Ancient Slavery and Its New Testament Contexts

Christy Cobb, Katherine A. Shaner

• Publisher: Eerdmans
• Year: 2025
• eBook ISBN: 9781467468251
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Roman Ancient History

An essential resource for understanding slavery in the New Testament and early Christianity
 
Slavery permeated society in the ancient world. The realities of slavery and its shadows pervade the New Testament and other early Christian texts. Yet enslavement remains an under-taught aspect of the context of the New Testament and early Christianity. Because of this, readers are left with numerous questions about ancient slavery. How did people become enslaved? What kinds of work did enslaved people do? Who enslaved people? How did ancient slavery compare with more contemporary enslavement eras? Did anyone in the ancient world criticize slavery? Was ancient slavery racialized? Did Christians have a different understanding of slavery than others? These are just some of the questions students ask in higher education and in Bible study classrooms alike.
 
This volume takes on these questions, introducing students to the textures, complexities, and material realities of slavery in the Greco-Roman world. Ancient Slavery and Its New Testament Contexts draws on the expertise of scholars around the world with a focus on introductory information, accessibility, and readability. It does not attempt to dismiss or downplay the role of New Testament texts in the perpetuation of either ancient slavery or slavery in the North American context. Rather, the volume helps students and teachers alike wrestle with the ongoing historical, theological, and ethical legacies of slavery in their own faith formation and engagement with the biblical text.
 

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Contents
• List of Figures
• Editors’ Preface
• List of Abbreviations
• 1. The Language of “Enslavement” in the New Testament—by Emerson B. Powery
• 2. Studying Slavery—by Midori E. Hartman
• 3. Enslavement in the Roman World—by Javal A. Coleman
• 4. Roman Law and Material Culture—by F. Mira Green
• 5. Jews and Slavery—by Catherine Hezser
• 6. Manumission—by Chance Everett Bonar
• 7. Slave Labor and Trade—by Ulrike Roth
• 8. Race and Ethnicity—by Jeremy L. Williams
• 9. Gender and Sexuality—by Christy Cobb
• 10. Metaphors of Enslavement—by Marianne Bjelland Kartzow
• 11. Literary Constructions and Stereotypes of Slavery—by William Owens
• 12. Household Codes—by Katherine A. Shaner
• 13. Early Christian Slavery—by Chris L. de Wet
• 14. Ethics of Interpretation—by Midori E. Hartman
• 15. Modern Slavery, the Bible, and Slow-Down Ethics—by Yvonne C. Zimmerman
• Glossary
• List of Contributors
• Illustration Credits