Sabbaticals and Jubilees in Prophecy

In His Olivet Prophecy in Matthew 24, Yahshua shows us that besides worldwide famine, planet-engulfing disease epidemics and one devastating earthquake after another, which are only the “Beginning of sorrows,” much more will happen before He wrests control of this planet from rebellious mankind.

He reveals that True Worshipers must first be afflicted and killed for His Name’s sake. His two witnesses will perform miracles in Jerusalem for three and a half years, be killed, and come back to life three and a half days later,Revelation 11:11. The Antimessiah and his religious lieutenant will have virtual control of the planet for several years. False prophets will be performing miracles and deceiving millions. Jerusalem will ultimately be attacked by a vast army horde involving 200 million soldiers (Rev. 9:16).

Finally, after all of this, the sun will go dark and meteors will fall to earth. Only then will Yahshua’s return be imminent. Clearly, none of these things has yet happened.

Besides all the specifics that Yahshua gave us, a key connection exists between the little-taught Sabbatical/Jubilee cycle and Yahshua’s return.

Yahweh gave Israel the Sabbaticals for a special reason.  In the law, Yahweh’s people were to observe a Sabbatical year every seven years and a Jubilee year every 50 years (Lev. 25:1-13; Ex. 21:2-6; 23:10).

On the Sabbatical the land was to rest. No tilling, planting or harvesting could occur, all debts were canceled and slaves let go. During the Jubilee year the land was to rest as well, all slaves were freed and the land was to revert to the original owner.

Three particular stipulations for the Sabbaticals and Jubilees especially have prophetic implications:

•land rest

•land returned to the original owner, and

•slaves freed

When Yahweh sets up His millennial Kingdom on earth, the land will once again be allowed to rest every seven years as it goes from human ownership back to Himself as the original Owner, and people will be released from bondage of sin.

Right after He started His ministry, Yahshua stood up in the temple at Nazareth and quoted Isaiah 61:1-2, which speaks prophetically of Himself. In doing so He not only tied His ministry to the Sabbaticals and Jubilees, but He also provided us a time reference for His Second Coming.

Here is what He read, “The Spirit of Yahweh is upon me, because He has anointed me to preach the Good News to the poor; He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of Yahweh. And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him,” Luke 4:18-19.

Notice that He stopped reading just before Isaiah foretold of Yahweh’s vengeance at the day of Yahshua’s Second Coming. The exact quote from Isaiah 61:2 reads: “To proclaim the acceptable year Yahweh AND the day of vengeance of our Elohim…” The prophet links Yahshua’s coming with the Sabbatical-Jubilee.

The focus of the first part of this prophecy was that Yahshua would come to preach the Good News and to offer salvation and understanding of Truth to the world. The latter part emphasized His role of freeing those who were downtrodden and preaching the “acceptable year.” Tied to these was a day of judgment, which Yahshua would fulfill at His Second Coming.

So now we have key elements of Yahshua’s first coming and His Second Coming bound into one prophecy—occurring on either a Sabbatical year or Jubilee year.

The Sabbaticals and Jubilees come every seven and 50 years respectively. Israel’s slaves were freed and the land reverted to the original owners, Ezekiel 46:16-17. That benefit insured that the land inheritance remained with each tribe of Israel that it was designated to. Apportionment of land given to them was a key element of the promise that Yahweh gave His people (Gen. 12:7,17:8-9; Ex. 23:30, Lev. 20:24, Num. 33:54, Ezek. 47).

Freeing the Hebrew bondservant foreshadowed Yahshua’s freeing of those enslaved by the death penalty of sin. He will do precisely that when He returns and resurrects the faithful (1Thess. 4:16): “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how say you, You shall be made free? Yahshua answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever commits sin is the servant of sin. If the Son therefore shall make you free, you shall be free indeed,” John 8:32-34, 36.

Turning the land back to its original ownership also has monumental importance in the grand salvation plan. At creation, Yahweh made the earth. He put man in Eden and gave him charge over it. For 6,000 years man has spoiled this planet through sin and evil under the influence of the Adversary. As in the Jubilee when land parcels reverted to their original owner, Yahweh will take back this earth from the rulership of man (and Satan), and Yahshua will assume control of it again with a rod of iron.

It was because of Yahweh’s promise to Israel that they would inherit the land that the Promised Land of Israel became known as the “Holy Land.” It was a land set apart—made holy—for Yahweh, and it is a land that was to be kept holy through the Sabbatical and Jubilee land rests.

Note that Isaiah’s prophecy, which Yahshua quoted, speaks of the “acceptable year.” The Companion Bible equates this term to both the Jubilee year of Leviticus 25 and the start of Yahshua’s ministry. Other translations call it the “welcome year,” the “favorable year” or the “year of [Yahweh’s] favor.”

Yahweh expected His people to keep the Sabbatical and Jubilee years, as is clear by His detailed instructions on how to observe them. Israel, however, was not faithful in their observance of the Sabbaticals and Jubilees (Lev. 26:35).

Because of their disobedience, they were taken into Babylonian captivity for 490 years so the land could finally rest.Leviticus 26:34-35 tells us, “Then shall the land enjoy her sabbaths, as long as it lies desolate, and you be in your enemies’ land; even then shall the land rest, and enjoy her sabbaths. As long as it lies desolate it shall rest; because it did not rest in your sabbaths, when ye dwelt upon it.”

For 70 Sabbatical years (70×7=490 years) Israel suffered in captivity because of her rebellion.

Yahweh has established His weekly, annual, and land Sabbaths to be observed by His people as object lessons. May we not make the same mistake and ignore what He commands in His Word.

Yahshua will likely return on a Sabbatical or Jubilee because of the following similarities between His prophesied return and the Sabbaticals/Jubilees:

Both are announced by the trumpet: Lev. 25:9/ Mat. 24:31;1Cor. 15:51; 1Thes. 4:16

Both mean rest from labor: Lev. 25:4, 19/Heb. 4:9-10

Both reunite family: Lev. 25:10/Matt. 24:31; 1Thes. 4:16-17

Both give land back to rightful owner: Lev. 25:13; 27:24/Matt. 5:5; Dan. 7:18, 22; Rev. 2:26-27

Slaves are freed by both: Lev. 25:10/Isa. 60:12-14; 49:23; Rev. 20:4

Debts are canceled: Lev. 25:35/Rev. 21:4; John 8:36