The Sabbatic Year, also known as the Shemitah, is a biblically mandated year of rest for the land observed every seventh year by the Israelites. This ordinance is rooted in the Mosaic Law and is primarily detailed in the books of Exodus, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy. The Sabbatic Year underscores themes of faith, reliance on God's provision, and social justice.

Biblical Foundation

The concept of the Sabbatic Year is first introduced in Exodus 23:10-11: "For six years you are to sow your land and gather its produce, but in the seventh year you must let it rest and lie fallow, so that the poor among your people may eat; and the wild animals may consume what they leave. Do the same with your vineyard and olive grove." This passage highlights the dual purpose of the Sabbatic Year: to allow the land to rest and to provide for the needy.

Leviticus 25:1-7 provides further instructions: "When you enter the land I am giving you, the land itself must observe a Sabbath to the LORD. For six years you may sow your field and prune your vineyard and gather its crops. But in the seventh year there shall be a Sabbath of complete rest for the land—a Sabbath to the LORD. You are not to sow your field or prune your vineyard. You are not to reap the aftergrowth of your harvest or gather the grapes of your untended vines. The land must have a year of complete rest. Whatever the land yields during the Sabbath year shall be food for you—for yourself, your manservant and maidservant, the hired hand or foreigner who stays with you, and for your livestock and the wild animals in your land. All its growth may serve as food."

Economic and Social Implications

The Sabbatic Year had significant economic and social implications. It was a time when debts were to be forgiven, as outlined in Deuteronomy 15:1-2: "At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts. This is how it is to be done: Every creditor shall cancel the loan he has made to his fellow Israelite. He shall not require payment from his fellow Israelite or brother, because the LORD’s time for canceling debts has been proclaimed."

This ordinance served to prevent the accumulation of debt and the perpetuation of poverty, promoting a more equitable society. It was a reminder of God's ultimate ownership of the land and His provision for all people.

Spiritual Significance

The Sabbatic Year was a test of faith for the Israelites, as they were to trust in God's provision without the usual agricultural activities. Leviticus 25:20-22 addresses this concern: "Now you may wonder, ‘What will we eat in the seventh year if we do not sow or gather our produce?’ But I will send My blessing upon you in the sixth year, so that the land will yield a crop sufficient for three years. While you are sowing in the eighth year, you will be eating from the previous harvest, until the ninth year’s harvest comes in."

Observance and Consequences

The observance of the Sabbatic Year was a covenantal obligation, and failure to observe it had consequences. The Israelites' neglect of this command was one of the reasons cited for their exile, as noted in 2 Chronicles 36:21: "So the land enjoyed its Sabbath rests; all the days of the desolation it kept Sabbath, until seventy years were complete, in fulfillment of the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah."

The Sabbatic Year remains a profound reminder of God's sovereignty, the importance of rest, and the call to social justice and compassion within the community.Exodus 23:9-11
Also you shall not oppress a stranger: for you know the heart of a stranger, seeing you were strangers in the land of Egypt.
Nave's Topical Index

Leviticus 25:1
And the LORD spoke to Moses in mount Sinai, saying,
Nave's Topical Index

The Honors that were Paid the Jews; and the Leagues that were Made ...
... year, which they call the Sabbatic year, excepted, whereon ... and that the same original
ordinances remain still ... dictator, made this speech concerning the rights ...
/.../josephus/the antiquities of the jews/chapter 10 the honors that.htm

Covenanting Provided for in the Everlasting Covenant.
... days, following upon the Passover: the Sabbatic year, completing an interval reckoned
by seven: the year of jubilee ... times of waiting upon the ordinances of that ...
/.../cunningham/the ordinance of covenanting/chapter vi covenanting provided for.htm

The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah
... IN THE FIFTEENTH YEAR OF TIBERIUS C??SAR AND UNDER THE ... IN PASSION-WEEK - JESUS IN
HIS LAST SABBATIC REST BEFORE ... THE ORDINANCES AND LAW OF THE SABBATH AS LAID ...
//christianbookshelf.org/edersheim/the life and times of jesus the messiah/

Commerce
... choose, or those connected with the Sabbatic and the ... decoys); they who trade in seventh
year's products, and ... are some of the principal ordinances relating to ...
/.../edersheim/sketches of jewish social life/chapter 12 commerce.htm

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