Then I will command my blessing upon you in the sixth year, and it shall bring forth fruit for three years.
God would command His blessing upon the land in the sixth year so that it would bring forth fruit sufficient for three years. That threefold yield was to sustain the people when the fields were left unsown in the seventh sabbatical year. They would sow again in the eighth year and live on the stored harvest until the new crop arrived in the ninth year and beyond.
The blessing would come by special interposition and supervision making the land productive. It would show that the land belongs to God as its owner and householder, while the people are His tenants under His care. The provision is given when the people obey His land laws, so that obedience brings provision and safety under His care.
The same provision shows His care for the poor through the spontaneous crops. It teaches liberality rather than stinginess. It remains a continuing practical lesson to be acted out with unselfish hearts, not shutting the door to needy brethren laboring in hard fields.
God would command His blessing upon the land in the sixth year so that it would bring forth fruit sufficient for three years. That threefold yield was to sustain the people when the fields were left unsown in the seventh sabbatical year. They would sow again in the eighth year and live on the stored harvest until the new crop arrived in the ninth year and beyond.
The blessing would come by special interposition and supervision making the land productive. It would show that the land belongs to God as its owner and householder, while the people are His tenants under His care. The provision is given when the people obey His land laws, so that obedience brings provision and safety under His care.
The same provision shows His care for the poor through the spontaneous crops. It teaches liberality rather than stinginess. It remains a continuing practical lesson to be acted out with unselfish hearts, not shutting the door to needy brethren laboring in hard fields.