Tag: Parashat Behar

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Apostolic Writings Appointments With God Atonement Discussions Jubilee Prophets and Writings Sabbatical Year Torah

Cancel debts, free slaves: Radical teachings of Jubilee and Sabbatical Year for modern life (Leviticus 25; Isaiah 58; Matthew 6 and 18)

"Cancel debts, free slaves: Radical teachings of Jubilee and Sabbatical Year for modern life (Leviticus 25; Isaiah 58; Matthew 6 and 18). Adobe Firefly AI artwork of a hand reaching up toward a sunset-toned cloudy sky while a chain extends from each side of the scene and wraps around the wrist.

The Torah reading בְּהַר Behar (“on mount [Sinai],” Leviticus 25:1–26:2) teaches that debts are released after seven-year cycles (Shemitah, sabbatical year) and 49-year cycles (Yobel/Jubilee) to memorialize God’s forgiveness. This pattern is seen in Messiah Yeshua’s (Christ Jesus) teachings on forgiveness in Matthew 18 and manifest in his role as suffering servant who takes our debts (Isaiah 53). By forgiving others as we’ve been forgiven (Matthew 6:12), we reflect the Heavenly economy of releasing debts, underscored via receiving God’s mercy on Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement; Leviticus 16; Isaiah 58:1–12).

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Torah readings

Torah reading Behar (בהר): Leviticus 25:1–26:2 

Studies in Torah

A common catchphrase for believers in Messiah Yeshua (Jesus the Christ) is “walk by faith and not by sight” (2Cor. 5:7). Key memorials from God’s calendar that help with practicing the faith that is preached are the Shevi’it or Shemitah (“seventh” [year] and “release,” respectively, i.e., sabbatical year) and the Yobel (Jubilee). They are the focus of the Torah reading this week, Behar, covering Leviticus 25:1-26:2.

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Announcements Apostolic Writings Jubilee Prophets and Writings Sabbatical Year Torah

‘Proclaim liberty through the land’: Israel’s model for freedom in America

Liberty Bell with copper words "Proclaim liberty through the land" written on it, superimposed over the U.S. flag with the Declaration of Independence shown on the flag.

Ancient Israel’s Torah was a forerunner for freedom the U.S. Declaration of Independence started bringing to the wider world roughly 3,500 years later. While the U.S. effort to free captives had fits and starts, Israel’s declaration of freedom brought with it the power of Heaven’s Messiah. And that power eventually flowed through all nations that listen to His voice.

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Discussions Jubilee Prophets and Writings Sabbatical Year

What happens when we take Heaven’s mercy for granted (Jeremiah 16–17)

What happens when we take Heaven's mercy for granted (Jeremiah 16-17)

“It’s good to be king!” Except when invaders are about to conquer your kingdom because of your predecessors forgot Who put the crown on their heads and Who gave them the Land they ruled. The closing chapters of the Bible book of Vayiqra (Leviticus) foretell of Israel’s dystopian future, but it didn’t have to be that way. The companion passage to the Torah reading בְּהַר Behar / בְּחֻקֹּתַי Bechukotai (“on the mountain” / “in My statutes,” Leviticus 25–27), shows a moment just before that horror arrived when a king tried to reverse centuries of oppression in the Promised Land, Heaven’s mercy for Israel and the world.

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Torah readings

Parashot Behar (בהר) & Bechukotai (בחקותי): Leviticus 25–27

Studies in Torah

We’ve all had days when we are so physically or mentally exhausted that we long to go home and relax, or better yet, nap. The LORD gave our forefathers in faith memorials and reminders in time to nudge us to seek Him Who can truly bring us rest from guilt, fear, loneliness, etc. That’s the lesson in the combined Torah readings בְּהַר  Behar (“on mount” Sinai) and בְּחֻקֹּתַי Bechukotai (“in My statutes”) that wraps up the book of Leviticus.

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Discussions Jubilee Pentecost/Shavuot Tabernacles Tithe & Finances Torah

How to be a dependable part of Heaven’s rescue mission to Earth (Leviticus 25)

How to be a dependable part of Heaven's rescue mission to Earth (Leviticus 25). Shown is a mountain climber helping another climber to get to the top.

The Torah reading בְּהַר Behar (“on mount” [Sinai]; Leviticus 25) teaches us how to be a kinsman-redeemer. It’s a beautiful ancient role for a family member with the character to step up and bail out a relative who has fallen on hard times.

The Bible book of Ruth provides an example of such a redeemer in action, and the Messiah is foretold to be the ultimate one for the world.

In the greater family of God on Earth, the lessons of the annual festivals of Shavuot (Pentecost) and Sukkot (Tabernacles) plus the multiyear cycles of Shemitah (sabbatical year) and Yobel (Jubilee) instruct us in how to be of service to the less fortunate within our sphere of influence.

A successful kinsman-redeemer helps others with the blessing of means that God has provided. We are not called to go into debt to help others, we are not compelled by God to drown ourselves to save someone else. 

From these cyclical memorials of God in action past, present and future, we also can learn how God is building up His Kingdom. It starts with the call of individuals then nations into His Kingdom to live as citizens in His presence.

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Discussions Jubilee Torah

Why is it so bad to sin against the Land? (Leviticus 25–27)

Why is it so bad to sin against the Land? (Leviticus 25-27)

We often think that the walk of Torah only concerns itself with one’s relationship with God and one’s relationship with others. This is not true. An observant reading of the Torah shows us that God also concerns Himself with how we treat the land that sustains us. That’s a key lesson of the dual Torah reading of בְּהַר Behar (“on mount” [Sinai]) and בְּחֻקֹּתַי Bechukotai (“in My statutes”), which covers the last three chapters of Leviticus.

God promised the land of Israel as a special inheritance to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and they were expected to respond by treating the land itself with dignity as much as He expected them to treat Him and their neighbors with dignity.

Sins against the Land are atoned by exile, not by blood. Learn more through this Bible study.