Leviticus 25:3 Six years thou shalt sow thy field, and six years thou shalt prune thy vineyard, and gather in the fruit thereof; 4 But in the seventh year shall be a sabbath of rest unto the land, a sabbath for the Lord: thou shalt neither sow thy field, nor prune thy vineyard.
The Sabbath was not only made for man, but it was also intended as a day of rest for all that was under the domain of man. After God had created the earth, he then gave to Adam the dominion over everything that was created upon the face of the earth, so that Adam was to act in the capacity of a supervisor and administrator of his God-given domain. His jurisdiction extended to animate and inanimate nature as the following texts delineate.
Genesis 1:28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
Exodus 23:10 And six years thou shalt sow thy land, and shalt gather in the fruits thereof: 11 But the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie still; that the poor of thy people may eat: and what they leave the beasts of the field shall eat. In like manner thou shalt deal with thy vineyard, and with thy olive yard. 12 Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest: that thine ox and thine ass may rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed.
This counsel here given, obviously was not carried out, because the Jews kept on planting the land year after year without any period of Sabbatical rest, and it finally reached a boiling point where God had to forcibly remove them through the agency of the king of Babylon, so that the accumulated and stipulated years of Sabbatical rest could be given to the land. Let's read:
2nd Chronicles 36:16 But they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against his people, till there was no remedy. 20 And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon; where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia: 21 To fulfill the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her Sabbaths: for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath, to fulfill threescore and ten years.
It's worthy of note that these seventy years of Sabbatical rest took place locally, where the Jews lived, and not internationally as should have been the case. Now friends, this world is approximately six thousand years old, and as far as the historical records go, the cultivation of the land has continued uninterrupted for six millenniums, which means that the Sabbatical years of rest that were originally ordained by God are now long overdue. And since six years of planting and reaping were to be followed by one year of Sabbatical rest, then it means that our world which is about six thousand years old is now scheduled to begin one thousand years of Sabbatical rest. That's why in the book of Revelation we find the earth laying in desolation for one thousand years to complete the stipulated cycle of seven. Let's read and observe the following scriptures very carefully, for they are given line upon line:
Revelation 20:1 And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. 2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, 3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.
Leviticus 26:34 Then shall the land enjoy her sabbaths, as long as it lieth desolate, and ye be in your enemies' land; even then shall the land rest, and enjoy her sabbaths. 35 As long as it lieth desolate it shall rest; because it did not rest in your sabbaths, when ye dwelt upon it.
Jeremiah 4:23 I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form, and void; and the heavens, and they had no light. 24 I beheld the mountains, and, lo, they trembled, and all the hills moved lightly. 25 I beheld, and, lo, there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens were fled. 26 I beheld, and, lo, the fruitful place was a wilderness, and all the cities thereof were broken down at the presence of the Lord, and by his fierce anger. 27 For thus hath the Lord said, The whole land shall be desolate; yet will I not make a full end.
In our day many people are wondering why there seems to be no end to the various tumults and disturbances that are arising everyday for no apparent reason. Farmers are now daily questioning why the land seems to be more stubborn than ever, as it pertains to the production of food and grain. And thinking men and women everywhere are at a loss to explain or to understand, the increasing, senseless violence that is gripping our world. The God of Heaven gives us the answer, saying in words of solemn pathos, "The end of all things is at hand". It then behooves every person endowed with intelligence and reasoning powers, to thoroughly investigate the prophetic utterances of God's word so that the day of final accounts would not meet us unprepared. We therefore end with a passage of scripture which encourages us to live in readiness, for the mystery of triple seven is almost over. Let's read:
2nd Peter 3:11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, 12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? 14 Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.
May we begin to take God seriously at His word whilst probationary time still lingers, for the time is at hand. "Goodnight" and God bless!