Slavery in the Torah and Jewish Society
Rod Eisenberg
Slavery. A darker, and more sinister word would be difficult to think of in American society. For the contemporary Christian, the Biblical references to slavery are often ignored, tiptoed around, or dismissed as too delicate to contemplate.
For those of us submitted to the authority of the Scriptures, coming from an infallible God, these passages can be among the most challenging, both personally and apologetically. How do we handle this issue? This paper aims to demonstrate that the concept of slavery, or servanthood (see below), described in the Torah, was a vehicle for redemption, recovery, and freedom for those who had fallen on hard times or were refugees from neighboring countries.
Slave or Servant
It was a profound mistake for the American Colonists and those who followed them to justify chattel slavery, bartering human lives as a biblically mandated extension of the slavery God instructed for Israel in the Torah. On the other hand, it is also a mistake to condemn God’s instruction for servanthood in the Torah by associating it with the slavery practiced in America up to the Civil War. The two are not the same. One was a vehicle for redemption, recovery, and ultimately freedom for those who had fallen on hard times. The other, a disturbing abuse of power. In the paradigm of American slavery, slaves were seen as property to be disposed of as the owner saw fit [1]. The slaves were to be in perpetual bondage, as were their children. This is in complete contrast to the Hebrew depiction of servanthood, or slavery. The concept of servanthood, or what is called slavery in the Torah, has freedom as its goal. This goal was not only for Hebrews, but also for foreigners.
Since the word “slave” carries such an evil connotation, the Hebrew term עָֽבֶד, while commonly translated “slave,” is perhaps better rendered “servant” (Gen 14:15) or even “indentured servant.” The root word has been rendered “service” (Num 4:2), “work” (Gen 2:15), “servant” (Gen 32:4), and even “worship” in various forms (2 Sam 15:8, “acts of service”) [2].
It is not often recognized that servant and master relationships were essentially voluntary. Leviticus 25 deals specifically with a fellow Hebrew citizen who had fallen on hard times: “If your brother has become poor and his hand cannot support himself among you, then you are to uphold him. He may live with you like an outsider or a temporary resident” (Lev 25:35). The servant/master relationship was designed to provide and care for those who had fallen into poverty until, at the latest, the year of Jubilee (Lev 25:39–41). The goal was restoration, and ultimately freedom from servitude. We see this in the following cases with Hebrew and foreign servants.
Hebrew Male Servants
Exodus 21 details the condition in which a man is to leave his period of slavery/servanthood. If a man comes into his servanthood single, he is to leave single. If he comes in married, he leaves with his family. But if he desires to marry within the family sheltering him, if he chooses to leave, he must leave his wife and children behind. However, he can choose to stay for the sake of his wife and children who were born during his servitude. Perhaps this is an outworking of the statement that a man leaves his family and attaches himself to his wife (Gen 2:24), not the other way around. Both Exodus 21:5 and Deuteronomy 15:16–17 state that the man choosing to stay becomes a servant forever. However, in Leviticus 25:40–41 the Jubilee year brings freedom even in this case, where the man can leave with his intact family to his ancestral home and larger family. Rabbi Elie Munk commented on this passage, “The Jubilee gave the rights of freedom even to those slaves who had their ear pierced as a sign of accepting permanent bondage.” [3] These passages demonstrate the need for considering all the passages concerning a particular topic in the Torah together, instead of relying on only one passage in isolation.
The goal of servitude for Hebrew male servants was to bring them to a point of freedom. In the case of a person who is in servitude for six years, it seems clear that the goal of the servitude is to bring the servant to a point of self-reliance and a return to prosperity. This is explicit in Deuteronomy 15:12–14. In the seventh year a servant is to go free with generous provision. The one who chooses to remain is addressed in this passage with the same goal, providing for him as one would a family member.
Hebrew Female Servants
Female servants are treated in a significantly different way than male servants. Hebrew females who become servants are to be treated as if they were to eventually become married. Exodus 21:7–11 enumerates these conditions. If a single female becomes a servant, she is to be treated as if she were to become married within the community, specifically to the person purchasing her or to one of his family members. If one of his sons marries her, she is to be treated as a daughter (Exod 21:9). If she is not to be married, then she can be redeemed by her own family. If she is a second wife and is not taken care of properly, she can leave without penalty.
Women, in this case, are not to be treated as servants, but as either one betrothed or as a daughter. The end goal is to incorporate female servants into the family, as children and spouses. In such a manner they become heirs, and part of the family. An important Messianic connection can be discerned in the female servant relationship, in that the Messiah called his people his bride, and no longer only servants. This is sharply contrasted to the chattel slaves of the American tradition, who were seen as property in perpetuity.
Foreign Females
It is interesting that in the case of a conflict, if a foreign woman is captured as part of a battle, she can be incorporated into the family in a very similar way as a native-born female. If a Hebrew man desires any of these women, then he can marry her after a waiting period of thirty days, thus forestalling any designs of rape. Munk attributed this as a restraint on passions that may be inflamed in the course of a battle. [4] It is noteworthy that if the man does not go through with the marriage, then the woman is completely free and has no obligation to him. She presumably is free to marry into any other Israelite family except for the Aaronic community.
Foreign Servants
Foreigners were not to be treated in the same way as the native-born, or women captured in war. This group of people are described in Leviticus 25:44–46. Leviticus 19:34 provides the paradigm for Jewish attitudes towards foreigners living in their midst: “The outsider dwelling among you shall be to you as the native-born among you. You shall love him as yourself—for you dwelled as outsiders in the land of Egypt. I am ADONAI your God.” The people of Israel were strangers in Egypt, experienced improper degradation and were treated poorly. Therefore, they were to be careful to treat strangers well as a contrast and as a reminder. In Deuteronomy 10:18–19 God goes so far to say that he loves the sojourner, therefore the Israelite was also to love them. With these directives about sojourners as a foundation, attention can be given to the treatment of servants.
According to Leviticus 25, individuals originating from the nations surrounding Israel can voluntarily become servants. Both those who have recently come into the land, as well as those who were born in the land of Israel might find the necessity of enslaving themselves. In this case, unlike Israelites, there is no freedom offered to these either in the sabbatical year, or in the Fiftieth Jubilee year. However, if we look more closely, even for the foreigner, God’s ultimate desire is for their freedom, and, should they become permanent inhabitants, their incorporation into the nation of Israel.
There is no hint in the Torah that the circumstances for foreigners should be fundamentally different than the native. The servitude, for native and foreigner alike, would be voluntary. For the foreigner, servitude could be lifelong, extending even to the second generation. With the native servant, though, their servitude is said, like the foreigner, to be “forever” (Exod 21:5, Deut 15:16–17), and Leviticus 25:40–41 limits such cases to no longer than the Jubilee year. We should ask: Is there a corresponding limitation for the servitude of the foreign born? In answer, Deuteronomy 23:7–8 refers to at least two nationalities that were to be constrained to only three generations: “You are not to detest an Edomite, for he is your brother. You are not to detest an Egyptian, for you were an outsider in his land. The children born to them—the third generation—may enter the community of ADONAI.”
Foreign Servants Compared to Native-Born Servants
We can safely assume that the foreigner who sells themselves into servanthood has done so for the same reasons as would the native-born Israelite (Lev 25:35). Hard times could be known by both. And yet the situation for foreigners was fundamentally different than for native Israelites. The native born who had sold themselves into servitude had the possibility of family redeeming them, the possibility of starting over with their own land within their family and tribe. There was a “safety net” of sorts, family and ancestral rights to land usage. The foreigner, if they came to live in the land, would have no rights to land ownership, nor would they have family to claim the right of redemption. They were utterly dependent on the good graces of the Israelite populace for their well-being. Foreigners had no such ”safety net.” If a foreigner and/or his family fell into poverty, there was an obligation on the part of the Israelite population to provide for them. Providing for a poverty-stricken foreigner in a similar way as for a child of Israel was incumbent on the locals. Since they did not have any right to land or inheritance, there was great likelihood that they would be dependent for their whole lives, and the lives of their children. If they were refugees from war, there would be no possibility of returning to their own nation or city as it would have been destroyed. Within Israel there was a way for them to be provided for in exchange for labor for the community or family who had taken responsibility for them. If we follow the example in Deuteronomy, then if a family became permanent residents, in the third generation they would become citizens, would become a part of Israel, and gain land inheritance rights. In this case there was a lifelong, even a two-generation commitment to living in the land. The children would become a part of the Israelite people. Foreigners had a path to freedom, by eventually becoming assimilated into the nation of Israel, to participate in national civil and religious life, and demonstrate worship of the God of Israel.
Kingdom Life
The Kingdom of God and its ideals were to be reflected in Israelite society [5]. The community life of Israel, how they treated one another, and how they were to demonstrate God’s heart for mercy and justice, is well summarized in the instructions to Israel as they were preparing to enter the land long promised to Abraham. “You must keep and do them, for it is your wisdom and understanding in the eyes of the peoples, who will hear all these statutes and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ For what great nation is there that has gods so near to them, as ADONAI our God is whenever we call on Him? What great nation is there that has statutes and ordinances that are righteous—like all of this Torah that I am setting before you today?” (Deut 4:6–8).
The nations would see the greatness of the Kingdom of God as reflected in the righteous and caring way that Israelites treated one another. This especially included how they treated outsiders and the poor or dispossessed who entered into or found themselves a part of their society.
In all cases servitude was designed to lead to freedom, both economic and personal. Instead of being a way for Israelites to exercise domination and subjugation, each of these situations provided life-giving support that was designed ultimately to lead to economic freedom for the servant. God’s goal for his people was and is to demonstrate God’s care and love for all the nations, but especially those who are a part of God’s society, as an essential aspect of the Kingdom of God.
“Therefore, whenever we have an opportunity, let us do good toward all—especially those who belong to the household of faith” (Gal 6:10).
Dr. Rod Eisenberg - Professor - Chemist - C&MA Leader - Messianic Jewish Chaplain
[1] John Locke argued that even if slaves became Christians, they should be forever subjugated as property. See "Fundamental Constitutions of Carolina". Avalon Project. Yale University. Online; available from https://avalon.law.yale.edu/17th_century/nc05.asp
[2] All Scripture quotations are from the Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society. 2015. Holy Scriptures: Tree of Life Version. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.
[3] Rabbi Elie Munk, transl. E.S. Mazer, The Call of the Torah, Shemot, (Mesorah Publications, Ltd., 1992), p 311.
[4] 4 Munk, The Call of the Torah, Devarim, (Mesorah Publications, Ltd., 1992), p. 215
[5] 5 This paper addresses one aspect of the Kingdom of God described in the book The Greatness of the Kingdom, Alva J. McClain, 1959, Winona Lake, IN, BMH Books.