Bird's-eye view
In these two brief verses, the Mosaic Law delivers a staggering blow to the institution of chattel slavery as it was universally practiced in the ancient world. This is not a minor regulation; it is a foundational statement about justice, mercy, and the nature of God's kingdom. The law establishes Israel as a sanctuary nation, a place of refuge for those fleeing oppression. By prohibiting the extradition of an escaped slave and mandating his full integration into society with freedom of choice, God elevates the personhood of the slave above the property claims of any master, particularly a foreign one. This law effectively makes Israel an abolitionist state with regard to the pagan nations around them. It is a radical piece of social legislation that reveals the heart of God for the downtrodden and provides a powerful typological picture of the gospel, where sinners find ultimate refuge in Christ.
This passage stands in stark contrast to other ancient law codes, such as the Code of Hammurabi, which mandated severe punishment for anyone harboring a fugitive slave. It also stands as a permanent rebuke to later and lesser laws, such as the Fugitive Slave Act in American history. God's law required His people to welcome the fugitive, protect him from mistreatment, and grant him the dignity of choosing where to live. This is a law that breathes the air of liberty.
Outline
- 1. The Law of Divine Asylum (Deut 23:15-16)
- a. The Negative Command: No Rendition (Deut 23:15)
- b. The Positive Command: Full Reception (Deut 23:16)
- i. The Right of Residence (Deut 23:16a)
- ii. The Right of Choice (Deut 23:16b)
- iii. The Right of Protection (Deut 23:16c)
Context In Deuteronomy
These verses are situated within a broader section of Deuteronomy that provides miscellaneous laws for the covenant community as they prepare to enter the Promised Land. The preceding laws deal with purity in the assembly (Deut 23:1-8) and in the military camp (Deut 23:9-14). The laws that follow address issues like cult prostitution and lending with interest (Deut 23:17-20). This section as a whole is designed to shape Israel into a holy nation, distinct from the corrupt practices of the Canaanites they are dispossessing. The law of the fugitive slave is therefore not an isolated ethical command but part of a comprehensive blueprint for a society that reflects the justice and mercy of Yahweh. It is a practical outworking of the command to love the sojourner and the stranger, because the Israelites themselves were once sojourners and slaves in Egypt.
Key Issues
- The Nature of Biblical Servitude vs. Chattel Slavery
- The Principle of Asylum
- God's Law as a Standard of Social Justice
- The Dignity of the Individual
- Christ as the Believer's Refuge
- A Rebuke to Man-Made Fugitive Slave Laws
The Lord's Underground Railroad
When we read the word "slave" in the Old Testament, we must be diligent to scrape off the cultural barnacles that have attached themselves to the word from our own sordid history with race-based chattel slavery. The Mosaic Law regulated a form of indentured servitude that was worlds apart from the man-stealing, dehumanizing institution practiced in the American South. And if there were any doubt on this point, these two verses should settle the matter for good. This is God's fugitive slave law, and it is the polar opposite of the man-made laws passed in antebellum America. God's law did not establish a posse to hunt men down. It established a refuge to welcome men in.
This law fundamentally alters the power dynamic of slavery in the entire region. By making Israel a safe haven, the law created constant pressure on masters in surrounding nations to treat their slaves well, lest they run away to the Israelites and gain their freedom. It was a divinely-instituted abolitionist policy. A slave who could escape to the people of God was a slave who was free. This was the Lord's underground railroad, with the destination clearly marked on the map for all to see.
Verse by Verse Commentary
15 “You shall not hand over to his master a slave who has escaped from his master to you.
The command is absolute and unequivocal. The verb is a simple, direct prohibition: You shall not. The situation is clear: a slave, owned by a master, has escaped and made it to the land of Israel. He has fled to you, the covenant people. The automatic assumption of every other nation would be that this person is stolen property who must be returned. The Code of Hammurabi, for example, prescribed the death penalty for someone who sheltered a fugitive. But the law of God cuts directly across all pagan conceptions of justice. The life and liberty of the man who has fled to you for protection takes precedence over the property claims of the man he has fled from. You are not to act as an extradition service for the slave-owners of the world. When a man runs to the people of God for freedom, you are to grant it.
16 He shall live with you in your midst, in the place which he shall choose in one of your gates of the towns where it pleases him; you shall not mistreat him.
This verse outlines the positive obligations that flow from the negative command in verse 15. The fugitive is not to be grudgingly tolerated or left to fend for himself on the margins of society. No, he is to be fully incorporated. First, he shall live with you in your midst. He becomes a resident, a part of the community. Second, he is granted an astonishing level of personal agency: he gets to live in the place which he shall choose. He is not assigned to a ghetto or a refugee camp. He can survey the towns of Israel and settle wherever he likes. The text even adds, for emphasis, where it pleases him. His personal preference is a determining factor. This is a radical affirmation of his personhood. He is no longer a tool for another's will, but a man with a will of his own. Finally, there is a shield of protection placed over him: you shall not mistreat him. This verb means to oppress, vex, or wrong him. He is to be treated with the same justice and kindness owed to any other resident. In short, his flight to Israel results in his total emancipation and enfranchisement as a free resident in the land.
Application
First, this passage ought to be a foundational text in any Christian discussion of slavery and justice. It utterly demolishes any attempt to defend race-based chattel slavery from the Bible. The system of American slavery depended on fugitive slave laws that were in direct, flagrant rebellion against this explicit command from God. To appeal to the Bible to justify that system, while ignoring this passage, is a form of exegetical malpractice of the highest order.
Second, this law reveals the character of our God. He is a God who establishes refuge for the fleeing. He is a God who takes the side of the oppressed against the oppressor. His idea of a just society is one where the gates are open to those running from bondage. This is not a peripheral theme in Scripture; it is central. God's great saving act in the Old Testament was the liberation of slaves from Egypt. And this law institutionalizes that redemptive principle in the life of the nation.
Finally, and most importantly, this is a beautiful picture of the gospel. We are all, by nature, slaves. We are in bondage to our master, Sin, and to the prince of this world, the Devil. But the gospel proclaims that there is a place of refuge. There is a kingdom we can flee to. We escape from our old master and run to Christ. And what does He do? Does He turn us over to our former owner? Does He extradite us back to the kingdom of darkness? Never. "All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out" (John 6:37). He welcomes us into His midst, into the church. He gives us a place in His kingdom. He protects us from all oppression. He sets us truly free. The church, therefore, is to be a city on a hill, a visible representation of this spiritual reality, a place of welcome and refuge for all who are fleeing the slaveries of this fallen world.