Does the Bible Condone Slavery?

Question

Exodus 21:2-6 (New International Version) 2 "If you buy a Hebrew servant, he is to serve you for six years. Also 3,4,5… & 6 Then his master must take him before the judges. He shall take him to the door or the doorpost and pierce his ear with an awl. Then he will be his servant for life. Also: Exodus 21:7-11, Exodus 21:32, Deuteronomy 20:13-14, Leviticus 25:44-46, Deuteronomy 15:16-17, Deuteronomy 20:13-14, Joel 3:8, Matthew 8:5-13, Matthew 10:24-25, Luke 19:11-27, John 13:16, Ephesians 6:5, Colossians 3:22, Colossians 4:1, I Timothy 6:1, Titus 2:9-10… Commandment Ten "Neither shall you desire your neighbor's house, or field, or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor." Even in the new testiment Jesus ignores it and never adresses the issue. Where is here any reference to slavery being opposed?

Answer 1

Opposition:


"There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus."
Galatians 3:28

There is the answer to your question, however i dont even believe in god and think that the entire bible is a hypocritical mess of saying one thing in one spot, and then the next spot its the complete opposite. the bible isnt very thorough its very nonsensical.

Answer 2

The Apostle Paul addressed the issue. He discussed how Christian Masters were to treat their slaves and how Christian slaves were to treat their masters. (Much like employer/employee relationships today) The Bible does not condone it, but it set limits for man's imperfections. In the case of the the Israelites, if someone found themselves in debt, they could "sell" themselves as slaves, for a period of time to work off the debt. (The time was limited and other verses referred to how to treat a fellow man) If an Israelite (or Jew or Hebrew - all the same people) owned a slave, the rules still applied as to how they treated their fellow Israelites. Those verses that you referred to (Exodus 21:2-6) - the part about the awl thru the ear - did you really read all of it? Verse 5 states that if the slave says that he really loves his master and wants to remain his slave, then the awl was to be put in the ear as a sign that the slave voluntarily stays with his master. If the slave did not want it done, wouldnt he refrain from making the arrangement?

I think Damien should do a little more research as to the 10 commandments - The 10 commandments are only 10 of the 100s of laws that made up the Mosaic law that was a covenant (or legal document) between the Israelites and their God. But, he is right in that it was "nailed to the torture stake' (Greek word translated as torture stake or cross is xylon which referred to an upright beam used for torture), because we no longer have to follow that law, since as Paul says, the law foreshadowed and was fulfilled by Christ. (Read the whole context of 1 & 2 Corinthians, Galations, Ephesians, Philipians, and Colossians.)

Answer 3

Well... slave and servent are often used interchangeably, due to the difficulty in translating words exactly from Hebrew or Greek into English. Also, what the Hebrew people referred to as slaves were generally not what we think of as slavery, it was more like indentured servitude. After a set number of years the slave was set free. Most slaves became slaves because of debt or as punishment or the like. Also, in Old Testament times, every 7th year was a "jubilee year" and all debts were forgiven and slaves freed.

With all that in mind, it is obviously nothing like the kind of slavery that existed in the United States up unitl the Civil War.

I could go on, but I would just be repeating some excellent answers already posted here.

Answer 4

The Bible was written by a variety of men and for a variety of reasons. Exodus, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy were sets of laws given by leaders in the Hebrew community shortly after they were expelled from Egypt. These leaders claimed that the law had come from God in order to make their followers more willing to obey it. Thus many of the instances the Bible mentions slavery is simply a record of the laws of an ancient culture that existed at a time when slavery was common.
Christians seem to accept this, usually because they attempt to apply it to employer-employee relationships as an excuse to justify the Bible's attitude towards slavery.

Answer 5

Slavery develop into condoned in Israel as a manner of working off debt. there have been fairly some humanitarian regulations on how they have been dealt with, and no one must be enslaved for greater beneficial than 7 years. After that the slave holder had to evaluate the debt paid in finished, set them loose and supply a beneficiant stake to help them get began as quickly as greater. families who fell into slavery at the same time mandatory to be stored at the same time. some slaves have been so solid taken care of by way of their masters that on the end of their time they asked to stay existence long servants of their hold close’s family. those slaves were basic as bond-servants and were trusted and fairly seen contributors of the family. Exodus 21:2-11 and Leviticus 25:39-55 are merely suitable references. The slavery practiced interior the u . s . and various international places interior the path of the sixteen-1800?s never approximated Biblical slavery and develop right into a blemish on human historic previous.

Answer 6

As a Christian pastor, I am called to deal honestly with the texts of scripture. The short answer is yes. Exegetically we have no explicit condemnation of slavery; it is actually upheld by the texts you point out. If one were to view scripture from a fundamentalist perspective, then slavery would be morally acceptable. I do not hold this position. Instead I assert that the exodus from slavery which God gave to the Israelites is now extended by Christ to all the world and thus slavery in all forms except slavery to God alone is unethical, even the forms of slavery condoned in the Bible.

Answer 7

As I understand it, slavery is a bit different in old testament times. This isn't the same thing as when our country (I'm in the US) endorsed slavery. Our idea of slavery, where Africans and Europeans went into the African bush and kidnapped people and forced them into slavery is different than what we see happening in the OT.

There were a couple of ways you became a slave. Usually it was voluntary and to pay off debt and for a limited time. Present day contract labor (with room and board) is more similar to OT voluntary slavery, then our country's history with slavery. The forced were the result of one nation conquering another. War is in the Bible. People were picking on the Jews constantly, and God, many times, delivered the enemy of the Jews into the Jews hands. It seems like every battle the Jews were up against, the odds were horrible, but with God on their side, they won. When they rejected God, and worshiped other gods, they lost.

The mysteries of the Bible can be opened only when you have surrendered to Jesus Christ, accepting His gift of sacrifice to you, and repenting (which means to turn away or change your ways) from your sins.

Even satan knows the Bible. That's why he was able to quote it to Jesus when he tempted Him. But we later learn that satan was wrong in his understanding of the Bible. He thought he was foiling God's plan by helping to get Jesus killed, but in fact he was bringing about God's plan.

So, you can quote scripture. So could satan. You are not satan, but you should understand more about the forces at work in the world and choose the side that made the plan, rather than the side that is failing to foil the plan.

God bless you!

Answer 8

It does not but as the custom was at that time it made reference to it and how they should be treated. But that was a part of the Mosaic laws not the law of God the ten commandments and what was nailed to the cross was Moses law not the ten commandments and therefore we do not follow Moses Law which was written in a book - Deut 31. But we still follow God's law the ten commandments - Exodus 20, including the fourth to keep the Sabbath day holy.

Answer 9

I would not say that he was opposed to it, but he wanted them treated humanly. My support for that this position is that Jesus said turn the other cheek. Well, many people misunderstand this statement. Jesus NEVER said that Christians should never defend themselves. (If this were the case Christians would have died out long ago!) If the salve were to fight back, it would be pointless because they could not win. The society had strict rules about whom and how you slap people. Many times salves would be slap on the left cheek so that they did not have to look at them when they slapped them. What turn the other cheek means is make them look you (the slave) in the eye before they slap you. Obviously the reason you wanted them to look you in the eye is to see your humanity. Thus, Jesus might nothave condoned slavery but he wanted them treated humanly.

Answer 10

The Bible states that “man has dominated man to his injury.” (Ecclesiastes 8:9) This is perhaps nowhere more evident than in the oppressive forms of slavery that have been devised by man. Jehovah God is not indifferent to the suffering that slavery has wrought.

For example, consider a situation that developed with the Israelites. The Bible tells us that the Egyptians “kept making their life bitter with hard slavery at clay mortar and bricks and with every form of slavery in the field, yes, every form of slavery of theirs in which they used them as slaves under tyranny.” The Israelites “continued to sigh because of the slavery and to cry out in complaint, and their cry for help kept going up to the true God.” Was Jehovah indifferent to their plight? On the contrary, “God heard their groaning and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” Furthermore, Jehovah told his people: “I shall certainly bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians and deliver you from their slavery.”—Exodus 1:14; 2:23, 24; 6:6-8.

Clearly, Jehovah did not approve of ‘man dominating man’ through abusive slavery. But did not God later allow slavery among his people? Yes, he did. However, the slavery that existed in Israel was vastly different from the tyrannical forms of slavery that have existed throughout history.

God’s Law stated that kidnapping and selling a human was punishable by death. Furthermore, Jehovah provided guidelines to protect slaves. For example, a slave who was maimed by his master would be set free. If a slave died because his master beat him, the master could be punished with death. Women captives could become slaves, or they could be taken as wives. But they were not to be used for mere sexual gratification. The gist of the Law must have led righthearted Israelites to treat slaves with respect and kindness, as if these were hired laborers.—Exodus 20:10; 21:12, 16, 26, 27; Leviticus 22:10, 11; Deuteronomy 21:10-14.

Some Jews voluntarily became slaves to their fellow Jews in order to repay debts. This practice protected people from starvation and actually allowed many to recover from poverty. Furthermore, at key junctures in the Jewish calendar, slaves were to be released if they so desired. (Exodus 21:2; Leviticus 25:10; Deuteronomy 15:12) Commenting on these laws regarding slaves, Jewish scholar Moses Mielziner stated that a “slave could never cease to be a man, he was looked upon as a person possessing certain natural human rights, with which the master even could not with impunity interfere.” What a stark contrast to the abusive systems of slavery that mar the annals of history!
Clearly, the Bible does not condone the ill-treatment of others in any form. On the contrary, it encourages respect and equality among men. (Acts 10:34, 35) It exhorts humans to treat others the way that they would like to be treated. (Luke 6:31) Moreover, the Bible encourages Christians humbly to view others as superior, regardless of their social standing. (Philippians 2:3) These principles are totally incongruous with abusive forms of slavery practiced by many nations, especially in recent centuries.