el) in the Sabbath Year could be picked and eaten, but not stored.
Spring Fall
Year six: God’s blessing: reap the barley Year six: God’s blessing: reap the wheat
Year seven: Shabbat rest for the Land Year seven: Shabbat rest for the Land
Year one: God’s blessing: sow the barley Year one: God’s blessing: sow the wheat
Year two: Eat the newly harvested crops Year two: Eat the newly harvested crops
Another benefit is that by letting the land rest for a year, it might tend to increase its health and ability to produce by replenishing it. Many have criticized the Jewish people for letting their land rest for a year. But in doing so, they do not understand the meaning of this unique mitzah, which, among other things, saves the soil from the danger of exhaustion.
A final benefit of the Sabbath Year is that because people would be resting that Year, there would be lots of time to study the Scriptures. Deuteronomy 31:10-11 tells us that at the end of every seven years, during the festival of Sukkot in the year of Sh’mittah, when all Isra’el have come to appear in the presence of ADONAI at the place He will choose, you are to read this Torah before all Isra’el, so that they can hear it. Can you imagine spending a whole year just studying the Scriptures and teaching God’s Word to your children?489
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