Leviticus 25:31

31 'The houses of the villages, however, which have no surrounding wall shall be considered as open fields; they have redemption rights and revert in the jubilee.

Leviticus 25:31 Meaning and Commentary

Leviticus 25:31

But the houses of the villages, which have no walls round
about them
As there were many in the days of Joshua, the Scripture speaks of: the Jews suppose that such are meant, even though they were afterwards walled:

shall be counted as the fields of the country;
and subject to the same law as they:

they may be redeemed;
at any time before the year of jubilee, and if not, then

they shall go out in the jubilee;
to the original owners of them, freely, as Jarchi says, without paying anything for them.

Leviticus 25:31 In-Context

29 'Likewise, if a man sells a dwelling house in a walled city, then his redemption right remains valid until a full year from its sale; his right of redemption lasts a full year.

30 'But if it is not bought back for him within the space of a full year, then the house that is in the walled city passes permanently to its purchaser throughout his generations; it does not revert in the jubilee.

31 'The houses of the villages, however, which have no surrounding wall shall be considered as open fields; they have redemption rights and revert in the jubilee.

32 'As for cities of the Levites, the Levites have a permanent right of redemption for the houses of the cities which are their possession.

33 'What, therefore, belongs to the Levites may be redeemed and a house sale in the city of this possession reverts in the jubilee, for the houses of the cities of the Levites are their possession among the sons of Israel.

Footnotes

• [a] Lit "according to"
• [b] Lit "go out"