Over the last thirty years studies of slavery in the Pauline Epistles have tended to follow two different methodological approaches. Some have considered slavery in Paul based on legal definitions while others have gravitated towards sociological definitions. While some have portrayed Greco-Roman slavery as an almost benevolent institution, others have preferred to highlight its more brutal aspects. This article traces the major shifts in New Testament scholarship and how these two contrasting definitions have helped to shape our understanding of Paul and slavery. It concludes with a brief examination of four areas that New Testament scholarship has begun to reconsider as a result of these sifting opinions about Greco-Roman slavery.
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