Exodus 21:2

Laws About Slaves

¹ “These are the ordinances that you must set before them: ² “When you buy a Hebrew slave, he is to serve for six years; then in the seventh he is to leave as a free man without paying anything. ³ If he arrives alone, he is to leave alone; if he arrives with a wife, his wife is to leave with him.

Seventh Year

Deuteronomy 15:12-15

“If your fellow Hebrew, a man or woman, is sold to you and serves you six years, you must set him free in the seventh year.

Deuteronomy 15:18

Do not regard it as a hardship when you set him free, because he worked for you six years—worth twice the wages of a hired hand. Then the Lord your God will bless you in everything you do.

Genesis 27:28

May God give to you—
from the dew of the sky
and from the richness of the land—
an abundance of grain and new wine.

Genesis 27:36

So he said, “Isn’t he rightly named Jacob? For he has cheated me twice now. He took my birthright, and look, now he has taken my blessing.” Then he asked, “Haven’t you saved a blessing for me?”

Exodus 12:44

But any slave a man has purchased may eat it, after you have circumcised him.

Exodus 22:3

But if this happens after sunrise, there is guilt of bloodshed. A thief must make full restitution. If he is unable, he is to be sold because of his theft.

Leviticus 25:39-45

“If your brother among you becomes destitute and sells himself to you, you must not force him to do slave labor.

Deuteronomy 15:1

“At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts.

Deuteronomy 31:10

Moses commanded them, “At the end of every seven years, at the appointed time in the year of debt cancellation, during the Festival of Booths,

2 Kings 4:1

One of the wives of the sons of the prophets cried out to Elisha, “Your servant, my husband, has died. You know that your servant feared the Lord. Now the creditor is coming to take my two children as his slaves.”

Nehemiah 5:1-5

There was a widespread outcry from the people and their wives against their Jewish countrymen.

Nehemiah 5:8

and said, “We have done our best to buy back our Jewish countrymen who were sold to foreigners, but now you sell your own countrymen, and we have to buy them back.” They remained silent and could not say a word.

Jeremiah 34:8-17

This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord after King Zedekiah made a covenant with all the people who were in Jerusalem to proclaim freedom to them,

Matthew 18:25

Since he had no way to pay it back, his master commanded that he, his wife, his children, and everything he had be sold to pay the debt.

1 Corinthians 6:20

for you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God in your body.