. . . There has been a long standing debate over exactly which sabbath and Jubilee cycle system represents the one actually practiced by the ancient Israelites. To the novice this dispute may at first glance seem trivial. Nevertheless, there are two reasons that its solution is extremely valuable. First, this cycle is an essential tool for any reconstruction of the chronological framework of ancient Israelite history. The strong foundation it provides, in turn, acts as a guide for other contemporary dynasties and events.
Second, once the correct cycle is ascertained, it allows us to “clock in” and discover which years are presently sabbaths and Jubilees. This possibility holds great significance for students of biblical eschatology. The book of Hebrews, for example, notes that, “The Law,” of which the sabbath and Jubilee years are a part, is “a shadow of the coming good things.” The sabbath day, to demonstrate, was reckoned as a type of the great sabbatism and rest into which the people of Yahweh will one day enter.
Likewise, the prophetic character of the Jubilee year is strongly attested to. The ancient book of Jubilees, for instance, notes that the sabbath and Jubilee cycle would continue “until the sanctuary of the sovereign (Yahweh) is creat­ed in Jerusalem upon Mount Zion.” The text of 11Q Melchizedek, found in the caves at Qumran, explains the Jubilee statutes of Leviticus, 25, by stating:
1. [saying to Zion] ‘your eloahim reigns.’ . . . [
2. [ ] . . . and where it says, ‘In [this] year of Jubilee you shall return, each man to his possession.’
3. [and where it says, ‘Let] every holder of a debt [let drop] what he loans [to his neighbor. Let him not exact payment from his neighbor nor from his brother, for there is proclaimed a] remission
4. [of el.’ Its interpretation concerns the e]nd of days as regards ‘those taken captive’ who [. . . etc.].