Leviticus 25:10 “And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof: it shall be a jubilee unto you; and ye shall return every man unto his possession, and ye shall return every man unto his family.”  

Every 50 years was to be a year of Jubilee throughout all the land.  The Jubilee year had huge economic, social and family implications.  During the Jubilee, slaves were to be set free.  The land was to be restored to its original owner, and families were to be reunited.  The year of Jubilee would restore the families and free the land from the bondage of debt as all mortgages were canceled.  The purpose of this year was to break the oppression over the people.

The Jubilee would come every 50 years or a generation, and it would put an end to financial oppression.  Slaves were set free and mortgages ended.  All bondage was broken and the people would be free to start fresh.  It was also a year of agricultural rest as there would be no farming during this year.  God promised to abundantly bless the crops and orchards, and the people were to rest from their labor.  It was a year to focus on God and not farming, money and social problems.  It was a time of restoration.

Leviticus 25:13 “In the year of this jubilee ye shall return every man unto his possession.” (17) “Ye shall not therefore oppress one another; but thou shalt fear thy God: for I am the LORD your God.”  

The object of the year of Jubilee was liberty and to break all oppression.  The Jubilee was a type or forerunner of what it would be under the reign of King Messiah.  The Jubilee was to set the stage for the coming of King Messiah as His reign would be one continual Jubilee.  All oppression would end under His rule.  Justice and truth would reign.  All financial bondage would end.  There would be peace and an abundance of crops.  There will be real liberty under the rule of the Messiah.  The following verses give the picture of the Jubilee under the rule of King Messiah:  

Isaiah 2:3 And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. (4) And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.”

Ezekiel 36:34 “And the desolate land shall be tilled, whereas it lay desolate in the sight of all that passed by. (35) And they shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden;”  

The initiation of the year of Jubilee is critical to the connection with the coming of King Messiah.  The Biblical New Year begins on first day of the seventh month.  This holiday in the Bible is called the Feast of Trumpets and occurs in September.  The Jubilee year should begin at this feast.  

Leviticus 23:24 “Speak unto the children of Israel , saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation.”  

The Jubilee does not begin on the New Year, but it actually starts 10 days later during the Day of Atonement.  There is an extremely important reason for this.  The Day of Atonement is when all of Israel ’s iniquities, transgressions and sins were forgiven and the people were clean before the LORD.  The Day of Atonement was the day when the people were free from the penalty of their sin!

The people were to face the reality of sin on the Day of Atonement.  They had to realize an innocent animal had to die in their place for sin.  The shed blood of these animals had to be sprinkled in God’s presence for the sin to be forgiven.  At the end of the Day of Atonement, the people were free from the penalty of sin.  

Leviticus 16:29 “And this shall be a statute for ever unto you: that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, ye shall afflict your souls...(30) For on that day shall the priest make an atonement for you, to cleanse you, that ye may be clean from all your sins before the LORD.”  

The Day of Atonement is directly linked to the beginning of the Year of Jubilee and shows the complete picture of King Messiah’s rule.  The people would be free from all bondage.  The weight of debt and social problems would be done away along with the people’s enslavement to sin.  There would be complete liberty under the reign of King Messiah.  What a beautiful picture the Jubilee gives to the freedom and liberty under the reign of King Messiah!  There will be no bondage at all during this time.  

Leviticus 25:9 “Then shalt thou cause the trumpet of the jubilee to sound on the tenth day of the seventh month, in the day of atonement shall ye make the trumpet sound throughout all your land.”  

The dividing of the 69 weeks into and 49 and 434 year segments was a clear way to focus on the Jubilee year.  At the end of seven weeks or 49 years, the people were to celebrate the Jubilee year with the anticipation of the coming to King Messiah.  On this 50th year, they were to proclaim liberty throughout the land, repent their sin, and realize they needed to be permanently freed from the bondage and penalty of that sin.  Jesus of Nazareth, King Messiah, will bring complete liberty in land and freedom from sin.  He will be the Jubilee.

By John McTernan: Defend and Proclaim the Faith
Blog: John McTernan's Insights at www.johnmcternan.name