Leviticus 25

1 Then the LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God] said [to speak, communicate] to Moses [the Israelite leader, born to Amram and Jochebed] on Mount [a real mountain] Sinai [where the Law was received from God] [saying, commanding, promising], word study 2 “Speak [communicate, proclaim] to the Israelites [children of Israel, descendants of Jacob] and say [declare, command] to them: When you enter [come into, arrive in] the land [territory, region] that I am giving [bestowing, granting] you, the land [earth, soil] itself must observe [keep, celebrate] a Sabbath [day of rest, worship] to the LORD [Yehovah, the supreme God]. word study 3 For [a period of] six years [years of cultivation] you may sow [plant seeds in] your field [land, ground] and prune [trim, care for] your vineyard [garden of vines] and gather [collect, harvest] its crops [produce, fruit]. word study 4 But in the seventh [sabbath of rest] year there shall be a Sabbath [of solemn rest, a sabbath observance] of complete rest [to the Lord, a time of stillness] for the land [the earth, a country]—a Sabbath [a day of worship, a time for reverence] to the LORD [Yehovah, the supreme God]. You are not [lo, indicating absence] to sow [plant seed, cultivate] your field [a flat area of land, a place for growth] or prune [trim, care for] your vineyard [a garden for vines, a place of fruitfulness]. word study 5 You are not to reap [gather, harvest] the aftergrowth [self-sown crop, volunteer plants] of your harvest [the time of harvest, the crop itself] or gather [collect, pick] the grapes [a grape or grapes related to wine] of your untended [uncared for, undressed] vines [Nazirite, consecrated or devoted]. The land [the soil, the ground, a country] must have a year [a period of time, a cycle] of complete rest [sabbath observance, a special holiday, solemn rest]. word study 6 Whatever the land [the earth, a country, or region] yields during the Sabbath [a day of rest] year shall be food [something to eat] for you—for yourself, your manservant [a servant or slave] and maidservant [a female slave], the hired [paid worker] hand or foreigner [a resident alien] who stays [sojourns] with you, word study 7 and for your livestock [cattle, domesticated animals] and the wild animals [beasts, living creatures] in your land [earth, territory]. All its growth [produce, increase] may serve as food [to eat, for consumption]. word study 8 And you shall count off [number, reckon] seven Sabbaths [days of rest, worship] of years [a period of time, a cycle]—seven times [repeatedly, in succession] seven years [a span of time, a season]—so that the seven Sabbaths of years [a complete cycle, a fulfillment of time] amount to [total, add up to] forty-nine [nine and forty, a significant total] years [a period of time, a year of jubilee]. word study 9 Then you are to sound [blast, blow loudly] the horn [trumpet] far and wide [throughout all your territory] on the tenth day of the seventh [a month of solemn assembly] month, the Day of Atonement [a day of reconciliation, and forgiveness]. You shall sound [cause the trumpet to be heard, blow the trumpet] it throughout [in all parts of, all over] your land [country, territory, region]. word study 10 So you are to consecrate [set apart as holy, dedicate] the fiftieth year and proclaim [declare, announce] liberty [freedom, release from debt] in the land [the earth, the territory] for all its inhabitants [those who dwell, the people]. It shall be your Jubilee [a year of restoration, a time of trumpet blasts], when each of you is to return [turn back, go back to] to his property [possession, inheritance] and to his clan [family, tribe]. word study 11 The fiftieth [fifty, a year of celebration] year will be a Jubilee [a year of trumpet blasts and liberation] for you; you are not to sow [plant seed, scatter] the land or reap [harvest, gather in] its aftergrowth [self-sown crop, volunteer plants] or harvest [gather, collect] the untended [unpruned, undressed] vines. word study 12 For it is a Jubilee [a year of celebration, a trumpet blast]; it shall be holy [set apart, sacred] to you. You may eat [consume, devour] only the crops [produce, increase] taken directly [naturally, without labor] from the field [the land, the earth]. word study 13 In this [specific, particular] Year of Jubilee [year of celebration, horn blast], each of you [every man, individually] shall return [turn back, come back] to his own [personal, inherited] property [possession, land, heritage]. word study 14 If you make a [business transaction, sale or purchase] sale to your [close companion, fellow Israelite] neighbor or a [commercial acquisition, buying] purchase from him, you must not [wrong, oppress or exploit] take advantage of each other. word study 15 You are to buy [acquire, purchase] from your neighbor [fellow, companion] according to the number [quantity, count] of years [periods of time] since the last [previous, preceding] Jubilee [a year of liberation]; he is to sell [exchange, trade] to you according to the number [amount, total] of harvest [crop, produce] years [seasons, periods] remaining [left, still to come]. word study 16 You shall increase [multiply, grow] the price in proportion to a greater [abundance, multitude of] number of years, or decrease [diminish, make less] it in proportion to a lesser [fewness, small] number of years; for he is selling [offering for purchase, transferring ownership of] you a given [specific, certain] number of harvests [crops, produce, fruit of the land]. word study 17 Do not [wrong or oppress] take advantage of each other [your neighbor, companion], but fear [revere, stand in awe of] your God [Elohim, the supreme Lord]; for I am the LORD [Yehovah, the Lord of covenant] your God [the one supreme God]. word study 18 You are to keep [obey, fulfill] My statutes [ordinances, divine laws] and carefully observe [watch over, guard] My judgments [justice, righteous decrees], so that you may dwell [live, reside] securely [in safety, with confidence] in the land [the promised territory, the earth]. word study 19 Then the land [the earth, ground, or territory] will yield [give, produce, or bring forth] its fruit [crops, produce, or harvest], so that you can eat [consume, devour, or partake of] your fill [to satiety, satisfaction, or contentment] and dwell [reside, live, or abide] in safety [security, refuge, or protection] in the land [the promised land, Canaan, or the territory]. word study 20 Now you may wonder [ask or say to yourselves], ‘What [how or in what way] will we eat [consume or devour] in the seventh [the appointed or sacred] year if we do not [are not able to] sow [plant or scatter seed] or gather [collect or harvest] our produce [crops or fruit, namely our increase]?’ word study 21 But I will send [command, appoint] My blessing [gift of prosperity, divine favor] upon you in the sixth year, so that the land will yield [produce, bring forth] a crop [harvest, fruit] sufficient [enough, ample] for three [a quantity of, thrice] years. word study 22 While you are sowing [planting seed, scattering for growth] in the eighth [following the seventh, a period of rest] year, you will be eating [consuming, devouring] from the previous [old, stored] harvest, until [as far as, up to the point when] the ninth year’s harvest [produce, crops] comes in [arrives, is gathered]. word study 23 The land [soil, ground, or territory] must not be sold [transferred or exchanged] permanently [forever, to extinction], because it is Mine [belongs to me, under my ownership], and you are but [merely, only] foreigners [strangers, sojourners] and residents [temporary dwellers, aliens] with Me [in my presence, under my care]. word study 24 Thus for every piece of property [all the land you own, your possession] you possess, you must provide for the redemption [right of buying back, restoration] of the land [the soil, a country, or region]. word study 25 If your brother [a close relative, male sibling] becomes impoverished [waxen poor, in a lowly state] and sells [gives up, transfers ownership of] some of his property [possession, land], his nearest of kin [close family, relative] may come [approach, draw near] and redeem [buy back, restore] what his brother [male sibling, close relative] has sold [given up, transferred ownership of]. word study 26 Or if a man [an individual, male person] has no one [no kinsman, no relative] to redeem [to buy back, restore] it for him, but he prospers [becomes wealthy, waxed rich] and acquires [finds, gets] enough [sufficient means, as sufficient] to redeem [buy back] his land [property, inheritance], word study 27 he shall calculate [reckon, count] the years [periods of time] since its sale [the time it was given up], repay [restore, give back] the balance [overplus, surplus] to the man [individual, person] to whom he sold [transferred ownership] it, and return [turn back, come back] to his property [possession, inheritance]. word study 28 But if he cannot obtain enough [sufficiency, what is needed] to repay him, what he sold [the thing that was sold, his possession] will remain in possession [under the control, in the hand] of the buyer [the one who bought it, the purchaser] until the Year of Jubilee [a time of liberation, a year of release]. In the Jubilee [a time of restoration, the yobel], however, it is to be released [set free, returned], so that he may return [come back, turn back] to his property [his inheritance, possession]. word study 29 If a man [a male person, an individual] sells [to transfer ownership, to give in exchange] a house [a dwelling place, a residence] in a walled [surrounded by a wall, protected] city [a town, a settlement], he retains [keeps, holds] his right of redemption [the power to buy back, to regain] until a full [complete, entire] year [a period of 12 months] after its sale [the time of transfer, the point of exchange]; during that year [the specified time, the given period] it may be redeemed [bought back, restored]. word study 30 If [bought back] it is not redeemed [within the space of a full year, or twelve months] by the end of a full [unblemished, complete] year, then the house [dwelling place, building] in the walled [surrounded by a wall, fortified] city is permanently [forever, to extinction] transferred to its buyer [purchaser, owner] and his descendants [family, generations]. It is not [never] to be released [set free, go out] in the Jubilee [year of celebration, trumpet blast]. word study 31 But houses [dwellings, family homes] in villages [small settlements, country towns] with no [absent, nonexistent] walls [barriers, fortifications] around them are to be considered [reckoned, regarded] as open fields [unwalled lands, countryside]. They may be redeemed [bought back, restored], and they shall be released [set free, liberated] in the Jubilee [year of celebration, trumpet blast]. word study 32 As for the cities [towns, settlements] of the Levites [descendants of Levi], the Levites always have the right to redeem [buy back, restore] their houses [dwelling places, homes] in the cities [towns, communities] they possess [own, inherit, have as a possession]. word study 33 So whatever belongs [is possessed by] to the Levites may be redeemed [bought back, freed]—a house [dwelling place, family home] sold in a city [town, settlement] they possess [own, have inheritance in]—and must be released [set free, restored] in the Jubilee [year of celebration, time of liberation], because the houses [places of dwelling] in the cities [towns, communities] of the Levites are their possession [inheritance, property] among the Israelites [descendants of Jacob, God’s chosen people]. word study 34 But the open [unfenced, common] pastureland [field, grazing area] around their cities [towns, settlements] may not [never] be sold [exchanged for money], for [because, since] this is their [perpetual, everlasting] permanent possession [inheritance, property]. word study 35 Now if your countryman [brother, fellow Israelite] becomes destitute [waxen poor, impoverished] and cannot support himself [his hand has failed] among you, then you are to help him [uphold, relieve] as you would a foreigner [stranger, sojourner] or stranger [resident alien], so that he can continue to live [have life, revive] among you. word study 36 Do not [under no circumstances] take any interest [usury, excessive profit] or profit [increment, unjust gain] from him, but fear [revere, stand in awe of] your God [Elohim, the supreme Creator], that your countryman [brother] may live [have life, thrive] among you [with you, in your midst]. word study 37 You must not lend him your [money or] silver [at excessive rates] at interest [or usury] or sell him your [essential provisions or] food [at an inflated price] for profit [or increase]. word study 38 I [emphasizing the speaker’s identity] am the LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God] your God [the one supreme God], who brought [to go out or come out] you out of the land [the soil or ground] of Egypt [a country in northeastern Africa] to give [to give or set] you the land [a country or territory] of Canaan [the land where the Canaanites lived] and to be [to exist or come into being] your God [the one supreme God, showing respect and relationship]. word study 39 If a countryman [fellow citizen, brother] among you becomes [waxed, grown] destitute [poor, lowly] and sells [gives, hands over] himself to you, then you must not [shall not, cannot] force [compel, oppress] him into [as, like] slave [bondservant, servant] labor [service, work, servitude]. word study 40 Let him stay with you as a hired [hired servant, paid worker] worker or [resident alien, temporary resident] [like a sojourner] temporary resident; he is to work [serve, labor] for you until the [year of liberation, time of freedom] Year of Jubilee [the blast of a horn, a time of celebration]. word study 41 Then he [the servant, with his children] and his children [sons and descendants] are to be released [set free, liberated], and he may return [go back, turn back] to his clan [family, tribe] and to the property [possession, inheritance] of his fathers [ancestors, heritage]. word study 42 Because the Israelites are My servants [whom I freed from slavery, My slaves], whom I brought [led forth, took out] out of the land [country, territory] of Egypt, they are not [shall not] to be sold [traded, exchanged] as slaves [bondmen, servants]. word study 43 You are not [under no circumstances] to rule [exercise power or control] over them harshly [with severity, rigor, or cruelty], but you shall fear [stand in awe of, revere] your God [Elohim, the one supreme God]. word study 44 Your [male and female] menservants [bondservants, slaves] and maidservants [female slaves, bondmaids] shall come from the nations [Gentiles, heathen] around you, from whom [the surrounding peoples] you may purchase [buy, acquire] them. word study 45 You may also [even, too] purchase them from the foreigners [strangers, sojourners] residing among you or their clans [families, tribes] living among you who are born [begotten, conceived] in your land [country, territory]. These may become your [permanent, inherited] property [possession, inheritance]. word study 46 You may leave them to your sons [as an inheritance, to possess] after you to inherit [to take possession of, to occupy] as property [a possession, a heritage]; you can make them slaves [bondmen, servants] for life [forever, for all time]. But as for your brothers [fellow Israelites, kinsmen], the Israelites [descendants of Jacob], no man [individual, person] may rule [exercise dominion, have power] harshly [with severity, with rigor] over his brother [fellow, companion]. word study 47 If a foreigner [sojourner or stranger] residing among you prospers [becomes rich, gains wealth], but your countryman [brother, fellow citizen] dwelling near him becomes destitute [poor, lowly] and sells himself [is sold, becomes a servant] to the foreigner [sojourner, non-native] or to a member [descendant, family relative] of his clan [family, tribe], word study 48 he retains [keeps, holds onto] the right of redemption [to be bought back, freed] after he has sold [given himself over, transferred ownership] himself. One [a single, unique] of his brothers [male siblings, close relatives] may redeem [buy back, free] him: word study 49 either his uncle [or his uncle’s son, a close relative] or cousin [a beloved one, family member] or any close relative [family, or flesh] from his clan may redeem [buy back, restore] him. Or if he prospers [is able, grows rich, or his hand has attained], he may redeem [buy himself back, gain freedom] himself. word study 50 He and his purchaser [the one who bought him, his owner] will then count [reckon, calculate] the time from the year he sold [gave himself, was sold] himself up to the Year of Jubilee [a time of liberation, a year of release]. The price [amount, value] of his sale [the money he was sold for] will be determined [calculated, reckoned] by the number [quantity, amount] of years, based on the daily wages [pay, compensation] of a hired hand [a laborer, a servant]. word study 51 If [there be yet, still] many [numerous, abundant] years [periods of time, seasons] remain, he must pay [give back, repay] for his redemption [deliverance, freedom from bondage] in proportion [according to, relative to] to his purchase [acquisition, buying] price [value, amount paid]. word study 52 If only [a short time] a few years remain [are left, still to come] until the Year of Jubilee [a time of celebration], he is to calculate [reckon, devise a plan] and pay his redemption [the price of his freedom] according to his remaining years [the time still left, the number of years until jubilee]. word study 53 He shall be treated like a man hired [hired worker, servant] from year [a period of time, a cycle] to year [a cycle, a season], but a foreign owner [a master, a ruler] must not rule [exercise power, dominate] over him harshly [with severity, cruelly] in your sight [before your eyes, in your presence]. word study 54 Even if he is not [in any way] redeemed [bought back, freed] in any of these [specified] ways, he and his children [sons, descendants] shall be released [set free, go out] in the Year [period, time] of Jubilee [a time of liberation, marked by the blast of a horn]. word study 55 For the Israelites [children of Israel, descendants of Jacob] are My servants. They are My servants [slaves, bondservants, those who serve Me], whom I brought out [led forth, freed] of the land [earth, territory] of Egypt [a country in northeastern Africa]. I am the LORD [Yehovah, the self-existent God] your God [Elohim, the supreme Creator]. word study