Wait a minute ! This verse says not to return a slave to his master. Yet, the apostle Paul in the New Testament did exactly the opposite. Or did he? He wrote a letter to Philemon asking that the slave Onesimus be received back into his home.
Paul was a highly educated man. He called himself a Pharisee of Pharisees. Surely, he would have been aware of this verse. How can we say that Paul is justified in doing what he did in the book of Philemon?
Philemon was not written to be anti-slavery as some might suppose even though the Bible does not support slavery. There is a dynamic difference in these two situations as recorded in Deuteronomy and Philemon.
Onesimus was the offending party, and he stole money from his master and ran away. Eventually he met Paul and became a Christian. Philemon was also a Christian as a slave owner. He was the party that was offended.
Whatever slave was mentioned in Deuteronomy was the one who was victimized. Apparently, his master was cruel and abusive. That slave ran away to protect himself from further abuse or even perhaps death.
The book of Philemon portrays the situation of every man, woman, and child. We all have offended God. We are all sinners.(Romans 3:23) Paul told Philemon that he would pay any debt that was owed to the slave master. What a wonderful depiction this is of Jesus who has paid the price for our sin and is our mediator with the Heavenly Father.
The book of Deuteronomy portrays the situation of every man, woman, and child who needs safety and security. This slave was permitted to become one of the family, a member of the Israelites. He was encouraged to find a home, have a job, and live in peace. What a wonderful depiction this is after a person becomes a Christian, fleeing from the world’s abuse. We have a new home and a new life.
When we become a Christian, we have escaped our former life. Before becoming a believer, the slave may not have been aware of the abuse that evil has brought upon him because he was accustomed to it. Like the escaped slave, we must come to a point in which we realize how awful the spiritual circumstances of our lives are. It is in Christ that we can establish a new life with promises of a new home in glory. Similar to that in Philemon, the price has been paid for our sin by Jesus. Like that of the slave that was in Deuteronomy, we choose without bias what will be our standing in a new life from Jesus.
Christian Writer 