New-Testament Slavery: Fact vs. Fiction with Dr. Paul Copan

Does the Bible REALLY support slavery, as skeptics often claim? Last week, Dr. Paul Copan joined Frank to unpack the cultural and theological context of Old Testament passages, like Leviticus 25. This week, Paul returns to examine the New Testament’s most controversial passages on slavery, addressing questions about human dignity, morality, and God’s ultimate plan while answering questions like:

What rights and protections did servants actually have under biblical law?

What does the punishment for mistreating servants reveal about their dignity and value?

How did the Bible call out abuses of slavery and work to humanize servants?

What did Paul teach Christians about how to treat slaves in the New Testament?

Were there barriers that made abolishing slavery outright impossible in ancient Rome?

Why does God sometimes take incremental steps to eradicate deeply entrenched evils?

Why were most abolitionists Christians while some famous atheists supported slavery?

How are modern atheists “borrowing” from Christianity when they complain about slavery?

You’ll learn that slavery in the Bible is far more nuanced than skeptics want you to believe. Tune in to discover how Jesus’ radical model of service, Paul’s letters, and the early church’s example paved the way for the eventual abolition of slavery in both the ancient and modern world.

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Resources mentioned during the episode:

Old-Testament Slavery: Fact vs. Fiction with Dr. Paul Copan
Dominion: How the Christian Revolution Remade the World
PaulCopan.com
Is God a Moral Monster?
Is God a Vindictive Bully?
Christianity Contested
Slavery in the Bible: Answering Atheist Critiques
The BIBLE and SLAVERY Explained! with Dr. Carmen Imes