Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1852-03-03
FOR THE sFEcTATo r
Letters 10 Northern UniOnists on
the Scripture View of Slavery.
LETTER no. z.

WEST VIRGINIA, February, 1852.
INVESTIGATION OF HEBREW woRDs.-SA-
KrR, a Mreiing.-Irans of EBED
and SAxIR by The SsUenty.-1hs HeJrew
for "home born e."-OMer He5rew
words applied 10 s7ares.-ADoN, master.
RESPECTED FRIENDs.-We have seen
that the persons designated by the Hebrew
term cJed, were so far from being hired SER
wants, that the two classes are contrast
ed with each other. In order to obtain still
more light on this essential point, We will
examine the Hebrew word which was ap-
piled to the latter class. 1t is sakin jpron.
saukeer, from the verb sakar to hire; and its
import is accurately expressed by the word
Mreling. In several places it is SO rendered
in our Bible, Job. I: l, 2, and IA: els 16:
Ia, and 81: 16-Mal. 8: s, 81 will be a
swift witness" "against those that Cypress
the hireling IN his wages" In other places
it is translated hired seryani. Respe citing
the passover, il is said, Elk. l2: A, As,
Every mans serrani ebed that is bought
for money, when thou hast circumcised him,
then shall he eat thereof. A foreigner and
an hired serran sakir shall not eat there
Of" Lev. %: 10, and 25: 6, 40, SO, So
Deut IS: 1S, and "a: IA. In one instance,
it is rendered him that is hired, Lev. 49,: 13.
In another, hired men, Jer. 46: 21. The
reference here is to hirelIng soldiers. A
Hebrew scholar, who had not noted the dli-
ference of meaning of eJed and serram,
might perhaps expect 10 find the original
for hired servant to be ebed hassekirah just
as the expression for hired razor, Is Z: 20,
is than hassekirah. But the former express
sion is not found in the Hebrew Bible and
if it were, it would mean hired slave, the
hire of whom goes to his master. In every
instance in which hireling or hired SER
want is mentioned in the Old Testament the
original is saku.
The Seventy. in translatIng tile words
sakir and ebed, never confounded them
The former they generally rendered n,stho-
los. This word is from misihos, hire; and
it accurately expresses the sense of the
original In two instances, the word mis-
Mios is used word from the same root,
s. of the same signifcation. Ebed is gener-
ally translated either by doulos or pals. The
former of these two Greek words, as used
by the Seventy, corresponds. with remark
able exactness, to the Hebrew term; hav-
ing all its various Specifications, and no 9TH
ers. Pals properly means child, boy or
girl but in addition to this meaning, it has,
in the Alexandrine version, in all the sem
ses which belong to ebcd. Little discrimi-
ination is shown by the Seventy in the u
sage of the two words: but doulos desig-
mates domestic slave, in greater proper
ton of instances than pals. In consider
number of passages, ebed is rendered o,keies.
This word comes from oikos, house and
from its derivation would mean domestic.
Usage determines its slgnifcatiou to be
domestic slaue. In no case, is ebed transla-
led by either of the words m:sthios and mis-
hotos; nor is sakin ever translated by any
word, which is used in rendering e6ed.
Among the Hebrews, as among other
slaveholding people, slaves were divided,
for the most part, into two great classes,
according to the manner in which the title
of the master was acquired. His title to
some rested upon the fact, that they were
born of women who were his property 9TH
ers had become his by purchase. 1t is i'm
portant to notice the Hebrew expression
which designates the former of these clas-
ses. That expression is geld beth. 1t lit
orally means, son Of the house. It's sense is
correctly given by Prof. Gibbs of New Ha-
ven, in his Lexicon;-''a slave born in one s
house." The same sense is given by our
trauslators, Jer. 2: IA, sis Israel servant?
Is he home born slaue9" The expression
occurs also Gen. ID: IA, and II: IL, 13, %,
27-Lev. %: II. In these passages it is
rendered simply, "born in the house," The
English reader is liable to be misled, by this
translation, into the belief that persons of
every condition, born in the house, are in
tended; whereas Hebrew usage restricts the
application of The phrase to slaves. Another
expression similar in form, and identical in
Specification, is found Gen. IS 3-Ecc. 2:
7. 1t is ben beth, son of The house. The
Seventy translate each Of these expressions
by the word oikogenes.
In almost all cases where the word SER
rant occurs in our version of the Old Testa-
ment the original is e5ed. But in few pas
sages another word, naar, is found. This
word is of frequent occurrence in the He
brew: but it is generally rendered young
man or lad. This is its primary meaning; but
it is sometimes used in some other senses.
1t means soldier. Sam. 25: IL, 81, and
elsewhere. In some cases itplainly means
a slape. 1t is applied to Jobs slaves, Job.
l: Is, 16, II T; to those of Boaz, Ruth 2: s,
6, 8, Is; to those OF Nabal, Sam. 25: IA,
19; 10 those of the Shunammite, 2 Kings 4:
l9, %, "a. In most of these texts, it is
translated servant When applied to Zba,
Q Sam. 8: 9, and to the servants of Nehe-
miah, Neh. A: 16, %, and s.: 16, it proba-
bly, means political servants, as we have
seen that ebed sometimes does. When ap-
piled to the servant of Saul, / Sam. 8: 5,
7, &c., and to the servant of Elisha, 2
Kings A.: 25, 38, and 5 i: 90, &C., it is doubt
full what kind of servants are intended
There is no proof that the word ever means
a hired servant. The application of term
which signifies boy, to slaves of an adult
AGE, is not unnatural. We have seen that
the Seventy use the word pals in this man.
ner abundantly. A similar usage prevails
in our own language. A strangerin Phila-
delphia, meeting negro in the street ac-
costed him thus:-"Boy, which way is it
to Pine street." or some other street. +
The gentleman of color replied, with insult
ed dignity ;-'I'm no boy, Sir Pm as free
man as you be. Guess you come from
the South" He guessed rightly. The
gentleman, from the force ofhabit, had spo.
ken 10 him, as he had been accustomed to
speak to slaves. "The heir, while he is
child, difereth nothing from servant"
that IS, both are under the authority of the
master of the house. 1t is not strange then,
that the same term should be applied to