he said, “Cursed be Canaan; a slave of slaves shall he be to his brothers.”

He also said, “Blessed by the Lord my God be Shem; and let Canaan be his slave.

God enlarge Japheth, and let him dwell in the tents of Shem; and let Canaan be his slave.”

And Abram said, “Behold, thou hast given me no offspring; and a slave born in my house will be my heir.”

Then the Lord said to Abram, “Know of a surety that your descendants will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs, and will be slaves there, and they will be oppressed for four hundred years;

Then Abraham took Ish′mael his son and all the slaves born in his house or bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham’s house, and he circumcised the flesh of their foreskins that very day, as God had said to him.

Then Abim′elech took sheep and oxen, and male and female slaves, and gave them to Abraham, and restored Sarah his wife to him.

Then Abraham prayed to God; and God healed Abim′elech, and also healed his wife and female slaves so that they bore children.

So she said to Abraham, “Cast out this slave woman with her son; for the son of this slave woman shall not be heir with my son Isaac.”

But God said to Abraham, “Be not displeased because of the lad and because of your slave woman; whatever Sarah says to you, do as she tells you, for through Isaac shall your descendants be named.

And I will make a nation of the son of the slave woman also, because he is your offspring.”

And the men were afraid because they were brought to Joseph’s house, and they said, “It is because of the money, which was replaced in our sacks the first time, that we are brought in, so that he may seek occasion against us and fall upon us, to make slaves of us and seize our asses.”

With whomever of your servants it be found, let him die, and we also will be my lord’s slaves.”

He said, “Let it be as you say: he with whom it is found shall be my slave, and the rest of you shall be blameless.”

And Judah said, “What shall we say to my lord? What shall we speak? Or how can we clear ourselves? God has found out the guilt of your servants; behold, we are my lord’s slaves, both we and he also in whose hand the cup has been found.”

But he said, “Far be it from me that I should do so! Only the man in whose hand the cup was found shall be my slave; but as for you, go up in peace to your father.”

Now therefore, let your servant, I pray you, remain instead of the lad as a slave to my lord; and let the lad go back with his brothers.

Why should we die before your eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land for food, and we with our land will be slaves to Pharaoh; and give us seed, that we may live, and not die, and that the land may not be desolate.”

and as for the people, he made slaves of them from one end of Egypt to the other.

And they said, “You have saved our lives; may it please my lord, we will be slaves to Pharaoh.”

he saw that a resting place was good, and that the land was pleasant; so he bowed his shoulder to bear, and became a slave at forced labor.

Then he who feared the word of the Lord among the servants of Pharaoh made his slaves and his cattle flee into the houses;

but he who did not regard the word of the Lord left his slaves and his cattle in the field.

but every slave that is bought for money may eat of it after you have circumcised him.

The Law concerning Slaves

“Now these are the ordinances which you shall set before them.