Suretyship. In the entire absence of commerce, the law laid down no rules on the subject of suretyship; but it is evident that, in the time of Solomon, commercial dealings had become so multiplied that suretyship, in the commercial sense, was common. Pro_6:1; Pro_11:15; Pro_17:18; Pro_20:16; Pro_22:26; Pro_27:13.
But in older times, the notion of one man becoming a surety for a service to be discharged by another was in full force. See Gen_44:32. The surety, of course, became liable for his client's debts, in case of his failure. [The state of being surety; the obligation of a person to answer for another, and make good any debt or loss which may occur from another's delinquency.]
Smith's Bible Dictionary
By Dr. William Smith.Published in 1863