Leviticus 25:1-7
The Sabbath of the Land
The verses we will look at today are verses which require trust in the people of the land. They are being asked, even before entering into Canaan, to set aside one out of every seven years and not plant or reap anything at all. It sounds impossible to even consider.
It would be like the Lord telling any one of us that we were going to work six days and take off the seventh every single week. And then, we are expected to take off the entire seventh year as well. In essence, that comes out to almost two sevenths of one’s productive life not being dedicated to any work at all. Throw in the three mandatory pilgrim feasts, and more productive time is removed from the ability to earn. This would require real trust. It fits well with something a friend emailed me a while ago, and which he said I could use to open a sermon. He said –
“A long time ago (no, not in a galaxy far far away) I decided to go for a walk to the store and thought I’d take my sweet little niece along. 7-11 was only about a quarter mile away, so not too far for a 3 year old. She put her little hand in mine and off we went. We began walking and got about a house or two from home and she points to the neighbor’s house saying, “Is that the store?” I say “No, no honey. The store’s way over that way,” pointing to where the store was. We get a few more houses along our way and again she points to the house we’re passing by and says again, “Is that the store?” Again I tell her that the store’s way over that way, pointing in the direction of the store. Instantly this VERY clear thought comes into my mind – It doesn’t matter at all that she doesn’t know where the store is. I do know where the store is. And due to love for her and a sense of responsibility I’m going to make sure she gets there. Also what occurred to me was that my grip on her hand is so much stronger and more committed to getting us there, that I could have dragged her there if need be. What came to me next was that God knows where I am, and His love for me is going to get me where He wants me. … He knows where “the store” is. I’ve felt so terribly lost in life and couldn’t understand why. With my best efforts I kept ending up with ashes. Frequently, a whole lot. I’ve simply prayed “God, please get me to the store.” It wasn’t like some sort of magic wand that suddenly made the sun come up but it was a bit of comfort IN the storm. I hope this will bring hope and comfort to someone feeling as lost as I have. Lastly, always remember that you can get a real good root beer Slurpee at 7-11 for about a buck.”
Text Verse: “My righteousness is near,
My salvation has gone forth,
And My arms will judge the peoples;
The coastlands will wait upon Me,
And on My arm they will trust.” Isaiah 51:4
Israel was being asked to trust the Lord. As you will see, they failed at this, but had they simply trusted, all would have gone well with them. The Lord doesn’t make idle promises, nor does He impose impossible standards. He is ever-faithful, and He will do right to those who trust Him as they should.
But more than just a set of odd laws which hardly seem relevant to anything that would concern us today, the laws of Leviticus 25 point to the Person and work of Jesus, and to His future kingdom. Because they do, we can look at these verses and see that the purpose of Israel was more than just following the rules of a now obsolete law. They were being used to show us that even better things lay ahead.
Like the Feasts of the Lord, and like so many other things which have been detailed thus far in the Bible, there is a greater meaning in the words and verses which we so often too quickly skim over. Rather, as always, wonderful things are to be found in His superior word. And so let’s turn to that precious word once again and… May God speak to us through His word today and may His glorious name ever be praised.
The Sabbath of the Seventh Year
And the Lord spoke to Moses
The words, “And the Lord spoke to Moses,” indicate a new train of thought will now be introduced. It is a separate set of instructions entirely than that which has been previously presented. That whole section included the care of the Menorah and the Bread of the Presence, and it was followed up with the incident of blasphemy resulting in stoning to death the one who cursed.
Now, the Lord begins directions on the Sabbath of the seventh year, the Year of Jubilee, the redemption of property, and so on. Some scholars have commented on the error of placing this chapter here instead of placing it after the Feasts of the Lord. This is because the Sabbath of the seventh year, and the year of Jubilee are closely connected with the laws concerning the feast days.
But that is an illogical argument when considering how many things in the law correspond to other passages within the law, and which are not placed side by side. To attempt to align the law in this manner would completely destroy the harmonious flow which is revealed in a slow and methodical trip through it. We saw how well-placed chapter 24 actually was as we went through it.
Leviticus 25:1 begins a new Parashah, or reading of the law. In the synagogue, the Parashah is a weekly portion of Scripture which is read and commented on. Each Parashah has a corresponding passage from the prophets, known as a Haftarah. This Parashah’s corresponding passage is from Jeremiah 32:6-37. It is a passage which deals with the redemption of property, something which is described in this chapter of Leviticus.
1 (con’t) on Mount Sinai, saying,
The Hebrew is b’har sinai, literally “in mount Sinai,” but meaning, “in the region of Sinai.” The tabernacle has already been raised, and it is from the Most Holy Place, not from on Mount Sinai, that the Lord speaks to Moses. This was explained in Leviticus 1:1 with the words, “Now the Lord called to Moses, and spoke to him from the tent of meeting, saying…” Moses would receive instruction from the mouth of the Lord who dwelt between the cherubim.
Mount Sinai is the same place as Mount Horeb, but the name Sinai is used because it is given in anticipation of the cross of Christ. Sinai means, “Bush of the Thorn.” The name of the location is given in connection with the redemptive workings of God in Christ which look forward to the cross. As the things which will now be relayed to the people look forward to His sacrifice, the name Sinai is specifically given. Christ is the anticipation of everything we will see in the laws to follow.
2 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them:
The instructions are not given only to Aaron, which would indicate words of priestly law. Nor are they given to the congregation in general, as if they were to be conveyed only to the elders who would then act upon them on behalf of the people. Instead, as is often seen, Moses is to speak to bene Yisrael, or “the children of Israel.” They are words of law, and they are words intended for all of the people to know and carry with them.
In America, the laws for the transfer of property are maintained by the government, but they are generally known to all of the people. If the details need to be looked into, they are ready, available, and awaiting anyone who desires to view them. This is the idea of saying, “Speak to the children of Israel.” Further, as they are under the Law of Moses, the term “children” is appropriate. With the coming of Christ, the law is fulfilled and annulled. Those in Christ are termed not children, but sons. We have the full rights and inheritances that Israel did not possess. It is for this reason that the instructions of this chapter are so carefully recorded.
Children need direction in the matters contained here. Sons, because of the reception of their inheritance, have no such need for these earthly instructions which only anticipated Christ’s completion of what they picture. This begins to be seen with the next words…
2 (con’t) ‘When you come into the land which I give you,
The words here do not yet apply to the people. It is the fourth and last instance in the book of Leviticus where a law anticipates entry into the land. It will come into effect only at that time. However, they are words of guarantee. The Lord does not make this a conditional statement, “If I bring you into the land which I am thinking about giving you…” Instead, the Lord will bring them in, and He has given it to them.
And yet, of the adults who are alive at this time, only two of them will actually come into the land. All of the others will die in the wilderness. The actual intent is that they will continue to receive the law until the Lord has finished speaking, and then they will immediately journey towards the land. Their arrival should be marked in weeks, not years.
However, such will not be the case. Therefore, the words, “the land which I give to you,” speak of the nation of Israel, not merely the people whose ears happen to hear the promise. The land has been granted to Israel as a people unconditionally, but actually dwelling in it is conditional.
2 (con’t) then the land shall keep a sabbath to the Lord.
v’shabetah ha’arets shabbath l’Yehovah – “and shall Sabbath the land, Sabbath to Yehovah.” The Sabbath, or “rest,” every seven years is for the land, just as the weekly Sabbath is for the people. The weekly Sabbath reminded Israel that they were the Lord’s people, and were to rest in honor of Him, trusting in His provision from the week’s productivity. The seventh year Sabbath of the land was to remind the people that the Lord is the owner of the land, and they were to trust in His provision from the land. This Sabbath rest of the land was first mentioned to the people in Exodus 23 –
“Six years you shall sow your land and gather in its produce, 11 but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave, the beasts of the field may eat. In like manner you shall do with your vineyard and your olive grove.” Exodus 23:10, 11
There are no special sacrifices or convocations designated for these Sabbath years, but it could actually be considered that the entire year would be a sacrifice. To not cultivate the land for an entire year would be an incredible leap of faith in the provision of God. The entire system to be announced is theocratic in nature. God is God, and the people were to trust Him as their Sovereign.
Because of this, He has directed each seventh year as a Sabbath to the Lord. As far as entry into the land, it is recorded in Joshua that the nation engaged in war for seven years before they were at peace. Therefore, this law now probably did not include those seven years. Further, it was another seven years before the land was wholly divided among the tribes. It is believed those seven years were also excluded. Therefore, if Jewish tradition is right, it was not until the 21st year after their arrival that this law would have been fully enacted, if it ever was actually enacted.
One of the reasons for exile of the people, is that they failed to honor their Sabbaths, including this Sabbath of the land. Jeremiah 25:11 & 12 said that the people would be exiled for seventy years to Babylon. This is then repeated in Jeremiah 29:10, and then Daniel refers to it in Daniel 9. This reason for these seventy years of exile is explicitly stated in 2 Chronicles 36 –
“And those who escaped from the sword he carried away to Babylon, where they became servants to him and his sons until the rule of the kingdom of Persia, 21 to fulfill the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her Sabbaths. As long as she lay desolate she kept Sabbath, to fulfill seventy years.” 2 Chronicles 36:20
Seventy years of Sabbaths comprises 490 years. Whether this is to be taken as literally that many missed Sabbath years, or whether it is cumulative for any and all that were missed, the one thing we do know is that no Sabbath-year observance is actually recorded in the Old Testament except in Nehemiah 10:31, a time after the return from Babylon. And that verse only promises that the Sabbath year would be observed henceforward. Nothing in Scripture after that is recorded as to whether it actually was observed or not. However, there are some extra-biblical references to this being conducted after the time of the return of the people from Babylon.
3 Six years you shall sow your field,
There was to be planting of crops for six years. The word “sow” here is zara, literally it is the sowing of seed. It is used when speaking of conceiving children as well, and so the sowing is in anticipation of a crop. A crop is in anticipation of a harvest. And a harvest is in anticipation of one’s daily bread. This cycle of sowing in order to have grain for bread was to be practiced for six years.
3 (con’t) and six years you shall prune your vineyard, and gather its fruit;
Here is a new word, zamar, or “prune.” It will be seen just twice in verses 3 and 4 and only once more in Isaiah 5:6. It is identical in form to the word zamar which is used many times in Scripture, especially in the psalms, to indicate singing praises. The words probably meet in the thought of how it is used in Psalm 33 –
“Praise the Lord with the harp;
Make melody to Him with an instrument of ten strings.” Psalm 33:2
There the words, “make melody,” are translated from zamar. The idea then is that as one plays, striking the instrument with his hands, so the hand also strikes at the vine with a sort of clipping motion. It can be assumed then, that when the psalms speak elsewhere of singing praises to the Lord, it is normally inclusive of the playing of instruments.
In the words of this verse, there is the prescription that work is to be done – “You shall sow your field; you shall prune your vineyard and gather its fruit.” This is to be accomplished for six years. It is a positive mandate to actively work the land, sowing and reaping, as it produces. The word “fruit” here is intended to include anything which the land produces, whether it is grains, fruits, or vegetables. The people were to work towards their rest.
It is, like the week leading to the Sabbath, a picture of man working six thousand years towards his rest during the millennium. It was to be a time of productivity and diligence while waiting for a time of change in what is to be done. The land was given to them and it was to be used as they pleased, and with the intent of producing wealth and prosperity.
4 but in the seventh year there shall be a sabbath of solemn rest for the land,
This is the sixth and last time that the term shabath shabathon, or Sabbath of solemn rest is used in the Bible. Four times it speaks of the weekly Sabbath, once for the Day of Atonement, and now here concerning the seventh year of Sabbath rest.
The land was to be left completely at rest every seventh year, just as the people were to be completely at rest every seventh day. According to Exodus 23:11, the reason given says, “but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave, the beasts of the field may eat. In like manner you shall do with your vineyard and your olive grove.”
No work of any kind was to be conducted in an agricultural sense for the entire year. Instead it was…
4 (con’t) a sabbath to the Lord.
shabath l’Yehovah – “Sabbath to Yehovah.” Although it goes unstated here exactly when this year of Sabbath rest commenced, it would have been during the seventh month around the same time as the year of Jubilee would commence each 50th year. That will be seen in verse 9. Some traditions say the Sabbath year began on the first day of the month. Remembering that there are two calendars – the Creation and the Redemption calendar, this would mean it is aligned with the first day of the first month of the civil, or creation, calendar.
No matter what, the entire year was dedicated as a Sabbath to Yehovah. At then ending of this special year, the law was to be read to all of the people during the Feast of Tabernacles. This is noted in Deuteronomy –
“And Moses commanded them, saying: ‘At the end of every seven years, at the appointed time in the year of release, at the Feast of Tabernacles, 11 when all Israel comes to appear before the Lord your God in the place which He chooses, you shall read this law before all Israel in their hearing. 12 Gather the people together, men and women and little ones, and the stranger who is within your gates, that they may hear and that they may learn to fear the Lord your God and carefully observe all the words of this law, 13 and that their children, who have not known it, may hear and learn to fear the Lord your God as long as you live in the land which you cross the Jordan to possess.’” Deuteronomy 31:10-13
What we are seeing here is a marvelous reflection of the history of man’s time on earth as he works towards the millennium. Each of the redeemed of the Lord has his own responsibility of sharing Christ – sowing and reaping. The care of the person and the field they minister in will reap according to their efforts. But, in the millennium – meaning the last thousand-year period where Christ reigns, there will be no need to labor in this fashion as in the past.
Rather, like the people of Israel ceasing their labors, the world will rest in the Lord and what He provides for the people throughout that final dispensation. And instead of hearing the words of the law, the people will have the law issue forth to them, directly from the throne of Christ from Jerusalem. Isaiah describes it –
“Now it shall come to pass in the latter days
That the mountain of the Lord’s house
Shall be established on the top of the mountains,
And shall be exalted above the hills;
And all nations shall flow to it.
3 Many people shall come and say,
‘Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
To the house of the God of Jacob;
He will teach us His ways,
And we shall walk in His paths.’
For out of Zion shall go forth the law,
And the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
4 He shall judge between the nations,
And rebuke many people;
They shall beat their swords into plowshares,
And their spears into pruning hooks;
Nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
Neither shall they learn war anymore.” Isaiah 2:2-4
In type, this “Sabbath to the Lord” is an anticipatory look ahead to the rest which is coming after the first six thousand years of man’s history on earth. In the final thousand years, often called the millennium, there will be a different order of things. Again, Isaiah prophesies concerning this millennial reign of Christ –
There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse,
And a Branch shall grow out of his roots.
2 The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him,
The Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
The Spirit of counsel and might,
The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.
3 His delight is in the fear of the Lord,
And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes,
Nor decide by the hearing of His ears;
4 But with righteousness He shall judge the poor,
And decide with equity for the meek of the earth;
He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth,
And with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked.
5 Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins,
And faithfulness the belt of His waist.
6 “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb,
The leopard shall lie down with the young goat,
The calf and the young lion and the fatling together;
And a little child shall lead them.
7 The cow and the bear shall graze;
Their young ones shall lie down together;
And the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
8 The nursing child shall play by the cobra’s hole,
And the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper’s den.
9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain,
For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord
As the waters cover the sea.
10 “And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse,
Who shall stand as a banner to the people;
For the Gentiles shall seek Him,
And His resting place shall be glorious.” Isaiah 11:1-10
This millennial reign of Christ is also mentioned six times in Revelation 20. It will be a time when Satan is bound and the people of God will reign with Christ for a thousand years.
4 (con’t) You shall neither sow your field nor prune your vineyard.
The words here, as explained already, include all cultivation of any kind, including fruit trees, vineyards, crops, and etc. No such work was to be done during this entire seventh-year period. And in the millennium, there will be rest on earth as Christ provides all that is spiritually necessary for His people.
5 What grows of its own accord of your harvest you shall not reap,
A new word, saphiyakh, is found here. It will be seen just five times. It comes from the word saphakh, which gives the sense of attachment, or cleaving to. Here is signifies that which fell out by itself, and then roots and grows of itself. Any such plant was not to be reaped by the owner of the land. In essence, the very soil of the earth was not really considered his own property, but it is the Lord’s, and its produce was left for any and all to benefit from.
The same word is used in the memorable passage when the Lord spoke to Hezekiah. Jerusalem was hemmed in by Sennacherib, king of Assyria, and in order to reassure Hezekiah that he would be delivered, a portion of the Lord’s words said –
You shall eat this year such as grows of itself,
And the second year what springs from the same;
Also in the third year sow and reap,
Plant vineyards and eat the fruit of them.
31 And the remnant who have escaped of the house of Judah
Shall again take root downward,
And bear fruit upward.
32 For out of Jerusalem shall go a remnant,
And those who escape from Mount Zion.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this. Isaiah 37:30-32
The idea there is one of Hezekiah trusting the Lord’s word and accepting that His provision would be sufficient for the people. It is the same idea found here in Leviticus. The people were expected to trust the Lord and to not violate the precepts being laid down now.
5 (con’t) nor gather the grapes of your untended vine,
v’eth inebe nezirekha – literally it says, “and (the) grapes of your Nazirite,” and thus, “the grapes of your consecration.” It is the same word used to describe the Nazirite in Numbers 6. Just as the Nazirite was set apart, or consecrated to God with the sign of his consecration being hair which was uncut, so the vines were consecrated to the Lord, and remained uncut throughout the seventh year. Instead of being cut, all of the productive power of the hair, or the vine, was consecrated solely to the Lord.
5 (con’t) for it is a year of rest for the land.
Rest means “cessation from labor.” This is the intent of the passage. The land was to be at rest, and no works were to be employed to bring about the produce of the land. Rather, the land would yield naturally apart from man’s efforts.
Everything about this seventh year is emblematic of the coming millennial reign of Christ. The, saphiyakh, or grain which falls and grows of its own accord is the natural growth of humanity who are spiritually nourished by the Lord, directly and without the need of man’s intervention.
The Nazirite, or consecrated vine, is one which has been left to produce on its own. It is set apart to God, and what it bears is solely the produce of the Lord. Again, man’s efforts are excluded. So it will be in the millennium. It is the Lord who alone will plant, water, and give the increase in that wondrous age to come.
6 And the sabbath produce of the land shall be food for you:
What this means is that whatever is produced of itself during the seventh, Sabbath, year was to be food for all the people. This seems contradictory to verse 5 which said, “What grows of its own accord of your harvest you shall not reap.” However, what that was saying is that no owner was to go out and actively harvest his land, reaping as they would on any regular year, as if the land was especially his own.
Instead, anyone – owner or stranger – could use the land without consideration of ownership. All had rights to the produce which grew of itself, rich or poor, native or stranger. The owner had done nothing to cause the produce to grow, and therefore, the owner did not have the sole right to reap it as a harvest.
In what is one of several anomalies found in the grammar of this chapter, not all of which I will highlight, the verses have been consistently speaking in the second person, singular. Suddenly, and for just one word, it switches to the second person, plural. That now immediately changes back to the second person, singular…
6 (con’t) for you, your male and female servants, your hired man, and the stranger who dwells with you,
Taken with the previous clause, they together would read, “And the sabbath produce of the land shall be food for you (all): for you (singular), your (singular) hired man, and your stranger (singular) who dwells with you (singular).”
This could be dismissed as simply going from the general to the specific. In other words, first it is speaking of the general populace, and then the words are directed to the individual who is in a specific relation to what is being spoken of. But if we back up to verse 2, it is speaks to the people in the plural. From verse 3 until now, it is in the singular. And then suddenly it goes to the plural for one word, and then back to the singular.
This isn’t unique in the chapter, and there are several such anomalies. In the next verse, it will say b’artsekha, “in your (singular) land.” But in verse 9, it will say b’kal artsekem, “in all your (plural) land.” As I said, I won’t go through every such instance, but rather than dismiss this, I would personally find that it is referring to a prophetic look to the Lord’s millennial reign, and His authority, rights, and responsibilities during that time.
If you look at the words in this light, it does appear to show that distinction as one would think of what will occur during the millennium. Until the work of Christ was (or even now is) understood, the grammatical changes require a lot of guesswork as to why they are made. But in understanding the dispensational model, and what Christ will mean to the world in the future, the changes seem to take on their proper sense.
Whether this is correct or not, the words are not well followed through with in most translations. Because of this, unless you study the Hebrew, there is no way to see that this is occurring, and a lot is missed that would otherwise excite the mind which longs for the secrets of this marvelous gift, given to us by God.
*7 for your livestock and the beasts that are in your land—all its produce shall be for food.
The livestock are animals that are generally those tamed by man, and which are kept by man. The beasts are more specifically referring to the wild animals of the land. Not only was the produce to be the property of any person, it was also to be left for any animal. No person or beast was to be restricted from gathering or foraging from the Sabbath produce. What the Lord provided was to be for all alike.
That was already seen in the prophecy by Isaiah where he mentioned the wild and the tame beasts dwelling together and eating together. It will be a time of peace on the earth where there will be abundance, and none will be afraid of what was once a source of fear.
Verse 7 ends our verses for today, but before we close, one point that should be considered is that the things we have been looking at, and the words used to detail this special Sabbath year, have been given to show us hints of what lie ahead in Christ’s future reign on earth. However, Israel was actually asked to live this out year by year. As I said earlier, there is no record in Scripture that this was even done one time, but it appears to be implicitly stated in Joshua 24. There it says –
“Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had known all the works of the Lord which He had done for Israel.” Joshua 24:31
There is no rebuke of Joshua for not meeting the law’s requirements, and so it is likely that he was faithful to ensure the Sabbath years were observed. At other times words similar to this are stated, and so it is likely that, even if temporarily, Israel would have observed this special Sabbath year, but due to the words given as the reason for Israel’s exile, it is certain that adherence to this would have been the exception rather than the rule.
Maybe the people simply distrusted the word of the Lord and couldn’t imagine that things would be as He said. Maybe at times they simply forgot or neglected the word of the Lord. But for whatever reason, they failed to obey this marvelous precept which He had given them.
And the funny thing is that on any year that they did obey, the Lord certainly would have kept his end of the bargain. They would have had plenty as promised, and they could have done other things at the same time. There are no restrictions on any other activities. If they wanted to take up basket weaving or learning to build houses, they could do so. In the Sabbath year, there could have been an explosion of technology as people were freed from the labors of the field and given the chance to invent, develop, and produce.
What I am saying is that it is the Lord who created us, and it is He who knows what is best for us. In taking one thing away, He will always provide something else. There will never be a gap when we trust in His provision. Rather, there will be something even better. It may not seem so at first, but through faithful obedience, each step will show us this, even to our final step. He will someday even take away our life itself. But in that, He will provide a life which is truly life. There are no lacks in God, except the lacks which we make when we fail to trust Him.
Faith in the Lord, means faith in His word. The two cannot be separated. We cannot say, “I have faith in Jesus,” and then logically say, “I don’t agree with that part of the Bible.” It is the Bible, and no other source, that reveals the Lord to us. If we refuse to acknowledge His word, we have a complete disconnect from who He is. That is why the word of the Lord is so very important. And that is why, in order to know that we are saved, we absolutely must accept what the word of the Lord says concerning salvation. It’s not difficult, but it is precise. And it is time for that message to be brought to your ears. Listen now, and we’ll be done in a sec…
Closing Verse: “Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord,
“When the plowman shall overtake the reaper,
And the treader of grapes him who sows seed;
The mountains shall drip with sweet wine,
And all the hills shall flow with it.” Amos 9:13
Next Week: Leviticus 25:8-22 Great stuff, I’m sure you will agree, my favored one… (The Year of Jubilee, Part I) (46th Leviticus Sermon)
The Lord has you exactly where He wants you. He has a good plan and purpose for you. Even if you have a lifetime of sin heaped up behind you, He can wash it away and purify you completely and wholly. So follow Him and trust Him and He will do marvelous things for you and through you.
The Sabbath of the Land
And the Lord spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai, saying
There on Sinai, these words He was then relaying
“Speak to the children of Israel
And say to them: Yes, according to this word
‘When you come into the land which I give you
Then the land shall keep a sabbath to the Lord
Six years you shall sow your field
And six years you shall prune
Your vineyard and gather its fruit
You can do this while whistling out a tune
But 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
You shall do according to this word
What grows of its own accord
Of your harvest you shall not reap, please understand
Nor gather the grapes of your untended vine
For it is a year of rest for the land
And the sabbath produce of the land
Shall be food for you:
For you, your male and female servants
Your hired man, and the stranger who dwells with you too
For your livestock and the beasts that are in your land
All its produce shall be for food, so tasty and grand
O God, it is so good to come to Your word
To search it out for what You would of us expect
And in so searching we find our precious Lord
And in Him, only grace and mercy can we detect
For those who have trusted in Jesus
We have the surest hope of all
Magnificent, wondrous things He has done for us
Because upon His precious name, we did call
How can such love be, O God?
Surely it is exceeds heaven’s highest height
And so for sending Jesus we joyously applaud
Because through Him, all things are new –
———-Once again all things are right
Hallelujah and Amen…