“property.” The Hebrew noun used, הזָּחֻאֲ, emphasizes the idea that the land is a “gift of
59 This is directly opposed to the view popularized by Wright and others; namely, that the Sabbath-year provides release for a landless class of Israelites while the Jubilee-year release provides release for Israel’s landed class. For a full criticism of this viewpoint, see chap. 2 of this dissertation, section on debt-slavery and chap. 3 of this dissertation, section, “The Sabbath Year.”
60 See chap. 3 of this dissertation for an in-depth treatment of the fallow laws.
property from Yahweh.”61 The term “property” (הזָּחֻאֲ) is a technical term in the Torah that describes the plot of land given to Israelite families by Yahweh during the conquest of the land. The idea of the הזָּחֻאֲ carried with it two distinct concepts. First, the property was inalienable. Families owned a permanent deed to the property that could not be sold or revoked. The covenant stipulated that the land belonged to Yahweh permanently (Lev 25:23). Yet, Israel is to possess it perpetually (Lev 25:34). Other terms are used throughout the Pentateuch to describe the land include הלָחֲנַ (“inheritance or hereditary property”) and
גּ וֹ רָ
ל (“allotment, plot, portion, share”). As discussed in chapter 2, the covenant allowed for a dual-ownership of the land in which both Israel and Yahweh own the land
together.62 Yahweh’s ownership becomes, then, the guarantee of each Israelite’s continued ownership. As long as Yahweh owns title to the land, no Israelite can lose his land.
Each Israelite’s land-plot was inalienable and, secondly, equitable. The land was distributed according to each family’s need. The equitable distribution highlights the purpose of the land: to provide food, security, and a residence for each Israelite family.
Lest Israelites forget these principles of inalienability and equitable distribution, the noun אֲ
חֻ
זָּ
ה is used thirteen times throughout Leviticus 25 in addition to the use of אֶץ twenty רֶ
times. Given the prominence of land terminology, Leviticus 25 is one of the central chapters in developing a theology of the land for Israel. Leviticus 25 demonstrates just how central the land is to the identity and nature of both the nation, the covenant, and its law. In the grand scheme, it is Israel’s mission as the new אָם that links it inextricably דָ
and irreversibly to its given המָדָאֲ. The two belong together, rise and fall together. There is a real sense in which Israel’s proper conduct on the המָדָאֲ controls Yahweh’s conduct toward them, either blessing them in return for obedience or cursing them in return for disobedience (Lev 26).
61 See chap. 2 of this dissertation, section on the “Ownership and Division of the Land.”
62 See chap. 2, of this dissertation section on the “Ownership and Division of the Land.”
Term 7: The Jubilee enables return to restored property. The seventh and final term is “return.” It is the twin concepts of liberty and return that describe the main thrust of the Jubilee. In other words, “liberty” and “return” describe the drama of the Jubilee. The verb “return” describes the functional movement that is to happen and is repeated eleven times throughout Leviticus 25. Israelites who have had to leave their land because they sold it are now granted entrance and usage rights to it once again. In other words, all Israelites throughout the land are released, assigned a free status, and are free to return to their land with their families. This language is also applied to the individual plots of land. All Israelite land throughout the nation is released from its obligations for the year and is subsequently returned to its original owners.
The Jubilee and Social Justice
The Jubilee is the linchpin of Israel’s system of social justice.63 Without the Jubilee, any family could permanently lose their land, their solvency, and their place in society. Worse, a family could lose its place within the social and economic structure of Israel, which would subsequently create a landless class of Israelites. While biblical legislation provides for the poor through the law of gleaning rights and the triennial tithe, the Jubilee is what ensures that the poor have a means of supporting themselves: the land.
The main principle that drives the Jubilee is the inalienability of the land. This inalienability was established with the Sinai covenant and realized in the Joshua
conquest.64 While biblical legislation ensures no single Israelite dependent can fall into
63 By using the language of “social justice,” I do not intend to import modern categories and debates into the discussion. Instead, I use the term “social justice” to summarize the law’s humanitarian concern, especially for the poor, oppressed, widows, and foreigners. Obviously, this humanitarian concern is just one aspect of doing justice in Israel, which is a much broader concept and beyond the scope of this work.
64 The inalienability of land is well-attested in ancient sources, especially in ancient Greece.
Milgrom writes, “The evidence is particularly evident for ancient Greece. For example, in the foundation of a new community at Kerkyra Melaina, it was decreed that a portion of the original allotments to the first settlers belonged permanently to them and their descendants.” Milgrom, Leviticus 23–27, 2247.
systemic debt or debt-slavery through the sabbath-year release, the Jubilee ensures that no family falls into systemic debt. Without the Jubilee, Israel was doomed to fall into a cycle of social and economic oppression whereby the few wealthy landowners slowly gained power over their neighbors by permanently procuring title to their land. With the Jubilee, permanent title to the land is retained by Yahweh and usage of that land is permanently given to individual families.
In summary, the Jubilee is a release of property, persons, and land (fallow).
This trifold release restores the system of land tenure to its starting point and restores kinship ties to where they belong, all of which are indirect promises of the covenant. This is why possession (הזָּחֻאֲ) and family (החָפָּשְׁמִ) are key words in this chapter. The return of land and release of servants are “mirror images.”65 Both the land and the people belong to Yahweh, and thus they could not be servants of another master. They were obliged to Yahweh. The review of the seven key terms in Leviticus 25:8-12 both highlight the goal of the Jubilee and provide more specifics as to its nature and extent. The consecration of the Jubilee connects it with Israel’s Sabbath spectrum and recalls the consecrated rest that existed in Eden on the seventh day of creation. The term “liberty” speaks to the
fundamental action of the Jubilee, which is release. The term “return” speaks to the subsequent action, as those who are released are enabled to return. This return is announced with the blast of a trumpet, which gives this once-a-generation release its name: the Jubilee. The terms “you” and “property” signify the scope of the release: it is limited to Israelite persons and Israelite land. When taken together, these specific words point to the goal of the Jubilee: to preserve Israel’s egalitarian system of land tenure.
Leviticus 25:13-17: Rules on