Actually the parable in Luke 12;47 was not really about slavery per se, it was Christ trying to get a point across that people who know God's laws and don't do them will be punished just like it was probably common knowledge back then that sometimes when slaves did not do their master desires they would be punished. Jesus was just speaking in ways the people could understand. He also mentioned in the same passage that some slaves would be rewarded even to the point of being given control over all his master owns.
Joobz, you seem to imply that the slaves back then were all like the plantation slaves of the South. Here is some info on slavery in biblical times:
From the article "How People Made a Living in the Time of Jesus"
Often the Bible is not always clear when describing the work of servants, because the word “servant” may mean either a slave or a person hired to do some task. Slavery in many forms was fairly common in Bible times. Some people sold themselves into slavery to pay back a debt, or because they were desperately poor and that was the only way they could get food and shelter. Many slaves in Bible times were prisoners of war. Most slaves performed household work rather than field work or manual labor. There are some rules regarding slavery in the Bible, including ones that put a limit on the customs for slavery and recommended when a term of slavery should come to an end (Exod 21.2-6; Lev 25.10, 38-41). There was also some expectation that slaves would be treated fairly and without cruelty (Deut 23.15,16).
http://www.americanbible.org/brcpages/MadeaLiving
Last edited:
