Talk to an atheist about the moral wisdom of the Bible, and within seconds you'll hear him remark on the Bible's position on slavery. The appeal to slavery is expected to put an end to any discussion of the apparently bankrupt morality of the Biblical Iron Age, and to elevate modern moral sensibilities as clearly superior in every respect.
I have heard many responses to these concerns from Jews and Christians, but none resonated with me. Too many attempts have been made to defend the Bible by appealing to evolving morality, as if God became increasingly moral throughout human history, until he became a moral figure that happened to match today's prevailing morality. It sounds like we've reached the top.
The Bible is the most ethical book ever written.
Besides the self-congratulatory chronological snobbery of this kind of argument, I think the opposite is more likely to be true. The Torah, also known as the “Torah” (the first five books of the Bible), contains some of the most ethically insightful statements in scripture. The rest of the Bible does not develop beyond this part of the Bible. On the contrary, it is built on the foundation of the Law.
This brings us back to the issue of slavery. Because there is no way to claim that the Torah condemns all forms of slavery. How can modern Christians and Jews accept the Torah as a revelation from God, when everyone today agrees that some of the things it accepts are morally evil? Is it?
The answer is that the Torah contains a more ethical and nuanced perspective on slavery than any other legal code in human history, including our own.
Rather than embarrass the Torah or promote a movement to “break away from the Old Testament,” we believe that the ethical elements of the Torah are trustworthy and that their goodness and perfection are the result of an Iron Age author. Now more than ever, we need to be confident that it is far more timeless. It is the inspiration of a transcendent, omniscient and fully ethical God.
The problem is that recent events have dulled our ability to discuss topics like slavery.
There are three things that almost everyone in this conversation agrees on.
- Recently, the widespread practice of abducting slaves on an industrial scale based on racial characteristics, making them property, and giving their owners the freedom to abuse them and work them to death without repercussions is the most widespread practice in human history. It is one of the worst human rights violations.
- This slavery is best understood and defined by the practices described above.
- Therefore, slavery has always been evil and should be condemned wherever and whenever it has been practiced, including in the distant past.
Although everyone seems to agree with these three suggestions, I would like to take a serious issue with statement 2. This statement is why we cannot look at the example of slavery in the Bible and understand how it is considered ethical. Biblical slavery does not include kidnapping, is not based on race, is not practiced on an industrial scale, and does not give slaveholders the same rights as they have over other types of material property. Not given.
There is nothing good or ethical about the kind of slavery practiced during the era of the transatlantic slave trade. It is pure evil and should be condemned by a thoughtful reading of both the Old and New Testaments.
But it's just a type of slavery.
What other types of slavery are there?Here are four examples of slavery that the Bible would have approved of in ancient Israel. Some of these forms of slavery are unwise to practice today. Some people practice it but it is not classified as slavery. However, all are ethically permissible and completely understandable in their original context.
The following examples constitute most of the instances of slavery described in the Bible.
- Forced labor of prisoners of war: During World War II, the Allies subjected German and Japanese prisoners of war to extensive forced labor. This treatment did not provoke a public outcry against this type of slavery, as they were treated more humanely than any other prisoners of war, and it was reasonable for prisoners of war to insist on paying for their captivity. . The majority of slavery in Biblical times was of this type, especially targeting the women and children of enemy forces after most of the men were killed in the choice between extracting their labor or starving.
- Forced labor for convicted felons: A large industrial economy is required to house, feed, and guard vast numbers of prisoners. For example, the United States incarcerates more people than any other country on earth and is also the world's largest economy. These two facts are connected. Ancient societies did not have the wealth necessary for long prison sentences. There were only two economically viable means of dealing with serious criminals: the death penalty or forced labor. However, these felons may refuse to work, which is why forcing them to work in this way is classified as slavery.
- Forced labor for people in debt: Currently, the U.S. government provides loans to college students to unlock future labor value. This forced labor and repayment cannot be avoided even in bankruptcy court, leaving students in debt slavery for decades. This was the second most common practice in Biblical times. However, this was not an act primarily aimed at young people, and was often a debt made by the father of the family, a debt he would incur when attempting to acquire family assets.
- Voluntary indentured servitude: In the early days of American colonial settlement, after arriving in the New World, colonists could move across the ocean by agreeing to long-term labor contracts. This type of slavery is the most commonly written type in the Torah. This included strict restrictions on families entering into these contracts, where slaves were encouraged to gain freedom but could also voluntarily make lifelong commitments to families responsible for their care. Included.
Although this type of slavery is permitted in the Bible, there were also additional laws enacted to prevent the mistreatment of slaves.
- Kidnapping for enslavement was prohibited in both the Old and New Testaments (Exodus 21:16; 1 Timothy 1:10)
- Gained physical freedom by mistreating slaves (Exodus 21:24-27)
- Freed slaves were entitled to some property from their masters (Deuteronomy 15:12-18)
- Everyone was encouraged to avoid slavery and come out of slavery (Deuteronomy 15:17; 1 Corinthians 7:21)
The Bible is the most ethical book ever written. Christians and Jews have tolerated the thoughtless flaunting of those who make strawman arguments and easily criticize the wisdom of the Bible by relying on a simplistic understanding of Biblical illiteracy and slavery. It won't.
Never be ashamed of the Bible. If the Bible were to condemn these four types of slavery, there could be no better book. It would be an even worse book, condemning millions to the further abuse and starvation that would inevitably result from making these options illegal.
This essay was adapted from the article first published At Jeremy Pryor's house substack.
