Comment by sarchertech

“Which commandment is the most important of all?”

Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

The natural consequence of following this is to never keep slaves, to never take advantage of another person, to never harm another person in any way. Slavery is inherently incompatible with the greatest commandments.

The Old Testament law was a framework for governance of an imperfect people. Jesus didn't come to establish a new framework for governance. He came to teach people people how to live in a way that makes following the letter of Old Testament law unnecessary. If everyone loves their neighbor as themselves, and loves even their enemies, there is no need for government at all.

And yet new systems of government were established because of shifting views as more people began to embrace the radical egalitarian view that humans had inherent worth as we are all created in the image of our creator, and that we are all one in Christ.

>The Bible will never say that women are equal to men, it will never say that slavery is wrong

"There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus."