This question deserves a real answer, but the passages available here are not the ones that carry it. Genesis 44:10, 2 Kings 14:26, and Galatians 4:22 mention slavery in the ancient world as a social fact — they describe it, in the way any ancient text describes the economic order it was written inside. None of them is scripture's teaching on whether slavery is right. Answering that fairly would require Exodus, Leviticus, Deuteronomy, and Paul's letters (especially Philemon and Colossians) on the actual regulations and their limits, and none of that is in front of us. So the honest move is to say what the corpus here actually does address, which is something adjacent and, in the end, more central.
Jeremiah 2:14 asks a pointed question about Israel: "Is Israel a slave? Is he born into slavery? Why has he become a captive?" — slavery there is a sign of covenant failure, not a divine ideal.
The sharper material is in John 8. The Jews before Jesus claim, "We are Abraham's offspring, and have never been in bondage to anyone" (John 8:33). Jesus does not argue with their social history; he reframes the category entirely: "everyone who commits sin is the bondservant of sin" (John 8:34). Paul does the same move in Galatians 4:22, contrasting Abraham's two sons — one from the slave woman, one from the free — as an argument about law and promise, not an argument about chattel slavery as an institution.
So: the Bible describes slavery repeatedly as a fact of the ancient world it was written in. Whether it condones it as an ideal is a different, larger question than these particular texts settle — and scripture's own deepest interest, visible even here, is a different bondage than the economic one: the slavery of sin, and the freedom Christ offers from it.
He said, "Now also let it be according to your words. He with whom it is found will be my slave; and you will be blameless."closest in meaning to what you asked
See also 4
- Exodus 22:3 If the sun has risen on him, he is guilty of bloodshed. He shall make restitution. If he has nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft.
- Genesis 44:17 He said, "Far be it from me that I should do so. The man in whose hand the cup is found, he will be my slave; but as for you, go up in peace to your father."
- Matthew 18:24 When he had begun to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.
- Genesis 44:33 Now therefore, please let your servant stay instead of the boy, my lord's slave; and let the boy go up with his brothers.
Is Israel a slave? Is he born into slavery? Why has he become a captive?closest in meaning to what you asked
See also 4
- Exodus 4:22 You shall tell Pharaoh, 'Yahweh says, Israel is my son, my firstborn,
- Genesis 15:3 Abram said, "Behold, you have given no children to me: and, behold, one born in my house is my heir."
- Ecclesiastes 2:7 I bought male servants and female servants, and had servants born in my house. I also had great possessions of herds and flocks, above all who were before me in Jerusalem.
- Isaiah 50:1 Yahweh says, "Where is the bill of your mother's divorce, with which I have put her away? Or to which of my creditors have I sold you? Behold, you were sold for your iniquities, and your mother was put away for your transgressions.
For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the servant, and one by the free woman.closest in meaning to what you asked
Greek Nestle 1904
γέγραπται γὰρ ὅτι Ἀβραὰμ δύο υἱοὺς ἔσχεν, ἕνα ἐκ τῆς παιδίσκης καὶ ἕνα ἐκ τῆς ἐλευθέρας.
- γέγραπται γράφω verb · perfect passive indicative, 3rd person singular G1125
- γὰρ γάρ conjunction G1063
- ὅτι ὅτι conjunction G3754
- Ἀβραὰμ Ἀβραάμ proper noun (indeclinable) G11
- δύο δύο numeral (indeclinable) G1417
- υἱοὺς υἱός noun · accusative plural masculine G5207
- ἔσχεν, ἔχω verb · aorist active indicative, 3rd person singular G2192
- ἕνα εἷς adjective · accusative singular masculine G1520
- ἐκ ἐκ preposition G1537
- τῆς ὁ article · genitive singular feminine G3588
- παιδίσκης παιδίσκη noun · genitive singular feminine G3814
- καὶ καί conjunction G2532
Punctuation is editorial — the manuscripts carry none.
See also 4
- Genesis 16:15 Hagar bore a son for Abram. Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael.
- Genesis 21:10 Therefore she said to Abraham, "Cast out this servant and her son! For the son of this servant will not be heir with my son, Isaac."
- Genesis 21:1 Yahweh visited Sarah as he had said, and Yahweh did to Sarah as he had spoken.
- Genesis 16:2 Sarai said to Abram, "See now, Yahweh has restrained me from bearing. Please go in to my servant. It may be that I will obtain children by her." Abram listened to the voice of Sarai.
For Yahweh saw the affliction of Israel, that it was very bitter for all, slave and free; and there was no helper for Israel.closest in meaning to what you asked
See also 5
- Deuteronomy 32:36 For Yahweh will judge his people, and have compassion on his servants, when he sees that their power is gone, that there is no one remaining, shut up or left at large.
- 2 Kings 13:4 Jehoahaz begged Yahweh, and Yahweh listened to him; for he saw the oppression of Israel, how the king of Syria oppressed them.
- Exodus 3:7 Yahweh said, "I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows.
- Psalm 106:43 He rescued them many times, but they were rebellious in their counsel, and were brought low in their iniquity.
- Judges 10:16 They put away the foreign gods from among them and served Yahweh; and his soul was grieved for the misery of Israel.
They answered him, "We are Abraham's offspring, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How do you say, 'You will be made free'?"closest in meaning to what you asked
Greek Nestle 1904
ἀπεκρίθησαν πρὸς αὐτόν Σπέρμα Ἀβραάμ ἐσμεν, καὶ οὐδενὶ δεδουλεύκαμεν πώποτε· πῶς σὺ λέγεις ὅτι Ἐλεύθεροι γενήσεσθε;
- ἀπεκρίθησαν ἀποκρίνομαι verb · aorist middle deponent indicative, 3rd person plural G611
- πρὸς πρός preposition G4314
- αὐτόν αὐτός personal pronoun · accusative singular masculine G846
- Σπέρμα σπέρμα noun · nominative singular neuter G4690
- Ἀβραάμ Ἀβραάμ proper noun (indeclinable) G11
- ἐσμεν, εἰμί verb · present active indicative, 1st person plural G1510
- καὶ καί conjunction G2532
- οὐδενὶ οὐδείς adjective · dative singular masculine G3762
- δεδουλεύκαμεν δουλεύω verb · perfect active indicative, 1st person plural G1398
- πώποτε· πώποτε adverb G4455
- πῶς πῶς adverb G4459
- σὺ σύ personal pronoun G4771
Punctuation is editorial — the manuscripts carry none.
See also 5
- Matthew 3:9 Don't think to yourselves, 'We have Abraham for our father,' for I tell you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.
- John 8:39 They answered him, "Our father is Abraham." Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children, you would do the works of Abraham.
- Nehemiah 5:4 There were also some who said, "We have borrowed money for the king's tribute using our fields and our vineyards as collateral.
- Genesis 15:13 He said to Abram, "Know for sure that your offspring will live as foreigners in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them. They will afflict them four hundred years.
- Nehemiah 9:27 Therefore you delivered them into the hand of their adversaries, who distressed them. In the time of their trouble, when they cried to you, you heard from heaven; and according to your manifold mercies you gave them saviors who saved them out of the hands of their adversaries.
Jesus answered them, "Most certainly I tell you, everyone who commits sin is the bondservant of sin.closest in meaning to what you asked
Greek Nestle 1904
ἀπεκρίθη αὐτοῖς ὁ Ἰησοῦς Ἀμὴν ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν ὅτι πᾶς ὁ ποιῶν τὴν ἁμαρτίαν δοῦλός ἐστιν τῆς ἁμαρτίας.
- ἀπεκρίθη ἀποκρίνομαι verb · aorist middle deponent indicative, 3rd person singular G611
- αὐτοῖς αὐτός personal pronoun · dative plural masculine G846
- ὁ ὁ article · nominative singular masculine G3588
- Ἰησοῦς Ἰησοῦς noun · nominative singular masculine G2424
- Ἀμὴν ἀμήν Hebrew transliteration G281
- ἀμὴν ἀμήν Hebrew transliteration G281
- λέγω λέγω verb · present active indicative, 1st person singular G3004
- ὑμῖν σύ personal pronoun G4771
- ὅτι ὅτι conjunction G3754
- πᾶς πᾶς adjective · nominative singular masculine G3956
- ὁ ὁ article · nominative singular masculine G3588
- ποιῶν ποιέω verb · present active participle, nominative singular masculine G4160
Punctuation is editorial — the manuscripts carry none.
See also 5
- Romans 6:16 Don't you know that when you present yourselves as servants and obey someone, you are the servants of whomever you obey, whether of sin to death, or of obedience to righteousness?
- 2 Peter 2:19 promising them liberty, while they themselves are bondservants of corruption; for a man is brought into bondage by whoever overcomes him.
- Proverbs 5:22 The evil deeds of the wicked ensnare him. The cords of his sin hold him firmly.
- 1 John 3:8 He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. To this end the Son of God was revealed: that he might destroy the works of the devil.
- Romans 6:12-14 Therefore don't let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. Also, do not present your members to sin as instruments of unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God, as alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin will not have dominion over you. For you are not under law, but under grace.
From the interpretive tradition
The great redemptive religion which has always been known as Christianity is battling against a totally diverse type of religious belief, which is only the more destructive of the Christian faith because it makes use of traditional Christian terminology.
Christianity is not a series of truths in the plural, but rather truth spelled with a capital ‘T’.
A worked example. Ask your own and it starts a new thread.