Slavery has been a part of human history for thousands of years, and it is addressed in various ways throughout the Bible. In the Old Testament, slavery was a recognized institution that was deeply woven into the fabric of ancient societies. While the Bible does not directly endorse slavery, it does regulate and provide guidelines for the treatment of slaves, offering a glimpse into the complex nature of servitude in biblical times.
In this article, we will explore 25 Bible verses from the Old Testament that refer to slavery, its laws, and its moral implications. These verses shed light on the social, ethical, and theological views of slavery in ancient Israel and the broader Near Eastern world. Through these texts, we will examine God‘s instructions for how to treat slaves, the regulations governing slavery, and the principles that shaped this institution in biblical times.
It is important to understand that slavery in the Old Testament was different in many respects from the kind of slavery we are familiar with in modern history. Slavery in biblical times was often a consequence of war, poverty, or debt, and slaves could be treated with varying levels of respect and dignity. However, the Bible also emphasizes the importance of justice, mercy, and love in all relationships, including those involving slavery.
Let us now look at 25 Bible verses from the Old Testament that deal with slavery and servitude.
1. Exodus 21:2 – Hebrew Slaves
“When you buy a Hebrew servant, he shall serve six years, and in the seventh he shall go out free, for nothing.”
This verse establishes the principle of limited servitude for Hebrew slaves, where the duration of their service was capped at six years, and they were to be set free in the seventh year.
2. Exodus 21:3 – Rights of Hebrew Slaves
“If he comes in single, he shall go out single; if he comes in married, then his wife shall go out with him.”
This verse discusses the rights of Hebrew slaves who were married at the time of their servitude. If they were married when they entered service, their wife would be released with them.
3. Exodus 21:4 – Family and Slavery
“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.”
In cases where a slave was given a wife by his master, the wife and children would remain the property of the master upon the slave’s release.
4. Exodus 21:5-6 – Permanent Slavery
“But if the servant plainly says, ‘I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free,’ 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 servant forever.”
If a slave chose to remain with his master after completing his term of service, he could be marked permanently as a servant, indicating a voluntary, lifelong commitment.
5. Exodus 21:7 – Selling a Daughter
“When a man sells his daughter as a servant, she shall not go out as the male servants do.”
This verse specifically addresses the situation where a daughter is sold into servitude. It is important to note that the rules for female servants were different from those for male servants.
6. Exodus 21:8 – Rights of a Female Servant
“If she does not please her master, 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.”
This law protects female servants from being sold to foreign nations or mistreated by their masters.
7. Exodus 21:9 – Marriage of Female Servants
“If he designates her for his son, he shall deal with her as with a daughter.”
If a master arranged for his servant girl to marry his son, she was to be treated with the same respect and rights as a daughter, not as a mere servant.
8. Exodus 21:10 – The Rights of a Female Servant in Marriage
“If he takes another wife to himself, he shall not diminish her food, her clothing, or her marital rights.”
This verse provides protections for female servants in the event that their masters marry other women, ensuring their basic needs and rights are met.
9. Leviticus 25:39 – Redemption of Hebrew Slaves
“If your brother becomes poor beside you and sells himself to you, you shall not make him serve as a slave.”
This verse instructs that if a fellow Israelite falls into poverty, they should not be enslaved in the traditional sense. Instead, they are to be treated as hired workers and redeemed when possible.
10. Leviticus 25:40 – Temporary Servitude
“He shall be with you as a servant hired year by year. He shall not rule over him with harshness.”
Slavery in the biblical sense was often temporary and subject to fair treatment. The Israelite servant was not to be ruled over harshly or oppressively.
11. Leviticus 25:42 – Freedom for Hebrew Slaves
“For they are my servants, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt; they shall not be sold as slaves.”
God reminds the Israelites that they were once slaves in Egypt, and therefore, they should show compassion and justice in their treatment of their own servants.
12. Leviticus 25:44 – Ownership of Foreign Slaves
“As for your male and female slaves whom you may have, you may buy male and female slaves from among the nations that are around you.”
This law allows the Israelites to buy slaves from foreign nations, but such slaves were not bound by the same regulations as Hebrew slaves.
13. Leviticus 25:45-46 – Inheritance of Slaves
“You may also buy them from among the children of the strangers who sojourn among you, and their families who are with you, which they have begotten in your land; and they shall become your property.”
Foreign slaves could be passed down as an inheritance to the next generation.
14. Deuteronomy 15:12 – Release of Hebrew Slaves
“If your brother, a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you, he shall serve you six years, and in the seventh year you shall let him go free.”
This echoes the law found in Exodus, reaffirming the practice of freeing Hebrew slaves after six years of service.
15. Deuteronomy 15:13 – Sending a Slave Away with Goods
“And when you let him go free from you, you shall not let him go empty-handed.”
When releasing a Hebrew servant, the master was required to provide him with resources, including goods and financial assistance.
16. Deuteronomy 15:14 – Gifts for Released Slaves
“You shall furnish him liberally out of your flock, out of your threshing floor, and out of your winepress. As the Lord your God has blessed you, you shall give to him.”
This law encourages generosity and kindness, ensuring that the released servant is able to start a new life with ample provisions.
17. Deuteronomy 23:15 – Protection of Runaway Slaves
“You shall not give up to his master a slave who has escaped from his master to you.”
If a slave fled from his master and found refuge in Israel, the people were forbidden from returning him to his owner.
18. Deuteronomy 24:7 – Kidnapping for Slavery
“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.”
Kidnapping an Israelite for the purpose of selling them into slavery was considered a grave sin, and the punishment was death.
19. Genesis 9:25 – Canaan’s Curse
“Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be to his brothers.”
In this verse, Noah curses the descendants of Canaan, foretelling that they will serve the descendants of Shem and Japheth.
20. Genesis 16:6 – Hagar as a Slave
“But Abram said to Sarai, ‘Behold, your servant is in your power; do to her as you please.’ Then Sarai dealt harshly with her, and she fled from her.”
Hagar, an Egyptian servant of Sarah, was mistreated by Sarah, which led her to run away.
21. Genesis 17:12 – Covenant and Slavery
“He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised. Every male throughout your generations, whether born in your house or bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring.”
This law extended to slaves, signifying that they were also included in the covenant made with Abraham’s descendants.
22. Genesis 21:10 – Hagar and Sarah
“So she said to Abraham, ‘Cast out this slave woman with her son, for the son of this slave woman shall not be heir with my son Isaac.'”
Sarah demands that Hagar and her son Ishmael be cast out, illustrating the complex relationships involving slaves and their masters in biblical times.
23. Genesis 30:26 – Selling a Servant
“Give me my wives and my children, for whom I have served you, that I may go, for you know the service that I have given you.”
Jacob asks Laban for his wives and children in exchange for the years of service he has provided.
24. Exodus 12:44 – Circumcision of Slaves
“But every slave who is bought for money may eat of it after you have circumcised him.”
Slaves who were bought with money were also subject to the requirements of circumcision, indicating their inclusion in the covenant.
25. Exodus 20:10 – Sabbath Rest for Slaves
“But the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, or your male servant, or your female servant, or your ox, or your donkey, or any of your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates.”
This commandment ensures that even slaves are given rest on the Sabbath.
Conclusion
These 25 verses from the Old Testament reveal much about the role of slavery in ancient Israel and the broader ancient world. While slavery was a recognized institution, the laws surrounding it were designed to provide certain protections for slaves and regulate their treatment. Slaves could not be mistreated or exploited, and certain ethical guidelines were set in place to prevent abuses of power.
At the same time, these verses reflect the realities of the time, where slavery was often tied to economic necessity, military conquest, and societal structures. God’s commands regarding slavery were ultimately meant to maintain justice, mercy, and righteousness. The Bible’s treatment of slavery, particularly in the Old Testament, has been a subject of much theological discussion, and its teachings continue to challenge and inspire Christians to pursue justice and fairness in their own lives.
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