he servant_ who was his money, as
Abraham did, by God's direction, when he imposed circumcision on those
he had bought with his money,--when he was circumcised himself, with
Ishmael his son, who was the only individual beside himself, on whom he
had a right to impose it, except the bond-servants bought of the
stranger with his money, and their children born in his house. The next
notice we have of servants as property, is from God himself, when
clothed with all the visible tokens of his presence and glory, on the
top of Sinai, when he proclaimed his law to the millions that surrounded
its base: "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, thou shalt not
covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his man-servant, nor his maid-servant,
nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbor's."--Ex. xx:
17. Here is a patriarchal catalogue of property, having God for its
author, the wife among the rest, who was then purchased, as Jacob
purchased his two, by fourteen years' service. Here the term servant, as
used by the Almighty, under the circumstances of the case could not be
understood by these millions, as meaning any thing but property, because
the night they left Egypt, a few weeks before, Moses, by Divine
authority, recognized their servants as property, which they had bought
with their money.

2d. In addition to the evidence from the context of these, and various
other places, to prove the term servant to be identical in the import of
its essential particulars with the term slave among us, there is
unquestionable evidence, that _in the patriarchal age_, there are two
distinct states of servitude alluded to, and which are indicated by two
distinct terms, or by the same term, and an adjective to explain.

These two terms are first, servant or bond-servant; second, hireling or
hired servant; the first indicating involuntary servitude; the second,
voluntary servitude for stipulated wages, and a specified time. Although
this admits of the clearest proof _under the law_, yet it admits of
proof before the law was given. On the night the Israelites left Egypt,
which was before the law was given, Moses, in designating the
qualifications necessary for the Passover, uses this language,--Exod.
xii: 44, 45: "Every man's servant that is bought for money, when thou
hast circumcised him, then shall he eat thereof. A foreigner and an
hired servant shall not eat thereof." This language carries to the human
mind, with irresistible force, the