ALPHA MAAMA (A.M.)

Falaite ‘Epeleli 28, 2023

Year of the Ram's Horn

Ko e Talupite Faka-Siupeli

LEVITICUS 25:9-10

"ON THE DAY OF ATONEMENT YOU SHALL SOUND THE TRUMPET THROUGHOUT ALL YOUR LAND. AND YOU SHALL CONSECRATE THE FIFTIETH YEAR, AND PROCLAIM LIBERTY THROUGHOUT THE LAND TO ALL ITS INHABITANTS. IT SHALL BE A JUBILEE FOR YOU. WHEN EACH OF YOU SHALL RETURN TO HIS PROPERTY AND EACH OF YOU SHALL RETURN TO HIS CLAN."

LEVITIKO 25:9-10

 9 Pea te ke toki fakaongo atu ‘a e talupite le‘o lahi ‘i hono ‘aho hongofulu ‘i hono fitu ‘o e māhina; ‘i he ‘Aho Fakalelei te mou fakaongo atu ‘a e talupite ‘i homou tukui feitu‘u kotoa pē. 10 Pea te mou tapui ‘a e ta‘u ko hono nimangofulu, pea te mou fanongonongo tau‘atāina ‘i he fonua ki he kau nofo kotoa: ko e Siupeli ia kiate kimoutolu, pea te mou foki takitaha ki hono tofi‘a, pea foki takitaha ki hono fāmili. 

Today, "Jubilee" refers to everything from a special anniversary to an X-Men character. It all started with the Hebrew word yovel. A yovel ("jubilee") is a ram's horn that is hollowed into an instrument (e.g., Josh. 6:5). Every fiftieth year, on Yom Kippur, a blast from the yovel would put the brakes on the nation for an extended rest. Debts were forgiven. Ancestral lands returned. Slaves liberated. It was the Sabbath of Sabbaths. Everyone, including the land, enjoyed R&R from labor, captivity, and debt. Yovel was a foretaste of the ultimate rest to come in the Messiah.

When Jesus preached his first sermon in Nazareth, he announced that the messianic Yovel was on their doorstep. Quoting Isaiah, he told the synagogue that he had come to liberate captives, give sight to blind, give liberty to the oppressed, and proclaim the year of the Lord's favor (Luke 4:18-19). Sins were forgiven. Chains broken. In Jesus, the Spirit blows the horn of salvation to announce that we have entered the ongoing Jubilee that has no end.

All glory to you, O Lord, for bringing us, who are weary and heavy laden, into your rest.