Before entering upon an analysis of the condition of servants under these two states of society, let us settle the import of certain terms which describe the mode of procuring them.

IMPORT OF THE WORD “BUY,” AND THE PHRASE “BOUGHT WITH MONEY.”

From the direction to the Israelites to “buy” their servants, and from the phrase “bought with money,” applied to Abraham’s servants, it is argued that they were articles of property.  The sole ground for this belief is the terms “buy” and “bought with money,” and such an import to these terms when applied to servants is assumed, not only in the absence of all proof, but in the face of evidence to the contrary.  How much might be saved, if in discussion, the thing to be proved was always assumed.  To beg the question in debate, what economy of midnight oil! what a forestaller of premature wrinkles, and grey hairs!  Instead of protracted investigation into Scripture usage, and painful collating of passages, and cautiously tracing minute relations, to find the meaning of Scripture terms, let every man boldly resolve to interpret the language of the oldest book in the world, by the usages of his own time and place, and the work is done.  And then what a march of mind!  Instead of one revelation, they might be multiplied as the drops of the morning!  Every man might take orders as an inspired interpreter, with an infallible clue to the mind of the Spirit, if he only understood the dialect of his own neighborhood!  We repeat it, the only ground of proof that these terms are to be interpreted to mean, when applied to servants in the Bible, the same that they mean when applied to our slaves, is the terms themselves.

What a Babel-jargon it would make of the Bible to take it for granted that the sense in which words are now used is the inspired sense.

David says, “I prevented the dawning of the morning, and cried.”  What a miracle-worker, to stop the earth in its revolution!  Rather too fast.  Two hundred years ago, prevent was used in the strict Latin sense to come before, or anticipate.  It is always used in this sense in the Old and New Testaments.  David’s expression, in the English of the nineteenth century, is, “Before the dawning of the morning I cried,” or, I began to cry before day-break.  “So my prayer shall prevent thee.”  “Let us prevent his face with thanksgiving.”  “Mine eyes prevent the night watches.”  “We shall not prevent them that are asleep,” &c.  In almost every chapter of the Bible, words are used in a sense now nearly or quite obsolete, and sometimes in a sense totally opposite to their present meaning.  A few examples follow:  “Oftentimes I purposed to come to you, but was let (hindered) hitherto.”  “And the four beasts (living ones) fell down and worshipped God,”—­Whosoever shall offend