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Does the Bible Condone Slavery?

Slavery is considered wrong by all civilized societies today. But do right and wrong change with time? If something is wrong today, was it not wrong yesterday? Though it took society time to "discover" that slavery is wrong, wasn't it ALWAYS wrong? If slavery is wrong, and the Bible is the word of the eternal, unchanging God, then why doesn't God seem to know that it is wrong? But if the Bible is the word of mere men living in ancient, barbaric times, then its perfectly understandable it would not condemn what was a normal practice for those times.

There are many Biblical passages which appear to condone slavery. And while there are some that regulate it and prescribe more humane treatment, there seem to be none that outright condemn it. And what's more, the commands that prescribe more humane treatment often only apply to Hebrew slaves, and not to foreigner slaves. Let's take a look:

Verses Condoning Slavery

"If you buy a Hebrew slave, he shall serve for six years; but on the seventh he shall go out as a free man without payment. "If he comes alone, he shall go out alone; if he is the husband of a wife, then his wife shall go out with him. "If his master gives him a wife, and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall belong to her master, and he shall go out alone. "But if the slave plainly says, 'I love my master, my wife and my children; I will not go out as a free man,' then his master shall bring him to God, then he shall bring him to the door or the doorpost. And his master shall pierce his ear with an awl; and he shall serve him permanently. Exodus 21:2-6

Limiting a slave's bondage to six or seven years is commendable, but notice that it only applies to the Hebrew slaves.

If a man sells his daughter as a female slave, she is not to go free as the male slaves do. "If she is displeasing in the eyes of her master who designated her for himself, then he shall let her be redeemed. He does not have authority to sell her to a foreign people because of his unfairness to her. "If he designates her for his son, he shall deal with her according to the custom of daughters. "If he takes to himself another woman, he may not reduce her food, her clothing, or her conjugal rights. "If he will not do these three things for her, then she shall go out for nothing, without payment of money. Exodus 21:7-11

God seems to think its okay to sell your daughter into slavery, though at least he does want her treated nicely:

"If a man strikes his male or female slave with a rod and he dies at his hand, he shall be punished. "If, however, he survives a day or two, no vengeance shall be taken; for he is his property. Exodus 21:20-21

Does this mean that its okay to beat your slave to death as long as he survives a day or two before he dies?

'Your male and female slaves are to come from the nations around you; from them you may buy slaves. You may also buy some of the temporary residents living among you and members of their clans born in your country, and they will become your property. You can will them to your children as inherited property and can make them slaves for life, but you must not rule over your fellow Israelites ruthlessly. Leviticus 25: 44-46 NIV

Another example of more humane treatment FOR ISRAELITES ONLY.

When you march up to attack a city, make its people an offer of peace. If they accept and open their gates, all the people in it shall be subject to forced labor and shall work for you. Deuteronomy 20:10

They did not dislodge the Canaanites living in Gezer; to this day the Canaanites live among the people of Ephraim but are required to do forced labor. Joshua 16:10

When Israel became strong, they pressed the Canaanites into forced labor but never drove them out completely.... .Neither did Zebulun drive out the Canaanites living in Kitron or Nahalol, who remained among them; but they did subject them to forced labor.....Neither did Naphtali drive out those living in Beth Shemesh or Beth Anath; but the Naphtalites too lived among the Canaanite inhabitants of the land, and those living in Beth Shemesh and Beth Anath became forced laborers for them..... And the Amorites were determined also to hold out in Mount Heres, Aijalon and Shaalbim, but when the power of the house of Joseph increased, they too were pressed into forced labor. Judges 1:28,30,33,35

The Israelites even used slave labor to build Yahweh's/God's holy temple:

Here is the account of the forced labor King Solomon conscripted to build the LORD's temple, his own palace, the supporting terraces, the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, Megiddo and Gezer. 1 Kings 9:15 NASB

All the people left from the Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites (these peoples were not Israelites), that is, their descendants remaining in the land, whom the Israelites had not destroyed-these Solomon conscripted for his slave labor force, as it is to this day. 2 Chronicles 8:8 NIV

He sent them off to Lebanon in shifts of ten thousand a month, so that they spent one month in Lebanon and two months at home. Adoniram was in charge of the forced labor.1 Kings 5:14 NIV

One of the earliest mentions of slavery comes from Genesis:

When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him, he said, "Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers." Genesis 9:24-25

This seems to be the Hebrew's attempt to justify enslaving the Canaanites, as Canaan is taken to be the father of the Canaanties. (Though it has historically been used to justification enslavement of blacks/Africans, who were (erroneously) depicted to be descendants of Ham.)

The New Testament also has some verses that seem to condone slavery:

All who are under the yoke as slaves are to regard their own masters as worthy of all honor so that the name of God and our doctrine will not be spoken against. Those who have believers as their masters must not be disrespectful to them because they are brethren, but must serve them all the more, because those who partake of the benefit are believers and beloved. Teach and preach these principles. 1 Timothy 6:1-2

Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.
Ephesians 6:5-8

Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to win their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. Colossians 3:22-24

Teach slaves to be subject to their masters in everything, to try to please them, not to talk back to them, and not to steal from them, but to show that they can be fully trusted, so that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive. Titus 2:9-10

Slaves, submit yourselves to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh. For it is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because he is conscious of God. 1 Peter 2:18-19

And of course, nearly all of the Bible's patriarchs owned slaves, for example:

and she said to Abraham, "Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that slave woman's son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac." Genesis 21:10 NIV

So Laban went into Jacob's tent and into Leah's tent and into the tent of the two maidservants, but he found nothing. After he came out of Leah's tent, he entered Rachel's tent. Genesis 31:33

Verses Somewhat Critical of Slavery, or Prescribing More Humane Treatment, or Somewhat Sympathetic to the Slave's Plight

"If a countryman of yours becomes so poor with regard to you that he sells himself to you, you shall not subject him to a slave's service. He shall be with you as a hired man, as if he were a sojourner; he shall serve with you until the year of jubilee. 'He shall then go out from you, he and his sons with him, and shall go back to his family, that he may return to the property of his forefathers. For they are My servants whom I brought out from the land of Egypt; they are not to be sold in a slave sale. You shall not rule over him with severity, but are to revere your God." Leviticus 25:39-43

Though this command for humane treatment is commendable, note that it ONLY applies to Hebrews/Israelites, while the foreigners/heathens could be made slaves for life (see Lev 25:44-46 above).

If a fellow Hebrew, a man or a woman, sells himself to you and serves you six years, in the seventh year you must let him go free. And when you release him, do not send him away empty-handed. Supply him liberally from your flock, your threshing floor and your winepress. Give to him as the LORD your God has blessed you. Deut 15: 12-14 NIV

Well that's real nice, but once again notice that it only applies to Hebrew slaves.

"Six days do your work, but on the seventh day do not work, so that your ox and your donkey may rest and the slave born in your household, and the alien as well, may be refreshed. Exodus 23:12

Anyone who kidnaps another and either sells him or still has him when he is caught must be put to death. Exodus 21:16 NIV

If a man hits a manservant or maidservant in the eye and destroys it, he must let the servant go free to compensate for the eye. And if he knocks out the tooth of a manservant or maidservant, he must let the servant go free to compensate for the tooth. Exodus 21:26-27

Hmm... Not a bad deal for the slave, go free just for getting a tooth knocked out.

"You shall not hand over to his master a slave who has escaped from his master to you. He shall live with you in your midst, in the place which he shall choose in one of your towns where it pleases him; you shall not mistreat him." Deuteronomy 23:15-16

The small and the great are there, And the slave is free from his master. Job 3:19

THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME,
BECAUSE HE ANOINTED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR.
HE HAS SENT ME TO PROCLAIM RELEASE TO THE CAPTIVES,
AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND,
TO SET FREE THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED, Luke 4:18-19

We also know that law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious; for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, for adulterers and perverts, for slave traders and liars and perjurers--and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine. 1 Timothy 1:9-10

Note: Other translations use "prisoners" instead of "captives" in Luke 4, and "kidnappers" instead of "slave traders" in 1 Timothy 1.

And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him. Ephesians 6:9

Masters, provide your slaves with what is right and fair, because you know that you also have a Master in heaven. Colossians 4:1

There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. Galatians 3:28 NIV

The Apologist's Defense

Apologists generally use the following arguments for a defense:

Just because the Bible records and recognizes slavery and regulates it doesn't mean it condones it.
The slavery in the Bible was not like the slavery of the blacks in America, the slaves in the Bible were treated much kinder and were more like family members than slaves (except that the Israelites WERE treated very badly as slaves by the Egyptians).
The slavery of the Bible was more of a service to the poor and destitute, giving them a way to voluntarily sell themselves to pay off debts.
Slavery was a vital part of the ancient world. Though he would have liked to condemn it, God didn't want to upset the social order too much. So he just gave the commands for more humane treatment.
Dismiss the entire issue outright by emphasizing "God's love".

What's my take on it?

It does seem as if the patriarch's slaves were treated generally well, more like a member of the family. But does that mean that slavery is okay as long as you treat your slave well? With the slavery that occurred in the American South, the common portrayals of widespread harsh treatment and abuse might be questionable. Certainly there were instances, but the slaves were considered valuable property after all. Often the slave owners were not large-scale plantation owners but small-time individual farmers who owned only a handful of slaves and worked side-by-side with them in the fields. House slaves could even be treated like a member of the family, not unlike the cases of the Bible's patriarch's slaves. But all that is beside the point. Even if you DO treat your slave well, isn't it STILL WRONG TO OWN ANOTHER HUMAN BEING AS PROPERTY AND SUBJECT THEM TO FORCED LABOR?

A few points to ponder:

If God said "you may take slaves from the nations/heathens around you and make them slaves for life", that is more than simply recording slavery. (Leviticus 25:44-46)
It was so bad for Pharaoh to subject the Hebrews to forced labor building his temples and palaces in Egypt, but apparently it was okay for Solomon to subject the Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites to forced labor building his temples and palaces in Israel. (1 Kings 9:15 and 2 Chronicles 8:8)
If we are going to generalize and say the Israelites treated their slaves so well, then why the need for punishment for beating them to death? (Exodus 21:20-21). There also seems to be no punishment for beating a slave without it resulting in death, though if you knock out a tooth or put out an eye they get to go free (Ex 21:26).
Despite the best efforts of the apologists to depict the Biblical slavery as voluntary and a service to the poor, the Bible itself show the slavery of the Canaanites resulted from them being taken captive in war (the usual method of enslavement in ancient times).
Despite the apologist's attempts to portray Biblical slaves as being treated more like family members, living with and working alongside their masters, verses like 1 Kings 5:14 shows this NOT to be the case- that it was more of chattel slavery.
The apologists seem to conveniently ignore that many of the verses prescribing more humane treatment only applied to the Hebrew slaves and not the foreign slaves.
Are we really saying that the God of the universe was afraid of upsetting the social order and would allow and even prescribe something so that is so wrong?