What about slavery in the Old Testament?

October 3, 2024

It’s easy to see the regulations in Exodus 21 and think they reinforce an unjust system. But even within the institution of slavery, God is setting boundaries to ensure dignity.

Exodus 21:2-11, like much of the Old Testament law, is one of those passages that feels foreign to modern sensibilities. At first glance, it’s all about slavery or bondservanthood. For most of us, the mere mention of slavery conjures images of brutality and oppression, so it’s worth pausing to consider how ancient Hebrew society, while far from perfect, operated under laws that reveal the merciful heart of God, even in something as challenging as this.

In these verses, God lays out specific rules for how the Israelites should treat their Hebrew servants. The context is a time and culture where debt slavery was typical, but it functioned more like indentured servitude than the chattel slavery we’re familiar with in American history. If a Hebrew man was sold into slavery, typically to pay off debts, he was to serve for six years, but in the seventh year, he could go free, debt canceled, no strings attached. This principle already shows God’s concern for freedom and dignity, even for those in the lowest economic or social positions.

The passage, however, gets more complicated. There’s the option for the servant to stay, voluntarily choosing a life of continued service. If he says, “I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free,” the law provides a formal, public ceremony marking his decision. His ear is pierced at the doorpost, signifying permanent belonging to the household. As strange as it may seem, this highlights how bondservanthood in ancient Israel could become more like a family relationship than what we typically imagine when we think of slavery.

Then there’s the section about women, specifically female servants, which might raise some eyebrows. If a man sells his daughter as a servant, she should not be treated the same as male servants. It’s easy to recoil here. Why would a father sell his daughter at all? We have to remember that this law was given in a society where women had few rights and were economically vulnerable. The goal here is to protect women from mistreatment and exploitation, not to endorse the practice of selling daughters. The text stipulates that if she’s displeasing to her master, he must allow her to be redeemed. He can’t sell her to foreigners or treat her like a commodity. If he marries her or gives her to his son, she’s to be treated as a daughter or a wife, not a servant.

At the heart of these verses, we see God’s desire to protect the vulnerable. It’s easy to see the regulations and think they reinforce an unjust system. But even within the institution of slavery, God is setting boundaries to prevent abuse and ensure dignity. In a way, these laws are revolutionary for their time.

But as with all Old Testament laws, the deeper meaning points us forward to Christ. These verses about a servant choosing to stay with his master out of love can be seen as a foreshadowing of Christ himself. Jesus, the suffering servant, willingly bound himself to the Father’s will. He “made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant” (Php 2:7). He could have gone free—after all, he owed no debt of his own—but out of love, he stayed. He bore the mark of that bond, not on his ear but on his hands and feet, pierced for our transgressions.

There’s something profoundly humbling in that. When we read laws like this, we may be tempted to judge them by modern standards, but instead, they should draw us into deeper reflection on how God, in his mercy, bends low to meet us in our broken systems and relationships. And he doesn’t leave us there. He redeems us through his Son, the servant who stayed not out of obligation but out of love.

What about slavery in the Old Testament?

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