Leviticus 25
World English Bible
25 Yahweh said to Moses on Mount Sinai, 2 “Speak to the children of Israel, and tell them, ‘When you come into the land which I give you, then the land shall keep a Sabbath to Yahweh. 3 You shall sow your field six years, and you shall prune your vineyard six years, and gather in its fruits; 4 but in the seventh year there shall be a Sabbath of solemn rest for the land, a Sabbath to Yahweh. You shall not sow your field or prune your vineyard. 5 What grows of itself in your harvest you shall not reap, and you shall not gather the grapes of your undressed vine. It shall be a year of solemn rest for the land. 6 The Sabbath of the land shall be for food for you; for yourself, for your servant, for your maid, for your hired servant, and for your stranger, who lives as a foreigner with you. 7 For your livestock also, and for the animals that are in your land, shall all its increase be for food.
8 “‘You shall count off seven Sabbaths of years, seven times seven years; and there shall be to you the days of seven Sabbaths of years, even forty-nine years. 9 Then you shall sound the loud trumpet on the tenth day of the seventh month. On the Day of Atonement you shall sound the trumpet throughout all your land. 10 You shall make the fiftieth year holy, and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee to you; and each of you shall return to his own property, and each of you shall return to his family. 11 That fiftieth year shall be a jubilee to you. In it you shall not sow, neither reap that which grows of itself, nor gather from the undressed vines. 12 For it is a jubilee; it shall be holy to you. You shall eat of its increase out of the field.
13 “‘In this Year of Jubilee each of you shall return to his property.
14 “‘If you sell anything to your neighbor, or buy from your neighbor, you shall not wrong one another. 15 According to the number of years after the Jubilee you shall buy from your neighbor. According to the number of years of the crops he shall sell to you. 16 According to the length of the years you shall increase its price, and according to the shortness of the years you shall diminish its price; for he is selling the number of the crops to you. 17 You shall not wrong one another, but you shall fear your God; for I am Yahweh your God.
18 “‘Therefore you shall do my statutes, and keep my ordinances and do them; and you shall dwell in the land in safety. 19 The land shall yield its fruit, and you shall eat your fill, and dwell therein in safety. 20 If you said, “What shall we eat the seventh year? Behold, we shall not sow, nor gather in our increase;” 21 then I will command my blessing on you in the sixth year, and it shall bear fruit for the three years. 22 You shall sow the eighth year, and eat of the fruits from the old store until the ninth year. Until its fruits come in, you shall eat the old store.
23 “‘The land shall not be sold in perpetuity, for the land is mine; for you are strangers and live as foreigners with me. 24 In all the land of your possession you shall grant a redemption for the land.
25 “‘If your brother becomes poor, and sells some of his possessions, then his kinsman who is next to him shall come, and redeem that which his brother has sold. 26 If a man has no one to redeem it, and he becomes prosperous and finds sufficient means to redeem it, 27 then let him reckon the years since its sale, and restore the surplus to the man to whom he sold it; and he shall return to his property. 28 But if he isn’t able to get it back for himself, then what he has sold shall remain in the hand of him who has bought it until the Year of Jubilee. In the Jubilee it shall be released, and he shall return to his property.
29 “‘If a man sells a dwelling house in a walled city, then he may redeem it within a whole year after it has been sold. For a full year he shall have the right of redemption. 30 If it isn’t redeemed within the space of a full year, then the house that is in the walled city shall be made sure in perpetuity to him who bought it, throughout his generations. It shall not be released in the Jubilee. 31 But the houses of the villages which have no wall around them shall be accounted for with the fields of the country: they may be redeemed, and they shall be released in the Jubilee.
32 “‘Nevertheless, in the cities of the Levites, the Levites may redeem the houses in the cities of their possession at any time. 33 The Levites may redeem the house that was sold, and the city of his possession, and it shall be released in the Jubilee; for the houses of the cities of the Levites are their possession among the children of Israel. 34 But the field of the pasture lands of their cities may not be sold, for it is their perpetual possession.
35 “‘If your brother has become poor, and his hand can’t support himself among you, then you shall uphold him. He shall live with you like an alien and a temporary resident. 36 Take no interest from him or profit; but fear your God, that your brother may live among you. 37 You shall not lend him your money at interest, nor give him your food for profit. 38 I am Yahweh your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to give you the land of Canaan, and to be your God.
39 “‘If your brother has grown poor among you, and sells himself to you, you shall not make him to serve as a slave. 40 As a hired servant, and as a temporary resident, he shall be with you; he shall serve with you until the Year of Jubilee. 41 Then he shall go out from you, he and his children with him, and shall return to his own family, and to the possession of his fathers. 42 For they are my servants, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt. They shall not be sold as slaves. 43 You shall not rule over him with harshness, but shall fear your God.
44 “‘As for your male and your female slaves, whom you may have from the nations that are around you, from them you may buy male and female slaves. 45 Moreover, of the children of the aliens who live among you, of them you may buy, and of their families who are with you, which they have conceived in your land; and they will be your property. 46 You may make them an inheritance for your children after you, to hold for a possession. Of them you may take your slaves forever, but over your brothers the children of Israel you shall not rule, one over another, with harshness.
47 “‘If an alien or temporary resident with you becomes rich, and your brother beside him has grown poor, and sells himself to the stranger or foreigner living among you, or to a member of the stranger’s family, 48 after he is sold he may be redeemed. One of his brothers may redeem him; 49 or his uncle, or his uncle’s son, may redeem him, or any who is a close relative to him of his family may redeem him; or if he has grown rich, he may redeem himself. 50 He shall reckon with him who bought him from the year that he sold himself to him to the Year of Jubilee. The price of his sale shall be according to the number of years; he shall be with him according to the time of a hired servant. 51 If there are yet many years, according to them he shall give back the price of his redemption out of the money that he was bought for. 52 If there remain but a few years to the year of jubilee, then he shall reckon with him; according to his years of service he shall give back the price of his redemption. 53 As a servant hired year by year shall he be with him. He shall not rule with harshness over him in your sight. 54 If he isn’t redeemed by these means, then he shall be released in the Year of Jubilee: he and his children with him. 55 For to me the children of Israel are servants; they are my servants whom I brought out of the land of Egypt. I am Yahweh your God.
Leviticus 25
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
25 The Lord said to Moses on Mount Sinai,
2 Say to the Israelites, When you come into the land which I give you, then shall the land keep a sabbath to the Lord.
3 For six years you shall sow your field, and for six years you shall prune your vineyard and gather in its fruits.
4 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.
5 What grows of itself in your harvest you shall not reap and the grapes on your uncultivated vine you shall not gather, for it is a year of rest to the land.
6 And the sabbath rest of the [untilled] land shall [in its increase] furnish food for you, for your male and female slaves, your hired servant, and the temporary resident who lives with you,
7 For your domestic animals also and for the [wild] beasts in your land; all its yield shall be for food.
8 And you shall number seven sabbaths or weeks of years for you, seven times seven years, so the total time of the seven weeks of years shall be forty-nine years.
9 Then you shall sound abroad the loud trumpet on the tenth day of the seventh month [almost October]; on the Day of Atonement blow the trumpet in all your land.
10 And you shall hallow the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty throughout all the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you; and each of you shall return to his ancestral possession [which through poverty he was compelled to sell], and each of you shall return to his family [from whom he was separated in bond service].
11 That fiftieth year shall be a jubilee for you; in it you shall not sow, or reap and store what grows of itself, or gather the grapes of the uncultivated vines.
12 For it is a jubilee; it shall be holy to you; you shall eat the [sufficient] increase of it out of the field.
13 In this Year of Jubilee each of you shall return to his ancestral property.
14 And if you sell anything to your neighbor or buy from your neighbor, you shall not wrong one another.
15 According to the number of years after the Jubilee, you shall buy from your neighbor. And he shall sell to you according to the number of years [remaining in which you may gather] the crops [before you must restore the property to him].
16 If the years [to the next Jubilee] are many, you may increase the price, and if the years remaining are few, you shall diminish the price, for the number of the crops is what he is selling to you.
17 You shall not oppress and wrong one another, but you shall [reverently] fear your God. For I am the Lord your God.
18 Therefore you shall do and give effect to My statutes and keep My ordinances and perform them, and you will dwell in the land in safety.
19 The land shall yield its fruit; you shall eat your fill and dwell there in safety.
20 And if you say, What shall we eat in the seventh year if we are not to sow or gather in our increase?
21 Then [this is My answer:] I will command My [special] blessings on you in the sixth year, so that it shall bring forth [sufficient] fruit for three years.
22 And you shall sow in the eighth year, but eat of the old store of produce; until the crops of the ninth year come in you shall eat of the old supply.
23 The land shall not be sold into perpetual ownership, for the land is Mine; you are [only] strangers and temporary residents with Me.(A)
24 And in all the country you possess you shall grant a redemption for the land [in the Year of Jubilee].
25 If your brother has become poor and has sold some of his property, if any of his kin comes to redeem it, he shall [be allowed to] redeem what his brother has sold.
26 And if the man has no one to redeem his property, and he himself has become more prosperous and has enough to redeem it,
27 Then let him count the years since he sold it and restore the overpayment to the man to whom he sold it, and return to his ancestral possession.(B)
28 But if he is unable to redeem it, it shall remain in the buyer’s possession until the Year of Jubilee, when it shall be set free and he may return to it.
29 If a man sells a dwelling house in a fortified city, he may redeem it within a whole year after it is sold; for a full year he may have the right of redemption.
30 And if it is not redeemed within a full year, then the house that is in the fortified city shall be made sure, permanently and without limitations, for him who bought it, throughout his generations. It shall not go free in the Year of Jubilee.
31 But the houses of the unwalled villages shall be counted with the fields of the country. They may be redeemed, and they shall go free in the Year of Jubilee.
32 Nevertheless, the cities of the Levites, the houses in the cities of their possession, the Levites may redeem at any time.
33 But if a house is not redeemed by a Levite, the sold house in the city they possess shall go free in the Year of Jubilee, for the houses in the Levite cities are their ancestral possession among the Israelites.
34 But the field of unenclosed or pasture lands of their cities may not be sold; it is their perpetual possession.
35 And if your [Israelite] brother has become poor and his hand wavers [from poverty, sickness, or age and he is unable to support himself], then you shall uphold (strengthen, relieve) him, [treating him with the courtesy and consideration that you would] a stranger or a temporary resident with you [without property], so that he may live [along] with you.(C)
36 Charge him no interest or [portion of] increase, but fear your God, so your brother may [continue to] live along with you.
37 You shall not give him your money at interest nor lend him food at a profit.
38 I am the Lord your God, Who brought you forth out of the land of Egypt to give you the land of Canaan and to be your God.
39 And if your brother becomes poor beside you and sells himself to you, you shall not compel him to serve as a bondman (a slave not eligible for redemption),
40 But as a hired servant and as a temporary resident he shall be with you; he shall serve you till the Year of Jubilee,
41 And then he shall depart from you, he and his children with him, and shall go back to his own family and return to the possession of his fathers.
42 For the Israelites are My servants; I brought them out of the land of Egypt; they shall not be sold as bondmen.(D)
43 You shall not rule over him with harshness (severity, oppression), but you shall [reverently] fear your God.(E)
44 As for your bondmen and your bondmaids whom you may have, they shall be from the nations round about you, of whom you may buy bondmen and bondmaids.
45 Moreover, of the children of the strangers who sojourn among you, of them you may buy and of their families that are with you which they have begotten in your land, and they shall be your possession.
46 And you shall make them an inheritance for your children after you, to hold for a possession; of them shall you take your bondmen always, but over your brethren the Israelites you shall not rule one over another with harshness (severity, oppression).
47 And if a sojourner or stranger with you becomes rich and your [Israelite] brother becomes poor beside him and sells himself to the stranger or sojourner with you or to a member of the stranger’s family,
48 After he is sold he may be redeemed. One of his brethren may redeem him:
49 Either his uncle or his uncle’s son may redeem him, or a near kinsman may redeem him; or if he has enough and is able, he may redeem himself.
50 And [the redeemer] shall reckon with the purchaser of the servant from the year when he sold himself to the purchaser to the Year of Jubilee, and the price of his release shall be adjusted according to the number of years. The time he was with his owner shall be counted as that of a hired servant.
51 If there remain many years [before the Year of Jubilee], in proportion to them he must refund [to the purchaser] for his release [the overpayment] for his acquisition.
52 And if little time remains until the Year of Jubilee, he shall count it over with him and he shall refund the proportionate amount for his release.
53 And as a servant hired year by year shall he deal with him; he shall not rule over him with harshness (severity, oppression) in your sight [make sure of that].
54 And if he is not redeemed during these years and by these means, then he shall go free in the Year of Jubilee, he and his children with him.
55 For to Me the Israelites are servants, My servants, whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.
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