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A84352 The Christian Commonvvealth: or, The civil policy of the rising kingdom of Jesus Christ. Written before the interruption of the government, by Mr. John Eliot, teacher of the Church of Christ at Roxbury in New-England. And now published (after his consent given) by a server of the season. Eliot, John, 1604-1690. 1659 (1659) Wing E504; Thomason E1001_10; ESTC R207846 29,052 58

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Courts of the Superiour order have power to judge all capital Cases whatsoever The Court of one Myriade hath also power to judge any Cause betwixt the Rulers of the thousands of that Myriade who are not to judge in the Court when their own Case is judged Difficult Cases they transmit and Appeals they bind over to the Court of five Myriades if there be such a Court betwixt them and the Supreme Council otherwise they transmit them to the Council The Causes which properly belong to the Court of five Myriades are such as fall out betwixt parties of the several Myriades under them I will ascend no higher in describing the Courts of the Superiour order party because Gods Method is plain and also it will be rarely of use in any Commonwealth especially considering that which I farther propound Namely seeing God himself was pleased to appoint a Prince a chief Ruler over every Tribe in Israel who were distinguished by that civil distinction of kindreds By proportion thereunto in populous Nations where there be other civil distinctions of societies and cohabitations of men viz. by Cities Provinces Countries c. should not they chuse a Prince a chief Ruler of those several Precincts of civil society Whose Office is chiefly to take care of the good Government firstly of all the Superiour Rulers under him as also of all the rest as he hath opportunity that the Lord may rule among them Likewise to hold a Court consisting either of the Rulers of Myriades or of five Myriades or of ten Myriades or of an hundred Myriades according to the greatness of the people in his Precincts This Court to be called the Court of the Prince or Lord or chief Ruler of such a Precinct and to be next unto the Supreme Council from which Court onely difficult Cases and Appeals have access to the Supreme Council and to which they remit the determinations of the Cause to receive its judgement Lest the Supreme Council be oppressed with business from so many Courts and thereby the people with delays of hearing and issue occasioned thereby It seemeth to be right Orders and according to Gods institution that these Princes of the several Tribes or Societies of men should be members of the Supreme Council The whole Dominion being distributed unto the Supreme Counsellours or to so many of them as may be meet For the Princes of the Tribes of Israel it seemeth to me were members of the Sanhedrim or Supreme Council because God commanded that they should be chosen very carefully from among the Elders of the people Hence they will chuse the most choice of their Elders to send up with Moses to stand before God Now they could not chuse better fitter and men more acceptable to God out of all their Elders then those whom God himself had chosen by name to be Princes of the Tribes Besides it is exceedingly harmonious in the frame of this Government that it should be so for though whoever of the other Elders whether of the single or Superiour Order be chosen to the Supreme Council it may seem requisite they should leave the lower station lest when Appeals have passed in the circuit of Gods Government and come to the highest Council there should be sundry of them through whose judgement the Cause had formerly passed which may prove prejudicial both to their persons and to the Cause But when it hath lastly passed through the Court of the Prince of the Tribe meet it is that one of the last Court through which it passed should be present in the Supreme Council to give true information how they lastly after all former Tryals did find the Cause But this is to be observed in the distribution of the whole Dominion to the several Supreme Counsellours that no such civil Dominion is to be put upon or accepted by such Elders of Churches as are Members of the high Council as being such whose only Office and Work is to search the holy Scriptures and give all attendance to declare the Divine Oracle of God in such Cases as are in hand of what nature soever they be yea and if the Council see need to call Eccesiastical Councils greater or lesser to search out the mind of Christ for his presence and blessing is in every Ordinance and all joyntly conspire the advancement of his Kingdom and the doing of his will The Election of all Superiour Rulers is to be after the same manner as in the single form viz. by all the people * Or orders of men over whom they are to rule Some of the Princes of the Tribes of Israel may seem to be Rulers of fifty thousands or of five Orders of Myriades yet the Office of the Princes was not onely under that notion but also as an head of a civil society a kindred an eminent part a division of the Commonwealth for some of the Tribes had but four Myriades and some but three and therefore could not in that way and order have a Ruler of five Myriades Therefore they must needs be instituted under another consideration viz. as being the head or chief Ruler over an eminent part or division of the Commonwealth being civilly divided into such Societies CHAP. VIII SO much for the Platform of the Lords Government Now it remains to consider of the Laws by which these Rulers are to Govern the Lords people The written Word of God is the perfect Systeme or Frame of Laws to guide all the Moral actions of man either towards God or man the Application whereof to every Case according to its circumstances must be by the wisdom and discretion of the Judges guided by the light of the Scriptures and a pure Conscience The judgement and determination of a Cause is nothing else but the particular application of the Cause according to all its circumstances unto the Rule and Standard of Gods Word The Records of which judgements are equivalent to Humane Laws Which so far as the Case with all its circumstances considered is rightly applyed to the Rule of the Word is a deduct from Scripture and bindeth the Consciences both of Judges alway so to judge in the like case and the people so to walk Which Records to order wisely and publish for common instruction and edification is a work of great wisdom and tendeth much to Gods glory the good of the people and the facilitating and expediting justice among them All Strangers are ●o be accounted under the Government of those Orders where they reside and where their business lieth so as to have the benefit of the Government of the Lord as our own people have FINIS
holy Scriptures CHAP. IV. UPon the forenamed grounds of speedy Justice for the stablishing of firme peace all Causes betwixt man and man pertaining to the Congnizance of the Ruler of ten must be put upon Suit or Tryal within the space of one moneth b Lev. 19. 17. Thou shalt not suffer sin upon him Cases belonging to the Court of six must be put upon Suit or Tryal within the space of three moneths Causes belonging to the Court of three must be put upon Suit or Tryal within the space of nine moneths Causes belonging to the Court of eleven must be put upon Suit or Tryal in the space of one year and half or else to be frustrate and lose the priviledge of receiving judgement by man unless it appear that the providence of God did hinder or that the Defendant or Delinquent party did disappoint it in those cases it may be admitted to Tryal and receive Judgement though it be of a longer standing But Criminal Offences are to be judged at the time when and in the place where they be discovered and that with the most speed that may be Such Cases as are difficult weighty and worthy such attendance and cannot attain an acceptable issue in the Court where they firstly appertain may ascend from Court to Court either by Appeal or by Transmission to the Court of eleven And whatsoever Cause of weight cannot receive issue there may yet ascend either by Appeal or Transmission to the highest Council a Exod. 18. 22. Great matters they shall bring to thee 26. Hard matters they brought to Moses Deut. 17. 8 9. If there arise a matter too hard for thee c. thou shalt come to the Priests Levites and Judges that shall be in those days where by Gods appointment it must receive final determination b And thou shalt do according to the sentence c. Deut. 17. 10. In lesser Commonwealths where there be no Rulers or Courts of the Superiour order Cases ascend to the highest Council from the Court of eleven but where there be Rulers and Courts of the Superiour order there the Cause must ascend from the Court of eleven in the single Platform to the Court of one Myriade or the lowest Court in the Superiour order and so proceed until it come to the Supreme Council Every Appeal in this Platform of Government which the Lord hath instituted doth ascend to an higher Court and to other Judges There is one of the Judges from whom he appealeth a member of the Court to which he doth Appeal truly to inform the Court of the Reasons of their Judgement and but one lest they should sway overmuch and the Appealant want the priviledge of new and unprejudiced Judges Whosoever shall trouble the free passage of Justice in the ending of Causes through a perverse will or base ends or captious and quarrelsome wit besides the charges of such agitations he is worthy of some other medicine as may most effectually do him good and warn others In all Courts he that hath power to call the Court hath a double Vote as for example in the Court of Three if the Ruler of an hundred differ from the two Rulers of fifty the Court is equally divided if there be three Rulers of fifty and one of them concur with the Ruler of an hundred their sentence standeth When the Court is equally divided it is a difficult Case and must ascend to the Court next above them by Transmission or if the lesser part of the Court oppose the sentence of the Court as judging it sinful then it must ascend by Transmission If a Judge of any Court shall oppose the rest in point of sin without weighty and considerable grounds in the judgement of the Court whither it ascends or is transmitted his first offence shall be corrected with the charge of such transmission and admonition from the higher Court after offences in like kind are to be considered and judged by proportion to the process of Christ in the Church even unto rejection from his Place and Office The highest Council is to consist of a convenient number of the most holy and able men a Num. 11. 16. Whom thou knowest to be Elders of the people With Exod. 18. 21. Able men such as fear God men of truth hating covetousness orderly chosen for that purpose by all the orders of b Deut. 1. 13. Take ye wise men men under their jurisdiction every man in order having an equal voice therein from among all the Elders of the people both in the Commonwealth and in the Churches c Deut. 17. 9. And thou shalt come to the Priests Levites and Judges that shall be in those days and enquire and they shall shew thee c. 2 Chro. 19. 8. Moreover in Jerusalem did Jehosaphat set of the Levites and of the Priests and of the chief of the fathers in Israel for the judgement of the Lord and for controversie Deut. 21. 2. Then thy Elders and Judges shall come forth and shall measure c. ver 5. And the Priests the sons of Levi shall come neer and by their word shall every stroke and every controversie be tryed Deut. 19. 17. Both the men between whom the controversie is shall stand before the Lord before the Priests and Judges Ezek. 44. 24. And in controversie they shall stand in judgement and they shall judge it according to my judgement the biggest number being civil Elders d Numb 11. 16. Gather to me seventy men of the Elders of Israel Vide Ainsw in Loc. Hence the Hebrews gather that they were chose out of all the Tribes and therefore there was not less then five of a Tribe and so many of Levi who before the institution of the Sanhedrim were taken of God instead of the first born to be Priests unto God for they were taken to be Priests at Sinai Numb 3. 14. And this institution was at Kibroth-hattaavah Numb 11. 34. with Numb 31. 15 16 17. The Lord commanded Moses that seventy Elders should stand with him before the Lord hence there were seventy one of the Council and Moses was the chief and ordained the rest According to which patern the people are to chuse their chief Ruler first who being installed by some instead of the whole people must instal the rest and is chief Ruler of the Supreme Council who must call and manage their Assemblies As the overburdensomness of the work of Government by one man was the ground of the institution of the forenamed orders of Government so the overburdensomness of the work for one man to hear all hard Cases and Appeals together with other Cares to provide for the welfare of the people was the ground of the institution of the Supreme Council a Deut. 1. 9. I spake to you and said I am not able to bear you alone Numb 11. 11. ad 16. ver 11. And Moses said unto the Lord Wherefore hast thou afflicted thy servant and