Leviticus 25

AND the LORD spake unto Moses in mount Sinai (i. e.) Near mount Sinai. So the Hebrew particle beth is sometimes used, as Gen. 37. 13. Ios. 5. 13. Iudg. 8. 5. 2 Chron. 33. 20. compared with 2 King. 21. 18. So there is no need to disturb the order of the I... story in this place., saying,

Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye come into the land So as to be settled in it, for the time of the wars was not to be accounted, nor the time before Ioshua's distribution of the land among them, Ios. 14. 7, 10. which I give you, then shall the land keep a sabbath (i. e.) Enjoy rest and freedom from plowing, tilling, &c. unto the LORD (i. e.) In obedience and unto the honour of God. This was instituted partly for the assertion of Gods soveraign right to the land, in which the Israelites were but tenants at Gods will, partly for the trial and exercise of their obedience, partly for the demonstration of his providence aswell in the general towards men, as more especially towards his own people, of which see below ver. 20, 21, 22. partly to wean them from inordinate love and pursuit of or trust to worldly advantages and to inure them to depend upon God alone and upon Gods blessing for their subsistence, partly to put them in mind of that blessed and eternal rest provided for all good men wherein they should be perfectly freed from all worldly labours and troubles and wholly devoted to the service and enjoyment of God. See on Exod. 23. 11. and lastly, that by their own straits in that year they might learn more compassion to the poor who were under the same straits every year.

Six years thou shalt sow thy field, and six years thou shalt prune thy vineyard, and gather in the fruit thereof.

But in the seventh year shall be a sabbath of rest unto the land, a sabbath for the LORD: thou shalt neither sow thy field, nor prune thy vineyard.

That which groweth of its own accord From the grains that fell out of the ears the last reaping time. of thy harvest thou shalt not reap (i. e.) As thy own peculiarly, but only so as others may reap it with thee, for present food., neither gather the grapes of thy vine undressed Heb. the grapes of thy separation, i. e. The Grapes which thou hast separated or set apart to the honour of God and to the ends and uses appointed by God or, the grapes of that year, which are in this like the Nazarites hair, not cut off by thee, but suffered to grow to the use of the poor.: for it is a year of rest unto the land

And the sabbath (i. e.) The growth of the Sabbath, or that fruit which groweth in the Sabbatical year. See on Levit 23. 38. where the word, Sabbath, is taken in the like sense. of the land shall be meat for you, for thee, and for thy servant For all promiscuously, to take food from thence as they need it., and for thy maid and for thy hired servant, and for the stranger that sojourneth with thee.

And for thy cattle, and for the beast, that are in thy land, shall all the increase thereof be meat.

And thou shalt number seven sabbaths of years unto thee, seven times seven years, and the space of the seven sabbaths of years shall be unto thee forty and nine years.

Then shalt thou cause the trumpet of the jubilee Which signified the true liberty from our spiritual debts and slaveries to be purchased by Christ and to be published to the World by the sound of the Gospel. to sound on the tenth day of the seventh month Which was the first month of the year for civil and worldly affairs, which were mainly concerned in the Jubilee. And therefore it began in that moneth, and, as it seems, upon this very tenth day, when the trumpet sounded, as other feasts generally began when the trumpet sounded., in the day of atonement A very fit time, that when they fasted and prayed for Gods mercy to them in the pardon of their sins, then they might exercise their Charity and kindness to men in forgiving their debts, which is the true fast, as is noted, Isa. 58. 6. and to teach us, that the foundation of all solid comfort and joy must be laid in bitter Repentance and atonement for our sins through Christ. shall ye make the trumpet sound throughout all your land.

And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year By which it seems most probable, that the year of Jubilee was not the forty and ninth year, as some learned men think, but precisely the fiftieth year. Which may appear, 1. Because the Jews account it so, which is confessed by the adversaries of this opinion, who say, that the Iews erre in the computation of the Iubilee, as they do in Christ, the great end and antitype of the Iubilee. But it is not probable that the Jews should universally erre in a matter of constant practise among themselves, especially when there was nothing of interest or prejudice in the case, as there was in reference to Christ. 2. Because it is expresly called the fiftieth year here, and ver. 11. that fiftieth year, which was not true, if it was but the nine and fortieth year. It is said, it is called so popularly, and it was so, if you take in the foregoing Jubilee. But it must be remembred, that there was not yet any foregoing Jubilee, but the very first of the kind is expresly called the fiftieth year, which in truth it was not, if the Jubilee was ended ere the fiftieth year began. 3. From the common course of computation. The old weekly Sabbath is called the seventh day, because it truly was so being next after the six days of the week and distinct from them all: and the year of release is called the seventh year, ver. 4. as immediately following the six years, ver. 3. and distinct from them all. And therefore in like manner the Jubilee must needs be called the fiftieth year, because it comes next after seven times seven or forty nine years, ver. 8. and is distinct from them all. From ver. 11, 12. where it is said, ye shall not sow, nor reap, &c. For it is the Iubilee, &c. which looks like a vain and useless repetition, if this year were but one of the seven years, for this very command was given concerning every seventh year, ver. 4. but if this year of Jubilee was, as indeed it was, a year distinct from and coming after the seven sevens of years, then this repetition and application of that command to it was highly necessary, because otherwise it might seem hard and unreasonable that they should forbear sowing and reaping two years together, which hereby they are commanded to do. Two things are objected against this 1. That the Jubilee was only a revolution of forty nine years. But that seems a great mistake, for it is most expresly distinguished from them all, and by way of distinction called the fiftieth year, therefore surely none of the forty nine. 2. The difficulty propounded v. 20. concerns only the 7th. year, whereas it had been a greater difficulty, if it had been extended to the Jubilee, and the Jubilee had been another vacant year coming next after the seventh year. But though the difficulty was greater for the Jubilee, yet it was more frequent for the seventh year: and the resolution of the one made the way plain for the satisfaction of the other. For as God promised so to bless every sixth year, that it should bring forth fruit for three years, ver. 21. so when the case was extraordinary, as in the Jubilee, it was but reasonable to expect an extraordinary blessing from God upon that sixth year which went next before the last of the seventh years or the forty ninth year that it should then bring forth fruit for four years., and proclaim liberty throughout all the land, unto all the inhabitants thereof Understand such as were Israelites; principally to all servants, even to such as would not and did not go out at the seventh year, and to the poor, who now were acquitted from all their debts, and restored to their possessions.: it shall be a jubilee So called either from the Hebrew word Iobel which signifies first a ram, and then a rams horn, by the sound whereof it was proclaimed; or from Iubal, the inventour of Musical instruments, Gen. 4. 21. because it was celebrated with Musick and all expressions of joy. unto you, and ye shall return every man unto his possession Which had been sold or otherwise alienated from him. This Law was not at all unjust because all buyers and sellers had an eye to this condition in their bargains, but it was necessary and expedient in many regards, as 1. To mind them that God alone was the Lord and owner and proprietor both of them and of their lands, and they only his Tenants and Farmers, a point which they were very apt to forget: 2. That hereby Inheritances, Families, and Tribes, might be kept entire and clear until the coming of the Messias, who was to be known as by other things, so by the Tribe and Family out of which he was to come. And this accordingly was done by the singular providence of God until the Lord Jesus did come. Since which time those characters are miserably confounded: Which is no small argument that the Messias is come. 3. To set bounds both to the insatiable avarice of some, and the foolish prodigality of others, that the former might not wholly and finally swallow up the inheritances of their brethren, and the latter might not be able to undo themselves and their posterity for ever, which was a singular priviledge of this Law and People., and ye shall return every man unto his family From whom he was gone being sold to some other Family either by himself or by his Father..

A jubilee shall that fiftieth year be unto you: ye shall not sow Though it come immediately after a seventh year, wherein also this was forbidden to you., neither reap that which groweth of it self in it, nor gather the grapes in it of thy vine undressed.

For it is the jubilee, it shall be holy unto you So it was, because it was sequestred in great part from worldly employments and dedicated to God, and to the exercise of holy joy and thankfulness; and because it was a type of that holy and happy Jubilee which they were to expect and enjoy by and under the Messias., ye shall eat the increase thereof Such things as it produced of it self: For the year before nothing was sowed. out of the field Whence they in common with others might take it as they needed it; but must not put it into barns. See ver. 5. and Exod. 23. 11..

In the year of this jubilee ye shall return every man unto his possession.

And if thou sell ought unto thy neighbour, or buyest ought of thy neighbours hand, ye shall not oppress one another Neither the seller by requiring more, nor the buyer by taking the advantage from his brothers necessities to give him less than the worth of it..

According to the number of years after the jubilee, thou shalt buy of thy neighbour, and according unto the number of years of the fruits Or, Of years of fruits, or, of fruitful years; for there were some unfruitful years, to wit, such wherein they were not allowed to sow or reap, &c. he shall sell unto thee.

According to the multitude of years thou shalt increase the price thereof: and according to the fewness of years, thou shalt diminish the price of it: For according to the number of the years of the fruits Or, For the number of the fruits. The meaning is, he selleth not the land, but only the fruits thereof, and that for a certain time. does he sell unto thee.

Ye shall not therefore oppress one another, but thou shalt fear thy God: for I am the LORD your God.

Wherefore ye shall do my statutes, and keep my judgments, and do them, and ye shall dwell in the land in safety.

And the land shall yield her fruit, and ye shall eat your fill, and dwell therein in safety.

And if ye shall say, What shall we eat A like objection. See Exod. 34. 23, 24. the seventh year? behold, we shall not sow, nor gather in our increase.

Then I will command my blessing upon you in the sixth year, and it shall bring forth fruit for three years Not compleatly, but in great part, to wit, for that part of the sixth year which was between the beginning of harvest and the beginning of the seventh year, for the whole seventh year, and for that part of the eighth year which was before the harvest, which reached almost until the beginning of the ninth year. And by this expression we may understand the meaning of that eminent passage of Christs being three days and three nights in the grave, to wit, one whole day and part of two days: Of which more, if God please, in its proper place. This is added to show the equity of this command. As God would hereby try their Faith and exercise Obedience, so he gave them an eminent proof of his own exact providence and tender care over them in making provisions suitable to their necessities. Albeit it be also probable, that divers of them, especially such as were more solicitous or distrustful of Gods providence, did lay up something of the fruits of former years against this time..

And ye shall sow the eighth year, and eat yet of old fruit Of the sixth year principally, if not solely. until the ninth year: until her fruits (i. e.) The fruits of the eighth year. come in, ye shall eat of the old store.

The land shall not be sold for ever Or, absolutely and properly, so as to become the propriety of the buyer: Or to the extermination or utter cutting off, to wit, of the seller from all hopes and possibility of Redemption.: for the land is mine Procured for you by my power, given to you by my mere grace and bounty, and the right of propriety reserved by me and to be disposed of by you only to such persons and in such manner as I shall have ordained. for ye are strangers and sojourners with me (i. e.) In my land or houses thus he is said to sojourn with another that dwells in his house. Thus the poor decayed Israelites and the strangers are said to live with them i. e. with the other Israelites, to wit, in the land or houses, here ver. 35, 36, 40, 45. Or, before me, in my sight, or in my account. Howsoever in your own or other mens opinions you pass for Lords and Proprietors, yet in truth, according to which my judgment always is, you are but strangers, and sojourners not to possess the land for ever but only for a season, and to leave it to such as I have appointed for it..

And in all the land of your possession, ye shall grant a redemption (i. e.) A right of redemption in the time and manner following. for the land.

If thy brother be waxen poor, and has sold away some of his possession To wit, in the fields, but not in cities, ver. 29., and if any of his kin come to redeem it Or, If the redeemer come being near akin to him, to whom the right of Redemption belonged, Ruth 3. 2, 9, 12. Ier. 32. 7. who in this act was an eminent Type of Christ, who was made near akin to us by taking our flesh that he might perform the work of Redemption for us., then shall he redeem that which his brother sold.

And if the man have none to redeem it, and himself be able to redeem it:

Then let him count the years of the sale thereof (i. e.) From the time of the sale to the Jubilee. See above ver. 15, 16., and restore the overplus (i. e.) A convenient price for the years from this Redemption to the Jubilee. unto the man to whom he sold it, that he may return unto his possession.

But if he be not able to restore it to him, then that which is sold shall remain in the hand of him that has bought it, until the year of jubile: and in the jubile it shall go out, and he shall return unto his possession. (i. e.) Out of the buyers hand, without any Redemption mony.

And if a man sell a dwelling house in a walled city, then he may redeem it within a whole year after it is sold, within a full year may he redeem it.

And if it be not redeemed within the space of a full year, then the house that is in the walled city shall be established for ever to him that bought it, throughout his generations: it shall not go out in the jubile The reason is from the great difference between such houses and lands. The reasons before alledged for lands do not hold in such Houses, there was no danger of confusion in Tribes or Families by the alienation of Houses. The seller also had a greater propriety in Houses than in Lands, as not coming to him by Gods mere gift, but being commonly built by the owners cost and diligence, and therefore had a fuller power to dispose of them. Besides, God would hereby encourage persons to buy and possess Houses in such places which frequency and fulness of Inhabitants in Cities was a great strength, honour and advantage to the whole Land..

But the houses of the villages Because they belonged to and were necessary or very convenient for the management of the lands. which have no wall round about them, shall be counted as the fields of the country: they may be redeemed, and they shall go out in the jubile.

Notwithstanding the cities of the Levites, and the houses of the cities of their possession may the Levites redeem at any time.

And if a man purchase of the Levites, then the house that was sold, and the city of his possession shall go out Or thus, But he that shall redeem it shall be or must be of the Levites, i. e. No person of another Tribe, though by Marriage near akin to the selling Levite, shall redeem it, but Levites only, and any of them shall have the same power to redeem it, which in other Tribes only the nearest kindred have: and, in case none of them redeem it, yet the house that was sold, and the City of his possession, i. e. his share or interest in the City of his possession, shall go out and return to the Levites without any redemption. in the year of jubile: for the houses of the cities of the Levites are their possession among the children of Israel.

But the field of the suburbs of their cities Of which see on Numb. 35. 5. may not be sold Not sold at all, partly, because it was of absolute necessity for them for the keeping of their Cattle, and partly because these were no enclosures, but common fields, in which all the Levites that lived in such a City had an interest, and therefore no particular Levite could dispose of his part in it. Some conceive, that this Law was altered in ensuing ages, which they gather from Ier. 32. 7, 8. &c. and Act..... 36, 37. But those examples do not prove it. That sale of Ieremiahs was made by a particular dispensation and command of God, and that in a time when the Levites, as well as the people, were to be destroyed or dispersed and carried into captivity, and therefore could receive no considerable injury by it: and besides this sale was only made formally and for signification, as it is explained, ver. 14, 15. And for the land sold by Barnabas a Levite Act. 4. as it was at a time when the Jewish Church was dissolved, and their state upon the brinks of utter ruine, so it is not evident that it was such Suburb land, which would have yielded but a small price, but it might be other land, either such as he might have in right of his wife, or such as he might have purchased. For though the Levites in general had no other share of land beside this, allotted them by God, yet it is conceived that particular Levites might purchase lands to themselves., for it is their perpetual possession.

And if thy brother be waxen poor, and fallen in decay Heb. his hand or faileth or is decayed, so that he has not power to get or keep wealth, as the phrase is, Deut. 8. 18. as on the contrary, when a man is able, his hand is said to attain and find sufficiency, as here above, ver. 26. with thee, then thou shalt relieve him Heb. strengthen him, comfort his Heart, and strengthen his Hand., yea though he be a stranger, or a sojourner Understand it of Proselytes only, for of other strangers they were permitted to take usury, Deut. 23. 20., that he may live with thee.

Take thou no usury of him (i. e.) Of thy brother, whether he be Israelite, or Proselyte., or increase This some conceive relates to the fruits of the earth, food, &c. as does to mony. But here may rather feem to be two words expressing the same thing, to meet with the subtil evasions of crafty and covetous men who make gain of their poor brethren (for of such only he speaks here, as is evident from ver. 36.) by the lending of mony or other things, and that they may quiet their consciences, and palliate their sin they disguise it under other names, and to show that all kinds of usury are in this case forbidden, whether of mony, or of victuals, or of anything that is commonly lent by one man to another upon usury, or upon condition of receiving the thing lent with advantage and overplus, as it is said Deut. 23. 19., but fear thy God, that thy brother may live with thee.

Thou shalt not give him thy money upon usury, nor lend him thy victuals for increase.

I am the LORD your God which brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, to give you the land of Canaan, and to be your God.

And if thy brother that dwelleth by thee be waxen poor, and be sold unto thee, thou shalt not compel him to serve as a bond-servant Neither for the time for ever, nor for the manner, with the hardest and vilest kinds of service rigorously and severely exacted from him..

But as an hired servant, and as a sojourner he shall be with thee, and shall serve thee unto the year of jubile.

And then shall he depart from thee Thou shalt not suffer him or his to abide longer in thy service, as thou mightest do in the year of release, Exod. 21. 2, 6., both he and his children with him, and shall return unto his own family, and unto the possession of his fathers shall he return.

For they are my servants They, no less than you are members of my Church and People, such as I have chosen out of all the world to serve me here, and to enjoy me hereafter, and therefore are not to be oppressed or abused, neither are you absolute Lords over them to deal with them as you please., which I brought forth out of the land of Egypt: they shall not be sold as bondmen.

Thou shalt not rule over him with rigor, but shalt fear thy God Though thou dost not fear them who are in thy power and unable to right themselves, yet fear that God who has commanded thee to use them kindly, and who can and will avenge their cause, if thou dost oppresse them..

Both thy bond-men, and thy bond-maids which thou shalt have shall be of the heathen that are round about you: of them shall ye buy bondmen and bond-maids.

Moreover, of the children of the strangers that do sojourn among you, of them shall ye buy, and of their families that are with you, which they begat in your land; and they shall be your possession.

And ye shall take them as an inheritance for your children after you, to inherit them for a possession; they shall be your bond-men for ever: but over your brethren the children of Israel, ye shall not rule one over another with rigor.

And if a sojourner or stranger wax rich by thee, and thy brother that dwelleth by him wax poor, and sell himself unto the stranger or sojourner by thee, or to the stock Heb. root, i. e. one of the root or stock. So the word ro... t is elsewhere used for the branch or progeny growing from it, as Numb. 13. 28. 2 Chron. 22. 10. He seems to note one of a forreign race and countrey transplanted into the land of Israel, and there having taken root amongst the people of God, yet even such an one though he has some priviledge by it, yet he shall not have power to keep an Hebrew servant from the benefit of Redemption., of the strangers family:

After that he is sold, he may be redeemed again, one of his brethren may redeem him.

Either his uncle, or his uncles son may redeem him, or any that is nigh of kin unto him of his family, may redeem him: or, if he be able, he may redeem himself.

And he shall reckon with him that bought him, from the year that he was sold to him, unto the year of jubile, and the price of his sale shall be according unto the number of years, according to the time of an hired servant Allowance shall be made for the time wherein he has served proportionable to that which is given to an hired servant for so long service, because his condition is in this like theirs, that it is not properly his person, but his work and labour that was sold. shall it be with him.

If there be yet many years behind, according unto them he shall give again the price of his redemption out of the mony that he was bought for.

And if there remain but few years unto the year of jubile, then he shall count with him, and according unto his years shall he give him again the price of his redemption.

And as a yearly hired servant shall he be with him: and the other shall not rule with rigor over him in thy sight Thou shalt not suffer this to be done, but whether thou art a Magistrate, or a private person, thou shalt take care according to thy capacity to get it remedied..

And if he be not redeemed in these years, then he shall go out in the year of jubile, both he and his children with him.

For unto me the children of Israel are servants, they are my servants, whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.