Bible vs. Slavery

 Is the Bible for or Against Slavery?

    During the time of legal slavery, the masters would use several passages from the Bible that alluded to the Bible encouraging slavery. Other arguments have been fought using other verses that prove the Bible does not in fact encourage slavery. it is an on going fight that I believe is still being fought today.

    Slavery in the Bible has been talked about a number of times such as in Exodus with the Egyptians enslaving the Israelites and in Genesis when Joseph was sold into slavery. In both of these stories it is shown how God turns both of these situations around for good. The slave masters in the past times would not have shown the slaves these passages due to not wanting them to rebel or gain a sense of nonconformity.  

In the Bible, there are multiple accounts where slavery is mentioned as not being right or wrong. In the letters that Paul writes to Philemon about Onesimus, the slave, Paul is sending his son to Philemon to be free from slavery and to save himself. In the article about Paul and his son it states "...seems to have allowed a runaway slave to seek asylum in the home of a friend of the family". Paul also writes his letters to advise slaves to obey their masters while also addressing the masters in telling them to treat their slaves with kindness. The Bible also addresses slavery in Exodus 21:2-6 where we see the conditions under which Hebrew slaves could be free after six years of service but allows for the possibility of lifelong servitude. That could be perceived as more of a Indentured Servant rather than a life long slave depending on the circumstance.

Within the Bible there is multiple areas that mention slavery, even though each area might not agree with each other the Bible does not give a define response to slavery. The only verse speaking to slaves can be found in 1 Peter 2:18, "Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh." While this may look to some that God is condoning slavery, all this verse really says is that slaves should obey their masters. There is no definite way to understand how he meant this, but in every story in the Bible, God used each trial to help those who called out to Him in the end. Ask and they shall receive. 

The Bible does not confirm that slavery was okay even though it is mentioned.