Wrongfully Dividing the Word of Truth: The History and Impact of the Negro Slave Bible - Part 1
by George Moore
“Hear this, you...who despise justice and distort all that is right...” – Micah 3:9
In 2019, I attended a breakout session entitled “The Black Church as Apologetics” and I learned that on some plantations, slaves were given a Bible with books like Exodus removed to suppress their desire for freedom. [1] This Bible became known as The Negro Bible – The Slave Bible: Select Parts of the Holy Bible for the Use of the Negro Slaves of the British West-India Islands.
In part 1 of this two-part series on the slave Bible, we will start by observing the events that lead to the creation of The Slave Bible and discuss what is inside these bibles. For those wondering why we chose to write on this subject, it’s because understanding the Slave Bible is vital when looking at the history of Christianity in the West. The repercussions of twisting Scripture like this is felt every time a minority believes the narrative that the Bible condones chattel slavery (the oppression of Black people, etc.) These narratives create stumbling blocks for our faith, and we must use these moments as evangelistic and equipping opportunities to present the truth found in Scripture, God’s plan for humanity, and salvation found in Jesus Christ alone.
For part 2, we will do a deeper dive into how we see remnants of the Slave Bible’s ideology in America today. Let’s begin!
Why Was the Slave Bible Created?
Sometimes the narrative makes it sound like slaves were immediately given the gospel to be submissive to their masters, but this is not entirely true. In fact, when slaves first came to America, they weren’t even given the gospel. For example, in the book Divided by Faith, Emerson and Smith share that prior to the eighteenth century, “white Christians paid little attention to slaves’ souls... [for they were seen as] less than fully human, did not possess souls and were incapable of learning.” [2] Put it simply, white slave owners were indifferent towards the souls of black slaves. This mindset began to change as the number of slaves increased in the colonies [3] and the abolitionist movement (the push to free slaves) gained momentum. [4] For the first time, the souls of slaves began to be considered. [5]
Ultimately, what finally ushered in the creation of the Slave Bible occurred in 1804 with the Haitian Revolution, when Haitian slaves overthrew their masters. [6] It was the only revolt in the history of the West where slaves successfully rebelled against their owners. [7] The effects of this event were felt throughout the world, including the United States. With all of these competing factors, how could slave masters convert slaves while at the same time prevent more slave insurrections from happening? The answer comes in the creation of the Slave Bible, created by the Society for the Conversation of Negro Slaves in England created in 1807. [8]
Contents of the Slave Bible
Our standard Bible consists of 66 books divided into what’s called the Old and New Testament. As Christians, we call this our canon of Scripture, a “collection of books deemed authoritative by the church.” [9] Each section of our Bible was solidified ages ago, long before the first black slaves were brought to America and the West Indies. The 39 books that make up the Old Testament were declared around 435 B.C. [10] In other words, “the Old Testament was authorized and codified” before Jesus arrives on the scene and were used by the early church. [11] [12] Also, the Jews have had their canon finalized for centuries. The 27 books that make up the New Testament, were first affirmed by African church father Athanasius of Alexandria, in 367 A.D., [13] a millennium before the first slaves reached our coast.
The Slave Bible is significantly less than our canon but by how much? Anthony Schmidt, associate curator of Bible and Religion in America for Museum of the Bible, says that, “...90 percent of the Old Testament is missing [and] 50 percent of the New Testament is missing.” [14] Here are the percentages of what remained in the Bible after slave masters removed Scriptures from the Old Testament:
A) From the Torah [15]:
· 28% of Genesis
· 5% of Exodus
· 0% of Leviticus and Numbers
· 23.5% of Deuteronomy
B) From the historical books:
· 0% of Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 2 Samuel, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther
· 6.5% of 1 Samuel
· 22.7% of 1 Kings
· 8% of 2 Kings
C) From the books of poetry:
· 14.3% of Job
· 0% of Psalms and Song of Solomon
· 77.4% of Proverbs
· 100% of Ecclesiastes
D) From the major prophets:
· 24.2% of Isaiah
· 0% of Jeremiah, Lamentations, and Ezekiel
· 75% of Daniel
E) From the minor prophets:
· 21.4% of Hosea
· 66.7% of Joel
· 0% of Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi
As we get to the New Testament, you’ll notice that slave masters and clerics removed texts about the Savior and the ministry of the Apostles, among many other things. Let’s take a look at how much of the New Testament made it into the Slave Bible: [16]
A) From the Gospels and Acts:
· 100% of Matthew
· 0% of Mark
· 100% of Luke
· 28.6% of John
B) Regarding early church and how it spread from Jerusalem to across the world:
. 100% of Acts
C) From the Epistles:
· 12.5% of Romans
· 31.3% of 1 Corinthians
· 15.4% of 2 Corinthians
· 50% of Galatians
· 50% of Ephesians
· 50% of Philippians
· 0% of Colossians, 2 Thessalonians, Philemon, 2 Peter, 2 & 3 John, and Jude
· 40% of 1Thessalonians
· 33.3% of 1 Timothy
· 75% of 2 Timothy
· 66.7% of Titus
· 38.5% of Hebrews
· 60% of James
· 100% of 1 Peter
· 20% of 1 John
· 0% of Jude
D) Lastly, when it comes to the books of prophecy in the New Testament:
• 0% of Revelation
Exposing the Truth
After seeing how much was removed from the Bible, it’s understandable to feel a range of negative emotions. Seeing the ways men and women used the life-changing power of the Scriptures for their own benefit is disheartening and evil! So many verses that pertain to the Messiah coming to save the nations (Gen. 12:2, 49:10; Zechariah 12-14), verses about justice and oppression (Leviticus 19:10, 15, 33; Psalms 82:2-4; Amos 5:7-15; Micah 6:8), and verses about equality (Galatians 3:28; James 2:1-3; Philemon) were all left out the Slave Bible. Thankfully, in the midst of deception, the truth was seen. Nothing encapsulates this idea more than the words of Frederick Douglass in his book The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass an American Slave,
“What I have said respecting and against religion, I mean strictly to apply to the slaveholding religion of this land, and with no possible reference to Christianity proper; for, between the Christianity of this land, and the Christianity of Christ, I recognize the widest possible difference—so wide, that to receive the one as good, pure, and holy, is of necessity to reject the other as bad, corrupt, and wicked. To be the friend of the one is of necessity to be the enemy of the other. I love the pure, peaceable, and impartial Christianity of Christ: I, therefore, hate the corrupt, slaveholding, women-whipping, cradle-plundering, partial and hypocritical Christianity of this land. Indeed, I can see no reason, but the most deceitful one, for calling the religion of this land Christianity. I look upon it as the climax of all misnomers, the boldest of all frauds, and the grossest of all libels. Never was there a clearer case of “stealing the livery of the court of heaven to serve the devil in.” I am filled with unutterable loathing when I contemplate the religious pomp and show, together with the horrible inconsistencies, which everywhere surround me.” [17]
People like Douglass (a licensed deacon in the A.M.E. church), [18] Sojourner Truth, Lott Carey (the first African-American missionary to Africa who helped establish modern-day Liberia), [19] and Octavia Rogers Albert (former slave, church leader, and historian) [20] shine bright in such a dark time, and our faith is better for it.
In Part 2 of our series, we will take a look at the lingering ideology of the Slave Bible in our time. May we continue to share the truth of Scripture and the heart of God in these times and hold fast to the One who is able to keep and sustain us. Be blessed, family.
Notes:
1. Dr. CJ Rhodes. “The Black Church as Apologetics.” DEFEND Conference 2019: New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, Jan. 9, 2019.
2. Michael Emerson and Christian Smith. Divided by Faith. New York, New York: Oxford Press, 2000, pg. 22.
3. See Emerson and Smith, pg. 22
4. int. Joseph Lumpkin. The Negro Bible – The Slave Bible: Select Parts of the Holy Bible
for the Use of the Negro Slaves of the British West-India Islands. Blountsville, Alabama:
Fifth Estate Publishers, 2019, vi.
5. See Lumpkin, vi.
6. See Lumpkin, v.
7. See Lumpkin, v.
8. See Lumpkin, v.
9. Millard Erickson. The Concise Dictionary of Christian Theology. Wheaton, Illinois:
Crossway Publishers, 2001, pg. 29.
10. Wayne Grudem. Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine. Grand
Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 1994, pg. 56.
11. Pastor Ricky Jenkins. Southwest Church. September 15, 2021.
12. Gregg R. Allison. Historical Theology: An Introduction to Christian Doctrine. Grand
Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2011, pg. 38.
13. Athanasius of Alexandria. (“Easter Letter 39”, in Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers
Second Series: Vol. 4, ed. Philip Schaff & Rev. Henry Wallace. New York, New York:
Cosimo Books, 2007), pg. 552.
14. https://www.npr.org/2018/12/09/674995075/slave-bible-from-the-1800s-omitted-key-
passages-that-could-incite-rebellion
15. See Lumpkin, ix.
16. See Lumpkin, x-xi.
17. https://www.ibiblio.org/ebooks/Douglass/Narrative/Douglass_Narrative.pdf. Appendix,
101.
18. C. Eric Lincoln and Lawrence H. Mamiya. The Black Church in the African-American
Experience. Durham, North Carolina: Duke University Press, 1990, pg. 280.
19. Leroy Fitts. Lott Carey: First Black Missionary to Africa. Valley Forge, Pennsylvania:
Judson Press, 1978, pg. 73.