Background: Having gone over the various feasts and celebrations to be held each year, God went on to give instructions about special years: Sabbatical Years (every seventh year) and Jubilee Years (after seven series of Sabbatical Years.) The purpose of the former was to give rest to the land and the people to make them more productive, but even more so to show their reliance upon God. He would make sure the land produced enough "on its own" so that combined with the extra left from the six years, it would be enough to see them through the seventh year as well. These times of rest would also provide more time to study and worship and keep their relationship with God in good fellowship. The Year of Jubilee went even further, putting in place the forgiveness of debts and the return of land and people to their original owner. This reminded them that all land really belonged to God and was entrusted by Him to them. It was a built-in reset that was a defense against greed and oppression and in effect, had an anti-inflationary influence, allowing the nation as a whole to build up true wealth, while making sure all the people had what they needed.
Key Verses: 13 “In this year of jubilee each of you shall return to his property. 14 And if you make a sale to your neighbor or buy from your neighbor, you shall not wrong one another. 15 You shall pay your neighbor according to the number of years after the jubilee, and he shall sell to you according to the number of years for crops. 16 If the years are many, you shall increase the price, and if the years are few, you shall reduce the price, for it is the number of the crops that he is selling to you. 17 You shall not wrong one another, but you shall fear your God, for I am the Lord your God.
Thoughts: These special years were a reminder that they were living life before God and that He was watching how they treated one another. Did they truly fear Him? The chapter goes on to share God's plan of redemption, which was integrally tied into the year of jubilee. The redemption price one would pay for land or freedom was determined by how many more years it was to the next year of Jubilee. The price Christ paid for our redemption was infinitely great, as His year of jubilee will be for eternity.
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