Does the Bible Condone Slavery?

Skeptics often relate the Bible's supposed support of slavery as one of their arguments for not embracing the Christian faith. I emphatically disagree with this assertion. There are four Scriptures often quoted by those who accuse the Bible of supporting slavery. I will openly address those occurring in the New Testament. They are:

Ephesians 6:5 "Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ."

Colossians 3:22 "Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God."

Titus 2:9 "Exhort servants to be obedient unto their own masters, and to please them well in all things, not answering again (talking back)."

I Peter 2:18 "Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear; not only to the good and gentle, but also to the froward."

"Wow," you might say, "it sure seems like God is condoning slavery to me!" It is important to note a few things before you make a determination about these verses.

First, you have to study the context of the verses. The context is not only the surrounding verses, chapters and books of the Bible, but also the cultural context. We all tend to view verses like these through our own modern culture and society. When we think of slavery we tend to think of the white man standing over the black man with a whip in the cotton field. That is truly a travesty and completely indefensible. However, that was not the form of slavery which occurred in the Bible. Surely, that type of cruel enslaving and maltreating did occur, but that was not what Paul and Peter were addressing in these verses.

Slavery in Bible times was not based on race as it has been in recent centuries. The Jews did not enslave the people groups of the Moabites, for instance. Rather, in the biblical world men and women would often SELL THEMSELVES into slavery willingly in order to pay debts or provide for their family. If a father had incurred debts he could not pay, he would willingly sell himself so that his family would have money to buy food. Slavery was a social status. Some people even chose to sell themselves so that all of their needs would be provided for them by their masters. People were not kidnapped and sold against their will.

The Bible gives many instructions for how masters were to treat their slaves or "servants".

Ephesians 6:8-9 "...whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond (slave) or free. And, ye masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening: knowing that your Master also is in heaven; neither is there any respect of person with Him." God here commands slave owners to treat their slaves well because they will answer to Him one day.

Colossians 4:1 "Masters, give unto your servants that which is just and equal; knowing that ye also have a Master in heaven." Here again, Paul warns those who would treat their slaves badly.

The overall purpose of the Bible must also be taken into account when evaluating whether or not scripture condones slavery. The Bible is God's book and the purpose of it is to reveal Himself to man. Ultimately, it reveals God's redemptive plan for mankind (John 3:16, Romans 6:23, Romans 10:9). What good is physical freedon from slavery if you are in bondage to your sins? The slave who is free in Christ is infinitely more blessed than the master who is enslaved to Satan. This will sound trite to the skeptic, but will cause the child of God to rejoice.