Leviticus 25:1--27:34
enter <0935> [When ye.]
observe <07673> [keep. Heb. rest.]
Sabbath <07676> [a sabbath.]
aftergrowth <05599> [groweth.]
unpruned vines <05139> [thy vine undressed. Heb. the separation.]
[of the jubilee to sound. Heb. loud of sound.]
[jubilee.]
Day <03117> [the day.]
proclaim <07121> [proclaim.]
each ........... each <0376> [every man.]
return ........... return <07725> [ye shall return.]
[A jubilee.]
Respecting the literal meaning of the word [ywbl,] {yobel,} or {yovel,} critics are not agreed. The most natural derivation of the word seems to be from [hwbyl,] {hovil,} the {Hiphil} form of [ybl,] {yaval,} to recall, restore, or bring back, because this year restored all slaves to their liberty, and brought back all alienated estates to their primitive owners. Accordingly the LXX. render it here [aphesis,] a "remission"; and Josephus says it signifies [eleutherian,] liberty.
sow <02232> [ye shall.]
oppress <03238> [shall not.]
fear <03372> [fear.]
obey ............ keep ... so <06213> [Wherefore.]
live ... in <03427> [and ye.]
command <06680> [I will.]
As it is here graciously promised, that the sixth year was to bring forth fruits for three years, not merely for two, it is evident that both the sabbatical year and the year of jubilee were distinctly provided for. They were not to sow from the sixth to the eighth year, omitting two seed times; nor reap from the sixth to the ninth, omitting two harvests. No legislator, unless conscious of being divinely commissioned, would have committed himself by enacting such a law as this; nor would any people have submitted to receive it, except in consequence of the fullest conviction that a divine authority had dictated it. It therefore stands as a proof that Moses acted by the express direction of the Almighty, and that the people were fully persuaded of the reality of his divine mission by the miracles he wrought.
year .......... three years <08141 07969> [three years.]
eighth <08066> [eighth.]
produce old .......... produce ..... old <08393 03465> [old fruit.]
land .......... land <0776> [The land.]
without reclaim <06783> [for ever. or, to be quite cut off. Heb. for cutting off. for the land.]
foreigners <01616> [for ye are.]
right of redemption <01353> [redemption.]
prospers ... gains enough <01767 04672 03027> [himself be able to redeem it. Heb. his hand hath attained, and found sufficiency.]
jubilee ......... jubilee <03104> [and in the.]
refund ...... then ............................. return <07725> [he shall. See on]
A very proper difference is here made between houses in a city and houses in the country. The former might be redeemed any time in the course of a year; but after that time could not be redeemed, or go out with the Jubilee: the latter might be redeemed at any time; and if not redeemed must go out with the jubilee. The reason in both cases is sufficiently evident; the house in the city might be built merely for the purposes of trade or traffic--the house in the country was builded on, or attached to, the inheritance which God had divided to the respective families. It was therefore necessary that the same law should apply to the house as to the inheritance; which necessity did not exist with regard to the house in the city. And, as the house in the city might be purchased for the purpose of trade, it would be very inconvenient for the purchaser, when his business was established, to be obliged to remove.
right of redemption <01353> [they may be redeemed. Heb. redemption belongeth unto it.]
cities ......... cities <05892> [the cities.]
As the Levites had no inheritance in Israel, but only cities to dwell in; and consequently the houses in these cities were all they could call their own, therefore they could not be ultimately alienated.
Levites ... redeem ........................... Levites <03881 01350> [a man purchase of the Levites. or, one of the Levites redeem them. shall go.]
house ................ houses <01004> [for the houses.]
brother <0251> [thy brother.]
indebted to you <04131> [fallen in decay. Heb. his hand faileth. then.]
support <02388> [relieve. Heb. strengthen. a stranger.]
interest <05392> [usury.]
fear <03372> [fear.]
out <03318> [which.]
God ..................... God <0430> [and to be.]
sells <04376> [be sold.]
subject ..... service <05656 05647> [compel him to serve as. Heb. serve thyself with him with the service of, etc.]
go <03318> [then shall.]
return <07725> [shall return.]
servants .................. slave <05650> [my servants.]
sale <04466> [as bondsmen. Heb. with the sale of a bondman.]
rule <07287> [rule.]
fear <03372> [but shalt.]
inheritance <05157> [And ye shall.]
may enslave ... perpetually <05647 05769> [they shall be your bondmen for ever. Heb. ye shall serve yourselves with them.]
rule <07287> [ye shall not rule.]
resident foreigner ...... prospers .................. resident foreigner ............ foreigner's <08453 05381 01616> [sojourner or stranger wax rich. Heb. the hand of a stranger, etc. obtain, etc.]
prospers <05381> [or if he be.]
He ... calculate <02803> [reckon.]
cost .... sale <04465 03701> [price of his sale.]
This was a very equitable law, both to the sojourner to whom the man was sold, and to the Israelite who had been sold. The Israelite might redeem himself, or one of his kindred might redeem him; but this must not be done to the prejudice of his master. They were therefore to reckon the years he must have served, from that time till the jubilee; and then taking the current wages of a servant, per year, at that time, multiply the remaining years by that sum, and the aggregate was to be given to his master for his redemption. The Jews hold that the kindred of such a person were bound, if in their power, to redeem him, lest he should be swallowed up among the heathen; and we find (Ne 5:8) that this was done by the Jews on their return from the Babylonish captivity.
rate <03117> [according to the time.]
[jubilee.]
The jubilee was a wonderful institution, and of great service to the religion, freedom, and independence of the Hebrews. It was calculated to prevent the rich from oppressing the poor, and reducing them to perpetual slavery; and to hinder their obtaining possession of all the lands by purchase, mortgage, or usurpation. It was further intended, that debts should not be multiplied too much, lest the poor should be entirely ruined; that slaves should not always continue in servitude; that personal liberty, equality of property, and the regular order of families might, as much as possible, be preserved; and that the people might thus be strongly attached to their country, lands, and inheritances.
go free <03318> [in these years. or, by these means. then.]
servants ..... servants <05650> [my servants.]
make <06213> [Ye shall.]
pillar <04676> [standing image. or, pillar. image of stone. or, figured stone. Heb. a stone of picture.]
give ............. give .......... will produce <05414> [Then I.]
land <0776> [the land.]
Threshing <01786> [threshing.]
eat ... bread <0398 03899> [eat your.]
live <03427> [dwell.]
grant .................... remove <05414 07673> [I will.]
sleep <07901> [ye shall.]
remove <07673> [rid. Heb. cause to cease.]
sword <02719> [shall the sword.]
turn <06437> [for I.]
fruitful <06509> [make you.]
maintain <06965> [establish.]
put <05414> [I will.]
abhor <01602> [abhor.]
walk <01980> [I will.]
be ....... be <01961> [will be.]
Lord <03068> [I am.]
[See on]
broke <07665> [and I have.]
reject <03988> [despise.]
you <05315> [soul.]
break <06565> [break.]
inflict <06485> [appoint.]
horror <0928> [over you. Heb. upon you. terror.]
consumption <07829> [consumption.]
diminish <03615> [consume.]
sow <02232> [and ye shall.]
enemies <0341> [for your.]
I will set <05414> [set.]
struck <05062> [ye shall be.]
flee <05127> [shall flee.]
seven <07651> [seven times.]
break <07665> [will break.]
make <05414> [make.]
strength <03581> [your strength.]
land ............ land <0776> [for your land.]
hostility ....... willing <07147 014> [contrary unto me. or, at all adventures with me: and so ver.]
wild <07704> [wild.]
bereave <07921> [rob you.]
roads <01870> [your high.]
bring <0935> [will bring.]
avenging <05358> [avenge.]
send <07971> [I will send.]
rage <02534> [in fury.]
This was literally fulfilled at the siege of Jerusalem. Josephus gives a dreadful detail respecting a woman named Mary, who, in the extremity of the famine, during the seige, killed her sucking child, roasted, and had eaten part of it, when discovered by the soldiers!
destroy <08045> [I will destroy.]
you <05315> [my soul.]
lay <05414> [And I will make.]
desolate <08074> [and bring.]
smell <07306> [I will not smell. See on]
will make .... desolate ........... appalled <08074> [And I.]
enemies <0341> [and your.]
This was fulfilled during the Babylonish captivity: for, from Saul to the captivity are about 490 years, during which period there were 70 sabbaths of years neglected by the Hebrews. Now the Babylonish captivity lasted 70 years, and during that time the land of Israel rested.
bring <0935> [I will send.]
sound <06963> [and the.]
<05086> [shaken. Heb. driven.]
stumble <03782> [they shall.]
stand <08617> [and ye shall.]
rot ................. rot <04743> [shall pine.]
iniquity .................. iniquities <05771> [and also.]
confess <03034> [confess.]
walked <01980> [and that.]
uncircumcised <06189> [their uncircumcised.]
humbled <03665> [humbled.]
make up <07521> [and they.]
remember ..................... remember <02142> [will I.]
remember ..................... remember <02142> [and I will.]
make ................ make up <07521> [shall enjoy.]
make ................ make up <07521> [and they.]
rejected <03988> [they despised.]
<05315> [their soul.]
reject <03988> [I will.]
abhor <01602> [abhor.]
break <06565> [break.]
remember <02142> [for their.]
out <03318> [whom I.]
[See on]
sight <05869> [in the sight.]
As this verse appears to be the proper concluding verse of the whole book, Dr. A. Clarke thinks that the 27th chapter originally followed the 25th. Others suppose that the 27th chapter was added after the book was finished; and, therefore, there is apparently a double conclusion, one at the end of this, and another at the end of the 27th chapter. All the ancient versions agree in concluding both chapters in nearly the same way.
[the statues.]
Mount Sinai <02022 05514> [in mount Sinai.]
through <03027> [by the hand.]
man <0376> [When.]
special votive offering <05088 06381> [a singular vow.]
A vow is a religious promise made to God, for the most part with prayer, and paid with thanksgiving. Vows were either of abstinence (Nu 6:30), or the devoting of something to the Lord, as sacrifices (Le 7:16,) or the value of persons, beasts, houses, or lands, concerning which the law is here given. A man might vow or devote himself, his children, his domestics, his cattle, his goods, etc.; and respecting the redemption of all these, rules are laid down in this chapter. But if, after consecrating these things, he refused to redeem them, they then became the Lord's property forever. The persons continued all their lives devoted to the sanctuary, the goods were sold for the profit of the temple, or the priests; and the animals, if clean, were offered in sacrifice; and if not proper for sacrifice, were sold, and the proceeds devoted to sacred uses. This is a general view of the different laws relative to vows, mentioned in this chapter.
conversion value <06187> [And thy estimation.]
fifty shekels ........ shekel <08255 02572> [fifty shekels. i.e, At three shillings each, 7Å“. 10s. sterling.]
shekels ........ shekel <08255> [after the.]
thirty shekels <08255 07970> [thirty shekels. i.e., 4Å“. 10s. sterling, A little more than one-half the value of a man; for this obvious reason, that a woman, if employed, would not be of so much use in the sanctuary as the man.]
# Zec 11:12,13 Mt 26:15 27:9,10
twenty ........... twenty shekels ....... shekels <06242 08255> [twenty shekels. i.e., 3Å“. sterling. ten shekels. i.e., 1Å“.]
10s. sterling
month <02320> [from.]
male <02145> [the male.]
The male five shekels, 15s., the female three shekels, 9s. Being both in infancy they were nearly of an equal value.
sixty <08346> [from.]
fifteen <02568> [fifteen.]
The old man and the old woman, being almost past labour, were nearly of an equal value; the former being estimated at 15 shekels, and the latter at 10.
too poor <04134> [poorer.]
according <06310> [according.]
According to the assessed conversion value <06187> [as thou valuest it, who art the priest. Heb. according to thy estimation, O priest, etc.]
consecrates <06942> [sanctify.]
priest .............. priest <03548> [as the priest.]
add <03254> [then he shall add.]
landed <07704> [some part.]
Though the words "some part" are not expressed, yet it is generally allowed that they should be supplied here; as it was not lawful for a man to alienate in this manner his whole patrimony: he might express his good will for the house of God but he must not impoverish his own family.
landed <07704> [of a field.]
homer <02563> [an homer. or, the land of an homer, etc., i.e, as much land as required a homer of barley to sow it.]
The {homer} was very different from the {omer;} the latter held about three quarts, the former seventy-five gallons three pints.
reverts <03318> [when.]
dedicated <02764> [devoted.]
It is {cherem,} a thing so devoted to God, as never more to be capable of being redeemed.
priest's <03548> [priest's.]
property <0272> [his possession.]
conversion value <06187> [And all.]
shekel ...... shekel <08255> [to the shekel.]
A standard shekel; the standard being kept in the sanctuary, to try and regulate all the weights in the land by.
twenty <06242> [twenty.]
firstborn <01060> [the firstling. Heb. first born, etc.]
As these firstlings were the Lord's before, it would have been a solemn mockery to pretend to make them a matter of a singular vow; for they were already appointed, if clean, to be sacrificed.
Lord .................... Lord <03068> [which.]
add <03254> [and shall add.]
This was probably intended to prevent rash vows and covetous redemptions. The priest alone was to value the thing; and to whatever his valuation was, a fifth part must be added by him who wished to redeem it.
dedicates ........................... dedicated <02764> [no devoted.]
This is the {cherem,} the absolute, irredeemable grant to God.
dedicated <02764> [None.]
<03808 02763> [which shall be devoted.]
That is, either that every person devoted to the service of God shall not be redeemed, but die in that devoted state, or, that such as were devoted to death by appointment and law of God, as the Canaanites were, shall be put to death.
passes .... rod <07626 05674> [passeth under the rod.]
The Rabbins say, that when a man gave the tithe of his sheep or calves, he shut them in one fold, in which was a narrow door, to let out but one at a time. He then stood by the door, with a rod dipped in vermilion in his hand, and as they passed he counted them with the rod; and when the tenth came he touched it, by which it was distinguished as the tithe calf, sheep, etc.
commandments <04687> [commandments.]
Mount <02022> [in mount.]
CONCLUDING REMARKS. Thus terminates this most interesting and important book; a book containing a code of sacrificial, ceremonial, civil, and judicial laws, which, for the purity of their morality, the wisdom, justice, and beneficence of their enactments, and the simplicity, dignity, and impressive nature of their rites, are perfectly unrivalled, and altogether worthy of their Divine Author. All the rites and ceremonies of the Mosaic law are at once dignified and expressive. They point out the holiness of their Author, the sinfulness of man, the necessity of an atonement, and the state of moral excellence to which the grace and mercy of the Creator have destined to raise the human soul. They include, as well as point out, the gospel of the Son of God; from which they receive their consummation and perfection. The sacrifices and oblations were significant of the atonement of Christ; the requisite qualities of these sacrifices were emblematical of his immaculate character; and the prescribed mode in the form of these offerings, and the mystical rites ordained, were allusive institutions, calculated to enlighten the apprehensions of the Jews, and to prepare them for the reception of the Gospel. The institution of the high priesthood typified Jesus, the Great High Priest, called and prepared of God, who hath an unchangeable priesthood, and is able to save to the uttermost all that come unto God by him.
