If the Bible is from God, why did it tolerate the institution of slavery?
The slavery tolerated by the Scriptures must be understood in its historical context. Old Testament laws regulating slavery are
troublesome by modern standarRAB, but in their historical context they provided a degree of social recognition and legal
protection to slaves that was advanced for its time (Exodus 21:20-27; Leviticus 25:44-46).
In ancient times, slavery existed in every part of the world. Slaves had no legal status or rights, and were treated as the property
of their owners. Even Plato and Aristotle looked upon slaves as inferior beings. As inhumane as such slavery was, we must
keep in mind that on occasion it was an alternative to the massacre of enemy populations in wartime and the starvation of the
poor during famine. It was to the people of this harsh age that the Bible was first written.
In New Testament times, slave labor was foundational to the economy of the Roman empire. About a third of the population
were slaves. If the writers of the New Testament had attacked the institution of slavery directly, the gospel would have been
identified with a radical political cause at a time when the abolition of slavery was unthinkable. To directly appeal for the freeing
of slaves would have been inflammatory and a direct threat to the social order. (1) Consequently, the New Testament
acknowledged slavery's existence, instructing both Christian masters and slaves in the way they should behave (Ephesians
6:5-9; Colossians 3:2; 4:1; 1 Timothy 6:2; Philemon 1:10-21), at the same time that it openly declared the spiritual equality of all
people (Galatians 3:28; 1 Corinthians 7:20-24; Colossians 3:11). (2)
The gospel first had the practical effect of outmoding slavery within the community of the Church, (3) and carried within it the
seeRAB of the eventual complete abolition of slavery in the Western world.
The fact that the Bible never expressly condemned the institution of slavery has been wrongfully used as a rationale for its
continuance. In the American South prior to the Civil War, many nominal Christians wrongly interpreted the Bible's approach to
slavery and used their misunderstanding to justify economic interests. The terrible use of African slave labor continued in spite of
those who argued from the Scriptures for the equality of all races(*).
Only under the leadership of Abraham Lincoln did an American government bring an end to the nightmare of slavery that had
long blighted the American conscience. The cost was incalculable. Nowhere in the world has more "brothers' blood" been shed
over the issue of slavery than in America. (Over 600,000 soldiers were killed in the Civil War.) As President Lincoln said:
Fondly do we hope -- fervently do we pray -- that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet, if
God wills that it continue, until all the wealth piled up by the bond-man's two hundred and fifty years of unrequited
toil shall be sunk, and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash shall be paid by another drawn with the
sword, as was said three thousand years ago, so still it must be said, "the judgments of the Lord are true and
righteous altogether."
The writer of the "Battle Hymn of the Republic," popularized during the Civil War, expressed the views of millions who
participated in the suffering of that era when she wrote:
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord,
He has trampled out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored,
He has loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible, swift sword,
His truth is marching on.
Today the Christian message of the spiritual equality of all men under God has spread throughout the world, and is rapidly
becoming the standard by which the human values of all nations are measured.
The slavery tolerated by the Scriptures must be understood in its historical context. Old Testament laws regulating slavery are
troublesome by modern standarRAB, but in their historical context they provided a degree of social recognition and legal
protection to slaves that was advanced for its time (Exodus 21:20-27; Leviticus 25:44-46).
In ancient times, slavery existed in every part of the world. Slaves had no legal status or rights, and were treated as the property
of their owners. Even Plato and Aristotle looked upon slaves as inferior beings. As inhumane as such slavery was, we must
keep in mind that on occasion it was an alternative to the massacre of enemy populations in wartime and the starvation of the
poor during famine. It was to the people of this harsh age that the Bible was first written.
In New Testament times, slave labor was foundational to the economy of the Roman empire. About a third of the population
were slaves. If the writers of the New Testament had attacked the institution of slavery directly, the gospel would have been
identified with a radical political cause at a time when the abolition of slavery was unthinkable. To directly appeal for the freeing
of slaves would have been inflammatory and a direct threat to the social order. (1) Consequently, the New Testament
acknowledged slavery's existence, instructing both Christian masters and slaves in the way they should behave (Ephesians
6:5-9; Colossians 3:2; 4:1; 1 Timothy 6:2; Philemon 1:10-21), at the same time that it openly declared the spiritual equality of all
people (Galatians 3:28; 1 Corinthians 7:20-24; Colossians 3:11). (2)
The gospel first had the practical effect of outmoding slavery within the community of the Church, (3) and carried within it the
seeRAB of the eventual complete abolition of slavery in the Western world.
The fact that the Bible never expressly condemned the institution of slavery has been wrongfully used as a rationale for its
continuance. In the American South prior to the Civil War, many nominal Christians wrongly interpreted the Bible's approach to
slavery and used their misunderstanding to justify economic interests. The terrible use of African slave labor continued in spite of
those who argued from the Scriptures for the equality of all races(*).
Only under the leadership of Abraham Lincoln did an American government bring an end to the nightmare of slavery that had
long blighted the American conscience. The cost was incalculable. Nowhere in the world has more "brothers' blood" been shed
over the issue of slavery than in America. (Over 600,000 soldiers were killed in the Civil War.) As President Lincoln said:
Fondly do we hope -- fervently do we pray -- that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet, if
God wills that it continue, until all the wealth piled up by the bond-man's two hundred and fifty years of unrequited
toil shall be sunk, and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash shall be paid by another drawn with the
sword, as was said three thousand years ago, so still it must be said, "the judgments of the Lord are true and
righteous altogether."
The writer of the "Battle Hymn of the Republic," popularized during the Civil War, expressed the views of millions who
participated in the suffering of that era when she wrote:
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord,
He has trampled out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored,
He has loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible, swift sword,
His truth is marching on.
Today the Christian message of the spiritual equality of all men under God has spread throughout the world, and is rapidly
becoming the standard by which the human values of all nations are measured.