*God Condones Slavery!
Published by Campbell M Gold in Historical · Friday 01 Mar 2024
Tags: God, Slavery, Bible, Testaments, Genesis, Revelation, Civilization, Jefferson, Davis, President, Confederate, States, of, America
Tags: God, Slavery, Bible, Testaments, Genesis, Revelation, Civilization, Jefferson, Davis, President, Confederate, States, of, America
God Condones Slavery!
This material, filled with sensitive and controversial content, is presented here not to influence your opinions but to ignite your academic curiosity. The information and interpretations herein do not reflect any opinion of this editor or our clients. Instead, they invite you to delve into a contentious but crucial re-evaluation.
Slavery
19th-century Quotations
"[Slavery] was established by decree of Almighty God...it is sanctioned in the Bible, in both Testaments, from Genesis to Revelation...it has existed in all ages, has been found among the people of the highest civilization, and in nations of the highest proficiency in the arts." Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederate States of America.
(Dunbar Rowland quoting Jefferson Davis, in "Jefferson Davis, Constitutionalist: His Letters, Papers and Speeches. J. J. Little & Ives Company, 1923, Page 286)
(Jefferson Davis, from a speech in the US Senate on 1850-FEB-14)
(Inaugural Address as Provisional President of the Confederate States of America, Montgomery, AL, Feb. 18, 1861)
"The right of holding slaves is clearly established in the Holy Scriptures, both by precept and example." Rev. R. Furman, D.D., Baptist, of South Carolina
"The right of holding slaves is clearly established in the Holy Scriptures, both by precept and example." Rev. R. Furman, D.D., Baptist, of South Carolina
"The hope of civilization itself hangs on the defeat of Negro suffrage." A statement by a prominent 19th-century southern Presbyterian pastor, cited by Rev. Jack Rogers, moderator of the Presbyterian Church (USA).
"The doom of Ham has been branded on the form and features of his African descendants. The hand of fate has united his color and destiny. Man cannot separate what God hath joined." United States Senator James Henry Hammond.
(William Lee Miller, "Arguing About Slavery: The Great Battle in the United States Congress." Alfred A. Knopf, (1996), Page 139)
21st Century Quotation
"If we apply sola scriptura to slavery, I'm afraid the abolitionists are on relatively weak ground. Nowhere is slavery in the Bible lambasted as an oppressive and evil institution: Vaughn Roste, United Church of Canada staff."
The Bible Sanctions Slavery
References to slavery are replete throughout the Bible in both the Old and New Testaments. Moreover, the Bible sanctions slavery in many passages and describes how to obtain slaves, how hard they can be beaten, and when sex can be had with female slaves.
“Many Jews and Christians will try to ignore the moral problems of slavery by saying that these slaves were actually servants or indentured servants. Many translations of the Bible use the word "servant", "bondservant", or "manservant" instead of "slave" to make the Bible seem less immoral than it really is. While many slaves may have worked as household servants, that doesn't mean that they were not slaves who were bought, sold, and treated worse than livestock.”
(Quoted from: http://www.evilbible.com/Slavery.htm)
Old Testament
The first instance of slavery in the Bible consists of Noah's punishment of his son Canaan:
(Gen 9:20) And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a vineyard:
(Gen 9:21) And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent.
(Gen 9:22) And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without.
(Gen 9:23) And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father's nakedness.
(Gen 9:24) And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done unto him.
(Gen 9:25) And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren.
Following are the same verses from the New International Version of the Bible:
20 Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard. 21 When he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent. 22 Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father's nakedness and told his two brothers outside. 23 But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it across their shoulders; then they walked in backward and covered their father's nakedness. Their faces were turned the other way so that they would not see their father's nakedness. 24 When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him, 25 he said, "Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers."
Thus, the first Biblical reference to slavery was a punishment for some transgression. This was the rule of the Law, and thieves and enemies of the Jews could be made slaves:
(Exod 22:2) If a thief be found breaking up, and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him.
(Exod 22:3) If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be blood shed for him; for he should make full restitution; if he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft.
(2 Chr 28:8) And the children of Israel carried away captive of their brethren two hundred thousand, women, sons, and daughters, and took also away much spoil from them, and brought the spoil to Samaria.
Slaves are property to be bought and sold like livestock
(Lev 25:44) Both thy bondmen, and thy bondmaids, which thou shalt have, shall be of the heathen that are round about you; of them shall ye buy bondmen and bondmaids:
(Lev 25:45) Moreover of the children of the strangers that do sojourn among you, of them shall ye buy, and of their families that are with you, which they begat in your land: and they shall be your possession.
(Lev 25:46) And ye shall take them as an inheritance for your children after you, to inherit them for a possession; they shall be your bondmen for ever: but over your brethren the children of Israel, ye shall not rule one over another with rigour.
Following are the same verses from the New International Version of the Bible – this is given to identify the word “slave(s)”:
44 " 'Your male and female slaves are to come from the nations around you; from them you may buy slaves. 45 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. 46 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.
Treatment of Slaves
(Exod 21:2) If thou buy an Hebrew servant, six years he shall serve: and in the seventh he shall go out free for nothing.
(Exod 21:3) If he came in by himself, he shall go out by himself: if he were married, then his wife shall go out with him.
(Exod 21:4) If his master have given him a wife, and she have born him sons or daughters; the wife and her children shall be her master's, and he shall go out by himself.
(Exod 21:5) And if the servant shall plainly say, I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free:
(Exod 21:6) Then his master shall bring him unto the judges; he shall also bring him to the door, or unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an aul; and he shall serve him for ever.
Notice how a male Hebrew slave can be made to become a permanent slave by keeping his wife and children hostage until he ‘says’ he wants to become a permanent slave.
See Also
(Deut 15:16) And it shall be, if he say unto thee, I will not go away from thee; because he loveth thee and thine house, because he is well with thee;
(Deut 15:17) Then thou shalt take an aul, and thrust it through his ear unto the door, and he shall be thy servant for ever. And also unto thy maidservant thou shalt do likewise.
Sex Slavery
(Exod 21:7) And if a man sell his daughter to be a maidservant, she shall not go out as the menservants do.
(Exod 21:8) If she please not her master, who hath betrothed her to himself, then shall he let her be redeemed: to sell her unto a strange nation he shall have no power, seeing he hath dealt deceitfully with her.
(Exod 21:9) And if he have betrothed her unto his son, he shall deal with her after the manner of daughters.
(Exod 21:10) If he take him another wife; her food, her raiment, and her duty of marriage, shall he not diminish.
(Exod 21:11) And if he do not these three unto her, then shall she go out free without money.
Beating and Maiming Slaves
(Exod 21:20) And if a man smite his servant, or his maid, with a rod, and he die under his hand; he shall be surely punished.
(Exod 21:21) Notwithstanding, if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished: for he is his money.
(Exod 21:26) And if a man smite the eye of his servant, or the eye of his maid, that it perish; he shall let him go free for his eye's sake.
(Exod 21:27) And if he smite out his manservant's tooth, or his maidservant's tooth; he shall let him go free for his tooth's sake.
God Gives Slaves as the Spoils of Conquest
(Deut 20:13) And when the LORD thy God hath delivered it into thine hands, thou shalt smite every male thereof with the edge of the sword:
(Deut 20:14) But the women, and the little ones, and the cattle, and all that is in the city, even all the spoil thereof, shalt thou take unto thyself; and thou shalt eat the spoil of thine enemies, which the LORD thy God hath given thee.
(2 Chr 28:8) And the children of Israel carried away captive of their brethren two hundred thousand, women, sons, and daughters, and took also away much spoil from them, and brought the spoil to Samaria.
New Testament
Jesus Condones Slavery, and Slaves Must Obey Their Masters
(Eph 6:5) Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ;
(Col 3:22) Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God;
(1 Tim 6:1) Let as many servants as are under the yoke count their own masters worthy of all honour, that the name of God and his doctrine be not blasphemed.
(1 Tim 6:2) And they that have believing masters, let them not despise them, because they are brethren; but rather do them service, because they are faithful and beloved, partakers of the benefit. These things teach and exhort.
(Matt 10:24) The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord.
(John 13:16) Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him.
Slaves are to Obey even Bad Masters
(1 Pet 2:18) Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear; not only to the good and gentle, but also to the froward.
Christ Says that Slaves Must Know Their Place
(Tit 2:9) Exhort servants to be obedient unto their own masters, and to please them well in all things; not answering again;
(Tit 2:10) Not purloining, but shewing all good fidelity; that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things.
Christ Approves of Beating Slaves
(Luke 12:47) And that servant, which knew his lord's will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes.
(Luke 12:48) But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.
God Threatens to Sell the Unfaithful
(Joel 3:8) And I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hand of the children of Judah, and they shall sell them to the Sabeans, to a people far off: for the LORD hath spoken it.
Note: it is worth noting that many church officials including popes have owned slaves - Spong, John S., The Sins of Scripture, Harper San Francisco, 2005, pg.155
Islam and Slavery
(The following section is taken from - Silas, http://www.answering-islam.org/Silas/slavery.htm)
“Islam institutionalized slavery. Muhammad began to take slaves after he moved to Medina, and had power. Slaves were usually taken in raids on nearby Arab tribes, or war, either through offensive or defensive actions. Islam allows the taking of slaves as "booty", or reward for fighting. This has led to numerous "jihads" by Muslim states and tribes to attack other non-Muslim groups and obtain slaves. Islamic jurisprudence laid down regulations for the proper treatment of slaves. However, abuses have occurred throughout history.”
"However, few people in the west know about Islam and slavery. Most would be surprised that Islam authorizes the taking of slaves as spoils of war. From the days that Muhammad drew his sword to rob and conquer non-Muslims to this very day, Muslims have been taking non-Muslims, and even other black Muslims, as slaves."
"Muslims were enslaving black Africans long before any slave ships sailed for the New World. Muslims were taking and making slaves all over the lands they had conquered. Later, when slave ships were loaded with black slaves, often, a Muslim slave broker had the human cargo all ready to go. American slavers rarely had to go into inland to capture slaves, they were already waiting there, courtesy of some Muslim ruler, and/or slave broker! In many cases, if the black slaves were not sent to the New World, they were sent to the Mideast to be enslaved by Arabs, or kept by other black Muslims as slaves."
(Quoted verbatim - Silas, http://www.answering-islam.org/Silas/slavery.htm)
Quran
33:50 - "Prophet, We have made lawful to you the wives to whom you have granted dowries and the slave girls whom God has given you as booty."
This verse clearly shows that Muslims believe that taking slaves in war was a God-given right. These slaves were considered 'booty' or the spoils of war. As the saying goes: to the victors go the spoils.
The passage's context here (not quoted in full) details how Muslim males are allowed to have sexual relations with their wives and slave girls. Implicit in this is that Muslim males had slave-oncubines. 70:30 is basically a repeat of 23:5.
Ibn Sa'd's "Tabaqat", gives a clear description of Muhammad having "relations" with at least one of his slave girls. Muhammad had sexual relations with Mariyah, his Coptic slave. Mariyah and her sister, Sirin were slaves given as gifts to Muhammad. Muhammad gave Sirin to Hasan Thabit, the poet. Ibn Sa'd says that Muhammad "liked Mariyah, who was of white complexion, with curly hair and pretty." [Taken from Ibn Sa'd's "Kitab al-Tabaqat al-Kabir" (Book of the Major Classes), p151].
Ibn Sa'd also writes that Mariyah bore Muhammad a son named Ibrahim. He died 18 months later. Sa'd writes: "If he had lived, no maternal uncle of his would have remained in bondage", p164. This shows that there were other Coptic slaves owned by the Muslims.
The Quran also instructs Muslims NOT to force their female slaves into prostitution (24:34), and even allows Muslims to marry slaves if they so desire (4:24), and to free them at times as a penalty for crime or sin (4:92, 5:89, 58:3) and even allows slaves to buy their liberty, if they meet certain of their master's conditions (24:33). [90:10 'freeing of a bondsman' refers to Muslims ransoming other Muslims who were slaves of non-Muslims.]
While I think it's nice to allow a slave to obtain his freedom, (at his master's discretion) it is tragic that Islam allows them to be enslaved in the first place. That's like robbing a bank and giving some of the money back to the bank, and thinking you did the right thing!
The above verses show that taking slaves was ordained by Allah, and that it was permissible for Muslim males to have sex with their female slaves. It also shows that slaves were a valuable commodity to the Muslims, otherwise, Allah would not have imposed the penalty of freeing a slave to make up for a crime.
(Quoted verbatim - Silas, http://www.answering-islam.org/Silas/slavery.htm)
Other Islamic Writings
Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya, a great scholar and Islamic historian says in his book "Zad al-Ma'ad", part 1, p160:
"Muhammad had many male and female slaves. He used to buy and sell them, but he purchased more slaves then he sold. He once sold one black slave for two. His purchases of slaves were more than he sold."
"Muhammad had a number of black slaves. One of them was named 'Mahran'. Muhammad forced him to do more labor than the average man. Whenever Muhammad went on a trip and he, or his people, got tired of carrying their stuff, he made Mahran carry it. Mahran said "Even if I were already carrying the load of 6 or 7 donkeys while we were on a journey, anyone who felt weak would throw his clothes or his shield or his sword on me so I would carry that, a heavy load". Tabari and Jawziyya both record this, so Islam accepts this as true."
(Quoted verbatim - Silas, http://www.answering-islam.org/Silas/slavery.htm)
The Rights of Slaves Under Islam
According to the Hughes Dictionary of Islam, slaves had few civil or legal rights:
- Muslim men were allowed to have sex anytime with females slaves - Sura 4:3, 4:29, 33:49.
- Slaves are as helpless before their masters as idols are before God - Sura 16:77
- According to Islamic Tradition, people at the time of their capture were either to be killed, or enslaved. Shows you that they were at the bottom of the barrel to start with.
- According to Islamic jurisprudence, slaves were merchandise. The sales of slaves was in accordance with the sale of animals.
- Muhammad ordered that some slaves who were freed by their master be RE-ENSLAVED!
- It is permissible under Islamic law to whip slaves.
- According to Islam, a Muslim could not be put to death for murdering a slave. Ref. 2:178 and the Jalalayn confirm this.
- According to Islam, the testimony of slaves is not admissible in court. Ibn Timiyya and Bukhari state this.
- According to Islamic jurisprudence, slaves cannot choose their own marriage mate. - Ibn Hazm, vol. 6, part 9.
- According to Islamic jurisprudence, slaves can be forced to marry who their masters want. - Malik ibn Anas, vol. 2, page 155.
Slavery continued in Islamic lands from about the beginning to this very day. Muslim rulers always found support in the Quran to call 'jihad', partly for booty, part for the purpose of taking slaves. As the Islamic empire disintegrated into smaller kingdoms, and each ruler was able to decide what Islam's theology really meant. Usually, he always found it in support of what he wanted to do. Their calls of jihad against their neighbor facilitated the taking of slaves for Islam. The Quran and Islamic jurisprudence support the taking of slaves, so, those petty Muslim rulers were following the Quran when they needed slaves.
(Quoted verbatim - Silas, http://www.answering-islam.org/Silas/slavery.htm)
Who Can Be Made Slaves Under Islam?
- Islam allows Muslims to make slaves out of anyone who is captured during war.
- Islam allows for the children of slaves to be raised as slaves
- Like #1, Islam allows for Christians and Jews to be made into slaves if they are captured in war. After Muslim armies attacked and conquered Spain, they took thousands of slaves back to Damascus. The key prize was 1000 virgins as slaves. They were forced to go all the way back to Damascus.
- Christians and Jews, who had made a treaty with the ruling Muslims could be made into slaves if they did not pay the "protection" tax. This paying for 'protection' was just like paying a Mafia racketeer! This allowed Muslim rulers to extort money from non-Muslim people.
Source:
As noted in the text
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