well as suffer good Princes to be moved to evill in judgement to his People as he did David and Hezekiah yea as he can move evill Princes so remove them at his pleasure as he did Saul and Ahab But the full clearing of this belongs to the last part of the Text. Onely this by the way Since there are Men who are now up in Arms against their gracious Soveraigne least any should be led away with their faire pretences we must know That no Man ought to take up Armes but in the Defence of a just cause Note and in Obedience to a lawfull Command For as a Man must have a good Cause to justifie his Arms so a lawfull Authority to justifie his Cause which who so wants is not onely a Rebell but a Murderer as Bernard to the Templars Serm. 1. Concerning unlawfull Duels so may I say of him who takes up unlawfull Arms if he dyes Moritur homicida he dyes a Murderer if he lives Vivit homicida he lives a Murderer yea whether he lives or dyes Est homicida he is a Murderer Occ sor lethaliter peccat occisus aeternaliter perit if he lives he is spiritually dead in that he slew and if he dyes he is eternally dead in that he is slaine slaine without Repentance here then enter a serious Deliberation and no sudden Resolution Were the Cause as Just as is pretended though no Man will think to pillage Houses the way to reforme the State to deface Churches the way to confirme Religion formerly towling a Bell on the Lords Day hath been accounted a great breach of the Sabbath now sounding of Trumpets beating of Drums taking of Castles plundering of Houses on the Lords Day an acceptable and commendable Service Will any Man think this the way of Reformation no sure unlesse this Reformation must be another Creation and so require another Chaos of Confusion But suppose we yet the Cause as good I say as is pretended yet where is the lawfull Command of Authority As for Excellency Power and Principallity which must constitute this Authority The Scriptures allowes them to Kings denyes them to Subjects though Magistrates yea the highest Magistrates denyes them I say joyntly and together as in Kings For the Magistrate though ne're so high 1 Epist 2.14 he is the Kings Creature So Saint Peter and so his Power and Governement a Derivative The Subject may have an Huperochen an Excellency of Gifts yea Megisten Huperochen the greatest Excellency which makes him capable of being Councellor to the King but not a King But his ' Exousia and ' Arche his Power and Governement being only Delegate and Derived from the King it is not Consonant to Reason that they should afford a lawfull Command against the King For the King being the Fountaine from whence the Magistrates Power doth Streame how against Nature is it for the Streame to run backwards into the Fountain for the Power derived from the King to be exercised against the King So that whil'st Men take up Armes and prosecute a Civill War against the King in stead of Defending we see they destroy Religion in stead of Preserving they disturbe the Peace in stead of Protecting they violate the Laws and that in an high Measure and an hainous Nature Indeed if we aske whether there be any Cause that can justifie Armes against the King and any Authority that can justifie the Cause The Scriptures as shall afterwards appeare will say no the Fathers say no the best of Moderne Divines say no. What shall we say then or rather what shall we doe then Why Defend our Kings Person and he will Defend our Religion Preserve His Honour and he will preserve our Peace maintaine His Royalty and He will protect our Lawes Strigellus tells us That Alphonsus King of Naples his Embleme was A Pelican feeding her young with her own Blood with this Motto better applyed then of late Pro Rege pro Grege What was that Kings may be most truely Ours who Pelican like is now ready to spend His owne Blood for the redeeming His owne Honour and His Peoples safety and if ye now tread in His steps follow His Example in being ready to sacrifice your own Lives for the Honour of your King and the Peace of your Country if ye dye in the enterprise your Deathes shall not be Mortes but Immortalitates having made your peace with God an Eternall Reward shall attend your Temporall Deaths And here I passe from Quid What the King is to the per Quem by whom he is King 2. Perquem by whom he King 2. Per Quem by whom If we come to Solomons Proverbs we shall finde this per quem answered with a per Me Prov. 8.15 per Me Reges Regnant by me Kings Reigne by Me King of Kings and Lord of Lords where the per is not a meere Permission but a full Commission it is not that they Reigne by my Sufferance but by mine Ordinance for if we bring our per quem to St. Paul he will answer us with an Ordinatae sunt a Deo Rom. 13.1 The Powers which are are ordained of God Bring this per quem to the Ancient Fathers Lib. 5. c. 24. and Irenaeus will tell us That Cujus jussu homines nascuntur hujus jussu Reges constituuntur By whose Command Men are Created by his Command are Kings Ordained Tertullian in Apologet. tells us Inde est Imperator unde homo antiquam Imperator By him is the Emperour by whom he is Man before he be Emperour Inde potestas illi unde Spiritus from him he hath his Power from whom he hath his Spirit Hence it is that in 1 Cron. c. 29. v. 23. it is said Solomon sate on the Throne of the Lord in solium Domini not in solium Populi on the Throne of the Lord not on the Throne of the People Yea bring this per quem to the Heathen and such is the dictate of Nature that he will answer it with a per Jovem And it were more than a Miracle that among the Heathen as one hath well observ'd so many Princes should submit themselves to one and that one peradventure a Woman peradventure a Childe were it not that they did acknowledge a Divine Power which St. Paul more Divine-like calls Gods Ordinance which begat a Reverence in their hearts Hence it is that we owe Honour and Subjection unto Kings though wicked even because of Gods Ordinance for as the unfaithfulnesse of a Man cannot frustrate Gods promise as appears Rom. 9. so nor can the Wickednesse of the Person make void Gods Ordinance So that a King is nor a King because he is a good King nor leaves being a King when he leaves being good We give Honour saith Bishop Andrews well not proswpw but proswpwpoiw not to Man but to God in Man So that as contempt of the Magistrate the Kings Vicegerent is contempt of the King who ordained the Magistrate
chose the foolish things of the world to confound the Wise the Weake things to confound the things which are Mighty and base things of the World and things which are despised did God chuse yea things which are not to bring to naught things that are 1 Cor. 1.26.27 c. That of Cyprian to Demetrianus is full to our purpose none of us saith he when he is apprehended resisteth quamvis nimius copiosus noster sit numerus though our number be far the greater Above all Ecclesiasticall History relates that Julians Army notwithstanding his great cruelty and persecution did consist most of Christians who we reade fought for him against his Enemies but never for themselves against him and that his Army did consist most of Christians appears by that full Acclamation of theirs to Jovinian afrer Julians death Christiani sumus we are Christians So that we may well say with Tertullian concerning the Sect of Christians in their Persecutions occidi licet occidere non licet not occidi potest occidere non potest not that it is in their Power to be slain not in their Power to slay but it is Lawfull for them to be slaine not Lawfull for them to slay Solomon here confirm's it with a non est qui resistat there is not any that may resist Yet are not the Adversary's herewith satisfied The Adversaries obiections answered but object to us the Men of Jerusalem who rose up against King Amaziah 2 King 14.19 Yet see how the Scripture setts a brand upon them and tells us that conspiraverant conspirationem they made a great Conspiracy an act as little commendable as it is imitable They tell us of the ten Tribes falling away to Jeroboam though the Scripture tells us that it was of the Lord 1 Kin. 12.24 Jeroboam being anoynted to the Crown by Ahijah the Shilonite They tell us of Jehu smiting the House of Ahab and rising up in arms against Joram his King though the Scripture tells us 2 King 9.6 Thus saith the Lord I have anoynted thee King over Israel and so Peter Martyr well It was an act extraordinary Loc. com cla 4. c. 20. non in Exemplum trahendum and not to be drawn into example They tell us also of the People delivering Jonathan from Saul 1 Sam. 14.45 Though it appears not in Scripture that they did it by forceable arms of resistance but rather as Junius and Tremelius by forceable Argument of Perswasion ut posthabita juramenti ratione Comment in locum juris haberetrationem That laying aside the account he had of his Oath he would have respect to Equity and Justice Thus then notwithstanding the Opposition of the Adversaries I have made it cleare to you that no Cause can justifie the Subjects taking up arms against the King 2 No Authority Who shall command against him 2. No authority from whom issueth the Power of commanding Yea but he is entrusted with that Power by the Commonwealth for the safety and well fare thereof which if he abuseth he may be deprived of it by the Commonwealth Suppose this true as you know affirm'd it hath been for a Truth suppose our King had his Power committed to him by the State which yet is most false as shall presently appeare and suppose it in the Power of the State to require it of him again Though let me tell you this severing the Head from the Body the King from the State hath been as ominous as erroneus But as I leade you into this Maze Note so will I conduct you out again Upon this Supposition then consider well our many Hero's brave Worthies Starres primae magnitudinis shining no lesse in Valour than in Vertue consider the gravity of their Wisedome the Authority of their Persons the Uprightnesse of their Lives Men fit for Councell in Peace and Conduct in Warre Consider those great Nobles and Grave Judges of the Land the Learned Doctors and Clergy of the Land the Faithfull Gentry and Loyall Commonalty consider the great Counties the many Cities with the Famous Universities All which stand up in the defence of their Soveraigne the Lords anoynted Consider these well and then tell me what is that you call the State what is that you call the Commonwealth of the Kingdome Thus you see that not without cause Saint Jude tells us v. 8. that they who despise Governement kurioteta not Dominum but Dominatum not the Governours but the Governement Comment in locum ordinem ipsum a Deo constitutum so Beza the Order it selfe constituted by God They the Apostle tells u are ' Enupnazourenoi altissimo veterno sopiri buried in a dead sleep so Beza againe they are filthy Dreamers so our English delusi insomniis deluded with Dreames so Erasmus That of our English may be applyed to the great Statesmen the Patriots that of Erasmus to the People their Disciples the former they are filthy Dreamers the latter they are delusi insomniis deceived with their Dreames For is it not evident to him that is awake and his Eyes open That what those Men set down to justifie their Actions doe most of all condemne them they swerving from their own Principles But to returne The Power of Kings is de super nor de subter from above not from beneath from God From whence the power of Kings is not from the Subjects call them what you will the Multitude the States or the Commonwealth Ego dixi Dii estis Psal 82.6 I have said ye are Gods Ego dixi I have said not nos diximus We have said he hath said it whose Dixit is a Fecit by him are Kings ordain'd by whom all things are created Per me Reges per quem Regna by him are Kings by whom are Kingdomes the World and the Governement of the World hath the same per both potestatis personae of Power and of Person If wicked Men once separate Reges from per me Kings from him by whom they are Kings no wonder if they strike at Regnant too no wonder if they strive to cast their Crowns down to the ground and lay their Honour in the dust Tertullian is full for an Heathen Emperour In Apologet. Imperatorem saith he necesse est ut suspiciamus it is necessary that we reverence the Emperour and how so ut eum quem Dominus noster elegit as him whom our Lord hath chosen ut merito dixerim noster est magis Caesar ut a nostro Deo constitutus that I may very well say Caesar is rather our Emperour as constituted by our God Yea the King is by God but God he worketh by means and therfore though he chuse the King yet it is mediante Populo by the choice of the People For this see Psal 89.20 there saith God of King David I have exalted one chosen out of the People The King not chosen by the People Electumâ—e Populo chosen out of the People not
in doing the evill they Command so nor may we rise up against them when they Command that which is evill And this is the Summe of Gods Truth and the Saints Practise in this case of Subjection to wicked Kings This to remove Prejudice and Misunderstanding now ad Rem 1. No Cause can justifie the Subjects taking up Arms against their King 1. No cause can justifie arms against the King We must know Satan deceives not more than when an Angell of Light and Rebellion prevailes not more than when it's pretence is Religion and Justice See that one Example of Absolon 2 Sam. 15. He steales away the Hearts of the People and how that Vers 6. First he possesseth them with an evill opinion of the King Vers 3. that he neglects the execution of Justice and then insinuates into them Vers 4. That if he were made Judge in the Land not yet seeming to ayme at the Crown he onely desires to be made a Judge in the Land them the times should be better If any Man had any suite or cause if he came unto him he would doe him Justice Vers 5. c. And then condescended to a winning Affability with the People he raiseth a most unnaturall Rebellion which he colours over not onely with the faire Pretence of executing Justice but also of preserving Religion and therefore he offers Sacrifice before the People And the better to countenance his Rebellion he makes use of Achitophell the great Councellor and others of the Nobles of Israel And if we look upon King David he good Man is put to as great straits as King Charles He is driven from the great City Jerusalem he is forc't to fly a farre off and glad that he can be furnisht with provision at Mahanaim at the bounty of his better Subjects And being at this distance he Assembles what Forces he can rayse and sends them out to suppresse the Rebellion of Absolon who as he brought upon the Kingdome the misery of a Civill War so upon himselfe the confusion of an unnaturall Sonne and a Rebellious Subject Here let me say to King Charles what Cushi said to King David since their case is not much unlike when he brought the News of the Victory 2 Sam. 18.32 Let the Enemies of my Lord the King and all that rise up to doe thee hurt be as that young Man is But that a pretended Cause how specious soever should justifie Arms against the King no Man will beleive Therefore I must goe a great way farther and draw the Cord much longer and make it appeare that no Cause how just soever truely and indeed can justifie the Subjects taking up Arms against their Soveraigne What cause more Religious than that of Religion What cause more Just than that of Justice it selfe Yet neither for the Profession of Religion nor for the execution of Justice may Subjects take up Arms against their King This is evident Ashur is the Rod of Gods anger yet must Israel be subject Nebuchadnezzar his scourge yet must Judah submit and be so farre from raising Arms against him that they must pray for his Peace Jer. 29.7 In that 1 Tim. 2.1 Prayers are commanded to be made for Governours who were they not Christians but Heathens In that 1 Pet. 2.13 Honour the King Who was that Constantine the good No but Nero the Cruell And sure where God Commands Prayers to be made for Kings Horour and Obedience to be given to Kings he takes away taking up Arms against Kings though such as Nebuchadnezzar such as Nero Idolatrous and Cruell Blessed are they saith our Saviour who suffer persecution for Righteousnesse sake for their's is the Kingdome of Heaven Math. 5.10 not Blessed are they who rayse Rebellion for Righteousnesse sake that theirs may be the Kingdomes of the Earth And againe Vers 44. Love your Enemies blesse them that curse you and pray for them which despightfully use you and persecute you and the reason is ut Filii sitis That ye may be the Children the Children of whom Filii hujus seculi Children of this World no Flesh and Blood cannot endure this they are for another Way a Way of Opposition a Way of Rebellion but Filii Patris vestri qui est in Caelis the Children of your Father which is in Heaven If then to love our Enemies to Blesse them that Curse us to doe good to them that here us and to Pray for them who despightfully use us and persecute us be Godly Spirituall and Heavenly then to have bitter Envyings and Strifes in the Heart to rayse Civill Dissention and Division in the State is Earthly Sensuall and Divellish as S. James speaks ch 3. v. 15. S. Peter in 1 Ep. c. 2. v. 18. He admonisheth Servants to be subject to their Masters with all Feare not only to the Good and Gentle Alla kai tois skoliois but also to the Froward so our English pravis the wicked so Beza duris hard or cruell so Tremelius And if Servants must obey wicked and cruell Masters then must Subjects obey Wicked and Cruell Kings for the same relation that the Servant hath to his Master the same hath the Subject to his King And Beza's note here concerning the Servant may not unfitly be applyed to the Subject That though his condition seem in this case very grievous yet his subjection shall be so much the more accoptable to God si voluntas ipsius plus valeat quam Dominorum injuriae If the good pleasure of his will more prevaile with them than the injury's of their Lords Again in Rom. 12.19 Dearely beloved saith Saint Paul avenge not your selves If we may not avenge our selves upon our Equalls much lesse upon our Superiours and least of all that is not at all on him who is Supreame Comment in locum Ergo affligemur inulti shall we then be tyrannized over without Revenge Musculus makes the Objection and gives the answer adjecta est saith he hujus gratia assertio illa ego rependam For this cause is that Assertion added I will repay saith the Lord and a fearefull thing it is to fall into the hands of the living God Heb. 10 11. and ideo horribilius Regibus therefore the more fearefull for Kings because they have him alone to be their Judge and quid credimus judicem illum si non ultorem as Tertullian speaks Wherefore doe we beleive him a Judge if not a Revenger As for Kings then God will punish them Autocheir with his own hand which David knew well when he answered Abishai moving yea inciting him to slay Saul or suffer Saul to be slaine with a Deus percusserit God shall smite him but as for himselfe he would not stretch out his hand against him 1 Sam. 2.6.10.11 I could heape up Texts of Scripture to confirme this Truth but this one sentence of my Text may suffice where we have it propriis terminis a thing now a dayes so
electum a Populo chosen by the People qui exaltavit etiam elegit by him he was chosen by whom he was exalted by him he was chosen out of the People by whom he was exalted above the People And as for King David so for all the Kings of his Race God hath a per me for them all and as for them so for all Kings else by lawfull Succession that is certum determinatum As for unlawfull Usurpation I leave that sub Judice as needing no Sentence at the present If then the King receives not his Power from the Common-wealth then cannot the Commonwealth either take away the Power from the King or exercise a Power and Command against the King Thus then if no Cause no Authority can justifie armes against the King whatsoever Cause Men pretend whatsoever Authority they produce Solomon stands up still for the King with his non est qui resistat ei there is not any that may resist him But here I must not passe neither without a stand The severall places of Scripture which yeeld either Precept or Example of Obedience to Kings though wicked there are those who evade the Force of them by applying them to private or Particular Men and so runnes indeed the whole Current of Antimonarchians And therefore say they the Magistrates under the King though singuli separatim each one severall be his inferiour yet Vniversi conjunctim all conjoyn'd are his Superiour By the way observe ut dicta factis deficientibus erubescant as Tertullian de Patientia speakes That their Writings may shame their Actions Their owne Tenet is That if the Magistrates be above the King they must be universi conjunctim all conjoyn'd not divided and so Note as that the lesse part prevaile over the greater Which perchance may be true as concerning a Duke of Venice as you have formerly had the Example or a Prince of Orange but most certainly not as concerning a King of England Therefore Beloved beware of those kind of Statesmen who following their Masters would first bring us to a low King and after that I feare a Low-Country too Buchanan a great Patron of this Faction tells us quasi ex Tripode with as much confidence as if it were an Oracle in Dialog de jure Reg. jus idem habere in Reges multitudinem quod illi in singulos e multitudine habent It is too poysonous to be Englished Thus sometimes the States sometimes the Multitude in these Mens opinions must supereminere be Supreame and not the King in Saint Peters But what shall we beleive Buchanan and the Presbytery or Saint Peter and others of the Apostles cui potius siguram vocis suae declarasset quam cui figuram gloriae suae revelavit saith Tertullian to whom should Christ have reveal'd his will rather than to whom he reveal'd his Glory namely Saint Peter and the rest I will not abuse your patience nor misusemy paines to enlarge a Confutation vel recitasse est confutasse to have recited them is to have confuted them Onely observe that the Practises of those in our times who oppose the King are falne besides the Foundation layd them by their Masters for if they look their Lesson over again they shall find that not a part or parcell of the Magistrates but universi conjunctim all conjoyn'd not aliqui e multitudine Note sed multitudinem not some Companies of the Multitude but the whole Multitude not unus aut alter de judicibus aut Principibus Regni one or two that is some few of the Judges or Nobles of the Kingdom but they are universi Regni ordines the whole States of the Kingdome who may either moderari coercere or punire Principem Thus as Job speaks c. 5. v. 13. God taketh the Wise ' En panourgia ' autwn saith the Septuagint in their subtle wilinesse and the councell of the froward is carryed headlong consilium reluctantium so Junius the councell of the Rebellious not devised with more folly than prosecuted with fury to their own destruction I will conclude this point then with that place in the Church Homilyes so full against wilfull Rebellion That certainly Satan intending to raise Rebellion in the People first thought it necessary to suppresse the Homilies from the People The Words are these Turne over and reade the Histories of all Nations look over the Cronicles of our own Country call to memory so many Rebellions of old time and some yet fresh in Memory and we shall finde That were the Multitudes of the Rebells never so huge and great the Captains never so Noble Politicke and Witty the pretences feigned never so good and holy yet the speedy overthrow of all Rebells of what Number State or Condition soever they were or what colour or cause soever they pretended is and ever hath been such that God thereby doth shew that he alloweth neither the dignity of any Person nor the Multitude of any People nor the weight of any cause as sufficient for the which the Subjects may move Rebellion against their Princes Thus far the Homily's of the Church And if thus no Cause no Authority against a wicked King Note much lesse can any Cause any Authority justifie Arms against a gracious King If Jeremy will have Subjection to Idolâ—trous Nebuchadnezzar if Christ to Heathen Caesar if Saint Paul to Persecuting Nero who shall deny it to pious King Charles If for any King then sure for our King Solomon's non est qui resistat ei stands good There is not any that may resist him Thus of the Words as denying rem factam the thing done and jus facti the lawfulnesse of doing the thing I will briefely runne over the rest 1. Quomodo the Manner how there is no rising up 1. Quomodo the manner how there is no rising up 1. Non Corde not in the Heart and first non corde no rising up in the Heart malum cogitando in thinking evill Rebellion is the rankest poyson the least drop whereof is deadly not onely the large quantum but the least Scruple is forbidden Eccl. 10.20 Curse not the King in thy thought the very hatching of a Cockatribe Egge is poyson as well as the Viper the Intention of Treason is a Sinne of an high nature as well as the Action and if proved shall be equally punished Esth 2.22 it is said of Bigthan and Teresh that voluerunt insurgere not that they did rise up but that they would have risen up against Ahasuerus though but a voluerunt an intention onely without action yet treason for which they are adjudged to death Touch not mine Anoynted saith the Lord Ps 105.15 Noljte tangere not the hand onely to act but the Heart also to will is forbidden Not unfitly then for this Cause though for others too more fitly Kings are called Gods because of the divine Priviledge communicated to them from God that as against God so against the King sufficit cor the Heart is enough