When is the Jubilee Year?
My understanding of the Jubilee year is it to be celebrated after 7 periods of 7 years, or the year after the 49th year. The scriptures identify this as the 50th year, but if the Jubilee occurs every 50 years then the next cycle of 7 sets of 7 years would start the year after the Jubilee year. This would be like adding a new day to the week after every 7 weeks. Some see this as like a leap year, but there are a couple of issues with that. In a leap year there are no new days of the week. The Jews add a full extra month during their leap year. We just add an additional day to the year once every 4 years, but it's not a new day of the week.
Similarly when the scriptures mention an eighth day, it doesn't mean there's a new day of the week. It just means you count eight days from the first day. For example, Leviticus 23:39
"Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye have gathered in the fruit of the land, ye shall keep a feast unto the Lord seven days: on the first day shall be a sabbath, and on the eighth day shall be a sabbath."
In this case they were to celebrate a Sabbath on the first day, then they would also celebrate a normal Sabbath on the seventh day, but there would be an additional Sabbath the following day, the eighth day.
I'm more inclined to be in the group that believes the Jubilee occurs every 49 years. After 49 years (7 cycles of 7 years) the next year is the Jubilee. From the first year of the 49-year period, the Jubilee is the 50th year. But the Jubilee year is also the first year of the next 49-year cycle. Kind of like having a a holiday on the first day of the week. It doesn't change the how many days occur in the week, it just makes the first day of the week a special day.
If you believe the Jubilee actually occurs every 49 years (from year 1 of one 49-year period to year 1 of the next 49-year period it's 49 years), and if you're trying to count Jubilee years from 1917, then the next Jubilees are different.
From fall 1917, adding 49 years becomes fall 1966. Another 49 years and you get fall 2015.
As a side note, we need to be aware that because the year "begins" in the fall it would continue to the next fall. The Jewish new year begins in the fall, but month 1 is in the spring. Kind of confusing.
Personally I think there are various cycles, but I'm not sold on 1917, 1967, and 2017 being Jubilee years. I'm not saying nothing extraordinary won't happen in 2017, I'm just not convinced it's a Jubilee year.
Few people take the date and go back.
What is the Jubilee? God introduced through Moses to the Israelite's in relation to the Schemitah, or Sabbath, year cycles. This was a time when, among other things, all debts were to be forgiven, and all slaves and captives freed.
The Jubilee is very symbolic of the Savior, who is the ultimate liberator of the captives and who paid all the debts we owe due to sin, so that we might be forgiven. So, it would make sense if the Savior was born in a Jubilee year or performed the atonement in one.
If he was born in 1 BC, the most recent Jubilee year would have begun in the fall of 2008, and the next Jubilee would in 2057. If the atonement/resurrection was during a Jubilee, then I believe fall 1992 would've been the last Jubilee, and the next would begin in fall 2041. And I could be off 1-2 years in my calculations.
Personally, I see the savior's birth more as the Jubilee year.
The Jews weren't good at keeping the Jubilee year before the Babylonian captivity, and were even worse after. And, we can't really rely on calendar dating. Yes, some in the Jewish community may have decided to declare a Jubilee year, but they have little historical evidence beyond the past 100 years to support their conclusion of when a Jubilee year should be actually be observed. But, they are at least trying.
Again, I'm not saying nothing will happen. Most likely there will be a number of notable events. I'm just saying not to get caught up in the hype of when a Jubilee year may or may not be.
What is important is that we are being led by Spirit, and staying close to the Lord in our lives.
Similarly when the scriptures mention an eighth day, it doesn't mean there's a new day of the week. It just means you count eight days from the first day. For example, Leviticus 23:39
"Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye have gathered in the fruit of the land, ye shall keep a feast unto the Lord seven days: on the first day shall be a sabbath, and on the eighth day shall be a sabbath."
In this case they were to celebrate a Sabbath on the first day, then they would also celebrate a normal Sabbath on the seventh day, but there would be an additional Sabbath the following day, the eighth day.
I'm more inclined to be in the group that believes the Jubilee occurs every 49 years. After 49 years (7 cycles of 7 years) the next year is the Jubilee. From the first year of the 49-year period, the Jubilee is the 50th year. But the Jubilee year is also the first year of the next 49-year cycle. Kind of like having a a holiday on the first day of the week. It doesn't change the how many days occur in the week, it just makes the first day of the week a special day.
If you believe the Jubilee actually occurs every 49 years (from year 1 of one 49-year period to year 1 of the next 49-year period it's 49 years), and if you're trying to count Jubilee years from 1917, then the next Jubilees are different.
From fall 1917, adding 49 years becomes fall 1966. Another 49 years and you get fall 2015.
As a side note, we need to be aware that because the year "begins" in the fall it would continue to the next fall. The Jewish new year begins in the fall, but month 1 is in the spring. Kind of confusing.
Personally I think there are various cycles, but I'm not sold on 1917, 1967, and 2017 being Jubilee years. I'm not saying nothing extraordinary won't happen in 2017, I'm just not convinced it's a Jubilee year.
Few people take the date and go back.
What is the Jubilee? God introduced through Moses to the Israelite's in relation to the Schemitah, or Sabbath, year cycles. This was a time when, among other things, all debts were to be forgiven, and all slaves and captives freed.
The Jubilee is very symbolic of the Savior, who is the ultimate liberator of the captives and who paid all the debts we owe due to sin, so that we might be forgiven. So, it would make sense if the Savior was born in a Jubilee year or performed the atonement in one.
If he was born in 1 BC, the most recent Jubilee year would have begun in the fall of 2008, and the next Jubilee would in 2057. If the atonement/resurrection was during a Jubilee, then I believe fall 1992 would've been the last Jubilee, and the next would begin in fall 2041. And I could be off 1-2 years in my calculations.
Personally, I see the savior's birth more as the Jubilee year.
The Jews weren't good at keeping the Jubilee year before the Babylonian captivity, and were even worse after. And, we can't really rely on calendar dating. Yes, some in the Jewish community may have decided to declare a Jubilee year, but they have little historical evidence beyond the past 100 years to support their conclusion of when a Jubilee year should be actually be observed. But, they are at least trying.
Again, I'm not saying nothing will happen. Most likely there will be a number of notable events. I'm just saying not to get caught up in the hype of when a Jubilee year may or may not be.
What is important is that we are being led by Spirit, and staying close to the Lord in our lives.
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