Slave in the Bible Encyclopedia - ISBE

slav, slav'-er-i: 1. Acquiring of Slaves 2. Hebrews as War Captives 3. Freedom of Slaves 4. Rights of Slaves 5. Rights of Slave Masters 6. The New Testament Conception LITERATURE The origin of the term "slave" is traced to the German sklave, meaning a captive of the Slavonic race who had been forced into servitude (compare Slav); French esclave, Dutch slaaf, Swedish slaf, Spanish esclavo. The word "slave" occurs only in Jer 2:14 and in Rev 18:13, where it is suggested by the context and not expressed in the original languages (Hebrew yelidh bayith, "one born in the house"; Greek soma, "body"). However, the Hebrew word `ebhedh, in the Old Testament and the Greek word doulos, in the New Testament more properly might have been translated "slave" instead of "servant" or "bondservant," understanding though that the slavery of Judaism was not the cruel system of Greece, Rome, and later nations. The prime thought is service; the servant may render free service, the slave, obligatory, restricted service. Scripture statement rather than philological study must form the basis of this article. We shall notice how slaves could be secured, sold and redeemed; also their rights and their masters' rights, confining the study to Old Testament Scripture, noting in conclusion the New Testament conception. The word "slave" in this article refers to the Hebrew slave unless otherwise designated. 1. Acquiring of Slaves: Slaves might be acquired in the following ways, namely: (1) Bought. There are many instances of buying slaves (Lev 25:39 ff). Hebrew slavery broke into the ranks of every human relationship: a father could sell his daughter (Ex 21:7; Neh 5:5); a widow's children might be sold to pay their father's debt (2 Ki 4:1); a man could sell himself (Lev 25:39,47); a woman could sell herself (Dt 15:12,13,17), etc. Prices paid were somewhat indefinite. According to Ex 21:32 thirty shekels was a standard price, but Lev 27:3-7 gives a scale of from 3 to 50 shekels according to age and sex, with a provision for an appeal to the priest in case of uncertainty (27:8). Twenty shekels is the price set for a young man (27:5), and this corresponds with the sum paid for Joseph (Gen 37:28). But in 2 Macc 8:11 the price on the average is 90 for a talent, i.e. 40 shekels...