δοῦλος

1

δοῦλος , η, ον (s. next entry; Soph. et al.; PGiss 3, 5 ᾧ πάντα δοῦλα; Ps 118:91; Wsd 15:7; Philo; Jos., Ant. 16, 156; Ar. [Milne, 76, 49]; SibOr 3, 567) pert. to being under someone’s total control, slavish, servile, subject τὰ μέλη δ. τῇ ἀκαθαρσίᾳ the members enslaved to impurity Ro 6:19; τῇ δικαιοσύνῃ ibid.—Subst. τὰ δοῦλα things subservient PtK 2 (s. ὕπαρξις 1).—DELG. TW.

2

δοῦλος, ου, ὁ (Trag., Hdt.et al.; ins, pap, LXX, Philo, Joseph., Test12Patr)

① male slave as an entity in a socioeconomic context, slave (‘servant’ for ‘slave’ is largely confined to Biblical transl. and early American times [s. OED s.v. servant, 3a and b]; in normal usage at the present time the two words are carefully distinguished [Goodsp., Probs., 77–79]). Opp. ἐλεύθερος 1 Cor 7:21. Lit., in contrast

ⓐ to a master (Did., Gen. 66, 25): Mt 8:9; 10:24f; cp. J 13:16; 15:20.—Mt 13:27f; 21:34ff; 24:45f, 48, 50; 25:14, 19, 21, 23, 26, 30; cp. Lk 19:13, 15, 17, 22.—Mt 26:51; cp. Mk 14:47; Lk 22:50; J 18:10, 26 (on δοῦλος of the ἀρχιερεύς s. Jos., Ant. 20, 181).—Mk 12:2, 4; 13:34; Lk 7:2f, 8, 10; 12:37, 43, 45ff; 17:7, 9f; J 4:51; Col 4:1 (Billerb. IV 698–744: D. altjüd. Sklavenwesen; SZucrow, Women, Slaves, etc. in Rabb. Lit. ’32; JJeremias, Jerusalem IIb ’37, 184–88; 217–24).—οἱ δ. και οἱ ὑπηρέται J 18:18.—Of slaves sent out with invitations Mt 22:3f, 6, 8, 10; par. Lk 14:17, 21ff; of one who could not pay his debt Mt 18:23, 26ff (but s. 2bα on these pass. fr. Mt). Opp. δεσπότης (as Diod S 15, 8, 2f ὡς δοῦλος δεσπότῃ; Ps.-Lucian, Asin. 5) 1 Ti 6:1; Tit 2:9; οἱ δ. in direct address Eph 6:5; Col 3:22.—For lit. on Christianity and slavery (Ath. 35, 1 δ. εἰσιν ἡμῖν ‘we have slaves’ [who can attest our innocence of the charges]) s. on χράομαι la.—Christ, the heavenly κύριος, appears on earth in μορφὴ δούλου the form of a slave (anticipating vs. 8 w. its ref. to crucifixion, a fate reserved for condemned slaves; for the contrast cp. Lucian, Catapl. 13 δοῦλος ἀντὶ τοῦ πάλαι βασιλέως) Phil 2:7 (lit. on κενόω 1b); cp. Hs 5, 2ff (on this MDibelius, Hdb. 564f).—On Ac 2:18 s. under 2bβ.

ⓑ to a free pers. (opp. ἐλεύθερος: Pla., Gorg. 57 p. 502d; Dio Chrys. 9 [10], 4; SIG 521, 7 [III B.C.]; Jos., Ant. 16, 126; Just., D. 139, 5) 1 Cor 7:21f (cp. the trimeter: Trag. Fgm. Adesp. 304 N., quot. fr. M. Ant. 11, 30 and Philo, Omn. Prob. Lib. 48, δοῦλος πέφυκας, οὐ μέτεστί σοι λόγου=you are a slave, with no share in discussions); 12:13; Gal 3:28; 4:1; Eph 6:8; Col 3:11; Rv 6:15; 13:16; 19:18; IRo 4:3. W. παιδίσκη D 4:10.—House slave in contrast to a son J 8:35; Gal 4:7.

ⓒ in contrast to being a fellow Christian οὐκέτι ὡς δοῦλον, ἀλλὰ ὑπὲρ δοῦλον, ἀδελφὸν ἀγαπητόν Phlm 16.

② one who is solely committed to another, slave, subject; ext. of mng. 1. Mt 6:24; Lk 16:13 express the ancient perspective out of which such extended usage develops: slaves are duty-bound only to their owners or masters, or those to whom total allegiance is pledged.

ⓐ in a pejorative sense δ. ἀνθρώπων slaves to humans 1 Cor 7:23. παριστάναι ἑαυτόν τινι δοῦλον Ro 6:16. δ. τῆς ἁμαρτίας slave of sin J 8:34; Ro 6:17, 20. τῆς φθορᾶς of destruction 2 Pt 2:19 (cp. Eur., Hec. 865 and Plut., Pelop. 279 [3, 1] χρημάτων; Thu. 3, 38, 5; Dio Chrys. 4, 60 τ. δόξης; Athen. 12, 531c τῶν ἡδονῶν; 542d; Aelian, VH 2, 41 τοῦ πίνειν; Achilles Tat. 6, 19, 4 τ. ἐπιθυμίας).

ⓑ in a positive sense

α. in relation to a superior human being (here the perspective is Oriental and not Hellenic). Of humble service (opp. πρῶτος) Mt 20:27; Mk 10:44. According to oriental usage, of a king’s officials (cp. SIG 22, 4; IMagnMai 115, 4; 1 Km 29:3; 4 Km 5:6; Jos., Ant. 2, 70) ministers Mt 18:23, 26ff (s. Spicq, I 383, n. 14 [Lexique 394, n. 4]); cp. the slaves sent out with invitations 22:3f, 6, 8, 10; Lk 14:17, 21ff (but s. 1a above).

β. esp. of the relationship of humans to God (with roots in both OT and Hellenic thought; s. δουλεύω 2aβ) δ. τοῦ θεοῦ slave of God=subject to God, owned body and soul (Eur., Ion 309 τοῦ θεοῦ καλοῦμαι δοῦλος εἰμί τε; Cass. Dio 63, 5, 2; CFossey, Inscr. de Syrie: BCH 21, 1897, p. 60 [Lucius calls himself the δοῦλος of the θεὰ Συρία]; PGM 12, 71 δ. τοῦ ὑψ. θεοῦ; 13, 637ff δοῦλός εἰμι σὸς … Σάραπι; 59, 2; 4; LXX; ParJer 6:17 [Baruch]; ApcSed 16:7 p. 137, 15; Philo, Rer. Div. Her. 7 al.; Jos., Ant. 11, 90; 101): of Moses (4 Km 18:12; 2 Esdr 19:14; Ps 104:26; Jos., Ant. 5, 39) Rv 15:3. Of recipients of gifts from God’s spirit Ac 2:18 (Jo 3:2). Of Christian prophets Rv 10:7; 11:18 (prophets are also called slaves of God in the OT Jer 25:4; Am 3:7; Da 9:6, 10 Theod.). Of the apostles Ac 4:29; 16:17 (δ. τοῦ θεοῦ τ. ὑψίστου as Da 3:93 Theod.); Tit 1:1; AcPl Ha 6, 35; Christ as master (cp. oriental usage, of a king’s official minister, and the interpretation of δ. in such sense [s. 2bα]) puts his slaves, the apostles, at the disposal of the Corinthians 2 Cor 4:5. Of God-fearing people gener. (Ps 33:23; 68:37 al.) Rv 1:1; Lk 2:29; 1 Pt 2:16; Rv 2:20; 7:3; 19:2, 5; 22:3, 6; 1 Cl 60:2; 2 Cl 20:1; Hv 1, 2, 4; 4, 1, 3; m 3:4 al. The one who is praying refers to himself as your (God’s) slave (cp. Ps 26:9; Ch 6:23; Da 3:33, 44) Lk 2:29; Ac 4:29 (FDölger, ΙΧΘΥΣ I 1910, 195ff).—In the same vein, of one’s relation to Christ δ. Χριστοῦ, self-designation of Paul (on the imagery s. Straub 37; DMartin, Slavery as Salvation: The Metaphor of Slavery in Pauline Christianity ’90) Ro 1:1; Gal 1:10; Phil 1:1; cp. Col 4:12; 2 Ti 2:24; Js 1:1; 2 Pt 1:1; Jd 1; Rv 1:1; 22:3; 1 Cor 7:22; Eph 6:6.—On δοῦλοι and φίλοι of Christ (for this contrast s. Philo, Migr. Abr. 45, Sobr. 55; PKatz, Philo’s Bible ’50, 85ff) J 15:15, s. φίλος 2aα.—Dssm., LO 271ff [LAE 323ff]; GSass, δ. bei Pls: ZNW 40, ’41, 24–32; LReilly, Slaves in Ancient Greece (manumission ins) ’78; COsiek, Slavery in the Second Testament World: BTB 22, ’92, 174–79; JHarril, The Manumission of Slaves in Early Christianity ’95, s. 11–67 on ancient slavery; KBradley, Slavery and Society at Rome ’94; also lit. on χράομαι 1a.—JVogt/HBellen, eds., Bibliographie zur antiken Sklaverei, rev. ed. EHermann/NBrockmeyer ’83 (lists over 5000 books and articles); JCMiller, Slavery and Slaving in World History, A Bibliography 1990–91 ’93 (lit. p. 196–225).—B. 1332. Schmidt, Syn. IV 124–29 s. δεσπότη. New Docs 2, 52–54. DELG. SEG XLII, 1837 (ins reff.). M-M. TW. Spicq. Sv.