Leviticus 25: Proclaim liberty in the Jubilee
Begin in prayer
Before you read Leviticus 25, where God gives the seventh-year Sabbath for the land, the fiftieth-year Jubilee of liberty, and the kinsman-redeemer for the poor, bow your heads. Ask the Lord to show us the liberty and redemption Jesus brings.
“Isn’t this the fast that I have chosen: to release the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke?
Isaiah 58:6
Father in heaven, please open our eyes as we read Your Word. Show us how the Sabbath year, the Year of Jubilee, and the kinsman-redeemer point to Jesus, who proclaims liberty to the captives and redeems His people by His blood. Make us more like Jesus. And please bless our family as we worship You together. In Jesus' name, Amen.
See where we're going
In Leviticus 25 the LORD commands that the land must keep a Sabbath rest every seventh year, while God blesses the sixth-year crop. On the Day of Atonement in the fiftieth year, the trumpet sounds to proclaim liberty in the Year of Jubilee, and everyone returns home. Because the land belongs to the LORD, it cannot be sold forever. If a poor brother sells his land or himself, his close kinsman may redeem him, or he goes free in the Jubilee. Meanwhile, no one may charge a poor brother interest or rule over him harshly.
As you read Leviticus 25, look for the answers:
- On what special day does the loud trumpet sound for the fiftieth-year Jubilee, and what does it proclaim? (verses 9 and 10)
- Why may the land not be sold in perpetuity, and how does God promise to feed Israel during the seventh-year rest? (verses 20 to 23)
- If a brother becomes poor and sells his land or himself, who may redeem him, and how must he be treated? (verses 25, 35 to 43 and 47 to 55)
Reflect together
Key truth
On the Day of Atonement God proclaims Jubilee liberty and redemption, fulfilled in Christ our Redeemer.
Leviticus 25 weaves together rest, atonement, liberty, and redemption. Every seventh year the land kept a Sabbath, and God promised a sixth-year blessing for three years (verses 2 to 7 and 21). On the Day of Atonement in the fiftieth year, the trumpet sounded to “proclaim liberty throughout the land” (verses 8 to 10). Notice the order, for first atonement was made with blood, and then liberty was proclaimed. Because God says “the land is mine,” no family lost its inheritance forever (verse 23). If a brother became poor, his neighbors had to uphold him without interest or harshness (verses 35 to 43). Also, “his kinsman who is next to him” could redeem his land or his freedom (verses 25 and 48). Those laws pointed to Jesus, who proclaimed liberty to captives and redeemed His people by His blood (Hebrews 9 verse 12).
How does Leviticus 25 show us that on the Day of Atonement God proclaims Jubilee liberty and redemption, fulfilled in Christ our Redeemer?
The land rests every seventh year, and the Jubilee sounds on Atonement Day.
Every seventh year the land rested, and its growth fed the household, the stranger, and the animals (verses 4 to 7). God answered anxious worry by promising a sixth-year crop “for the three years” (verses 20 and 21). In the fiftieth year, on the Day of Atonement, the trumpet sounded to “proclaim liberty throughout the land” (verses 9 and 10). In Luke 4 verses 18 to 21, Jesus announced that this Jubilee liberty is fulfilled in Him.
The land is the LORD's, and a kinsman may redeem a brother's land.
In buying and selling, Israel could not wrong one another, for they only sold the harvests until Jubilee (verses 14 to 17). Verse 23 gives the ground, “for the land is mine; for you are strangers and live as foreigners with me.” If a poor brother sold his land, “his kinsman who is next to him” redeemed it (verses 25 to 28).
God's people must uphold a poor brother without interest or harshness, and redeem him.
If a brother grew poor, Israel had to uphold him and “Take no interest from him or profit” (verses 35 to 37). While Israel's civil laws regulated servants without praising slavery, no Israelite could rule his brother harshly (verses 39 to 46). God gave the reason, “they are my servants, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt” (verse 55). If sold to a rich foreigner, a brother, uncle, or cousin could redeem him (verses 47 to 49). Christ became our brother to redeem us from sin's bondage by His blood (Hebrews 2 verses 14 to 17).
Memorise
You shall make the fiftieth year holy, and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee to you
Leviticus 25:10
Looking to Jesus in my life
Ask yourself in your heart, am I still in bondage to sin, or has Jesus my Redeemer set me free?
In Leviticus 25, the Jubilee trumpet sounded “On the Day of Atonement” to “proclaim liberty throughout the land.” Each returned home, and if a poor brother sold his land or himself, “his kinsman who is next to him” came to redeem him.
By nature, every one of us is that bankrupt brother. Through our sins we sold ourselves into the bondage of sin and death, and we can never earn enough to redeem ourselves. That is why the Son of God shared in our flesh and blood to become our near Kinsman and Redeemer. On the cross, our true Day of Atonement, Jesus paid the full ransom price with His own precious blood and died in His people's place. On the third day He rose again, and as He declared in Luke 4 verses 18 to 21, He proclaims liberty to the captives. He paid the ransom in full, and those whom the Son sets free are free indeed.
Do not stay in the bondage of sin or try to buy your own freedom. Turn from your sin today and put your trust in Jesus. Everyone who comes to Him is forgiven, set free, and given an eternal inheritance.
Parent's note
Tell your children that sin puts us in debt, and only Jesus our Redeemer can buy us back and set us free. Please do not tell them they are saved just because they grew up in a Christian home. Call each child to turn from sin and trust Jesus, and pray that God would give them a new heart.
Pray together
Now please close your time together in prayer. Thank God for sounding the gospel trumpet of liberty through the death and resurrection of Jesus our Redeemer, and bring the heart question to Him. Every child can pray, so let each one say a short prayer if they want to.
There remains therefore a Sabbath rest for the people of God.
Hebrews 4:9
Heavenly Father, thank You that the earth is Yours and that You care for the poor and needy. We confess that our sins left us bankrupt and in bondage, unable to redeem ourselves. Thank You for sending Your Son Jesus to pay our ransom with His blood and proclaim liberty to captives. Please set each of us free through faith in Jesus, and make us generous and kind to others. Amen.