The year of release is viewed as a Sabbath, a period of rest for the land that God has given, reflecting the original instructions to dress and keep it. Land is seen as a gift from God, bearing major responsibilities, and is given as a loan under His sovereignty. The year of release underscores respect for God as the land's Owner and faith in Him to provide prosperity, acknowledging that without His provision, there is no abundance. The term "release," from the Hebrew word shemittah, can also mean cancel, drop, or remit, relating to loans, indebtedness, and even forms of slavery. In the seventh year, debts are to be forgiven, mirroring the principle of forgiveness without expectation of repayment, as God forgave His people. This year also mandates rest for the land, with no sowing, reaping, or storing of volunteer crops, though what grows naturally may be eaten by all, including the poor, strangers, and animals, as a form of God's welfare system. Additionally, the year of release commands generosity, urging an open hand to the needy even as the seventh year approaches, without begrudging the gift, for God promises blessings for such obedience. In matters of servitude, a Hebrew servant must serve six full years, but in the seventh year, they are to be set free, regardless of when their service began within the cycle, ensuring their release and provision to start anew.

The year of release, known as the Shemitah, is a significant cycle in God's calendar, occurring every seven years. It begins and ends in Tishri, the seventh month of the sacred calendar, corresponding to September/October, running from one Tishri to the next. This period covers parts of two years on the sacred calendar, with the year of release starting on the Day of Atonement. The timing is crucial, as Deuteronomy 31:10 instructs that the law is to be read at the Feast of Tabernacles in the year of release, within the last year of the seven-year cycle. The Shemitah involves more than letting the land rest; it includes releasing debts, which can extend to financial or interpersonal obligations, and brings changes in work and employment. When observed properly, it marks a necessary break or natural end of a cycle, leading to abundance and stability in the next cycle, wiping clean and beginning anew. If transgressed, however, God may release His grip, allowing events to take a destructive course, resulting in shaking and overthrowing, with disruptive impacts on agriculture, productivity, labor, economics, and even the Feast of Tabernacles. The Shemitah proclaims God's sovereignty and ownership, emphasizing prosperity when observed and loss when ignored, reminding His people that He is the source of stability and abundance, humbling the proud, and underscoring man's dependence on Him. As a judgment, the year of release acts as a great equalizer, separating wealth from owners, wiping away accumulations, smoothing imbalances, releasing entanglements, and facilitating transitions as the seventh year wraps up to make way for a new beginning in the eighth. Current disruptions, including drought, food supply issues, price spikes in oil and gas, labor problems, inflation, and wealth destruction, align with the Shemitah's themes, especially as they occur together within this year. Historically, the sequence of these years has been preserved for over 2,100 years, with records from Josephus confirming a consistent seven-year cycle. God has ensured a record of these special years through the Jews, enabling His people to align with His will, even if the church does not have authority to declare specific years as Shemitah.

God declares that when the land is given, it shall keep a sabbath to the LORD, mandating a rest every seventh year during which no crops are to be sown or harvested. Any produce growing naturally in that year may be used for daily food by the farmer and the poor. At the end of this seventh year, debts of the poor that have come due are to be canceled. After seven cycles of these sabbatical years, totaling 49 years, the fiftieth year is proclaimed a jubilee, during which the land again rests from cultivation, and families who have become poor and mortgaged their land may return to their possession. These laws are designed to prevent the accumulation of wealth in the hands of the rich while protecting the poor from further impoverishment. God promises abundant crops in the sixth year of the cycle to sustain through the rest periods, demonstrating His power as Provider. Though full observance of these laws requires national legislation, individuals are encouraged to follow their spirit by avoiding oppression, practicing generosity, and resting the land in rotation if full rest is not feasible. God desires that His people care for the soil, recognizing their role as tenants on His land, responsible for maintaining its fertility through good conservation practices.

The Year of Release, also known as the Shemitah, is a significant institution outlined in Leviticus 25:1-4, where the Lord instructed that the land should keep a sabbath to Him in the seventh year, a time of solemn rest. This sabbatical year, as detailed in Exodus 23:11, serves to provide for the poor of the nation, and according to Deuteronomy 15:2, it mandates the release of debts, termed the Lord's release, emphasizing God's ownership of this time. God intended this cycle of seven years to govern economic life, viewing it as foundational to stability and abundance among His people, a rhythm that, if disrupted, could lead to significant problems. Historical records show the Year of Release has been continuously practiced for about 2,200 years, making it possible to align certain practices with this sabbatical cycle today. Additionally, there is a unifying potential in shared experiences like reading Deuteronomy at the Feast during the seventh year, as demonstrated by a recent collective effort that, despite imperfect timing, brought a sense of God's blessing and common focus to the group.

God ordained the Year of Release as a significant part of the sabbatical cycle, commanding that every seven years the land should rest and debts be released, as outlined in Leviticus 25. This year, also known as the Shemitah, emphasizes a time of forgiveness and renewal, reflecting God's care for His creation by ensuring the land receives its Sabbath rest. In addition, the Year of Release serves as an opportunity to forgive not only physical debts but also spiritual debts, allowing for a fresh start and fostering fellowship among His people. Historically, God ensured this rest for the land even through the punishment of Israel, as seen in II Chronicles 36:19-21, when the land received its due rest during their exile due to past disobedience. The Jubilee Year, occurring every fiftieth year and anchored on the Day of Atonement, extends the principles of the Year of Release. As described in Leviticus 25:8-17, it is marked by the sounding of a trumpet and a proclamation of liberty throughout the land, signifying a broader release of all debts and the return of land to original owners. God commands that this year be holy, urging His people not to oppress one another but to trust in His provision, promising overflowing blessings in the sixth year to sustain them through the sabbatical and Jubilee years. Both the Year of Release and the Jubilee Year highlight God's desire for economic balance and renewal, offering everyone a chance to begin anew, no matter their circumstances.

God's wisdom in the Year of Release demonstrates a system designed to prevent the buildup of instability that could lead to catastrophe. Every seven years, He mandates a Sabbath for the land to protect it from depletion and barrenness, countering the human tendency to prioritize production over sustainability, which often results in famine. Additionally, God requires the forgiveness of debts every seven years, a measure that forestalls economic catastrophe for families and nations by preventing the accumulation of debt that fosters instability. Furthermore, the release of indentured servants after seven years prevents the formation of a permanent underclass, showing mercy to the servants and reducing social tensions and resentments. By enforcing these periodic resets, God removes tension from the system, maintaining balance and stability. At times, it appears that God forces resets when His people fail to observe these practices, as seen in the financial turmoil following 2001, a designated year of release, and the catastrophic debt wipeout in 2008, indicating that such interventions may occur to correct imbalances.

The Year of Release, known as the shemitah year, holds a significant place in the cyclical understanding of time as it relates to the study of Deuteronomy. This year marks a period of release and renewal, aligning with key personal and historical events that underscore its importance. It was discovered that significant moments, such as baptisms, ordinations, and first encounters with spiritual teachings, occurred in alignment with the shemitah year, revealing a pattern of divine timing. For instance, the year 1959, a shemitah year, marked the beginning of a spiritual journey through baptism and initial contact with foundational teachings. Similarly, other pivotal years, such as 1931 and 1966, also fell within this cycle, highlighting the recurring significance of the seventh year. The most recent Year of Release concluded at sunset on Elul 29, coinciding with the start of Rosh Hashanah, the Feast of Trumpets, and the beginning of a new Hebrew civil calendar year in the month of Tishri. This timing aligns with the observance of the Feast of Tabernacles, a fall festival, during which the instruction of Deuteronomy is to be revisited. Deuteronomy itself is commanded to be reviewed every seven years, a unique directive not given to any other book in the Bible, emphasizing its critical role in spiritual instruction and its relevance far into the future for God's people.

I do not know whether 2001 is technically a year of release, but it was in 1994 that I first decided to obey this command, and now another seven years has passed. If we calculate from Herbert Armstrong's ordination around Pentecost in 1931, we just passed a 70th anniversary, and seventy divided by seven equals ten, indicating it would be a year of release. Evelyn and I were baptized on September 19, 1959, twenty-eight years after Herbert Armstrong's ordination, and seven equally divides twenty-eight into four years of release. Just two weeks ago tomorrow marks the 42nd anniversary of Evelyn's and my baptism, which is equally divided by seven into six years of release. I was ordained a local church elder in April of 1966, and it is now thirty-five years since that event, equally dividing into five years of release. To the best of my knowledge, 1994 marked the first time that a minister of the church of God in this era followed this command with the detail given then. Until such time as God confirms a true year of release, we are going to follow through once again, because God commands that it be done every seven years in the Feast of Tabernacles. No other book in the Bible is accorded the privilege of being read every seven years at the Feast of Tabernacles in the year of release. In addition to that, no other book in the Bible was placed anywhere close to the ark, showing the significance of Deuteronomy in the mind of God and why He requires us to spend one time in seven years going through it as completely as we can during the Feast of Tabernacles. In the midst of widespread liberation of debt and release from slavery in the year of release, every seven years the people would be reminded of a working knowledge of the conditions pertaining to them as being the covenant people, all within the setting of the Feast of Tabernacles which pictures God's generosity in providing for them.

The year of release, known as shemitah, holds significant relevance as celestial events align with key dates. A partial solar eclipse will be visible on Elul 29, the last day of the year of release, just before the new civil year begins on the Feast of Trumpets. This timing underscores the importance of the year of release, especially in the context of an economy that confuses debt with wealth, inviting severe consequences when God enforces the releasing of debts every seven years, as observed in past economic downturns. These celestial occurrences on days marked by God for special attention seem far beyond mere coincidence.

The Day of Atonement holds profound significance in signaling the Year of Release and the Jubilee Year, marking periods of physical and spiritual renewal for the nation of Israel. Every seventh Day of Atonement announced the Year of Release, a time when debts were forgiven and indentured servants were freed, ending physical and economic bondage and ushering in a new beginning of freedom and hope. This seventh year also mandated a land rest, allowing for renewal of the land and promising greater harvests as a fresh start. At the completion of the forty-ninth year, the Day of Atonement heralded the Year of Jubilee, a sacred fiftieth year of liberty and rest. A trumpet blast on this day signaled the return of sold lands to their original owners and the release of Israelite servants, restoring economic balance and offering a new beginning for the people. Ideally occurring at least once in an Israelite's lifetime, the Jubilee Year embodied the essence of Sabbath rest and liberty, symbolizing a profound release from bondage. Historically, Israel's return from Babylonian exile aligned with a Jubilee Year, marking the end of foreign domination and a restoration of hope for future renewal under God's ownership. This event underscored the anticipation of receiving inheritance back on a Jubilee Year during the Day of Atonement, reflecting a promise of ultimate freedom and restoration.