Seven years

Leviticus 25:3-5, 20-22 - For 6 years sow your fields, and for 6 years prune your vineyards and gather their crops. But in the 7th year the land is to have a sabbath of rest, a sabbath to the LORD. Do not sow your fields or prune your vineyards. Do not reap what grows of itself or harvest the grapes of your untended vines. The land is to have a year of rest.

You may ask, "What will we eat in the 7th year if we do not plant or harvest our crops?" I will send you such a blessing in the 6th year that the land will yield enough for 3 years. While you plant during the 8th year, you will eat from the old crop and will continue to eat from it until the harvest of the 9th year comes in.

I wonder if the Israelites ever actually did this. Did they notice a bumper crop about 3 times larger than usual in the 6th year? This wouldn't have occurred until about 46 years after it was promised. I wonder how many farmers even knew about it then. If anyone did learn about it and tried it, they were probably considered nut cases by their neighbors.

"Hey, did you hear what old Shemariah is planting this year? ... Nothing! Claims he's got enough left over from last year that he can take a sabbatical this year. Did you ever...?"

"No, I never.... Think we should have him checked out by the priest? Sounds like he might be breaking some law to me."

I wonder what it would be like if we could do that today in agribusiness or any other business. Probably no one who tripled their profits one year would think of sitting out a year, planning to dive back in the following year. More likely they'd (re)invest the profits in the stock market or in their business and keep on working for more. And then there'd be the windfall profits taxes to consider.... "Money, money, money. It's a rich man's world."