Behar
Leviticus 25:1 – 26:2
Spoken at Mount Sinai, this parasha establishes the sabbatical year (shemitah) — every seventh year the land must rest and lie fallow — and the Jubilee (yovel) — every fiftieth year when land reverts to its original owners, slaves are freed, and debts are released. These laws embed the principle that the land belongs to God and the Israelites are but sojourners and tenants. The parasha also addresses the redemption of property and persons, prohibits usury among Israelites, and provides for the humane treatment of those who fall into servitude.
Key figures
- Moses — Receives and transmits the laws of the sabbatical and Jubilee years
- God — Declares ownership of the land — 'the land is Mine, for you are strangers and sojourners with Me'
Famous verses
- 25:10 And you shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all the inhabitants of it; it shall be a jubilee to you; and you shall return every man to his possession, and you shall return every man to his family.
- 25:23 And the land shall not be sold in perpetuity; for the land is Mine; for you are strangers and settlers before Me.
- 25:55 For to Me the children of Israel are slaves — they are My slaves, whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt: I am Hashem your God.
Haftarah: {'ref': 'Jeremiah 32:6-27', 'connection': "Jeremiah purchases a field in Anathoth during the Babylonian siege, demonstrating faith in God's promise to restore the land — echoing Behar's laws of land redemption and divine ownership."}
Total gematria 220,357 is a prime number.