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Biblical Concept Of Bond Servant

The biblical concept of a "bondservant" (often translated as "slave" in older versions) refers to an individual in a state of servitude, subject to the will and disposal of another [1, 3, 7]. This status is distinct from that of a hired servant, whose engagement is temporary [2, 9]. The term "bondservant" is used in various contexts in Scripture, ranging from literal servitude to a metaphorical description of devotion to God or sin [2, 11].

In ancient Israel, the institution of servitude was recognized, though the Mosaic Law sought to mitigate its harshness and protect the rights of individuals [6]. A Hebrew could enter servitude under several circumstances:

The laws concerning Hebrew bondservants were designed to preserve the honor of the Jewish nation as a free people, mindful of their own deliverance from bondage in Egypt [8]. A native Israelite was not to be made a bondservant for perpetuity [8]. If sold for debt or a crime, they were to serve for six years and be released in the seventh, a law appointed in Exodus 21:2 and Deuteronomy 15:12 [8, 10]. If a Hebrew became poor and was sold to another Hebrew, they were not to be treated as a permanent slave but as a hired servant with a temporary engagement [9]. Such a bondservant could be redeemed by a relative at any time before the Jubilee year, with the ransom money determined equitably based on the remaining years of service [9].

The term "servant" or "bondservant" also appears in a broader sense in the Bible. It can refer to:

The concept of being a "servant of sin" is also present, where one who habitually commits sin is considered enslaved to it [11]. Jesus contrasts this with the freedom offered by the Son, stating that a bondservant does not abide in the house forever, but the Son does, implying that true, permanent connection to God's family comes through the Son [12]. This spiritual dimension of servitude underscores that while earthly bondage was a reality, the New Testament emphasizes a deeper, spiritual form of service or bondage to either sin or Christ [11, 12].

Sources

  1. Smith's Bible Dictionary “Smith's Bible Dictionary: Bondage — [[310]Slave]”
  2. Torrey's Topical Textbook “Torrey's Topical Textbook: Servants — Early mention of -- Ge 9:25,26. Divided into Male. -- Ge 24:34; 32:5. Female. -- Ge 16:6; 32:5. Bond. -- Ge 43:18; Le 25:46. Hired. -- Mr 1:20; Lu 15:17. Persons devoted to the service of another so called -- Ps 119:49; Isa 56:6. The subjects of a prince or king so called -- Ex 9:20; 11:8. Persons of low condition so called -- Ec 10:7. Persons devoted to God so called -- Ps 119:49; Isa 56:6; Ro 1:1. The term often used to express humility -- Ge 18:3; 33:5; 1Sa 20:7; 1Ki 20:32. Hired Called hireling. -- Job 7:1; Joh 10:12,13. Engaged by the year. -- Le 25:5”
  3. Smith's Bible Dictionary “Smith's Bible Dictionary: Servant — [[1072]Slave]”
  4. 1 Corinthians “For he who was called in the Lord being a bondservant is the Lord’s free man. Likewise he who was called being free is Christ’s bondservant. -- 1 Corinthians 7:22”
  5. I Corinthians “I Corinthians 7:22 (Rotherham) — For, he who in the Lord was called, being a bond-servant, is, a freed-man of the Lord: in like manner, he that was called being, a freeman, is Christ’s bond-servant:—”
  6. Smith's Bible Dictionary “Smith's Bible Dictionary: Slave — The institution of slavery was recognized, though not established, by the Mosaic law with a view to mitigate its hardship and to secure to every man his ordinary rights. I. Hebrew slaves.-- + The circumstances under which a Hebrew might be reduced to servitude were-- (1) poverty; (2) the commission of theft; and (3) the exercise of paternal authority. In the first case, a man who had mortgaged his property, and was unable to support his family, might sell himself to another Hebrew, with a view both to obtain maintenance and perchance a surplus sufficient to re”
  7. Romans (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Romans 1 (introduction): INTRODUCTION. (Rom. 1:1-17) Paul--(See on Act 13:9). a servant of Jesus Christ--The word here rendered "servant" means "bond-servant," or one subject to the will and wholly at the disposal of another. In this sense it is applied to the disciples of Christ at large (Co1 7:21-23), as in the Old Testament to all the people of God (Isa 66:14). But as, in addition to this, the prophets and kings of Israel were officially "the servants of the Lord" (Jos 1:1; Psa 18:1, title), the apostles call themselves, in the same official sense, "the serva”
  8. Leviticus (Nonconformist/Puritan) “Matthew Henry on Leviticus 25:39: We have here the laws concerning servitude, designed to preserve the honour of the Jewish nation as a free people, and rescued by a divine power out of the house of bondage, into the glorious liberty of God's sons, his first-born. Now the law is, I. That a native Israelite should never be made a bondman for perpetuity. If he was sold for debt, or for a crime, by the house of judgment, he was to serve but six years, and to go out the seventh; this was appointed, Exo 21:2. But if he sold himself through extreme poverty, having nothing at all left him to preserve”
  9. Leviticus (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Leviticus 25:39: if thy brother . . . be waxen poor, and be sold unto thee, thou shalt not compel him to serve as a bond-servant--An Israelite might be compelled, through misfortune, not only to mortgage his inheritance, but himself. In the event of his being reduced to this distress, he was to be treated not as a slave, but a hired servant whose engagement was temporary, and who might, through the friendly aid of a relative, be redeemed at any time before the Jubilee. The ransom money was determined on a most equitable principle. Taking account of the number of ye”
  10. Jeremiah (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Jeremiah 34:8: By the law a Hebrew, after having been a bond-servant for six years, on the seventh was to be let go free (Exo 21:22; Deu 15:12). Zedekiah made a covenant--with solemn ceremonial in the temple (Jer 34:15, Jer 34:18-19). them--bond-servants (Jer 34:9).”
  11. John (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on John 8:34: Whosoever committeth sin--that is, liveth in the commission of it--(Compare Jo1 3:8; Mat 7:23). is the servant of sin--that is, the bond-servant, or slave of it; for the question is not about free service, but who are in bondage. (Compare Pe2 2:19; Rev 6:16). The great truth here expressed was not unknown to heathen moralists; but it was applied only to vice, for they were total strangers to what in revealed religion is called sin. The thought of slaves and freemen in the house suggests to our Lord a wider idea.”
  12. John (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on John 8:35: And the servant abideth not in the house for ever, but the Son abideth ever--that is, "And if your connection with the family of God be that of BOND-SERVANTS, ye have no natural tie to the house; your tie is essentially uncertain and precarious. But the SON'S relationship to the FATHER is a natural and essential one; it is an indefeasible tie; His abode in it is perpetual and of right: That is My relationship, My tie: If, then, ye would have your connection with God's family made real, rightful, permanent, ye must by the Son be manumitted and adopted as ”
  13. Leviticus (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Leviticus 25:39: And if thy brother that dwelleth by thee be waxen poor,.... The above laws and instructions seem designed to prevent such extreme poverty as obliged to what follows, namely, a brother being sold either to an Israelite or to a stranger, by relieving his wants or lending him money; but when these were insufficient to support him, and keep him from sinking into the lowest state of distress and misery, then he was obliged to be sold, as follows: and be sold unto thee; either by himself, being ready to starve and perish, or by the sanhedrim, having stolen something, ”
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