And those are just the people I know about! There are many famous Jewish people that I left off the list because I don’t know who they are! Despite the tough circumstances Jewish people have faced in this world, Yahweh has blessed us with them in so many ways! Jewish people, at least in our American culture seem to be blessed (many times) in three ways: intelligence, humor, and success at whatever they do.
What is the Shemitah? When Yahweh established the nation of Israel as His people and desired to rule them as a theocracy (where He is the king), He set up two time frames:
One was the week: there were six days of Creation, then Elohim rested, so His people were to honor Him by not working on every seventh day, the only day of the week to have a name in the Scriptures, the Sabbath. Working on the Sabbath was supposed to be a capital offense, deserving of death by those who violated it. The real message Yahweh wanted His people to get, however, was the idea it was He who supplied all their needs, not just their needs every seventh day. Faith meant to rely on Him and trust Him – and show that they loved Him by obeying His Law. That’s still a New Testament principle: Jesus said “If you love Me, keep my commandments.”
What is the Shemitah? But there was a second cycle of seven: seven years, or a week of years. They were supposed to rest from planting crops every seventh year – for the same reason as the weekly Sabbath: to show the world that they relied completely on Yahweh for everything. The seventh year also meant a release of debts – a way of recycling the economy every seventh year. The Hebrew word for “release” is Shemitah. Property was to revert back to its original owner; debts were released, and those who had been blessed with riches and abundance were to give to the poor people of the land.
What is the Jubilee? OK – but, is there anything special about the seventh seven of years? Yes – the next year are the seventh Shemitah was referred to as a Jubilee year.
They were to happen every 50 years. Jubilee was supposed to be a year of celebration of Elohim’s provision. It involved even a higher level of release – slaves were to be freed, also. Above all, the Shemitah was supposed to be a blessing for Israel, Yahweh’s people.
So, what happened to the Shemitah? The Israelites did practice the Shemitah… at least for a time. Despite the hideous sin committed by God’s people in the Promised Land in the Book of Judges, they at least kept the Shemitahs, apparently. We know because, at the very end of the Book of Second Chronicles, we’re told by the writer that the people of Israel were going into exile in Babylon because they had to let the land catch up on its rest. They had violated the Shemitah for 490 years, which meant 70 Shemitahs, which is how many years they were in Babylon. Jerusalem fell and the Temple was destroyed (for the first time) in 586 BC. 490 years earlier puts us into the reign of King Saul – the earthly ruler Yahweh reluctantly gave them when they begged Samuel for a king “just like the other nations.” Samuel, the last Judge, didn’t want to do it, but Yahweh told him to proceed.The rest is (mostly not good) history…
So what about today? It means, dear friend, that Elohim’s cycle of years still continues today! Modern Jews, even liberal Jews, recognize the Shemitah. For most today, its meaning is only symbolic. But Yahweh knows exactly what He’s doing. Just like in the old days, Abba Father is in control of all things. And one of the key manifestations is Yahweh continuing to deal with His people in judgment and in blessing. He still has blessed His people in Shemitah years, despite their continued disobedience.
And speaking of continued disobedience… The USA was a nation dedicated to Yahweh from the beginning We have been blessed by Him in our history, but we have also suffered judgment when we disobeyed. All of America’s 20th Century woes are connected very strongly to the Shemitah – again, Shemitahs were a time of blessing for the faithful, and a time of judgment for the unfaithful – whether that be the people of Yahweh, Israel, or the people of the nation He has especially blessed to be His servant nation in modern times, us – the United States of America.
How is America Yahweh’s nation? 1) We have been a “shining city on a hill”, a connection made by the Puritan John Winthrop in a sermon as early in our history as 1630
2) We were dedicated to Yahweh at the inauguration of George Washington on April 30, 1789. He declared, “The propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right, which Heaven itself has ordained.” As our nation was dedicated, our first President declared a curse – a warning of judgment against this nation if its people turned away from the moral laws ordained in the Scriptures. Sadly, that day has come. It’s been coming for a long time now;
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