1 Timothy 6:1: One of the funniest verses in the Bible that reveals its very shortsighted human authorship.

Island Man

Let those who are under the yoke of slavery keep on considering their owners worthy of full honor, so that the name of God and the teaching may never be spoken of injuriously - 1 Timothy 6:1

Yes, you've read correctly. It's not the fact that the author condones slavery and never tells his readers that it's bad to own slaves - it's not that that will bring reproach on the religion, no! ... It's the fact that slaves aren't sucking up to their masters enough!

How can anyone believe that this stupendously ironic and self-defeating verse was inspired by a wise God?

Wasanelder Once

If I recall correctly there are different flavors of slavery. There is brutality and servitude and then there is a sort of trusted servitude with possibility of freedom. An indebted Israelite could sell themselves into slavery to repay the debt, becoming free when it was worked off. It wasn't like slaves in the US during the civil war.

James Mixon

Exodus 21:26-27 "when a man strikes the eye of his slave and your eye falls out, you are free to go..If he knocks out the tooth of his slave, he is free to go..Well hell fire, I'll take a toothless smile.. JW's will tell you we are still slaves, to our jobs......

Doubtfully Yours

Oh, the word of God...

If we guided ourselves by it, slavery would be alive and well here and in every other 'Christian' nation.

DY

Anders Andersen

@Wasanelder,

Jewish males could be freed. Females were not (if I recall correctly).
Also the female slaves could be 'married' to their owner or his son just like that (I call that rape and sex slavery).
And foreign slave (those captured during wars) were never freed.

Regardless of all that, those were Jewish customs. The letter to Timothy is from the Christian era. They had to deal with Jewish, Roman and Greek slave owners, all with their own customs regarding slavery. Some (classes of) slave were treated relatively well, others were brutally abused.

How hard could it be for God to tell Christian slave owners to free all their slaves?

How hard could it be for God to tell people it is plain wrong to buy, own and sell other people like cattle, and deny them basic human rights and freedom?