Leviticus 25:49
Either his uncle, or his uncle’s son, may redeem him, or any that is nigh of kin unto him of his family may redeem him; or if he be able, he may redeem himself. Either his uncle, or his uncle’s son, may redeem him, or any that is nigh of kin unto him of his family may redeem him; or if he be able, he may redeem himself.
The specifications in Leviticus and Deuteronomy about duties one to another are actual practical missionary work and embody the principles of Christianity as the gospel of the Old Testament, given by communication from heaven by the Lord over the whole earth. Its setting includes every seventh year as a sabbatical year when agricultural work and cultivation stop so the land keeps its sabbath and lies in spontaneous growth for the poor. That rest gives free access for strangers and for flocks and herds, to restore worn-out productive soil, and the fiftieth year follows as jubilee.
When a Hebrew through poverty sold himself into servitude, a near relative could redeem him, and the duty also included redeeming his inheritance. The arrangement teaches that God is the Householder and owner of the land while the people are His tenants, and that He makes the land productive by His blessing upon obedience. He cares for the poor by special interposition, causing the sixth year to yield provision for three years. The kinsman's redemption illustrates Christ's relation to His people, in that He became their near kinsman to redeem them and the inheritance they lost through sin. The verse therefore requires liberality to overcome stinginess and selfishness, to be brought into practical life in 1899 by helping brethren working in hard fields instead of closing the heart and refusing.