Daily Bread

The Sabbath Year

25 The Lord said to Moses at Mount Sinai,^{(A) 2} “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When you enter the land I am going to give you, the land itself must observe a sabbath to the Lord. ³ For six years sow your fields, and for six years prune your vineyards and gather their crops.^{(B) 4} But in the seventh year the land is to have a year of sabbath rest,^(C) a sabbath to the Lord. Do not sow your fields or prune your vineyards.^{(D) 5} Do not reap what grows of itself^(E) or harvest the grapes^(F) of your untended vines.^(G) The land is to have a year of rest. ⁶ Whatever the land yields during the sabbath year^(H) will be food for you—for yourself, your male and female servants, and the hired worker and temporary resident who live among you, ⁷ as well as for your livestock and the wild animals^(I) in your land. Whatever the land produces may be eaten.

The Year of Jubilee^(J)(K)

⁸ “‘Count off seven sabbath years—seven times seven years—so that the seven sabbath years amount to a period of forty-nine years. ⁹ Then have the trumpet^(L) sounded everywhere on the tenth day of the seventh month;^(M) on the Day of Atonement^(N) sound the trumpet throughout your land. ¹⁰ Consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty^(O) throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee^(P) for you; each of you is to return to your family property^(Q) and to your own clan. ¹¹ The fiftieth year shall be a jubilee^(R) for you; do not sow and do not reap what grows of itself or harvest the untended vines.^{(S) 12} For it is a jubilee and is to be holy for you; eat only what is taken directly from the fields.

¹³ “‘In this Year of Jubilee^(T) everyone is to return to their own property.

¹⁴ “‘If you sell land to any of your own people or buy land from them, do not take advantage of each other.^{(U) 15} You are to buy from your own people on the basis of the number of years^(V) since the Jubilee. And they are to sell to you on the basis of the number of years left for harvesting crops. ¹⁶ When the years are many, you are to increase the price, and when the years are few, you are to decrease the price,^(W) because what is really being sold to you is the number of crops. ¹⁷ Do not take advantage of each other,^(X) but fear your God.^(Y) I am the Lord your God.^(Z)

¹⁸ “‘Follow my decrees and be careful to obey my laws,^(AA) and you will live safely in the land.^{(AB) 19} Then the land will yield its fruit,^(AC) and you will eat your fill and live there in safety.^{(AD) 20} You may ask, “What will we eat in the seventh year^(AE) if we do not plant or harvest our crops?” ²¹ I will send you such a blessing^(AF) in the sixth year that the land will yield enough for three years.^{(AG) 22} While you plant during the eighth year, you will eat from the old crop and will continue to eat from it until the harvest of the ninth year comes in.^(AH)

²³ “‘The land^(AI) must not be sold permanently, because the land is mine^(AJ) and you reside in my land as foreigners^(AK) and strangers.