SLAVERY - NYOBS 61.18

SLAVERY

Why did God allow Slavery when we as Christians know that it is morally wrong?

First Word

·         I was invited to a new Bible study group where an older gentlemen started off by saying that he was discouraged with the Bible because you can make it say whatever you wanted it to say; I was stunned. – Twenty years later and a lot of Bible Study millage, I must agree with that gentlemen, it just depends on what you believe and what you want it to say.

·         I can build a case for slavery using scripture as well as build a case denouncing it. – As Christians we know slavery is just morally wrong and God could have hid the information on slavery from us, but He did not. – Either the Bible is the errorless word of God or it isn’t.  If just some of the Bible is correct; then which parts? – I believe the Bible is the errorless Word of God and He included information on Slavery because it is a fact of life and because He wanted us to know His efforts to change man’s hearts.

Translations

·         There are a number of Bible translations that seem to skirt the term SLAVE and substitute the word SERVANT instead, as if they are trying to soften up or make the subject of slavery less immoral; as Christians we know owning another human is never moral.

·         The difficulty today is we do not know the circumstances that surrounded the scriptures, we can only guess using other writings that tell the mindset of the day.

·         Paul was writing a letter to the Church at Corinth addressing some issues in the Church that all of them knew about, but we don’t; we can only presuppose it was about SEX from reading other scripture and writings outside of scripture. – We just don’t know. -

·         Before we go any further, I must point out that the same word can hold different meaning depending on how it was translated into English from the Hebrew of the Old Testament or the Greek from the New Testament.

·         Sundoulos in Greek carried the meaning of Slave or Fellow Servant

·         Paidiske in the Greek carried the meaning of Female Slave, Maid or Bondwoman

·         Doulos in Greek carried the meaning of Slave, Servant or Bondservant

·         Ebed in Hebrew carried the meaning of Slave, Servant or Bondservant

·         Shiphchah  in Hebrew carried the meaning of Slave Girl, Maid Servant or Maid

·         Amah in Hebrew carried the meaning of Female Slave or Maid Servant

·         Abad in Hebrew carried the meaning of Labor, Work or Serve.

·         The Translators of the Bible had to strive to find the understanding of the circumstances under which the scriptures were written in order to know which word to use.  – New translations are not softening or covering up slavery; it’s just the more you study the more you are enlightened. – So you can MAKE the Bible say Slave instead of Servant if that is your goal; just find the translation that makes you happy.

1 Corinthians 7:1-2 - The MATTERS they knew about; we don’t
¹  Now for THE MATTERS you wrote about: “It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman.”
²  But since sexual immorality is occurring, each man should have sexual relations with his own wife, and each woman with her own husband. (NIV2011)

A little History

·         I feel a need to say that slavery was ubiquitous, it existed everywhere in antiquity and was a common practice broadly accepted as an economic and social necessity. Slavery existed way before God’s special people Israel came into being.  – The code of Hammurabi mentions slavery around 2242BC – Joseph, the son of Jacob (Israel) was sold into slavery in 1728BC and about a 1,000 years later, all of Israel was enslaved by Egypt until Moses freed them.

·         During the 16^th through the 19^th century human trafficking or slavery was practiced by the Europeans as well as the United States and is still alive today in the Sudan and Darfur.

·         Harsh slavery was and is still a shameful reality today as there are still over 27,000,000 people in the world who are still subject to slavery through the sex trade and forced labor.

·         During Biblical Times slavery was based on economics and social status; even professional people sold themselves into slavery.  Slavery also came as a result of warfare, not abduction based on race or the color of their skin.

·         Regrettably and shamefully, white Christians have participated in a harsh “race based” form of human trafficking based on nationality and skin color and held to the vilest and disgraceful views about people of African descent and their culture. – Blacks are less evolved, less civilized and doomed to extinction according to “Darwin”.

·         Very Dark Skin and very light skin is the direct result of the minimum and maximum production of Melanin in the body which is the primary determinant of skin color.

·         The Slavery recorded in the Bible in no way resembles the slavery that has plagued our world in the last few centuries.

·         The View on Cain was that God put a MARK on him that turned him BLACK, so all black people are cursed by God Himself. – What if Adam and Eve were Black and Cain was turned WHITE? – It doesn’t matter as Cain’s descendants were all wiped out in the flood of Noah.

·         The View on Ham was that his descendants who became Egypt were CURSED by Noah and turned BLACK and were made to be the lowest of servants; slaves.

·         In the 19^th Century, man stealing was practiced in Africa by “slave hunters” who sold slaves to “slave traders” who brought them to America to work on farms and plantations. – God says these “man stealers” should be KILLED along with the person that bought them.

·         In 1861 Slavery was the main issue of the Civil War in America, the North against the South. – Four years of intense combat left around 700,000 soldiers dead. – Slavery was abolished in America and is now completely illegal in every developed nation throughout the free world.

Genesis 4:15 – God turned Cain BLACK
¹⁵ Then the LORD said to him, “Not so! If anyone kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold.” And the LORD put a MARK on Cain, lest any who found him should attack him. (ESV)

Genesis 9:25 – God turned Ham’s descendants BLACK
²⁵ Then he cursed Canaan, the son of Ham: “May Canaan be CURSED! May he be the lowest of servants to his relatives.” (NLT)

Exodus 21:16 – If you kidnap someone you shall be put to death
¹⁶ Whoever steals a man and sells him, and anyone found in possession of him, shall be put to death. (ESV)

Deut 24:7 – A Hebrew cannot be put in involuntary servitude
⁷ If a man is found stealing one of his brothers of the people of Israel, and if he treats him as a slave or sells him, then THAT THIEF SHALL DIE. So you shall purge the evil from your midst. (ESV)

Case FOR Slavery

·         Bible Scripture makes it easier for Slavery Advocates than it does for its opponents. The following scriptures indicate that God is an advocate for slavery and fully supports it.

·         The Bible tells us how to obtain slaves, how hard we can beat them and when we can have sex with them.

·         Matthew 5:19 - God Said, whoever practices and teaches ⌊these commands⌋ will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

·         Isaiah 14:2 – Take captives of their enemies, male and female slaves and rule over them.

·         Lev 25:44 – God says that you can buy, sell and hand down slaves generation to generation that you buy from other nations. – They are your slaves for as long as they live.

·         Ex 21:31 – God establishes the price of a slave to be 30 shekels of silver. – (You might remember this is the exact amount Judas was paid for Jesus.)

·         Ex 21:7 – God is in favor of selling your daughter as a SEX SLAVE.  A man can have as many sex slaves as he wants as long as he feeds, clothes and has sex with them.

·         Ex 21:1 – God is in favor of BREAKING UP SLAVE FAMILIES, MUTILATING slaves and gives instructions to them on how to get a LIFE SENTENCE at slavery.

·         Ex 21:20 – It’s OK to beat a slave until he is ALMOST DEAD.

·         Lev 22:10 – God endorsees the concept that even a Priest can buy a slave and the slave’s children become his slaves too.

·         Titus 2:9 – God supports that the slave should not give any “back talk” about their assignments and to not steal anything from their master.

·         Col 3:22 – God is in compete acceptance of slavery and encourages slaves to work hard at everything they are told to do.

·         Ex 12:43 – God is comfortable with slaves even at the Passover meal.

·         Luke 7:2 – Jesus heals a slave, but does not set him free nor does he admonish his owner to set him free. – Jesus is OK with the status quo of slavery.

·         Mark 10:42 – Jesus said he came to serve, to be a slave to all.

·         Isaiah 40:8 - These words of our God stands forever, not one jot or tittle will pass away.

Leviticus 25:44-46 – Buy Sell, hand down slaves – other nations
⁴⁴ Your male and female slaves are to come from the nations around you; from them you may buy slaves.
⁴⁵ You may also buy some of the temporary residents living among you and members of their clans born in your country, and they will become your property.
⁴⁶ You can bequeath them to your children as INHERITED PROPERTY and can make them SLAVES FOR LIFE, but you must not rule over your fellow Israelites ruthlessly.

(NIV2011)

Isaiah 14:2 – Take captives- rule over male and Female slaves
² And the peoples will take them and bring them to their place, and the house of Israel will possess them in the LORD’s land as male and female slaves. They will take captive those who were their captors, and rule over those who oppressed them. (ESV)

Exodus 21:31-32 – God’s sets the price of a slave at 30 shekels
³¹ This law also applies if the bull gores a son or daughter.
³² If the bull gores a male or female slave, the owner must pay THIRTY SHEKELS OF SILVER to the master of the slave, and the bull is to be stoned to death. (NIV2011)

Exodus 21:7-11 – Sell your Daughter as a Sex Slave
⁷ If a man sells his daughter as a servant, she is not to go free as male servants do. (In the seventh year)
¹⁰ If he marries another woman, he must not deprive the first one of her food, clothing and marital rights.
¹¹ If he does not provide her with these three things, she is to go free, without any payment of money.

(NIV2011)

Exodus 21:1-6 – Break up families – Mutilation – life sentence
¹ These are the ordinances that you must set before them:
² When you buy a Hebrew slave, he is to serve for six years; then in the seventh he is to leave as a free man without paying anything.
³ If he arrives alone, he is to leave alone; if he arrives with a wife, his wife is to leave with him.
⁴ If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children belong to her master, and THE MAN MUST LEAVE ALONE.
⁵ But if the slave declares: ‘I love my master, my wife, and my children; I do not want to leave as a free man,’
⁶ his master is to bring him to the judges and then bring him to the door or doorpost. His master must PIERCE HIS EAR with an awl, and he will serve his master FOR LIFE.

(HCSB)

Exodus 21:20-21 – Beat a slave as long as you don’t kill them.
²⁰ If a slave owner hits a slave, male or female, with a stick and the slave dies on the spot, the slave must be avenged.
²¹ But if the SLAVE SURVIVES A DAY OR TWO, he's not to be avenged—the slave is the owner's property.

(MSG)

Leviticus 22:10-11 – Concept; Children of slaves become slaves
¹⁰ No one outside a priest’s family may eat the sacred offering, nor may the guest of a priest or his hired worker eat it.
¹¹ But if a priest buys a slave with money, or if slaves are born in his household, they may eat his food.

(NIV2011)

Titus 2:9-10 – Slaves don’t talk back and steal from your master
⁹ Teach slaves to be subject to their masters in everything, to try to please them, not to talk back to them,
¹⁰ and not to steal from them, but to show that they can be fully trusted, so that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive.

(NIV2011)

Colossians 3:22 – God encourages slaves to be good workers
²² Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord.

(NIV2011)

Exodus 12:43-45 – God is comfortable with Slaves at Passover
⁴³ The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “These are the REGULATIONS for the Passover meal: “No foreigner may eat it.
⁴⁴ Any SLAVE you have bought may eat it after you have circumcised him,
⁴⁵ but a temporary resident or a hired worker may not eat it. (NIV2011)

Luke 7:2-10 – Jesus heals a slave but does not FREE HIM
² A centurion’s slave, who was highly valued by him, was sick and about to die.
³ When the centurion heard about Jesus, he sent some Jewish elders to Him, requesting Him to come and save the life of his slave.
⁴ When they reached Jesus, they pleaded with Him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy for You to grant this,
⁵ because he loves our nation and has built us a synagogue.”
⁶ Jesus went with them, and when He was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to tell Him, “Lord, don’t trouble Yourself, since I am not worthy to have You come under my roof.
⁷ That is why I didn’t even consider myself worthy to come to You. But say the word, and my servant will be cured.
⁸ For I too am a man placed under authority, having soldiers under my command. I say to this one, ‘Go!’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come!’ and he comes; and to my slave, ‘Do this!’ and he does it.”
⁹ Jesus heard this and was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following Him, He said, “I tell you, I have not found so great a faith even in Israel!”
¹⁰  When those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the slave in good health. (HCSB)

Mark 10:42-45 – Jesus came to Serve – Be a slave to all
⁴² And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them.
⁴³ But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant,
⁴⁴ and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all.
⁴⁵ For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (ESV)

Isaiah 40:8 - The word of our God will stand forever
⁸ The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever. (ESV)
Matthew 5:18 – Not one jot or one tittle will pass away
¹⁸ For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. (NKJV)

Matthew 5:19 – Practice these commands – Will be called great
¹⁹  Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commands and teaches people to do so will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever practices and teaches ⌊these commands⌋ will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. (HCSB)

The Law

·         The Bible was not written to reform society from the outside, but to reform man on the inside.  Reforming the soul through love, mercy and grace changes the way a man thinks and acts. – A person who has experienced the love of Christ will be gracious to others.

·         We don’t make laws to regulate something that is good, we regulate things that are bad. - Divorce existed because of the hard hearts of men and God regulated it. - Slavery was a way of life thousands of years before God’s special people Israel came about. The Mosaic Law just regulated it; not condoned it.

·         The Hebrews Laws which did not condone harsh labor practices discouraged neighboring races from settling with the Hebrews. – Laws on slavery exposed and limited sin.

·         If there is no law against slavery then it is not a sin, it’s when the law is given that it becomes a sin. – God passed the laws giving rights to the slaves because He cared for them.

·         The Hammurabi Code allowed Hebrew wives and children to be sold into temporary slavery for a duration of three years. – If a Hebrew slave was severely injured, it was a Biblically commanded duty to set the slave free or pay him a fine, if he agreed.

·         The Holiness Code allowed foreign residents to sell their wives and children to the Hebrews with no duration limit on servitude. – A non-Hebrew slave will serve forever and be treated as inherited property.  - It also allowed a Hebrew slave to buy his freedom by paying the amount equal to the wages of a hired servant over the remaining period till the time of the next 50 year Jubilee. ( All Hebrew slaves or servants were set free in the year of Jubilee) – A Hebrew must not do the humiliating lowly work of a slave and was to be treated as a hired hand.

·         The Covenant Code allowed Children of diseased debtors to be forced into slavery to pay off any outstanding debts. Manumission is a big word which is the act of a slave owner freeing his slaves. - A Hebrew slave must be automatically freed after six years of servitude, the seventh year he goes free. – A Hebrew slave could renounce their seventh year manumission and become a Bond Slave or Bond Servant for life and stay with his master. – This was done at a religious sanctuary or in the presence of their gods, an awl would pierce the ear to the door or doorpost. -  The ear signified “obedience”, the piercing signified “servitude”. – If an ox gores a slave, the ox owner must pay 30 shekels of silver to the Master. – The Covenant Code provided protection to the slave insuring the health of his body.

·         The Deuteronomic Code gave the freed slaves or servants a parting gift of livestock, grain and wine with an estimated value of 30 shekels of silver. (The price of a slave) – Foreign FUGITIVE slaves could take asylum and would be allowed to reside wherever they wished.

·         Captives taken during warfare were often made legitimate slaves by the Hebrews, but did not have the rights of a Hebrew servant.

·         Masters are to treat their slaves and servants with respect; no threating of punishment. - Give them justice and fairness. – Do not make a Hebrew do the lowly work of a slave. - Masters have a higher Lord. - There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

·         Christians Masters are to preach and teach; to be respectful and obedient to the slaves’ gentle masters as well as to their unjust masters for the sake of the cause of Christianity. – Be submissive without arguing and do your work as if unto the Lord, not as a man pleaser, but as a God pleaser. - Slaves and masters alike are brethren of Christ.

·         There are different categories of slaves – Hebrew male slaves, Hebrew female slaves, non-Hebrew slaves, hereditary slaves and escaped slaves; all of which have different regulations.

·         Hebrew Male slaves could sell themselves into slavery or servitude for six years.

·         Hebrew Female slaves could be sold by their fathers for marriage; for life.

·         Non Hebrew slaves from other nations could be bought, sold, traded and inherited.

·         Hereditary slaves were born in slavery with no way to obtain their freedom.

·         Escaped foreign slaves seeking refuge with the Hebrews could NOT be handed over to their foreign masters, but would gain full citizenship among the Israelites and could not be treated badly, remembering that Israel was also once slaves in Egypt.

·         God listed Slave Traders as the worst of sinners, and if a man was found KIDNAPPING someone or in possession of someone kidnapped, they would be given a life sentence in the “Electric Chair” or be killed; which ever came first. – God is against involuntary servitude of the Hebrews. - No one shall enslave a Jew, male or female.

Romans 5:13 – Slavery became sin when the Law was given
¹³ for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. (ESV)

1 Timothy 1:10 – Slave Trading is contrary to Sound Doctrine
¹⁰ for the sexually immoral, for those practicing homosexuality, for SLAVE TRADERS and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine(NIV2011)

Exodus 21:16 – If you kidnap someone you shall be put to death
¹⁶ Whoever steals a man and sells him, and anyone found in possession of him, shall be put to death. (ESV)

Jeremiah 34:8-9 - No one should enslave a Jew, his brother
⁸ The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, after King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem to make a proclamation of liberty to them,
⁹ that everyone should SET FREE his Hebrew slaves, male and female, so that no one should enslave a Jew, his brother.

(ESV)

Deuteronomy 23:15-16 – Escaped foreign slaves set free
¹⁵ You shall not hand over to his master a slave who has escaped from his master to you.
¹⁶ He shall live with you in your midst, in the place which he shall choose in one of your towns where it pleases him; you shall not mistreat him. (NASB)

Ephesians 6:5-8 – Slaves; serve as unto the Lord
⁵ Bondservants, (Servant; Slave)  obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart, as you would Christ,
⁶ not by the way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart,
⁷ rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man,
⁸ knowing that whatever good anyone does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether he is a bondservant or is free. (ESV)

Titus 2:9-10 – Be submissive; do not argue and do not steal
⁹ Bondservants (Servant; Slave)  are to be submissive to their own masters in everything; they are to be well-pleasing, not argumentative,
¹⁰ not pilfering, but showing all good faith, so that in everything they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior. (ESV)

Colossians 3:22 – Slaves; be a God pleaser, not a people pleaser
²² Bondservants, (Servant; Slave) obey in everything those who are your earthly masters, not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord.

(ESV)

1 Timothy 6:1-2 – Preach principals of obedience and respect
¹ All who are under the yoke as slaves are to regard their own masters as worthy of all honor so that the name of God and our doctrine will not be spoken against.
² Those who have believers as their masters must not be disrespectful to them because they are brethren, but must serve them all the more, because those who partake of the benefit are believers and beloved. TEACH and PREACH these principles.

(NASB)

1 Peter 2:18 – Slave be respectful even to unjust masters.
¹⁸ Servants, (Bondservant; Slave) be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle but also to the unjust.

(ESV)

Ephesians 6:9 – Masters treat your slaves with respect
⁹ And masters, do the same things to them, and give up threatening, knowing that both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no partiality with Him.

(NASB)

Leviticus 25:39 – Masters do not treat a Hebrew as a Slave
³⁹ If your brother becomes poor beside you and sells himself to you, you shall not make him serve as a slave: (ESV)

Colossians 4:1 – Masters grant justice and fairness to your slaves
¹ Masters, grant to your slaves justice and fairness, knowing that you too have a Master in heaven. (NASB)

Galatians 3:28 – Both Slave and Free are one in Christ
²⁸ There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. (ESV)

Welfare System

·         The Bible shows that often in many nations, there were hard times for people and slavery was prevalent. When it came to Israel, God wanted the Hebrews to be treated differently and made laws to set them apart with dignity, respect and give them HOPE.

·         When a Hebrew had crushing debts and could not pay his bills, he of his own FREE WILL would sell everything and then sell himself as well as his children as a slave or servant, essentially “getting a loan” to pay off his debts.  He would serve six years and go free the seventh. – Today we would call this bankruptcy, but without the help of the Federal Government. – This would insure that his family would not die of starvation or exposure.

·         He and his family would be clothed, fed, and given housing while he was given “On the Job Training” at his skills. – This was better than college with no loans.  All his debts were covered during his employment. - A bondservant in addition to that would get paid minimum wage. – He would only work six days and enjoy the Sabbath day as a day of rest. – He would not do the work of a slave, but that of a hired worker and the master was encourage to PAMPER him like a son.

·         If he brought with him a wife then he would leave the seventh year with his wife, but if the master gave him a wife, then the wife and their children would belong to the master as his property and he would leave without them.

·         Note: This practice was not meant to BREAK UP FAMILIES, but protected the Master from a conniving woman who would run up a high debt, sell herself to the master and quickly marry someone who was at the end of their term and walk out free leaving the Master holding the bag for her debt. – Understand, the Hebrew Master is trying in good faith to help others who are struggling to survive.

·         If the servant wants to stay with his wife and family, he may voluntarily stay as a BONDSERVANT; a permanent position of servitude and serve his master for the rest of his life. –The Bond Servant ceremony was to bring the servant before GOD and to pierce his earlobe with an awl, driving it to the doorpost symbolizing his agreement before God. – This was not slave MUTILATION, but was a blood covenant between the Servant, the Master and God.

·         If a family was in financial need, a daughter could be sold, not for servitude, but for marriage within the Masters family and was not free to go in the seventh year unless the faith had been broken by the master. – Without this law, a man was free to “TRADE IN” his wife for a younger model (like a car) every six years. – God is honoring the marriage covenant. 

·         Hebrew Severance Package - When you set a slave/servant free, you shall not send him away empty-handed. You shall furnish him liberally from your flock and from your threshing floor and from your wine vat; you shall give to him as the LORD your God has blessed you.

Exodus 21:2-6 – Serve 6 years and go free or Bondservant
² When you buy a Hebrew slave, he shall serve six years, and in the seventh he shall go out free, for nothing.
³ If he comes in single, he shall go out single; if he comes in married, then his wife shall go out with him.
⁴ If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her master’s, and he shall go out alone.
⁵ But if the slave plainly says, ‘I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free,’
⁶ then his master shall BRING HIM TO GOD, and he shall bring him to the door or the doorpost. And his master shall bore his ear through with an awl, and he shall be his slave forever. (ESV)

Colossians 4:1 – Pay your bondservants what is just and fair
¹ Masters, give your bondservants what is just and fair, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven. (NKJV)

Proverbs 29:21 – Pamper your slave, he will become like a son
²¹ He who pampers his servant from childhood will have him as a son in the end. (NKJV)

Exodus 21:7-11 – Daughter sold for marriage, not servitude
⁷ If a man sells his daughter as a servant, she is not to go free as male servants do. (In the seventh year)
⁸ If she does not please the master who has selected her for himself, he must let her be redeemed. He has no right to sell her to foreigners, because he has broken faith with her.
⁹ If he selects her for his son, he must grant her the rights of a daughter.
¹⁰ If he marries another woman, he must not deprive the first one of her food, clothing and marital rights.
¹¹ If he does not provide her with these three things, she is to go free, without any payment of money.

(NIV2011)

Exodus 20:10 – Slaves must not work on the Sabbath
¹⁰ but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. You must not do any work—you, your son or daughter, YOUR MALE OR FEMALE SLAVE, your livestock, or the foreigner who is within your gates. (HCSB)

Exodus 23:12 – Work your slaves only six days
¹²  Six days you shall do your work, and on the seventh day you shall rest, that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female SERVANT and the stranger may be refreshed. (NKJV)

Deuteronomy 15:12-15 – Hebrew Severance Package
¹² If your kinsman, a Hebrew man or woman, is sold to you, then he shall serve you six years, but in the seventh year you shall set him free.
¹³ When you set him free, you shall not send him away empty-handed.
¹⁴ You shall FURNISH HIM LIBERALLY from your flock and from your threshing floor and from your wine vat; you shall give to him as the LORD your God has blessed you.
¹⁵ You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this today. (NASB)

Treatment of Slaves

·         Slaves under the Mosaic Law were treated differently than slave of the other nations, they were treated as servants or bond servants. – Slavery was a reality in a sin cursed world and the Hebrew laws regulated good treatment. – Is was the Christians of the New Testament who led the cause to abolish harsh slavery.

·         Treat a slave badly striking out an eye or tooth, HE WILL BE FREED.  If he is beaten and gets better in a day or two, nothing is required of the Master, but if the Master kills him, he will be punished.

·         If you hurt somebody you will pay for his time lost from work.

·         Sometimes people sell themselves because they are just plain too lazy to work.  When a lazy servant is slack concerning his work for the Master, he is disciplined with the rod. – You discipline those you care about. – Obviously there were also some unjust masters who were just plain mean and cruel.

Exodus 21:20-21 – Kill a slave, Master punished
²⁰ When a man strikes his slave, male or female, with a rod and the slave dies under his hand, he shall be avenged.
²¹ But if the slave survives a day or two, he is not to be avenged, for the slave is his money. (ESV)

Exodus 21:26-27 – Strike out an eye or tooth – Slave Freed
²⁶ When a man strikes the eye of his slave, male or female, and destroys it, he shall let the slave go free because of his eye.
²⁷ If he knocks out the tooth of his slave, male or female, he shall let the slave go free because of his tooth. (ESV)

Exodus 21:32 – Ox kills slave – Master paid 30 shekels of silver
³² If the ox gores a slave, male or female, the owner shall give to their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned.

(ESV)

Proverbs 10:26 – A lazy employee is like vinegar in your mouth
²⁶ A lazy employee will give you nothing but trouble; it's vinegar in the mouth, smoke in the eyes.

(MSG)

Proverbs 13:24 – Discipline those you love
²⁴ Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him. (ESV)

Proverbs 23:13 - Do not withhold the rod of discipline
¹³ Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you strike him with a rod, he will not die.

(ESV)

Exodus 21:18-21 – Hurt another and pay for his loss of time
¹⁸ When men quarrel and one strikes the other with a stone or with his fist and the man does not die but takes to his bed,
¹⁹ then if the man rises again and walks outdoors with his staff, he who struck him shall be clear; only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall have him thoroughly healed. (ESV)

Sex Slaves

·         Men are ruthless and inventors of evil and the Sex Trade was a repugnant part of it.

·         Sex Slaves were common and men would often buy many Hebrew women as wives, but they had to provide three things; food, clothing and conjugal rights; missing anyone of these three things and she went FREE without payment.

·         Foreign Women captured in warfare could be taken forcefully as wives and if they did not please the Master sexually, they had to let them go FREE anywhere they chose as they had been humbled by the Master

·         A Hebrew father who was in poverty could sell his daughter who had not arrived at the age of 12 years and one day with the expectation of marriage to the master or his son. – The Laws were in place supporting the institute of marriage and to protect her from becoming a sex slave.

Romans 1:29-31 – Men are heartless, ruthless and invent evil
²⁹ They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips,
³⁰slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents,
³¹ foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless.

(ESV)

Deuteronomy 21:10-14 – Foreign Women have rights
¹⁰ When you go out to war against your enemies, and the LORD your God gives them into your hand and you take them captive,
¹¹ and you see among the captives a beautiful woman, and you desire to take her to be your wife,
¹² and you bring her home to your house, she shall shave her head and pare her nails.
¹³ And she shall take off the clothes in which she was captured and shall remain in your house and lament her father and her mother a full month. After that you may go in to her and be her husband, and she shall be your wife.
¹⁴ But if you no longer delight in her, you shall let her go where she wants. But you shall not sell her for money, nor shall you treat her as a slave, since you have humiliated her. (ESV)

Exodus 21:7-11 – Daughter is sold for marriage
⁷ When a man sells his (unmarried) daughter as a slave, she shall not go out as the male slaves do.
⁸ If she does not please her master, (sexually) who has designated her for himself, then he shall let her be redeemed. He shall have no right to sell her to a foreign people, since he has broken faith with her.
⁹ If he designates her for his son, he shall deal with her as with a daughter.
¹⁰ If he takes another wife to himself, he shall not diminish her food, her clothing, or her marital rights.
¹¹ And if he does not do these three things for her, she shall go out for nothing, without payment of money. (ESV)

A Slave named Onesimus

·         Many Jews had slaves prior to becoming Christians which was a source of conflict within.

·         Philemon was a Christian who ran a local church out of his house and owned a run-away slave named Onesimus who had wronged him, and Paul wrote Philemon a letter on his behalf. We can only guess that the wrong was stealing something and then absconding with it to parts unknown where he undoubtedly ran into Paul and was converted to Christianity; and again he may have been on an errand to Paul and overstayed his visit; we just don’t know.

·         Paul writes with compassion that he is sending Onesimus “his very heart” back to him even though he would like for him to stay there. – Paul recognizes the Master/Slave relationship and is trying to do the right thing and hoping Philemon will also “do the right thing”.

·         The Slave Onesimus was libel for the “value” of each day work that was lost due to his absence, and it seems that Paul is saying that Philemon should receive back his delinquent slave and Paul himself would make up the value of any loss to him.

·         Paul is encouraging Philemon to receive Onesimus back, not as a Bond Servant, but something better;  as a bother in Christ and to set him FREE; that he would be a great aid in spreading the gospel; and after all Philemon himself  is in debt to Paul for his very own soul being saved through the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

·         A Bond Servant is someone who has voluntary placed himself in servitude for life.  - We are slaves of the one whom we obey, either a slave of sin, which leads to death, or a slave of obedience, which leads to righteousness. - We are all a Bond Servant to something and it is better if we are a Bond Servant to Jesus Christ. 

·         Slavery was a way of life and as you read Paul’s letters, you can feel the undertow of gut-wrenching emotions; that whether slave or free, God is still the Master of both and if you can obtain your freedom, you should do so.

Philemon 1:8-21 – Paul pleading for Slave Onesimus’ freedom
⁸ Accordingly, though I am bold enough in Christ to command you to do what is required,
⁹ yet for love’s sake I prefer to appeal to you—I, Paul, an old man and now a prisoner also for Christ Jesus—
¹⁰ appeal to you for my child, Onesimus, whose father I became in my imprisonment.
¹¹ (Formerly he was useless to you, but now he is indeed useful to you and to me.)
¹² I am sending him back to you, SENDING MY VERY HEART.
¹³ I would have been glad to keep him with me, in order that he might serve me on your behalf during my imprisonment for the gospel,
¹⁴ but I preferred to do nothing without your consent in order that your goodness might not be by compulsion but of your own accord.
¹⁵ For this perhaps is why he was parted from you for a while, that you might have him back forever,
¹⁶ no longer as a bondservant but more than a bondservant, as a beloved brother—especially to me, but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord.
¹⁷ So if you consider me your partner, receive him as you would receive me.
¹⁸ If he has wronged you at all, or owes you anything, charge that to my account.
¹⁹ I, Paul, write this with my own hand: I will repay it—to say nothing of your owing me even your own self.
²⁰ Yes, brother, I want some benefit from you in the Lord. Refresh my heart in Christ.
²¹ Confident of your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do even more than I say. (ESV)

1 Corinthians 7:21-22 – Obtain your freedom if you can
²¹ Were you a bondservant when called? Do not be concerned about it. (But if you can gain your freedom, avail yourself of the opportunity.)
²² For he who was called in the Lord as a bondservant is a freedman of the Lord. Likewise he who was free when called is a bondservant of Christ. (ESV)

Romans 6:16 – We are all slaves to the one we obey
¹⁶ Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? (ESV)

Man Invents Evil

·         Despite the laws given to regulate the evil practice of slavery, men kept Hebrew slaves in servitude longer than permitted and King Solomon and Rehoboam and Adoram, enacted laws of slavery against the Hebrews. - They did evil in the sight of God and this compelled God to DESTROY the Kingdom of Judah. – NYOBS 58.10 – EVIL HEART

·         Paul says if you can obtain liberty, seize the opportunity. – To set at liberty those who are oppressed, and do not submit to the yoke of slavery again.

·         All nations are of one blood – The shed blood Jesus at Carvery was for the blood of every creed, race and nation that would accept Him.

·         When you read the scriptures you cannot possibly walk away believing that God is in favor of slavery.

Romans 1:29-31 – Men are ruthless, heartless and invent evil
²⁹  They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips,
³⁰ slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents,
³¹ foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. (ESV)

Leviticus 25:10 – Year of Jubilee – Liberate all the slaves
¹⁰ And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you, when each of you shall return to his property and each of you shall return to his clan. (ESV)

Jeremiah 34:8-11 – God wants Hebrew Slaves set free
⁸ The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, after King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem to make a proclamation of liberty to them,
⁹ that everyone should SET FREE HIS HEBREW SLAVES, male and female, so that no one should enslave a Jew, his brother.
¹⁰ And they obeyed, all the officials and all the people who had entered into the covenant that everyone would set free his slave, male or female, so that they would not be enslaved again. They obeyed and set them free.
¹¹ BUT afterward they turned around and took back the male and female slaves they had set free, and brought them into subjection as slaves. (ESV)

Jeremiah 34:17-22 – Judah destroyed as punishment for slaves
¹⁷ Therefore, thus says the LORD: YOU HAVE NOT OBEYED ME by proclaiming liberty, every one to his brother and to his neighbor; behold, I proclaim to you liberty to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine, declares the LORD. I WILL MAKE YOU A HORROR to all the kingdoms of the earth.
²⁰ And I will give them into the hand of their enemies and into the hand of those who seek their lives. Their dead bodies shall be food for the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth.
²² Behold, I will command, declares the LORD, and will bring them back to this city. And they will fight against it and take it and burn it with fire. I will make the cities of Judah a DESOLATION without inhabitant.” (ESV)

1 Kings 9:15–Solomon instituted Forced Labor - Slaves
¹⁵  And this is the account of the FORCED LABOR that King Solomon drafted to build the house of the LORD and his own house and the Millo and the wall of Jerusalem and Hazor and Megiddo and Gezer (ESV)

1 Kings 12:18 – Rehoboam and Adoram instituted slaves
¹⁸ Then King Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was taskmaster over the FORCED LABOR, and all Israel stoned him to death with stones. And King Rehoboam hurried to mount his chariot to flee to Jerusalem. (ESV)

2 Chronicles 12:14 - He did evil in the sight of God
¹⁴ And he did evil, for he did not set his heart to seek the LORD. (ESV)

1 Corinthians 7:21 – Become Free if given the opportunity
²¹ Were you called while a slave? It should not be a concern to you. But if you can become free, by all means take the opportunity. (HCSB)

Luke 4:18-19 – Set at liberty those who are oppressed
¹⁸ The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
¹⁹ to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

(ESV)

Galatians 5:1 - Do not submit again to a yoke of slavery
¹  For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

(ESV)

Acts 17:26 – We are one blood every nation of men
²⁶ And He has made from ONE BLOOD every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings,

(NKJV)

Ephesians 2:13 – The redemptive blood is for all nations
¹³ But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by THE BLOOD of Christ. (NKJV)

Closing Thoughts

·         Chocolate and Marijuana are both desired by many, but only one is regulated; why is that?

·          God did not support divorce, but it existed because of the hardness of men’s hearts, so God regulated it and the same thing applies to Slavery; it existed out of the hardness of men’s hearts and God just regulated it in an effort to change men’s thinking. – NYOBS 24.02 - DIVORCE

·         You can see slavery in the New Testament, but it’s not an approval, it’s a compassionate attempt to regulate something that is bad.

·         The Dead Sea Scrolls indicate that some Christians sold themselves into slavery just to purchase the freedom of others. – Churches collected money to buy slaves freedom.

·         You can build a case for slavery today using Bible scriptures if that is what you have set out to do.  But if you look at the whole tapestry of slavery you will find woven into its very fabric, a desire to change society from the inside out by changing men’s hearts.

Matt 19:7-8 – Why did Moses give a certificate of divorce?

7 "Why then," they asked, "did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?"

8 Jesus replied, "Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because YOUR HEARTS WERE HARD. But it was not this way from the beginning.

NIV

In the multitude of counselors,

there is wisdom.

Proverbs 11:14

I am grateful to those that went before me providing concepts, ideas, historical

information, and scripture verses.  Because of them I can stand on their shoulders

and see further that I otherwise ever could have.

                                                                                                                                     

Antiquity of the Jews – Flavius Josephus Matthias

Apocrypha - Goodspeed

Bible Almanac; The – Packer-Tenney-White

Bible Dictionary – Harper and Row

Dake’s Annotated Bible – Dake

English Standard Version Bible – ESV

Expositor’s Bible Commentary – Frank E. Gaebelein

Illustrated Bible Dictionary – Nelson’s

Illustrated Bible Dictionary; The – Tyndale

Interlinear Greek-English New Testament - Baker

King James Version Bible – KJV

Mysteries of the Bible – Readers Digest

Nave’s Topical Bible - Zondervan

New International Dictionary of the Bible; The – Douglas - Tenney

New International Version Bible – NIV

Thru the Bible – J. Vernon McGee

Who’s Who in the Bible – Paul D. Gardner

Wikipedia –

Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible; The – Tenney