One of the favorite skeptic jabs is this,
“The Bible endorses genocide, slavery, and sexism, so it can’t be true.”
Oh really? Let’s unpack that with some context.
“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways…”
— Isaiah 55:9
Genre & Purpose.
Biblical law isn’t a modern civil code. It’s a covenant code, showing how a holy God orders a fallen society toward justice.
Think relationship over regulation. God’s rules reveal His character, not simply punish.
Violent Commands in Context.
Commands against the Canaanites halted extreme moral corruption and child sacrifice.
“You shall not worship the LORD your God in that way, for every abominable thing that the LORD hates they have done for their gods, for they even burn their sons and their daughters in the fire to their gods.”
— Deuteronomy 12:31
God’s command wasn’t casual cruelty, but judgment on a society that had become grotesquely depraved. An act of mercy toward future generations.
Slavery vs. Servitude.
Biblical “slavery” often meant indentured service with built‑in safeguards.
Jubilee year freedom (Leviticus 25:10)
Fair treatment mandates (Exodus 21:26–27)
Family reunification.
Contrast this with American chattel slavery, no release date, no legal protection, no family rights.
Sexism Charges.
Many ancient Near Eastern cultures treated women as property, biblical law elevated them as image bearers.
Female inheritance rights (Numbers 27:1–11)
Protection from exploitation (Exodus 21:7–11)
Value placed on women’s voices (Deborah in Judges 4–5).
“Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker…”
— Proverbs 14:31
Compared to Ancient Near Eastern codes (Code of Hammurabi, Mari texts), Israel’s laws afforded greater protections for women, orphans, and the poor.
Genocide was judicial, not casual butcher, it addressed epic moral decay.
Slavery in Scripture had built‑in mercy clauses, it’s nothing like later chattel systems.
Sexism critiques fall flat when you compare to neighboring cultures, biblical law was revolutionary.
Critics demand twenty‑first‑century morals from an ancient covenant code, then call it barbaric. Read Scripture on its own terms, and you’ll see its ethics aim higher than any human law, pointing to a just, compassionate God.
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