'Slave' in the Bible

He also said, "Worthy of praise is the Lord, the God of Shem! May Canaan be the slave of Shem!

May God enlarge Japheth's territory and numbers! May he live in the tents of Shem and may Canaan be his slave!"

So she said to Abraham, "Banish that slave woman and her son, for the son of that slave woman will not be an heir along with my son Isaac!"

But God said to Abraham, "Do not be upset about the boy or your slave wife. Do all that Sarah is telling you because through Isaac your descendants will be counted.

But I will also make the son of the slave wife into a great nation, for he is your descendant too."

This was my lot for twenty years in your house: I worked like a slave for you -- fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks, but you changed my wages ten times!

This is what she said to him: "That Hebrew slave you brought to us tried to humiliate me,

When his master heard his wife say, "This is the way your slave treated me," he became furious.

He replied, "You have suggested your own punishment! The one who has it will become my slave, but the rest of you will go free."

But Joseph said, "Far be it from me to do this! The man in whose hand the cup was found will become my slave, but the rest of you may go back to your father in peace."

"So now, please let your servant remain as my lord's slave instead of the boy. As for the boy, let him go back with his brothers.

When he sees a good resting place, and the pleasant land, he will bend his shoulder to the burden and become a slave laborer.

During that long period of time the king of Egypt died, and the Israelites groaned because of the slave labor. They cried out, and their desperate cry because of their slave labor went up to God.

That same day Pharaoh commanded the slave masters and foremen who were over the people:

So the slave masters of the people and their foremen went to the Israelites and said, "Thus says Pharaoh: 'I am not giving you straw.

The slave masters were pressuring them, saying, "Complete your work for each day, just like when there was straw!"

The Israelite foremen whom Pharaoh's slave masters had set over them were beaten and were asked, "Why did you not complete your requirement for brickmaking as in the past -- both yesterday and today?"

and all the firstborn in the land of Egypt will die, from the firstborn son of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, to the firstborn son of the slave girl who is at her hand mill, and all the firstborn of the cattle.

"'When a man has sexual intercourse with a woman, although she is a slave woman designated for another man and she has not yet been ransomed, or freedom has not been granted to her, there will be an obligation to pay compensation. They must not be put to death, because she was not free.

"'If your brother becomes impoverished with regard to you so that he sells himself to you, you must not subject him to slave service.

Since they are my servants whom I brought out from the land of Egypt, they must not be sold in a slave sale.

but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. On that day you must not do any work, you, your son, your daughter, your male slave, your female slave, your ox, your donkey, any other animal, or the foreigner who lives with you, so that your male and female slaves, like yourself, may have rest.

Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt and the Lord your God redeemed you; therefore, I am commanding you to do this thing today.

Furthermore, remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and so be careful to observe these statutes.

You must not return an escaped slave to his master when he has run away to you.

But you have attacked my father's family today. You murdered his seventy legitimate sons on one stone and made Abimelech, the son of his female slave, king over the leaders of Shechem, just because he is your close relative.

When David went home to pronounce a blessing on his own house, Michal, Saul's daughter, came out to meet him. She said, "How the king of Israel has distinguished himself this day! He has exposed himself today before his servants' slave girls the way a vulgar fool might do!"

I am willing to shame and humiliate myself even more than this! But with the slave girls whom you mentioned let me be distinguished!"

Small and great are there, and the slave is free from his master.

Will it make a pact with you, so you could take it as your slave for life?

Turn toward me and have mercy on me! Give your servant your strength! Deliver your slave!

Yes, Lord! I am indeed your servant; I am your lowest slave. You saved me from death.

The diligent person will rule, but the slothful will become a slave.

"Israel is not a slave, is he? He was not born into slavery, was he? If not, why then is he being carried off?

Nineveh is taken into exile and is led away; her slave girls moan like doves while they beat their breasts.

"A son naturally honors his father and a slave respects his master. If I am your father, where is my honor? If I am your master, where is my respect? The Lord who rules over all asks you this, you priests who make light of my name! But you reply, 'How have we made light of your name?'

For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I say to this one, 'Go' and he goes, and to another 'Come' and he comes, and to my slave 'Do this' and he does it."

"A disciple is not greater than his teacher, nor a slave greater than his master.

It is enough for the disciple to become like his teacher, and the slave like his master. If they have called the head of the house 'Beelzebul,' how much more will they defame the members of his household!

Then the slave threw himself to the ground before him, saying, 'Be patient with me, and I will repay you everything.'

The lord had compassion on that slave and released him, and forgave him the debt.

After he went out, that same slave found one of his fellow slaves who owed him one hundred silver coins. So he grabbed him by the throat and started to choke him, saying, 'Pay back what you owe me!'

Then his fellow slave threw himself down and begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will repay you.'

Then his lord called the first slave and said to him, 'Evil slave! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me!

Should you not have shown mercy to your fellow slave, just as I showed it to you?'

and whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave --

"Who then is the faithful and wise slave, whom the master has put in charge of his household, to give the other slaves their food at the proper time?

Blessed is that slave whom the master finds at work when he comes.

But if that evil slave should say to himself, 'My master is staying away a long time,'

then the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not foresee,

His master answered, 'Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful in a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.'

His master answered, 'Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful with a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.'

But his master answered, 'Evil and lazy slave! So you knew that I harvest where I didn't sow and gather where I didn't scatter?

And throw that worthless slave into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'

But one of those with Jesus grabbed his sword, drew it out, and struck the high priest's slave, cutting off his ear.

Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard. A slave girl came to him and said, "You also were with Jesus the Galilean."

When he went out to the gateway, another slave girl saw him and said to the people there, "This man was with Jesus the Nazarene."

and whoever wants to be first among you must be the slave of all.

At harvest time he sent a slave to the tenants to collect from them his portion of the crop.

But those tenants seized his slave, beat him, and sent him away empty-handed.

So he sent another slave to them again. This one they struck on the head and treated outrageously.

One of the bystanders drew his sword and struck the high priest's slave, cutting off his ear.

Now while Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the high priest's slave girls came by.

When the slave girl saw him, she began again to say to the bystanders, "This man is one of them."

A centurion there had a slave who was highly regarded, but who was sick and at the point of death.

When the centurion heard about Jesus, he sent some Jewish elders to him, asking him to come and heal his slave.

For I too am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me. I say to this one, 'Go,' and he goes, and to another, 'Come,' and he comes, and to my slave, 'Do this,' and he does it."

So when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the slave well.

Blessed is that slave whom his master finds at work when he returns.

But if that slave should say to himself, 'My master is delayed in returning,' and he begins to beat the other slaves, both men and women, and to eat, drink, and get drunk,

then the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not foresee, and will cut him in two, and assign him a place with the unfaithful.

At the time for the banquet he sent his slave to tell those who had been invited, 'Come, because everything is now ready.'

So the slave came back and reported this to his master. Then the master of the household was furious and said to his slave, 'Go out quickly to the streets and alleys of the city, and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.'

Then the slave said, 'Sir, what you instructed has been done, and there is still room.'

So the master said to his slave, 'Go out to the highways and country roads and urge people to come in, so that my house will be filled.

The slave replied, 'Your brother has returned, and your father has killed the fattened calf because he got his son back safe and sound.'

but he answered his father, 'Look! These many years I have worked like a slave for you, and I never disobeyed your commands. Yet you never gave me even a goat so that I could celebrate with my friends!

"Would any one of you say to your slave who comes in from the field after plowing or shepherding sheep, 'Come at once and sit down for a meal'?

He won't thank the slave because he did what he was told, will he?

And the king said to him, 'Well done, good slave! Because you have been faithful in a very small matter, you will have authority over ten cities.'

Then another slave came and said, 'Sir, here is your mina that I put away for safekeeping in a piece of cloth.

The king said to him, 'I will judge you by your own words, you wicked slave! So you knew, did you, that I was a severe man, withdrawing what I didn't deposit and reaping what I didn't sow?

When harvest time came, he sent a slave to the tenants so that they would give him his portion of the crop. However, the tenants beat his slave and sent him away empty-handed.

So he sent another slave. They beat this one too, treated him outrageously, and sent him away empty-handed.

Then one of them struck the high priest's slave, cutting off his right ear.

Then a slave girl, seeing him as he sat in the firelight, stared at him and said, "This man was with him too!"

Jesus answered them, "I tell you the solemn truth, everyone who practices sin is a slave of sin.

The slave does not remain in the family forever, but the son remains forever.

I tell you the solemn truth, the slave is not greater than his master, nor is the one who is sent as a messenger greater than the one who sent him.

I no longer call you slaves, because the slave does not understand what his master is doing. But I have called you friends, because I have revealed to you everything I heard from my Father.

Remember what I told you, 'A slave is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they obeyed my word, they will obey yours too.

Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, pulled it out and struck the high priest's slave, cutting off his right ear. (Now the slave's name was Malchus.)

But Simon Peter was left standing outside by the door. So the other disciple who was acquainted with the high priest came out and spoke to the slave girl who watched the door, and brought Peter inside.

When he knocked at the door of the outer gate, a slave girl named Rhoda answered.

Now as we were going to the place of prayer, a slave girl met us who had a spirit that enabled her to foretell the future by supernatural means. She brought her owners a great profit by fortune-telling.

From Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God.

Were you called as a slave? Do not worry about it. But if indeed you are able to be free, make the most of the opportunity.

For the one who was called in the Lord as a slave is the Lord's freedman. In the same way, the one who was called as a free person is Christ's slave.

For since I am free from all I can make myself a slave to all, in order to gain even more people.

Instead I subdue my body and make it my slave, so that after preaching to others I myself will not be disqualified.