31 “We promise not to work on the Sabbath day. If the people living around us bring grain or other things to sell on the Sabbath, we won’t buy those things on that special day or on any other holiday. Every seventh year, {\cf2\super [60]} we won’t plant or work the land. And every seventh year, we will cancel every debt that other people owe to us.\par
31 and if the people of the land bring ware or any victuals on the sabbath day to sell, that we would not buy it of them on the sabbath, or on the holy day: and that we would leave the seventh year, and the exaction of every debt.
31 And if the peoples of the land bring wares or any grain on the Sabbath day to sell, we shall not buy it on the Sabbath or on a holy day; and we shall forego raising crops the seventh year [letting the land lie fallow] and the compulsory payment of every debt. [Exod. 23:10, 11; Deut. 15:1, 2.]
31 and if the peoples of the land bring wares or any grain on the sabbath day to sell, that we would not buy of them on the sabbath, or on a holy day; and that we would forego the seventh year, and the exaction of every debt.
31 If the neighboring peoples bring merchandise or any grain to sell on the Sabbath, we won’t buy it from them on the Sabbath or on any holy day. Every seventh year we won’t plant crops, and we will return anything held in debt.
31 also that, if the people of the land carry in goods for sale or any useful things, so that they might sell them on the day of the Sabbath, that we would not buy them on the Sabbath, nor on a sanctified day, and that we would release the seventh year and the collection of debt from every hand.
31 And if the people of the land bring in things to sell, or any things for use, to sell them on the sabbath day, that we would not buy them of them on the sabbath, or on the holy day. And that we would leave the seventh year, and the exaction of every hand.
And so the things the Lord told the people of Israel through the prophet Jeremiah really happened. The Lord had said through Jeremiah: “This place will be an empty wasteland for 70 years. {\cf2\super [456]} This will happen to make up for the Sabbath rests {\cf2\super [457]} that the people didn’t do.”
There will be holy assemblies on the first day and the last day of the holiday. You must not do any work on these days. The only work you can do on these days is prepare the food for your meals.
But the seventh day is a day of rest in honor of the Lord your God. So on that day no person should work—not you, your sons and daughters, or your men and women slaves. Even your animals and the foreigners living in your cities must not work!
“I will tell you the kind of special day I want—a day to make people free. I want a day that you take the burdens off people. I want a day when you make the troubled people free. I want a day when you take the burdens from their shoulders.
“This law will always continue for you: On the tenth {day} of the seventh month, you must not eat food. [297] You must not do any work. None of the travelers or foreigners living in your land can do any work either.
“Work for six days. But the seventh day, the Sabbath, will be a special day of rest, a holy meeting. You must not do any work. It is a Sabbath to the Lord in all your homes.
So don’t let any person make rules for you about eating and drinking or about Jewish customs (festivals, New Moon celebrations, {\cf2\super [12]} or Sabbath days {\cf2\super [13]}).
Yes, you must show mercy to other people. If you do not show mercy, then God will not show mercy to you when he judges you. But the person who shows mercy can stand without fear when he is judged.