The Year of Jubilee!
Isa 61:1-3 1"The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, Because the LORD has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound; 2To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn, 3To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified."
What do we see in this passage?
Proclamation of liberty is also the first recorded teaching from Jesus for the Kingdom and is the same principles of the kingdom of heaven (Mt 5:1-10). Before going into the NT passages, we'll look at the history of these observations. The main points we should remember about the proclamation for the acceptable year is:
- good news to the poor (about the Jubilee/redemption)
- liberty to the captives
- releasing those who're bound in prisons
- comfort to those who mourn, beauty for ashes, heal the broken hearted
- time of rejoicing, reign of righteousness, glorifying the Lord
We should keep in mind that there is a close relationship between the proclaimed Jubilee & Sabbath. Both is referring to rest & restoration.
Origin of the Sabbath:
Exo 16:4-5, 12-30 4Then the LORD said to Moses, "Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you. And the people shall go out and gather a certain quota every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in My law or not. 5"And it shall be on the sixth day that they shall prepare what they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily." …
12"I have heard the complaints of the children of Israel. Speak to them, saying, At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread. And you shall know that I am the LORD your God.' " 13So it was that quails came up at evening and covered the camp, and in the morning the dew lay all around the camp. 14And when the layer of dew lifted, there, on the surface of the wilderness, was a small round substance, as fine as frost on the ground. 15So when the children of Israel saw it, they said to one another, "What is it?" For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, "This is the bread which the LORD has given you to eat. 16"This is the thing which the LORD has commanded: Let every man gather it according to each one's need, one omer for each person, according to the number of persons; let every man take for those who are in his tent.' " 17Then the children of Israel did so and gathered, some more, some less. 18So when they measured it by omers, he who gathered much had nothing left over, and he who gathered little had no lack. Every man had gathered according to each one's need.
19And Moses said, "Let no one leave any of it till morning." 20Notwithstanding they did not heed Moses. But some of them left part of it until morning, and it bred worms and stank. And Moses was angry with them. 21So they gathered it every morning, every man according to his need. And when the sun became hot, it melted. 22And so it was, on the sixth day, that they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for each one. And all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses. 23Then he said to them, "This is what the LORD has said: Tomorrow is a Sabbath rest, a holy Sabbath to the LORD. Bake what you will bake today, and boil what you will boil; and lay up for yourselves all that remains, to be kept until morning.' " 24So they laid it up till morning, as Moses commanded; and it did not stink, nor were there any worms in it. 25Then Moses said, "Eat that today, for today is a Sabbath to the LORD; today you will not find it in the field. 26"Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, which is the Sabbath, there will be none." 27Now it happened that some of the people went out on the seventh day to gather, but they found none. 28And the LORD said to Moses, "How long do you refuse to keep My commandments and My laws? 29"See! For the LORD has given you the Sabbath; therefore He gives you on the sixth day bread for two days. Let every man remain in his place; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day." 30So the people rested on the seventh day.
- What do we see from this passage about Sabbath?
→ about trusting God for His providence & obeying His will
→ He brought food with a miracle and they just have to receive
→ even-more supernatural provision for the 7th day
- Which observations do we make about the children of Israel?
→ rebellious nature, its God's supernatural provisions but were unwilling to follow the commandments!
→ collected more & saving for next day / trying to go and collect on the Sabbath's rest!
Sabbaths & proclamation of liberties: Rest in 3 levels: day, year(s) and millennium!
1. Day level: Weekly Sabbath
Lev 23:3 Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation. You shall do no work on it; it is the Sabbath of the LORD in all your dwellings.
Gen 2:1-3 1Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished. 2And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. 3Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.
The book of Genesis is attributed to Moses who wrote it by revelation from the Lord. No one observed Sabbath's rest until the wilderness when the Lord instituted it with manna. What this rest is we'll come back later:
3He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber. 4Behold, He who keeps Israel Shall neither slumber nor sleep. (Ps 121:3-4) → probably David
Ps 44:23 Awake! Why do You sleep, O Lord? Arise! Do not cast us off forever. → sons of Korah
2. Year level:
- 7th year → year of Release
Lev 25:1-5 1And the LORD spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai, saying, 2"Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: When you come into the land which I give you, then the land shall keep a sabbath to the LORD. 3Six years you shall sow your field, and six years you shall prune your vineyard, and gather its fruit; 4but in the seventh year there shall be a sabbath of solemn rest for the land, a sabbath to the LORD. You shall neither sow your field nor prune your vineyard. 5What grows of its own accord of your harvest you shall not reap, nor gather the grapes of your untended vine, for it is a year of rest for the land.
Deu 15:1-4 1"At the end of every seven years you shall grant a release of debts. 2"And this is the form of the release: Every creditor who has lent anything to his neighbor shall release it; he shall not require it of his neighbor or his brother, because it is called the Lord's release. 3"Of a foreigner you may require it; but you shall give up your claim to what is owed by your brother, 4"except when there may be no poor among you; for the LORD will greatly bless you in the land which the LORD your God is giving you to possess as an inheritance;
We'll see that what grew in the land was for the poor → strangers, fatherless & widows!
- 50th year → year of Jubilee
Lev 25:8-14 8And you shall count seven sabbaths of years for yourself, seven times seven years; and the time of the seven sabbaths of years shall be to you forty-nine years. 9Then you shall cause the trumpet of the Jubilee to sound on the tenth day of the seventh month; on the Day of Atonement you shall make the trumpet to sound throughout all your land. 10And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout all the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a Jubilee for you; and each of you shall return to his possession, and each of you shall return to his family. 11That fiftieth year shall be a Jubilee to you; in it you shall neither sow nor reap what grows of its own accord, nor gather the grapes of your untended vine. 12For it is the Jubilee; it shall be holy to you; you shall eat its produce from the field. 13In this Year of Jubilee, each of you shall return to his possession. 14And if you sell anything to your neighbor or buy from your neighbor's hand, you shall not oppress one another.
God's Provision for the Sabbath years → same as in the 6th day in the wilderness!
Lev 25:20-22 20And if you say, "What shall we eat in the seventh year, since we shall not sow nor gather in our produce?" 21Then I will command My blessing on you in the sixth year, and it will bring forth produce enough for three years. 22And you shall sow in the eighth year, and eat old produce until the ninth year; until its produce comes in, you shall eat of the old harvest.
God's regulations regarding the Jubilee:
Lev 25: 23-25, 28-31 23The land shall not be sold permanently, for the land is Mine; for you are strangers and sojourners with Me. 24And in all the land of your possession you shall grant redemption of the land. 25If one of your brethren becomes poor, and has sold some of his possession, and if his redeeming relative (kinsman-redeemer) comes to redeem it, then he may redeem what his brother sold.
28But if he is not able to have it restored to himself, then what was sold shall remain in the hand of him who bought it until the Year of Jubilee; and in the Jubilee it shall be released, and he shall return to his possession. 29If a man sells a house in a walled city, then he may redeem it within a whole year after it is sold; within a full year he may redeem it. 30But if it is not redeemed within the space of a full year, then the house in the walled city shall belong permanently to him who bought it, throughout his generations. It shall not be released in the Jubilee. 31However the houses of villages which have no wall around them shall be counted as the fields of the country. They may be redeemed, and they shall be released in the Jubilee.
Lev 25:40 As a hired servant and a sojourner he shall be with you, and shall serve you until the Year of Jubilee.
Lev 27:24 In the Year of Jubilee the field shall return to him from whom it was bought, to the one who owned the land as a possession.
[You can imagine why the Israel has fortified themselves by building a wall all around recently!]
Equal Rights:
Lev 24:22 You shall have the same law for the stranger and for one from your own country; for I am the LORD your God.' "
Eze 47:22-23 22"It shall be that you will divide it by lot as an inheritance for yourselves, and for the strangers who dwell among you and who bear children among you. They shall be to you as native-born among the children of Israel; they shall have an inheritance with you among the tribes of Israel. 23"And it shall be that in whatever tribe the stranger dwells, there you shall give him his inheritance," says the Lord GOD.
Pro 22:22-23 22Do not rob the poor because he is poor, Nor oppress the afflicted at the gate; 23For the LORD will plead their cause, And plunder the soul of those who plunder them.
What is the reason for this law?
How does a stranger gets equal right with the children of Israel?
Exo 12:37-39, 43-49 37Then the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides children. 38A mixed multitude went up with them also, and flocks and herds; a great deal of livestock. 39And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they had brought out of Egypt; for it was not leavened, because they were driven out of Egypt and could not wait, nor had they prepared provisions for themselves. … 43And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "This is the ordinance of the Passover: No foreigner shall eat it. 44"But every man's servant who is bought for money, when you have circumcised him, then he may eat it. 45"A sojourner and a hired servant shall not eat it. 46"In one house it shall be eaten; you shall not carry any of the flesh outside the house, nor shall you break one of its bones. 47"All the congregation of Israel shall keep it. 48"And when a stranger dwells with you and wants to keep the Passover to the LORD, let all his males be circumcised, and then let him come near and keep it; and he shall be as a native of the land. For no uncircumcised person shall eat it. 49"One law shall be for the native-born and for the stranger who dwells among you."
Deu 24:17-22 17"You shall not pervert justice due the stranger or the fatherless, nor take a widow's garment as a pledge. 18"But you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you from there; therefore I command you to do this thing. 19"When you reap your harvest in your field, and forget a sheaf in the field, you shall not go back to get it; it shall be for the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. 20"When you beat your olive trees, you shall not go over the boughs again; it shall be for the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow. 21"When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you shall not glean it afterward; it shall be for the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow. 22"And you shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt; therefore I command you to do this thing.
Who are the people protected by the Lord?
What is the reason for God to establish release/ jubilee?
- To remind them about their previous bondage & His redemption
- Every man is equal before God/ his own master → no overloads!
- To establish justice in the land
- to protect the poor and the weak
Examples of Redemption before the establishment of Release/Jubilee:
Noah's family was saved from the flood while the world perished.
Abraham himself went to Egypt in famine & God delivered him with 'plagues'! (Gen 12)
Salvation for Lot's family while Sodom was destroyed (Gen 19)
Similar famine in Issac's time God prevented him from going to Egypt! (Gen 26)
Rescue of Jacob from the hands of Essau and later Liberation from Laban's bond-labor! (Gen 27/31)
The release of land back to Egyptians at the end of 7 years of famine as a shadow of what to come. (Gen 47)
Rescue of the children of Israel from Egypt / Redemption from Egypt!
Exo 5:1 Afterward Moses and Aaron went in and told Pharaoh, "Thus says the LORD God of Israel: Let My people go, that they may hold a feast to Me in the wilderness.' " → foretelling about the Redemption/Jubilee.
After the arrival in Canaan in the time of Judges & kings they observed this, but later discarded and today they do not keep this. The secondary reason for exile is this → only the rich were deported, poor remained in the land! (This also shows why the Lord 'divorced' Israel and showed mercy to all!) Boaz redeemed Ruth which was foreshadowing of the salvation through the blood of Jesus! (Ruth 4) Which will be the topic for the coming time, which is about the 3rd level of Sabbath (rest) – the Millennial rest.
Meditation:
- What do I learn about God's 'heart' from the concept of Jubilee?
- How can I change my life/attitudes using this revelation?
 |
 |