Leviticus 25:11 kjv

A jubilee shall that fiftieth year be unto you: ye shall not sow, neither reap that which groweth of itself in it, nor gather the grapes in it of thy vine undressed.

Leviticus 25:11 nkjv

That fiftieth year shall be a Jubilee to you; in it you shall neither sow nor reap what grows of its own accord, nor gather the grapes of your untended vine.

Leviticus 25:11 niv

The fiftieth year shall be a jubilee for you; do not sow and do not reap what grows of itself or harvest the untended vines.

Leviticus 25:11 esv

That fiftieth year shall be a jubilee for you; in it you shall neither sow nor reap what grows of itself nor gather the grapes from the undressed vines.

Leviticus 25:11 nlt

This fiftieth year will be a jubilee for you. During that year you must not plant your fields or store away any of the crops that grow on their own, and don't gather the grapes from your unpruned vines.

Leviticus 25 verses

Leviticus 25 11 Meaning

Leviticus 25:11 mandates that the fiftieth year, designated as the Jubilee (Yovel), is a year of complete agricultural cessation. In this unique year, the people of Israel were neither to sow crops nor purposefully harvest any spontaneous growth of grain (volunteer crops) or gather grapes from untended vines. This commandment underscores divine provision, necessitates an absolute rest for the land, and symbolizes a radical societal and economic restoration, reminding Israel of God's ultimate ownership and their dependence on His grace.

Leviticus 25 11 Context

Leviticus chapter 25 details the Mosaic Law's socio-economic and land ordinances for the nation of Israel. It presents the intricate framework of the Sabbath Year (Shemittah) observed every seven years, culminating in the Jubilee (Yovel), which occurred after seven cycles of Sabbath years, making it the Fiftieth Year. Verse 11 directly follows the command for the Jubilee's proclamation (Lev 25:9-10), elaborating on its core agricultural requirements. These laws were not merely agrarian regulations but foundational theological principles rooted in the belief that the land belonged ultimately to Yahweh, who gave it to Israel as a stewardship (Lev 25:23). This divine ownership ensured the prevention of perpetual debt, slavery, and irreversible land alienation, thereby maintaining social justice and equality among the covenant people and preventing the concentration of wealth.

Leviticus 25 11 Word analysis

• A jubilee (יובל - yōḇēl): Originates from the "ram's horn" or "trumpet" blown to proclaim this year of liberty. The term itself refers to this sound, which announces "freedom," "release," or "restoration." It marks a year of grand reset: lands return to original families, and Hebrew indentured servants are freed. Its significance is the establishment of a cyclical, divinely ordained societal renewal, demonstrating God's sovereign control over land and human fortunes, preventing permanent stratification and chronic poverty.
• shall that fiftieth year be unto you: This emphasizes the exact and unalterable timing of the Jubilee, occurring after seven cycles of seven years. The "fiftieth" year is presented not just as an ordinary count, but as a culmination and capstone, representing a divinely ordained extra Sabbath, a double rest. It reinforces the expectation of God's supernatural provision (referenced in Lev 25:21), where the sixth year's harvest would supernaturally sustain them for three years, covering the Sabbath and Jubilee years. The "unto you" signifies it is a specific divine ordinance for the people of Israel within their covenant relationship.
• ye shall not sow (לא תזרע - lo tizra`): A direct and absolute prohibition against agricultural planting. This means no active human labor for crop production in this year. It aligns with the principle of Sabbath rest for the land (Lev 25:4) but extends it to an unparalleled degree, compelling total reliance on God's provision and a break from human effort.
• neither reap that which groweth of itself in it (ולא תקצר את ספיחיה - welo tiqtsor et sephîḥeha):
  • Sephîḥah (ספיחיה) refers to volunteer crops, growth from dropped seeds of the previous harvest, occurring without human intervention. While the people were allowed to eat such spontaneous growth from the field during the regular Sabbath year (Lev 25:6), in the Jubilee, the key instruction is not to reap (קצר - qatsar) it for personal storage or profit. This differentiates the Jubilee from the Sabbath year, imposing an even stricter limit on personal accumulation. It suggests that any such growth is part of a communal bounty for general sustenance (Lev 25:6-7), shared with the poor, servants, and even animals, not for private harvesting and economic gain. This underscores generosity, community, and radical trust.
• nor gather the grapes in it of thy vine undressed (ולא תבצר את נזיריה - welo tavtsor et nezireyha):
  • Nazir (נזיריה, here fem. for "vine") generally means "consecrated," "separated," or "unpruned/unrestrained." This specific term here points to grapes from unpruned, untended vines. Similar to sephîakh, the produce from such vines, which grows without deliberate human cultivation efforts during this special year, is not to be gathered (bâtsar - used for grape harvest) in the typical manner for wine production or personal accumulation. Instead, the produce, like the volunteer grain, is for communal sustenance and accessible to anyone, emphasizing God's communal ownership of the produce and discouraging individual economic activity tied to land yields during this consecrated time. It subtly connects to the idea of the "separated" or "consecrated" nature of the entire Jubilee year itself, implying the entire year and its produce are set apart unto the Lord.

Leviticus 25 11 Bonus section

• Jubilee as Eschatological Type: Beyond its immediate agricultural and social function, the Jubilee serves as a profound theological type, foreshadowing future and ultimate redemption. The year of "liberty" and "restoration" points to the grander spiritual release from sin, death, and spiritual bondage that is fulfilled in Christ. Jesus's inaugural sermon in Nazareth (Luke 4:18-19), quoting Isaiah 61's "acceptable year of the Lord" and "liberty to the captives," intentionally connects His ministry with the redemptive themes of the Jubilee. While He didn't establish an earthly Jubilee system, He inaugurated the spiritual reality of ultimate freedom and rest.
• Polemics against Ancient Near Eastern Norms: In many surrounding ancient Near Eastern cultures, economic systems often led to perpetual debt-slavery, permanent land acquisition by the wealthy, and widening gaps between rich and poor. The Jubilee was a radical counter-cultural law designed by God to ensure Israel did not conform to these oppressive systems. It ensured that no family could be permanently impoverished or lose their inherited land, highlighting God's commitment to social equity and breaking cycles of disadvantage. It demonstrated that God's ways provide for the flourishing of all, not just the privileged few, contrasting sharply with human systems built on accumulating wealth at others' expense.

Leviticus 25 11 Commentary

Leviticus 25:11 summarizes a radical commandment central to the Jubilee's agricultural dimension: total cessation of customary farming for profit or accumulation. This instruction was fundamentally a test and declaration of Israel's faith in God's providence, promising supernatural provision from the previous year's harvest (Lev 25:21) and from spontaneous growth for sustenance. The restriction on gathering "groweth of itself" or "undressed" vine produce wasn't to deny sustenance, but to prevent individuals from turning communal, divinely provided sustenance into private economic gain.

The Jubilee system served multiple theological and practical purposes. Theologically, it perpetually reminded Israel that God was the ultimate owner of the land and their lives, challenging any notion of absolute human dominion or self-sufficiency. Practically, it functioned as a powerful economic equalizer, preventing the permanent formation of landless poor and debt slaves, ensuring a cyclical reset to counteract economic injustice and maintain social harmony, mirroring God's character of justice and compassion. It demanded patience, discipline, and reliance on God rather than frantic human activity, serving as a powerful annual reminder that true prosperity and rest come from God's blessing, not solely from human toil. The principles embedded—liberation, rest, restoration, and reliance on God's provision—resonate throughout Scripture, pointing toward the ultimate rest and freedom found in God's Messiah.

• Practical Example: Imagine a community where during this year, all harvestable growth (like volunteer wheat or wild grapes) was simply left open for anyone in need to take sparingly for daily consumption, not for hoarding or selling. This would force communal sharing and trust in the communal supply provided by God, reinforcing mutual dependence and social safety nets over individual striving.