We’re no longer under the law to keep the Sabbath, but we still need regular rest to be recharged.
Before leaving Leviticus 24, notice what is called Lex Talionis, the law of retaliation, where a punishment resembles an offense in kind and degree. We know it as “an eye for an eye” (see v 20). Some think this is cruel, unbecoming of God. But the point was that the punishment should fit the crime. There were to be no acts of punitive vengeance. This was to limit damages and make the punishment appropriate, something we need in our own judicial system. Now as we turn to chapter 25, we see the Lord is both righteous and gracious. He not only provided a weekly Sabbath, and also seven high Sabbaths for their annual festivals, but He also gave a whole year of rest every 7 years AND a double years’ rest once every 7 x 7 years. In our next lesson, we’ll look at the Jubilee, as the 50-year celebration was called, but now let’s think about the Sabbatical Year. God said: “When you come into the land which I give you, then the land shall keep a sabbath to the Lord. Six years you shall sow your field, and six years you shall prune your vineyard, and gather its fruit; but in the seventh year there shall be a sabbath of solemn rest for the land, a sabbath to the Lord” (Lev 25:2-4). In that seventh year, the land would lie fallow, and though they would not have organized harvesting, volunteer growth produced enough for animals and humans. This year every seven was to prove God’s ownership of the land, His faithfulness in providing, and His thoughtfulness in remembering “we are dust” (Ps 103:14). He kept track when they didn’t obey, and Israel was held captive for 70 years to make up for the 490 years of robbing God’s land (2 Chron 36:20-21). David wrote, “He makes me to lie down” (Ps 23:2); we ought to take rest when He gives it!