Slavery in the Bible and Quran: What Scripture Actually Says

Slavery is one of the most uncomfortable topics in religious studies. Both the Bible and the Quran address slavery in their texts, and both have been used to both justify and condemn the practice. This article examines what both scriptures actually say about slavery, how the institution evolved within each tradition, and how abolition movements emerged from within both faiths.

The Old Testament regulated slavery without prohibiting it. The Law of Moses distinguished between Hebrew slaves (who served for six years and were freed in the seventh) and foreign slaves (who could be held permanently): "If you buy a Hebrew servant, he shall serve six years, and in the seventh he shall go out free" (Exodus 21:2). Foreign slaves could be inherited as property: "You may make them slaves for life" (Leviticus 25:46). Physical punishment was permitted: "When a man strikes his slave, male or female, with a rod and the slave dies under his hand, he shall be avenged. But if the slave survives a day or two, he is not to be avenged, for the slave is his money" (Exodus 21:20-21). The Bible also records God commanding the Israelites to take slaves from conquered nations (Deuteronomy 20:10-11).

The New Testament does not explicitly condemn slavery. Paul sends the runaway slave Onesimus back to his master Philemon (Philemon 1:10-16), though he appeals for lenient treatment. Paul instructs: "Slaves, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart, as you would Christ" (Ephesians 6:5). He also instructs masters: "Masters, do the same to them, and stop your threatening, knowing that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and that there is no partiality with him" (Ephesians 6:9). Some scholars argue that Paul's letter to Philemon contains subtle abolitionist undertones — "no longer as a slave but more than a slave, as a beloved brother" (Philemon 1:16) — but the text does not explicitly demand emancipation.

The Quran addresses slavery in the context of 7th century Arabia, where slavery was deeply embedded in the economy. Like the Bible, it regulated slavery without immediately abolishing it. However, the Quran introduced several measures to gradually eliminate slavery: (1) Freeing slaves is repeatedly praised as a righteous act: "And what can make you know what is the difficult path? It is the freeing of a slave" (Quran 90:12-13). (2) Freeing slaves is prescribed as expiation for sins: "And those who pronounce thihar from their wives and then go back on what they said — the freeing of a slave before they touch one another" (Quran 58:3). (3) Slaves can buy their freedom through a contract of manumission (mukatabah): "And those who seek a contract [for emancipation] from among those whom your right hands possess — then make a contract with them if you know there is within them goodness, and give them from the wealth of Allah which He has given you" (Quran 24:33).

Islamic scholars note that the Quran's approach to slavery was one of gradual abolition rather than immediate prohibition. The Prophet Muhammad said: "Whoever frees a Muslim slave, Allah will free every limb of his body from the Fire, limb for limb" (Sahih Bukhari). He also said: "Your slaves are your brothers whom Allah has placed under your authority. Whoever has a brother under his authority should feed him from what he eats and clothe him from what he wears" (Sahih Bukhari). The Prophet himself freed all his slaves and encouraged others to do the same. Over centuries, Islamic scholars increasingly argued that slavery contradicted the Quran's principles of human dignity and equality: "O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you" (Quran 49:13).

The abolition of slavery in the Christian world was driven by devout Christians who argued that slavery contradicted biblical principles. William Wilberforce, an evangelical Christian, led the campaign to abolish the slave trade in Britain (1807) and slavery itself (1833). In America, abolitionists like Frederick Douglass, Harriet Beecher Stowe, and Quaker communities argued that slavery violated the Golden Rule and the Imago Dei — that all humans are made in God's image (Genesis 1:27). However, slaveholders also cited the Bible to justify slavery — creating a bitter theological debate within Christianity. The Southern Baptist Convention was founded in 1845 specifically to defend slavery, and only apologized for this in 1995.

Three key differences emerge: (1) Direction — The Bible's trajectory is debated (some argue it points toward abolition, others that it accepts slavery permanently); the Quran's trajectory is more clearly toward abolition through freeing slaves as an act of worship. (2) Treatment — Both scriptures demand humane treatment, but the Quran explicitly requires feeding and clothing slaves from one's own provisions and allows slaves to buy their freedom. (3) Manumission — The Quran prescribes freeing slaves as expiation for sins; the Bible has no equivalent mechanism. Both traditions ultimately produced abolition movements, but through different theological reasoning.

Neither the Bible nor the Quran explicitly prohibits slavery in the way modern readers might hope. Both regulated an existing institution and demanded humane treatment. However, both scriptures contain principles — human dignity, equality before God, mercy, and justice — that abolitionists used to end slavery. Understanding what both texts actually say, rather than what we wish they said, is essential for honest interfaith dialogue. Use DebateReveal to ask any question about slavery from the perspective of your own scripture.