Did Jesus ever reverse God's slavery law from Exodus 21:20-21?

Question

20 “And if a man beats his male or female servant with a rod, so that he dies under his hand, he shall surely be punished. 21 Notwithstanding, if he remains alive a day or two, he shall not be punished; for he is his property.

Exodus 21:20-21 (New King James Version)

The stereotypical Christian answer is "we don't follow the Old Testement anymore" or "We live under grace".

Not one Bible verse will be referenced where Jesus says "Oops! I made a mistake with that one, people as property".

Christians might say slavery at that time was different, payment of debt, or that they would be set free at some point.

ITS IN THE BIBLE RIGHT THERE VERSE 21 - "FOR HE IS HIS PROPERTY"!!!

PROPERTY

Thats the standard of morality you want for your children?

Answer 1

good point! Jesus actually tells slaves to remain in slavery

Answer 2

You failed to notice the word "judges." This is the law of the land very similar to today's U.S. law. The punishments noted are the "maximum" punishments and were seldom, if ever, administered. That was the innovation of the Torah. None of the nations they lived among had protections for "slaves" (servants) and the poor, nor did they have consequences for tyrant leaders. The Torah spells out protection for the poor and obligations for the leaders.

Servants were to become part of the family and were to enjoy all the rights of family members. Remember, at that time all marriages were "arranged."

It's unfortunate that Americans neglected to read the "punishments" in the "Old Testament" during our infamous days of slavery! The "law" is found in the Torah (Old Testament), but interpretation of the law is in the Talmud which Christians were forbidden to read. (The Roman Catholic Church destroyed every copy that could be found.) Try administering "the law" from only the Constitution without case law for backup. That's what Christianity has done to Judaism.

If a servant desires to remain beyond the 6 years, the court pierces his ear against a doorpost, implying that he didn't listen at Sinai when God proclaimed that we are His servants and no longer slaves to any human. (The doorpost symbolizes the blood of the Passover offering put on the doorpost.) When he was first sold, he had no choice - but now he can have freedom and yet chooses to be a slave! He now remains a servant "forever," which means until the Jubilee year (see Leviticus 25:41).

This servitude, however, is not like anything we're familiar with. In Judaism, the master must treat his servant as an equal or better. If the master eats steak, so does the servant. If the master has a soft mattress and pillow, so does the servant. But - if there is only one steak (or one pillow, etc.) available, then the servant gets it!!

Furthermore, the master must take pains not to embarrass the servant in any way, and must also support the servant's wife and children. These rules are so much in favor of the servant that the Talmud declares: "Whoever acquires a servant, is as if he has acquired a master!"

The Lesson: If you have to treat your servant as an equal (or better), how much more so should you honor your friends, neighbors, spouse and children who are not your servants!

In discussing the Jewish maidservant, the Torah teaches how a husband must treat his wife in order that she never lack any needs. As stipulated in the Torah, a Jewish husband is obligated to provide for his wife's: (1) food, (2) clothing and (3) emotional needs - e.g. giving adequate time and attention. In Judaism, marital relations are the obligation of the husband, and he may not forgo it without her permission!

Answer 3

Yes. This is a standard that I would want my children to understand. They would be lost in today's society without it.

In the middle of a world in which king's owned everything, including the people from the moment of birth, had the ability to seize land and income, force labor, execute on a whim, and hold total control over every second a person's life, God set up something else.

The Law created a society in which a family owned property and was able to hand it from generation to generation - tax free. A society in which the government did not have the right to force people to build monuments, roads, etc., in which the government could not execute people on a whim, and in which they did not own every person as a slave for life. And where people could not be imprisoned or executed for debt.

Rather it offered a system in which a man could choose to place himself in service (as a slave if you prefer) to someone else in exchange for payment of all his debts. During that time he was to performed whatever task the master required. He was "property" in that the master had the responsiblity to feed, clothe and house him (as property is something for which you have the care) and that he gave up his freedom for up to seven years to serve his master. At the end of that time, he went free.

With debt being one of the biggest problems people, especially in the US, face every day, I made sure that my children understood how dangerous and destructive it is. They learned early that "the borrower is slave to the lender". Debt will put you into slavery everytime and must be avoided.

Today, voluntary slavery is not longer an option. So instead people often spend their whole life struggling with debt. There is no option to cancel your debts like the Law provided. Even bankruptcy does not work the same.

Under the Law, when the man sold himself, his debts were paid. Under bankruptcy, the debts are cancelled (or reduced) and the loss usually passed on to everyone else in higher interest rates, etc. Plus even after the debts are cancelled (or usually just reduced) the person still has to continue to feed, cloth and house himself. Not so under the Law. The master took the responsibility for up to seven years.

Were those people "property" for the time, yes. But by their own choose, for a season, in exchange for cancellation of their debts. There is no reason Jesus or anyone else would have to say "oops" about that. Getting rid of debt is a good thing.

Answer 4

Excuse me, but there are a lot of old testament laws we do not follow.

We have no need to offer burnt offerings.
We can eat pork.
We can eat meat and milk together.
We have one man to one wife instead of polygamy.

When Jesus came down, he changed the laws! Or that's what I was always taught.

Property and owndership is a very abstract concept. It seems to imply things that aren't necessarily the case. If you adopt the idea that the only true owner is God, because he made everything, the fact that someone "owns" someone else is kinda meaningless.

Lets face it. In some sense, we're still all controlled (like slaves) because we have responsiblities to other people. An employee works for his boss. A CEO works for his companies shareholders, contracts, etc. A son is is defintely "owned" by his father or mother. It is kinda like slavery, but certainly of a lesser extreme.

IIRC, many on both sides of the slavery issue in the United States in the 18th and 19th centuries used both OT and NT rules to justify their actions. The slave owners used this rule, and the abolishonists used Jesus's Higher law of "Love your neighbor as yourself". Think of it, if most people loved their neighbor as they did themselves, how better off would we be?

Answer 5

The old testament slavery is not the same as we term it. The term servant is more precise for today. Let me paint the picture.

Every seven years (shabot) a servant was released and their duty was paid in full as you indicated. In the event that the servant CHOSE to stay with the family for life due to their love for them, they could be made a bond servant by having a large hoop earring hammered to their ear and to the door post of the home. They would then wear the hoop so that everyone would know that they chose to remain with the house.

Therefore the "slave" (bond servant) owners were made to treat these people like family. So I would ask, were our nations for fathers better than 3300 years ago? Did we have law protecting the lives of the "slaves". Do yourself a quick comparison and you will find that we as Americans were the inhumane ones.

Answer 6

Jesus knew to follow these commandments could/would change society.
The whole of the Gospel is to change the hearts then the mind would change also!

Why will YOU not accept the fact that The Old Testament was our guide UNTIL Christ came along. Now we live under the premise of the New Testament laws. We see the Old Testament as our history but NOT our guide!



Mark 3:28
One of the teachers of religious law was standing there listening to the discussion. He realized that Jesus had answered well, so he asked, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?"
29Jesus replied, "The most important commandment is this: `Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. 30And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.'[f] 31The second is equally important: `Love your neighbor as yourself.'[g] No other commandment is greater than these."

Answer 7

Jesus said Render unto Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's.

I take that to mean that what happens on earth falls under humanity, and what happenes in the supposed afterlife falls under "Godliness".

Jesus was not a revolutionary....he was a peace keeper. Therefore he was not the Saviour of the Jews. Thus they killed him. He knew revolting agains the Empire was pointless. It's much easier to remain a servant.

And, really, aren't we all property of our respective government? No one is completely free until death.

Answer 8

dude....


technically Jesus Christ fulfilled or recanted, in a way, the entire law.


i am under grace i am lead by the Spirit and if i feel the Holy Spirit convict me not to have a slave, which He does, guess what, i dont get a slave.



Gal 5:18 But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.

Rom 6:14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.

Rom 6:15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.

Gal 3:10 For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed [is] every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.

i could go on.

Answer 9

I THINK THAT IF YOU READ ,you can find that most people that where slaves where hired ,paid or bought,for a period of time,and yes some where war trophy's .There are also verses about letting them go in the 6 th year instead of the 7th year as per thier contract

Answer 10

Wow, I think I'll go out and get a slave, beat it until it's almost dead... make sure it lives a day or two afterwards and no one can punish me because the bible says it's ok.

Answer 11

Jesus became a slave that we might be free
30 peieces of silver was the price of a female slave

thats a reversal !!!

in point of fact my dear Jim Darwin, the Bible allows divorse although God says in Malichi I HATE DIVORSE.. what you may be seeing is a restraint against abuses of slavery not a oondoning of it