The Sabbath. Bible Research Group

Transcription

1 The Sabbath Bible Research Group -- Literal Translation of the Holy Bible - Copyright

2 The Sabbath -- Literal Translation of the Holy Bible - Copyright Introduction The people of Israel were, miraculously by God, brought out of bondage in Egypt into the Promised Land, and established as His new nation. God had established a covenant with them, and they were to be His people. Israel had prospered, as long as they kept God's law. But the Scriptures do not rest upon the existence of a Hebrew nation. In fact, everything, in the Old Testament, was to point toward a future Messiah, who was to be the Savior of the world. The Scripture would narrow its focus to the point where He would fulfill the law Himself. It is in the backgrounds of the Old and New Testament, and the covenant, that the requirements of the Sabbath must best be understood. Salvation At the outset, it must be said that salvation is quite literally the act of God. It was accomplished by God the Son, who is Jesus Christ. And salvation is accomplished through the commitment of faith in Him. This is a principle, spanning the entire Bible, and it never changes. The Apostle Paul writes (Ephesians 2:8-10), "For by grace you are saved, through faith, and this not of yourselves; it is the gift of God; not of works, that not anyone should boast; for we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God before prepared that we should walk in them." The writer of Hebrews also makes it very clear, as to the importance of faith (Hebrews 11:6), "But without faith it is impossible to please God. For it is right that the one drawing near to God should believe that He is, and that He becomes a rewarder to the ones seeking Him out." After healing of the lame man, in front of the temple, Peter found himself the center of attention of the priests. The law had been fulfilled by the Messiah, who had already come (Acts 4:5-12), "And it happened on the morrow that the rulers and elders and scribes gathered into Jerusalem; also Annas the high priest, and Caiaphas, and John, and Alexander, and as many as were of the high priestly family. And standing them in the midst, they were inquiring, By what sort of power, or by what sort of name did you do this? "Then being filled of the Holy Spirit, Peter said to them, Rulers of the people and elders of Israel, if we are being examined today on a good work of an infirm man, by what this one has been healed, let it be known to all of you, and to all the people of Israel, that in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, in this name this one stands

3 before you whole. This One is the Stone counted worthless by you the builders, the One who has come to be into the Head of the Corner; and there is salvation in no other One, for neither is there any other name under Heaven having been given among men by which we must be saved." The Covenant Back in the earliest days, within the Bible, the understanding and use of the covenant was well known. It often formed the legal structure within, and between, societies. The word covenant 1 is a paraphrase from the Hebrew 2 meaning treaty 3. But it first and foremost implies the sense of imposition, liability, or obligation, with the idea of a legal bond 4. The Old Testament use of the word breaks down into two main groups: The kind being between God and man, or man and God; the other being between man and man 5. And then there are each two main types of treaties: The treaties between equals, in which the two partners are called "brothers"; a vassal-treaty, in which a stronger party, like a king, has total authority over the content of the covenant, between himself and the other party(s) involved. The Old Testament covenants, between God and His people, are vassal-treaties 6. Like other kinds of covenants, the vassal-treaty had a number of standard features. Most relevant here are three of the features: 1. The covenant oath 7 - This was the actual pledge made by the individual, the vassal, to the Lord. In the Old Testament, it involved the killing of an animal, or animals, and each party touching blood 8. The probable conditional meaning was "May thus and thus happen to me if I violate the obligation 9. This is also why the same Hebrew word for "oath" can also mean "curse" The covenant sign - The "sign"11 is something involving a regular, consistent, and outward appearance. It is an object, an appearance, an occurrence, or an event, through which a person is to recognize, learn, remember, or perceive the credibility of something 12. It is also sometimes referred to as a "token"13. A modern analogy is that of the wedding ring. The Biblical covenant signs are both present to serve as reminders, and to motivate faith The covenant requirements - These refer to the obligations of the weaker party, who was to be supportive in policy, attitude, in heart, and personal concern. The king, or superior party, was obligated to "love" the vassal, and to provide support, direction, aid in military matters if the vassal was attacked, etc., which was absolute. The vassal was sometimes spoken of as the "son" or "child" of the king 15. There are a number of covenants throughout the Old Testament. There are three that are the most important 16: 1. Abraham - A covenant 17 based upon the royal land grant. There are no existing obligations. He was promised the land because he obeyed God and followed His mandate 18. The covenant sign was circumcision 19. The result was his descendants being numerous, the Hebrew people Moses - The classic obligatory covenant, and is most often referred to in the

4 New Testament. The obligations consisted of keeping the 613 laws that God had laid down for them 21. The covenant sign was keeping the Sabbath 23. The result was that God would establish them as a new nation of Israel, in the Promised Land. 3. David - Like the covenant with Abraham, also based upon the royal land grant 23. David was given the grace of kingship because he served God in truth, righteousness, and loyalty 24. There is no covenant sign listed in Scripture with this covenant 25. The result was that God would establish the kingship through David and his descendants, and that one would be the promised Messiah 26. Then there was the announcement, in the Old Testament, of one final covenant. It would join with the first three, establish the church, and be the basis for salvation for all believers throughout history, because this covenant was established by the virgin Sonship, birth, life, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ Himself, the Messiah (Jeremiah 31:31-34), "Behold, the days come, says Jehovah, that I will cut a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not according to the covenant that I cut with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt (which covenant of Mine they broke, although I was a husband to them, says Jehovah). "But this shall be the covenant that I will cut with the house of Israel: After those days, declares Jehovah, I will put My Law in their inward parts, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. "And they shall no longer each man teach his neighbor, and each man his brother, saying, Know Jehovah. For they shall all know Me, from the least of them even to the greatest of them, declares Jehovah. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sins no more." It is within this same framework that Jesus Himself describes the new covenant. In fact, He goes into greater detail, describing the nature of the ministry in the beginning of the church (John 14: 11-21), "Believe Me that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me; but if not, believe Me because of the works themselves. Indeed, I tell you truly, the one believing into Me, the works which I do, that one shall do also, and greater than these he will do, because I go to My Father. "And whatever you may ask in My Name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My Name, I will do it. "If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will petition the Father, and He will give you another Comforter, that He may remain with you to the age, the Spirit of Truth, whom the world cannot receive because it does not see Him nor know Him. But you know Him, for He abides with you and shall be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I am coming to you. Yet a little while and the world no longer sees Me, but you see Me. Because I live, you also shall live. "In that day you shall know that I am in My Father, and you are in Me, and I am in you. He that has My commandments and keeps them, it is that one who

5 loves Me; and the one that loves Me shall be loved by My Father, and I shall love him and will reveal Myself to him." There are therefore two major differences between the New Testament, from the Old Testament. One is the revelation of the person of Jesus Christ. The other is the permanent indwelling of the Holy Spirit. This Scriptural changes the focus from the observance of the law, to being led by the Holy Spirit. The new covenant is also the last covenant. In the New Testament, the word "covenant"27 most often means "last will and testament"28. One only needs to be in it, and it lasts forever. The only requirement is the commitment of faith in Jesus Christ (John 3:16), "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that everyone believing into Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Like the covenant oath, there is an act of faith. One asks the Lord for salvation (Romans 10:12-13), "For there is no difference both of Jew and of Greek, for the same Lord of all is rich toward all the ones calling on Him. For everyone, "whoever may call on the name of the Lord will be saved." The sign of the covenant is the commitment of one's faith into daily actions, through the Holy Spirit: The daily actions are tied to one s faith, which is itself directly tied to the covenant relationship between those involved (James 2:17), "So also faith, if it does not have works, is dead being by itself." Faith, for the believer, is directly the result of daily spirituality (Galatians 5:25), "If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit." The Law The law is a revelation from God, because it reveals His nature. In the Old Testament, He is the God to whom Israel belongs, and He has revealed Himself in the exodus from Egypt. He will show Himself to be the God of His people 29. The one true God, as expressed in the Bible, is hidden from man. His revelation of Himself is His act alone, only as He wills to do so 30; and it is progressive in nature. He reveals what He wishes, to whom He wishes, throughout history. Therefore, the revelation of the law is an act of grace. Since the law represents His nature, as a holy and just God, then man must aspire to His nature in order to have fellowship with Him. But this is impossible. So the second purpose of the law is to point toward a Savior. Paul writes (Romans 3:20-26), "Because by works of Law not one of all flesh will be justified before Him, for through Law is full knowledge of sin. 31 But now a righteousness of God has been revealed apart from Law, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith of Jesus Christ toward all and upon all those believing; for there is no difference, for all sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation through faith in His blood, as

6 a demonstration of His righteousness through the passing over of the sins that had taken place before, in the forbearance of God, for a demonstration of His righteousness in the present time, for His being just and justifying the one that is of the faith of Jesus." Jesus Himself said, at the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:17), "Do not think that I came to annul the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to annul, but to fulfill." Jesus did actually fulfill the law. It is when He was on the cross, when He spoke these words "It has been finished." (John 19:30). It is actually here that the new covenant actually begins. It fulfills all the major covenants between God and His people. It is the focal-point of all of history, between God and man. Paul puts the Law, which was given to Moses, into perspective, in light of Jesus' fulfillment on the cross (Galatians 3:6-29), "Even "as Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness,"32 know, then, that those of faith, these are sons of Abraham. And the Scripture foreseeing that God would justify the nations by faith, preached the gospel before to Abraham: "All the nations will be blessed" "in you."33 So that those of faith are blessed with the faithful Abraham. "For as many as are out of works of Law, these are under a curse. For it has been written, "Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all the things having been written in the book of the Law, to do them."34 And that no one is justified by Law before God is clear because, "The just shall live by faith." 35 "But the Law is not of faith, but, "The man doing these things shall live in them."36 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us; for it has been written, "Cursed is everyone having been hung on a tree;"37 that the blessing of Abraham might be to the nations in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. "Brothers, I speak according to man, a covenant having been ratified, even among mankind, no one sets aside or adds to it. But the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his Seed (it does not say, And to seeds, as of many, but as of one, "And to your Seed," which is Christ). 38 "And I say this, A covenant having been ratified before to Christ by God, the Law coming into being four hundred and thirty years after, does not annul the promise, so as to abolish it. For if the inheritance is of Law, it is no more of promise; but God has given it to Abraham through promise. "Why the Law then? It was for the sake of transgressions, until the Seed should come, to whom it had been promised, being ordained through angels in a mediator's hand. But the Mediator is not of one, but God is one. "Then is the Law against the promises of God? Let it not be! For if a law had been given which had been able to make alive, indeed righteousness would have been out of Law. But the Scripture locked up all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to the ones believing. "But before the coming of faith, we were guarded under Law, having been

7 locked up to the faith being about to be revealed. So that the Law has become a trainer of us until Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But faith coming, we are no longer under a trainer; for you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many as were baptized into Christ, you put on Christ. "There cannot be Jew nor Greek, there is no slave nor freeman, there is no male and female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are of Christ, then you are a seed of Abraham, even heirs according to promise." Paul also focuses in on the leadership by Jesus Christ, of the believer through the Holy Spirit, as opposed to the observance of the law (Galatians 5:17-24), "For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another; lest whatever you may will, these things you do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under Law. "Now the works of the flesh are clearly revealed, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lustfulness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, fightings, jealousies, angers, rivalries, divisions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkennesses, revelings, and things like these; of which I tell you beforehand, as I also said before, that the ones practicing such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. "But the fruit of the Spirit is: love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faith, meekness, self-control. Against such things there is not a law. But the ones belonging to Christ crucified the flesh with its passions and lusts." Seven This is considered to be the most sacred number. It has the concrete notion of counting to include elements of completeness, energy, and fullness 39. Although this concept was known throughout the Mesopotamian 40, Babylonian 41, Akkadian 42, Egyptian 43, Germans 44, the Greeks 45, and possibly others, its establishment as a number of completion was established by the Lord Himself, at the time of creation (Genesis 2:1-3), "And the heavens and the earth were finished, and all their host. And on the seventh day God completed His work which He had made. And He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made. "And God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because He rested from all His work on it, which God had created to make." Its use transcends that of all other cultures, partly because of its much-varied use throughout Scripture. This is true both in the Old and the New Testaments, and is very prominent in the book of Revelation, the last book in the Bible. The Seventh Day

8 The word "sabbath"46 is a Hebrew word, and its basic meaning is holiday, celebration 47, to cease, to desist 48. As seen above, keeping the Sabbath was the sign of being in the Mosaic covenant 49. It is the fourth of the Ten Commandments, given both at Mt. Sinai in Exodus. and to the next generation in Deuteronomy, before they entered the Promised Land. But they are not identical (Exodus 20:8-11), "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy; six days you shall labor and do all your work; and the seventh day is a sabbath to Jehovah your God; you shall not do any work, you, and your son, and your daughter, your male slave and your slave-girl, and your livestock, and your stranger who is in your gates. For in six days Jehovah made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all which is in them, and He rested on the seventh day; on account of this Jehovah blessed the sabbath day and sanctified it." The Exodus passage gives the reason, for the seventh day, is because of the creation in six days, and God resting on the seventh. But the Deuteronomy passage gives the reason being God's people being released from bondage, from Egypt (Deuteronomy 5:12-15), "Observe the sabbath day, to keep it holy, as Jehovah your God has commanded you. Six days you shall labor, and shall do all your work, and the seventh day shall be a sabbath to Jehovah your God. You shall not do any work, you nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male slave, nor your female slave, nor your ox, nor your ass, nor any of your livestock, nor your stranger that is within your gates; so that your male slave and your female slave may rest like yourself. "And remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and Jehovah your God brought you out from there by a mighty hand and by a stretched out arm. On account of this Jehovah your God has commanded you to keep the sabbath day." After Jesus' ministry, and the cross, the Christian churches observed Sunday as the day of the Lord's resurrection, the first day of the week. The observation of the Jewish sabbath, as a worship day, had been completely abandoned 50, since the law had been fulfilled by the Savior. The exodus was a physical release from bondage. The Son of God, through His act of salvation, brought in a release from spiritual bondage. The Seventh Year The seventh year itself was to be a Sabbath year. Like the Sabbath day, it also had its own type of rest (Leviticus 25:1-7), "And Jehovah spoke to Moses in Mount Sinai, saying, Speak to the sons of Israel, and say to them, When you come into the land which I am giving to you, then the land shall keep a sabbath to Jehovah. You shall sow your field six years, and you shall prune your vineyard six years, and shall gather its produce. And in the seventh year shall be a sabbath of rest to the land, a sabbath to Jehovah.

9 "You shall not sow your field, and you shall not prune your vineyard. You shall not reap that which grows of itself of your harvest; and you shall not gather the grapes of your unkept vine; it shall be a year of rest to the land. And the sabbath of the land shall be to you for food, to you, and to your male slave, and to your female slave, and to your hired one, and to your tenant, those living among you; and to your livestock, and to the animal in your land, all its produce shall be for food." It is also described in elsewhere in Scripture (Exodus 23:10-11), "And you shall sow your land six years, and you shall gather its produce. And the seventh year you shall let it rest and let it alone, and the needy of your people shall eat. And what they leave, the animals of the field shall eat. So you shall do to your vineyard, to your oliveyard." The only difference is that the Leviticus passage actually names it the "Sabbath" year. Sowing, of any kind, was prohibited. This had the effect of reducing the amount of sodium in the soil, especially where irrigation was used 51. The word "vineyard"52 (Leviticus 19:10) is a term that may also include olive groves 53, but the Bible usually lists them separately 54. Pruning was not allowed during the Sabbath year. Reaping Reaping was allowed to sustain anyone in the household, including slaves, tenants and livestock. The aftergrowth referred to seeds which had fallen to the ground during reaping. In context with Exodus 23 (listed above), and with the reaping seen in Ruth 33, this aftergrowth had been left over for the poor to gather for themselves 56 (Deuteronomy 15:7-8), "If there is a poor man among you, one of your brothers inside any of your gates in your land which Jehovah your God is giving to you, you shall not harden your heart, nor shut your hand from your needy brother. But opening you shall open your hand to him, and lending you shall lend him enough for his need in that which he lacks." Scripturally, this after growth can appear in as many as two stages, as only seen in Isaiah s writing (Isaiah 37:30), "And this shall be the sign to you: You shall eat self-sown grain this year; and the second year, that which springs up; and in the third year you shall sow and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat their fruit." The first reference is to the "self-grown"57 grain in Isaiah, and "that which grows of itself" in Leviticus 58. And the expression "springs up"59, in (above) Isaiah, refers to the next stage of aftergrowth Indentured Slaves The root meaning for the word "slave"60 is best rendered "servant"61, and it has variant meanings

10 of the relationship between slave and master throughout Scripture. It depends upon the context 62. In this passage, and others referring to the Sabbath year and the jubilee, it refers to indentured Israelites, who were compelled to live upon the estates of their creditors (Exodus 21:1-4), "And these are the judgments which you shall put before them: When you buy a Hebrew slave, he shall serve six years And in the seventh he shall go out free for nothing. If he comes in with his body, he shall go out with his body. If he was the husband of a wife, his wife shall go out with him. "If his master gives him a wife, and she bears sons or daughters to him, the wife and her children shall belong to her master; and he shall go out with his body." If the family was originally provided by the master, then they remained with him when the servant was freed. The law also provided for his provision when he departed (Deuteronomy 15:12-15), "If your brother, a Hebrew man, or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you and serves you six years, then in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you. And when you send him out free from you, you shall not let him go away empty. You shall richly adorn him from your flock, and from your threshing floor, and from your winepress, with that which Jehovah your God has blessed you, you shall give to him. "And you shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and Jehovah your God redeemed you. On account of this I command you this thing today." Seven Weeks of Years The forty-ninth year, being a multiple of seven, is also a sabbatical year. The fiftieth year is the jubilee year. The word "jubilee"63 is an English version of the original Hebrew word yobel 64, which is a verb form of the word referring to the act of the blowing of a ram's horn 65. The occasion is described only once in the Old Testament (Leviticus 25:8-12), "And you shall number to yourself seven sabbaths of years, seven years times seven, and all the days of the seven sabbaths of years shall be to you forty nine years. And you shall let a ram's horn resound, a signal in the seventh month, in the tenth of the month; in the day of atonement, let a ram's horn pass throughout all your land; and you shall make the fiftieth year holy, one year. And you shall proclaim liberty in the land to those living in it; it shall be a jubilee to you. And you shall return every man to his possession; yea, you shall turn back each to his family. "It is a jubilee, the fiftieth year; it is a year to you. You shall not sow, nor reap that which grows of itself, nor gather from its unkept vines; for it is a jubilee, it is holy to you; you shall eat its increase out of the field." The jubilee event is in "the seventh month, in the tenth of the month; in the day of atonement" (v.9), which is also known as "Yom Kippur"66, also mentioned in Leviticus 16:29 and 23:27.

11 Yom Kippur Yom 67 Kippur 68, in the Hebrew, means "day"69 of "atonement"70, which is significant to the understanding of the jubilee, because they both focus on similar themes: forgiveness and returning to one's former relationships, to others, and of one's possessions and property. It is in the seventh month, since the number seven is a number for completion 71. And the tenth day brings out the number ten, another number symbolizing completion 72, since it is linked with the original reckoning by fingers. It is associated with the Ten Commandments 73, the ten plagues of Egypt 74, the ten patriarchs before the flood 75, the tenth given to God (the tithe) 76, and other examples 77. Although they could not ever lose their salvation, since it was established by faith, their relationship to God was then through the Mosaic covenant, and keeping the law. Sin could break this covenant. Although all sin would be paid for, by the future Savior on the cross, the working relationship between God and His people, within this covenant, was kept through the atonement of sin. The Hebrew understanding of the word "atonement' is centered on relationships. When a positive relationship, between two parties, is broken by a transgression, the resulting tension must be neutralized. This is done by an act of atonement, in order to restore the original order within the relationship 78. This breaks down into two major areas: appeasing men, or appeasing God 79. When it involves people, then it may involve covering the face 80, or covering wrath 81. But the tension between a human and an angry God is not focused towards the easing of emotional displeasure, but in specific acts within a legal sphere 82. Acts of atonement often refer to blood (guilt) 83, sin 84, and guilt 85. The act of atonement can be initiated by the person, or by God. When done by God, then atonement takes on the meaning "forgive"86. It is an act of grace, on God's part, since it involves the relationship that He has with the person needing forgiveness. Since they are His people, and living on His land, then the spirit of forgiving debts, during the jubilee, is related totally to the concept of atonement, as God Himself designed it. It is important to point out that these acts of atonement, which were purification by sacrifice, were done by the high priest 87. He did this not only on behalf of others, but on behalf of himself and his family 88, the sanctuary, altar, the temple 89, a house 90, the land 91, etc. 92 All priests were from the tribe of Levi 93. Then there is the head-tax, based upon the census. When used with the word "atonement", it can mean "to redeem"94 or to "ransom"95, which also ties in with the jubilee (Exodus 30:12-16), "When you lift up the head of the sons of Israel, of those numbered, each one shall give the ransom of his soul to Jehovah when numbering them; and there shall not be a plague among them when numbering them. "They shall give this, everyone passing over to those numbered: half a shekel, by the shekel of the sanctuary, twenty gerahs being a shekel; half a shekel as an offering to Jehovah. Every one passing over to those numbered, from a son of twenty years and upward, shall give the offering of Jehovah. "The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, to give the offering of Jehovah, to make atonement for your souls. And

12 you shall take the silver of atonement from the sons of Israel and you shall give it to the service of the tabernacle of the congregation; and it shall be for the sons of Israel for remembrance before the face of Jehovah, to make atonement for your souls." Return of Possessions The following has to do with the buying and selling of property to one's neighbor 96, which also deals with proper conduct toward a fellow citizen of Israel 97 (Leviticus 25:13-18), "In the year of jubilee you shall return each one to his possession. And if you sell anything to your neighbor, or buy from the hand of your neighbor, you shall not each man oppress his brother. "By the number of years after the jubilee you shall buy from your neighbor; by the number of the years of increase he shall sell to you; according to the many years you shall increase its price; and by the fewness of the years you shall diminish its price, for he is selling to you the number of crops. "And you shall not oppress each man his neighbor, and you shall fear your God, for I am Jehovah your God. And you shall do My statutes, and you shall keep my judgments and shall do them; and you shall live on the land securely." It primarily refers to families who were evicted from their homes due to foreclosure, and who were unable to repay their loans 98. The word "holding"99 means "tenured land", or "land holding"100. They do not possess the land as a result of anything they did on their own The Israelites are God's possession, the people as well as the land 101. An important point is the "return"102 each one to his possessions. Its primary meaning, in the Hebrew, is to move in an opposite direction from that toward one has previously moved 103. The normal case assumes that the goal is to the original point of departure 104. Although the meaning of this word can take on varied forms, the legal sense in the above passage follows the root meaning that people and things are to return to their original state of existence, both in personal freedom and in ownership 105. One is not to "oppress"106 his fellow citizen. It both means to "oppress" and to "do violence to"107. The word first appears in Exodus 22:21, and prohibits oppressing a resident alien 108, a foreigner or stranger 109, based upon the fact that the Israelites were themselves resident aliens in Egypt 110. The above text likely refers to the possibility that an emergency sale was involved, and that it would be wrong to take advantage of it 111. It totally ties in with the New Testament verse given by Jesus Christ Himself (Luke 6:31), "And according as you desire that men should do to you, you also do the same to them." The value of the leases on the land was to be computed in terms of crop years. The price was to be equivalent to the number of crops the purchaser would realize before the next jubilee, when the property would revert back to its original owner 112. The same applied to indentured servants, as seen later in v

13 No Sowing The sixth year was a sowing year. The seventh year was a Sabbath year, and allowed no sowing. Sowing began in the eighth (Leviticus 25:19-22), "And the land shall give its fruit, and you shall eat to satisfaction; and you shall dwell securely on it. And when you say, What shall we eat in the seventh year; for, lo, we may not sow nor gather our increase? "Then I have commanded My blessing on you in the sixth year, and it shall produce the increase for three years; and you shall sow the eighth year, and shall eat of the old crop until the ninth year, until the coming in of its crop; you shall eat of the old." Property (Leviticus 25:23), "And the land shall not be sold in perpetuity; for the land is Mine; for you are aliens and tenants with Me." The expression "in perpetuity"114 is defined "beyond reclaim"115. The primary root meaning of this word, in the Hebrew, is "to destroy"116. In context, the legal language is for the available land to exist for the future generations of the original owners, and should be available for their buying back 117. The Kinsman-Redeemer Land tenure is at the heart of the jubilee. If an Israelite became indentured to another Israelite and no redeemer came to his assistance, and he himself could not pay off his debt, then he had no choice but to wait until the jubilee, when a general release was declared 118. If the original owner was able to raise the necessary funds to pay the debt, then the creditor, or purchaser, was required to restore it to him 119 (Leviticus 25:24-28), "And you shall grant a redemption for the land in all the land of your possession. If your brother has become poor and has sold his property, then comes one to redeem, and he redeems the thing sold by his brother. But a man, when there is not one to redeem him, and his own hand has reached out, and he has enough for its redemption, then he shall count the years since its sale, and shall give back the surplus to the man to whom he sold; and he shall return to his possession. "And if his hand has not found enough to give back to him, then the thing he sold shall be in the hand of him who buys it until the year of jubilee. And it shall go out in the jubilee, and he shall return to his possession." The kinsman-redeemer 120 has a secular use, within the area of family law 121. It refers to one's nearest relative at the time. It may refer to a brother, uncle, cousin, or some other kinsman, who will stand up for him and maintain his rights 122.

14 Behind this concept is the feeling of tribal solidarity. It not only refers to the members of a clan, but their possessions as well. It forms an organic unity, and any disruption of it is considered intolerable, and is something that must be restored or repaired 123. There are varied uses of the term, but the main use, within the text, involves the right of redemption of one who has sold property to pay off a debt. The nearest relative was bound to buy it back, and restore the family possessions 124. It is worth noting that, in Isaiah, Yahweh is called both Father 125 and Redeemer. He is also the kinsman-redeemer, in the Hebrew, in this passage (Isaiah 63:16), "For You are our Father, though Abraham does not know us, and Israel does not acknowledge us; You, Jehovah, are our Father, our Redeemer; Your name is from everlasting." The concept and the function of a redeemer is well-attested to within the Old Testament. The kinsman-redeemer is one of three Hebrew expressions used. The two others are not mentioned in the passage on the jubilee, but they form a more complete picture: 1. Redeem This does not refer to family law, but the focus is on the payment itself. The object is an animal, a first-born, or a human life who must be redeemed 127. God Himself is the Redeemer in the story of David (II Samuel 4:9; I Kings 1:29), and is asked to redeem Israel (Psalms 25:22). 2. Ransom This comes from the same root word 129 for "kippur"130 (atonement), so it essentially has the same meaning, but only refers to civil and not sacral law 131. It refers to the covering up of a fault, with a material gift. If the fault was a knowingly preventable case of a member of a clan or family being killed, like the act of a vicious ox, the family can insist that the owner be put to death 132. But the injured party can settle upon a material compensation 133. In the New Testament, all three Old Testament Hebrew expressions apply to the singular Greek expression 134, of the Redeemer, in referring to Jesus Christ. It is used for the word "ransom", as Jesus Christ refers to His coming crucifixion (Matthew 20:26-28), "But it will not be so among you. But whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your servant; Even as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many." The Walled Cities The law of redemption was limited in the case of urban dwellings. A town, defined as an area surrounded by a wall, was exempt from the tenure system that existed among the agricultural areas. The cities had a special legal status, like tax exemptions and other legal prerogatives 135. The land tenure didn't exist here, as it did in the farmlands. The right of redemption only lasted for a year (Leviticus 25:29-31), "And when a man sells a dwelling house in a walled city, then his right of redemption shall be the end of the year of its sale; his right of redemption shall be a year of days. And if it is not redeemed until a full year is complete, then

15 the house in the walled city shall be established to perpetuity to its buyer, throughout his generations; it shall not go out in the jubilee. "But the houses of the villages which have no walls all around shall be counted as the field of the country; there are redemption rights to it. And it shall go out in the jubilee." The Levites and their Property The Levites were given forty-eight towns, which included six cities of refuge 136. Unlike those within the walled cities, the redemption rights for their property were valid for all time (Leviticus 25:32-34), "As to the cities of the Levites, houses of the cities of their possession, never ending redemption rights shall be to the Levites. "And that which one redeems from the Levites, both the sale of a house, and the city of his possession, shall go out in the jubilee. For the houses of the cities of the Levites are their possessions in the midst of the sons of Israel. And the field, the open land of their cities, shall not be sold; for it is a never ending possession to them." The "open land"137 was originally an area designated for livestock. It later came to include agriculture 138. Poverty The following deal with one who is in debt, but hasn't sold off his property or indentured himself 139 (Leviticus 25:35-38), "And when your brother has become poor, and his hand has failed with you, then you shall help him. He shall live with you as an alien and a tenant. You shall take no interest or increase from him, and you shall fear your God; and the life of your brother is with you. You shall not give silver to him with interest, and you shall not give your food for increase. "I am Jehovah who has brought you out of the land of Egypt, to give to you the land of Canaan, to become your God." The expression "hand has failed" (v.35) is an image usually applied to stumbling feet. Here it is a type of metaphor used for an unfortunate situation 140. Indentured Slaves The legal status of an indentured servant was that of an employee. In contrast to the passage in Exodus 21:1-6, the servant's family was released with him, during the jubilee 141 (Leviticus 25:39-55), "And when your brother becomes poor with you, and he has been sold to you, you shall not lay on him the service of a slave. He shall be with you as a hireling, as a tenant he shall be with you; he shall serve with you until the year

16 of jubilee; then he shall go out from you, he and his sons with him, and shall return to his family; he shall even return to the possession of his father. "For they are My servants, whom I have brought out from the land of Egypt; they shall not be sold with the sale of a slave. You shall not rule over him with severity, and you shall fear your God. And your male slave and your female slave whom you have shall be from the nations who are all around you, you shall buy them as male slave or female slave; and also you may buy of the sons of the tenants who are residing with you, and of their families who are with you, which they have fathered in your land. And they shall be a possession to you. "And you shall take them for inheritance to your sons after you, to hold for a possession; you may lay service on them forever. But on your brothers, the sons of Israel, one over another, you shall not rule over him with severity. "And if lifts up a hand of an alien or a tenant with you, and your brother grows poor with him, and he sells himself to an alien, a tenant with you, or to the offshoot of the family of an alien, after he has been sold, there is a redemption to him; one of his brothers may redeem him, or his uncle, or a son of his uncle, may redeem him, or any of his fleshly relations of his family may redeem him. Or, if his own hand has reached out to gain, then he may be redeemed. "And he shall count with his buyer from the year of his being sold to him until the year of jubilee, and the silver of his sale shall be by the number of years. As the days of a hireling, it shall be with him. If there are yet many years, by mouth he shall give back his redemption, from the silver of his purchase. "And if few are left of the years till the year of jubilee, then he shall count with him according to his years he shall give back his redemption price. As a hireling, year by year, he shall be with him, and he shall not rule him with severity before your eyes. "And if he is not redeemed in this way, then he shall go out in the year of jubilee, he and his sons with him. For the sons of Israel are servants to Me; they are My servants whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt; I am Jehovah your God." Israelite slaves had redemption rights over non-israelite slaves. They were also released, during the jubilee, if employed by a non-israelite 142. The Year of the Lord's Grace The picture of the jubilee is present in the prophecy given Isaiah, as an anticipation of the heavenly liberation 143, using the expression "year of Jehovah" (Isaiah 61:1-3), "The Spirit of the Lord Jehovah is on Me, because Jehovah has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the meek. He has sent Me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to captives, and complete opening to the bound ones; to proclaim the acceptable year of Jehovah, and the day of vengeance of our God;

17 to comfort all who mourn; to appoint to those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of the spirit of infirmity, so that one calls them trees of righteousness, the planting of Jehovah, in order to beautify Himself." It was Jesus Christ Himself who applied this prophecy to His purpose on earth. It would also apply to Him as Savior (Luke 4:`4-21), "And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee. And a report went out through all the neighborhood about Him. And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. And He came to Nazareth where He was brought up. And as was His custom, He went in on the day of the Sabbaths, into the synagogue, and He stood up to read. And the scroll of Isaiah the prophet was handed to Him. And unrolling the book, He found the place where it was written: "" The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me. Because of this He anointed Me to proclaim the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me" to heal the brokenhearted, "to proclaim remission to captives, and to the blind to see again," to send away the ones being crushed, in remission, to preach an acceptable year of the Lord." "And rolling up the scroll, returning it to the attendant, He sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him. And He began to say to them, "Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your ears."" After Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection, everything was fulfilled. His sending of the Holy Spirit, to permanently indwell his believers, the church was born. It was on this day, at Pentecost that Peter gave the first sermon of the church. He also follows the spirit of the jubilee by announcing the "times of restoration of all things" (Acts 3:21). He is in the temple, speaking before a Jewish crowd (Acts 3:17-22), "And now, brothers, I know that you acted according to ignorance, as also did your rulers. But what things God before proclaimed through the mouth of all His prophets, that the Christ should suffer, He fulfilled in this manner. "Therefore, repent, and convert, for the blotting out of your sins, so that times of refreshing may come from the face of the Lord, and that He may send forth the One before proclaimed to you, Jesus Christ, whom Heaven truly needs to receive until the times of restoration of all things, of which God spoke through the mouth of all His holy prophets from the age past. "For Moses indeed said to the fathers, "The Lord your God will raise up to you a Prophet from among your brothers, One like me; you shall hear Him according to all things," whatever He may speak to you." Five thousand were saved that afternoon, adding to the three thousand earlier that morning (Acts 3:41), making a total of eight thousand in one day (Acts 4:4), "But many of those hearing the Word believed; and the number of the men came to be about five thousand."

18 Conclusion The law points to the Savior. God's plan for Israel gives a type of picture of the heavenly kingdom. In the Old Testament, there are a line of high priests, and their sacrifices for atonement. The New Testament presents one High Priest, who is Jesus Christ. His sacrifice was once and for all. And there is a release from spiritual bondage, through faith in him. The jubilee was an act of grace, by God to His people. Salvation is the once and for all gift of God (Ephesians 2:8-9). Bible Research Group

19 Footnotes 1. berith - (Hebrew: Strong s number 1285). 2. Theological Dictionary of the New Testament [Kittel], II: What the Bible Says about Covenant [Smith], p Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament [TDOT], II: Kittel, ibid. 6. New Bible Dictionary [NBD], pp alah - (Hebrew: Strong's number 423). 8. Smith, p TDOT II: Kittel I: ; See Nehemiah 10:29, Jeremiah 29:18, Daniel 9:11, Zechariah 5: 'oth - (Hebrew: Strong's number 226). 12. TDOT: I: See Genesis 9:12, 13, 17; 17:11; Exodus 3:12; 12:13; 13:16; Numbers 17:10, and others. 14. TDOT, Ibid, p Smith, pp Ibid., p Genesis 15: Genesis 26:5; TDOT II: Genesis 17:11; Smith, p Genesis 12: Smith, p Exodus 31:13; Smith, p TDOT, ibid. 24. I Kings 3:6; 9:4; 11:4,6; 14:8; 15: Smith, ibid. 26. II Samuel 7: diatheke - (Greek: Strong's number 1242). 28. Kittel II:124, ; Occurs 33 times in the New Testament, 7 in Old Testament citations. 29. Ibid., IV: Ibid., III: Psalms 143: Genesis 15: Genesis 12: Deuteronomy 27: Habakkuk 2: Leviticus 18: Deuteronomy 21: Genesis 3:15; 21:12; 22:18; Romans 9:6; Hebrews 11: TDOT XIV: Ibid., p.344.

20 41. Ibid.; Kittel II: TDOT XIV: Ibid.; Kittel II: Ibid. 45. Ibid. 46. sabbat - (Hebrew: Strong's number 7676). 47. TDOT XIV: NBD, p See note Kittel VII: "The JPS Torah Commentary" [JPS: Leviticus], p kerem - (Hebrew: Strong's number 3754) 53. JPS: Leviticus, ibid. 54. Exodus 23:11; Deuteronomy 6:11; Joshua 24:13; Judges 15:5; I Samuel 8:14; II Kings 5:26; Nehemiah 9:25, and possibly others. 55. Ruth 2: NBD, p safiah - (Hebrew: Strong s number 5599). 58. Appears also in II Kings 19:29 and in Job 14: shahis - (Hebrew: Strong's number 7823). 60. 'abad - (Hebrew: Strong's number 5650). 61. TDOT X: Ibid. 63. yobel - (Hebrew: Strong's number 3104). 64. Webster's New World Dictionary, College Edition, pp TDOT VI: JPS: Leviticus, p yom - (Hebrew: Strong's number 3117). 68. kippur - (Hebrew: Strong's number 3722). 69. TDOT VI: TDOT VII: See note NBD, p Exodus 20; Deuteronomy Exodus Genesis Genesis 28: TDOT II: TDOT VII: Ibid. 80. Genesis 32: Proverbs 16: TDOT, ibid.

21 83. dam - (Hebrew: Strong's number 1818) - Numbers 35:33; Deuteronomy 21:8; II Samuel 21:1, hatta - (Hebrew: Strong's number 2401) - Exodus 32:30; Psalms 79: 'awon - (Hebrew: Strong's number 5771) - I Samuel 3:14; Isaiah 22:14; Jeremiah 18:23; Daniel 9:24; Psalms 78:38; Proverbs 16: TDOT, ibid. 87. kohen - (Hebrew: Strong's number 3548) - Leviticus 1-3; Hebrews 5:1-2; TDOT VII: Leviticus 16:6, 11, etc. 89. Leviticus 16:20, 33; Ezekiel 43:20; 45: Leviticus 14: Numbers 35: TDOT VII: Exodus 38: TDOT VII: Ibid. 96. 'amit - (Hebrew: Strong's number 5997). 97. TDOT: JPS: Leviticus, p 'ahuzzah - (Hebrew: Strong's number 272) JPS: Leviticus, ibid Ibid sub - (Hebrew: Strong's number 7725) 103. TDOT XIV: Ibid Ibid., pp yana - (Hebrew: Strong's number 3238) 107. TDOT VI: ger - (Hebrew: Strong's number 1616) Ibid TDOT, ibid Ibid JPS: Leviticus, p Ibid ts'meetooth - (Hebrew: Strong's number 6783) JPS: Leviticus, p TDOT XII: JPS: Leviticus, ibid TDOT, ibid JPS: Leviticus, p Ibid ga'al - (Hebrew: Strong's number 1350) Kittel IV: TDOT II: Ibid.