Bible Strands
Leviticus 25:33
So whatever belongs to the Levites may be redeemed—a house sold in a city they possess—and must be released in the Jubilee, because the houses in the cities of the Levites are their possession among the Israelites.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — God addresses Israel through Moses, instituting land regulations during the Jubilee cycle. The directive specifically governs property transactions involving Levitical cities.
The words — יִגְאַל (yig'al) translates to "he will redeem," and וְ/יָצָא (ve./ya.tza') means "and it will go out" or be released. These terms define the legal mechanism for property return.
The thread — This rule aligns with the broader biblical pattern that the Levites receive no territorial inheritance (Numbers 18:20; Deuteronomy 18:1). Their urban holdings serve as permanent provision rather than standard real estate.
Why it lands — It requires readers to recognize Levitical houses as inalienable until the Jubilee, preventing permanent dispossession of priestly provision. It demands submission to divine timing over permanent human ownership.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And if a man purchase of the Levites, then the house that was sold, and the city of his possession, shall go out in the year of jubile: for the houses of the cities of the Levites are their possession among the children of Israel.
Cross-references
- Numbers 18:20 Then the LORD said to Aaron, “You will have no inheritance in their land, nor will you have any portion among them. I am your portion and your inheritance among the Israelites.
- Deuteronomy 18:1 The Levitical priests—indeed the whole tribe of Levi—shall have no portion or inheritance with Israel. They are to eat the food offerings to the LORD; that is their inheritance.