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A49699
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The power of kings from God a sermon preached in the Cathedral Church of Sarum the XXIX day of June, 1683 upon occasion of the detection of the late horrid plot against the life of His Scared Majesty / by Paul Lathom.
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Lathom, Paul.
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1683
(1683)
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Wing L574; ESTC R25132
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20,903
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43
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Favourite of Heaven in her life and at last dyed in Peace and Honour in a good old age after a long and glorious reign belov'd by all good men while she lived and lamented by them at her death Did not the same Providence watch over her wise and peaceable successor delivering him from many attempts and particularly the most horrid that ever the Sun saw discovered And blessed be God he is still the same to our present Monarch protecting him from the rage of those that are his Enemies on both hands because he strongly maintains that Truth that is opposed by them both How many experiences hath God given us of discovering and disappointing their wicked Plots and Conspiracies against him and especially at this time in particular This gives us advantage to strengthen our Faith in the belief of God's care of our King and in him of us this encourageth us to hope and pray that no Treason formed against him may prosper that his Enemies of all sorts may be cloathed with shame but that upon himself his Crown may long and happily flourish and that after many and many years spent in a peaceable and glorious reign he may at last in peace exchange his corruptible for an incorruptible Crown even so Amen Fourthly by Authority immediately derived from the only wise God the great King of Kings Monarchy is established and Kings do hold their Scepters And that I may discourse upon this distinctly to the clearing of the truth to the confirmation of those that own it and to the conviction of gain-sayers I shall propose these four Questions 1. Whether Monarchy be that particular form of Government which God hath appointed and doth approve or whether there may not be another form of Government that may be competitor with it for desirableness or rather preferred before it 2. Whether Kings have their Power immediately from God or whether it be not conferred upon them by the People 3. Whether supposing that the People did confer the Power upon the Prince in the first institution of Monarchy it doth now lie in the Power of the People to revoke it 4. Whether the Power of Kings be so immediately subject unto God that no earthly Power can call the King to an account for the administration of the Government First Whether Monarchy be that particular form of Government which God appointed and doth approve or whether there be not other forms of Government for example a Democracy that may be commended equally with it or rather preferred before it I move this Question because we are fallen into an unhappy Age when men do assume to themselves if not a liberty of Prophecying or Conjecturing what form of Government will come next upon the stage and act its part amongst us yet at least a liberty of arguing pro and con making it a moot case whether Monarchy be the Government that God approves and whether the Nation might not be as happy or more under a Republick than a Monarchy In order to the stating of this Point I lay down these Assertions 1. It is certain that Monarchy is the most ancient Government of Mankind He that epitomized Trogus an ancient Writer tells us that Principio rerum gentium civitatum imperium penes reges erat And if in the search of Histories Sacred or Prophane there be no Footsteps of Democracy in the eldest Times then certainly a Republick is an Innovation And Innovations in the State are as dangerous as in the Church And if our Saviour convicted Practices introduced in later Ages by calling them back to the Original of things telling them that in the beginning it was not so Matth. 19.8 then sure I think the Antiquity of this Form pleads much for the preference of Monarchy 2. It is the Government that God set up over his own People of old I do not say that we are absolutely bound to the Jewish Model of Government or Laws any further than the common equity or benefit thereof doth oblige us But we may reasonably conclude that what Form of Government the infinite wisdom of God did know to be best that his infinite goodness would move him to establish amongst that People whom he had chosen out of all the Nations of the Earth to be unto him a Peculiar People Deut. 14.2 Now Monarchical Government was that which he set up among the Jews Even Moses was a Monarch and King in Jeshurun Deut. 33.5 Joshua and the rest of the Judges or Dukes were virtually though not formally Kings After them followed those that bore the Name and State of Kings but still their Government was Monarchical which is a great argument for its excellency 3. We read of no other Form of Government in Scripture but Monarchy This Argument is chiefly ad homines those that are ready so pertinaciously to stick to that Principle that the holy Scripture is a sufficient Rule in all things appertaining to Faith and Manners that they are ready to think an argument concluding negatively ab hâc authoritate to be firm and cogent that press us so much with the prohibition of adding to or diminishing from the Word of God and urge the great Curse to deter us these I hope will accept of what consequences do necessarily follow from those premisses And for as much as no other Form of Civil Government but Monarchical is found in Scripture therefore to attempt to set up another must be either adding to that Word or detracting from it or both And this Argument must hold strongly amongst all men of that persuasion 4. Monarchy doth most nearly resemble the Power and Authority of God the great King of Kings Originals give Pattern to all Copies and Copies must be corrected by them Now the Power of God as the Governour of the World is the Original and Pattern of all Government And consequently the nearer any Form comes to the resembling of his Government the better it is and the further off the worse But the great God of Heaven rules as a Sovereign Monarch whose Vicegerents all earthly Rulers are and to whom they must give an account And therefore Monarchical Government among men doth come nearest to this Pattern and consequently must be owned as the best Form 5. Monarchical Government is every way qualified to answer the ends of Government most advantagiously and therefore it is the best The ends of Government are making and executing Laws and protecting the People Now what way so expeditious for the making of Laws as when the Royal Assent breaths life into them when they are drawn up by the Counsels of many wise men and receive their Stamp of Authority from One One the Supreme Moderator and Adjustor of all different Interests and Opinions What Method so Uniform in the Execution of the Laws as when all Proceedings run in the Name of One and the same sacred Person What means so expedient to protect the People as when the Sword is in the hand of a Man that
them to condign punishment This I hope will not be forgotten in this generation and those that shall succeed I doubt not will be made sensible of it that all men may hear and fear amd do no more so presumptuously If we at last proceed to reflect upon what hath been spoken we may make improvement of it three ways First If Kings have their power from God and are not accountable to any person or persons on Earth for the administration thereof then it is a great sin to arraign the Wisdom and the Justice of the Kings proceedings in the little Conventions of men of unsanctified hearts unhallowed lives and prophane mouths A Sin which had I the voice of Stentor I could not declaim loudly enough against in this Age when many make it either a sign of Grace or a token of Wisdom or at least an argument of good Affections to the Publick to slander the Foot-steps of Gods Anointed and as if they would investigate their Pedegree from Corah and his Complices do proceed by rising up against Moses and Aaron reproaching both Prince and Priest as if they took too much upon them If God Almighty be the onely Ruler of Princes and neither the People Collectively nor Representatively have power to censure the Actions of a King then certainly the Individuals or little Knots of the Populacy have much less power to censure his proceedings If that which without Christning gave it self the Unchristian name of an High Court of Justice had no power to censure and condemn a King though they bore before them pretences of Justice how much less is it lawful for them that do not in the least pretend to be a Court of Judicature to arraign and condemn both his Majesties Actions and Intentions If sin be aggravated by Ingratitude in him that commits it and in the want of advantage to be proposed in doing amiss then certainly this sin is doubly aggravated as being the highest ingratitude to a Prince that hath been so merciful and obliging and committed without the least probability of any advantage to follow such discourses If he that stept out of his Rank without allowance of his Officer to fight an Enemy though he killed him was condemned for deserting his place what censure can be great enough for those that desert their Ranks and Stations not to fight an Enemy but to encounter their lawful Sovereign If a scandal cast upon a private person that damnifies him in his Profession be censurable in Law what censures do they deserve that cast scandals without fear or shame upon the greatest of men and thereby lessen the affections of his Subjects and render his Throne uneasie to him Secondly Let the Original of Kingly power teach us out of Conscience toward God to stand in the defence of our King against all the Aspersions that are cast upon him to alienate the affections of his good Subjects from him He that is not against him ought to be on his side And to move us all hereto 1. Let us consider the evil Root from whence these bitter Fruits do spring even a Malignant and Disloyal Spirit Had Ham been so dutiful as his other Brothers he would have covered in stead of shewing his Fathers nakedness and the curse that was bequeathed to him seems grounded upon his evil Intention So that as well may a man believe that person that rails at him behind his back and censures all his disputable Actions to be his Friend as believe these persons to be good Subjects 2. We should further consider the ill Consequences of such Discourses Every wise man ought to consider the tendency of his words and actions And he that foresees evil consequences and doth not endeavour to prevent them cannot be reckoned either Friend or honest man And if these discourses do conclude that their thinking that to be true which they speak of the King and his Government will alienate their own Affections from him then ought they not to vent them in discourse to others which must also tend to alienate their affections and duty from him 3. It would be fit to recollect what happiness we and the whole Nation have so long enjoyed under his Majesties happy Reign Some men are like that sort of Insects which pass over the sweet Flowers in a Garden to fix upon Excrement in a Dunghil They overlook all that Peace and Plenty that flourishing of the Church which we have tasted since the Kings happy Restauration and if they can find any real or fancied oversight in those that are Ministers of State they set themselves to censure that and expose it to others If the Nation hath flourished in 23 years past more than in any the like period of time then it may be suspected to be a Plethory arising from Peace and Plenty that makes men so sick and so apt to disgorge themselves in these unsavoury Belches 4. And withal let us reflect upon the judgments of God that have overtaken the Enemies of our King and his Fathers Throne The righteous God hath both shewed that his Providence takes a special care of the safety of Princes and that he is immediately concerned to avenge their Bloud Unto those that had shed the Royal Bloud God kept silence for a while and they were ready to think him altogether such an one as themselves a Partner if not the Principal in that Fact But in his good time he did reprove them and set before them the things that they had done O consider this and forget not God lest he tear you in pieces and there be none to deliver 5. It would greatly help to govern mens Tongues if they did with greater wariness look to their Ears For what is over-greedily drank in at the Ear is commonly vomitted out at the Mouth as hastily If we consult the old Rule it will tell us that Fame hath for many Ages been branded with the infamous Character of Common Liar and Incendiary If we consult Experience it will tell us how often it hath imposed upon us misreports and false representations of things And if we consult Reason it will tell us that Reports do and must savour of the Cask from whence they are drawn and we cannot so well know how to judge of what is spoken as by taking due measures of him that speaks it Which if it were duly improved it would put us upon weighing or slighting bare Reports and excuse our tongues from many transgressions 6. Both Modesty and Prudence should teach us not to presume that we see into the depth of the Proceedings of our Governours It is better for us thankfully to make use of the Light and Heat and Influences of the Sun than to stand gazing onely upon the Course of its Motion It is better to comfort our selves in the practical Use of a piece of Clockwork than to puzle our heads with speculative inquiries how and why and what does move the Hand And if these things were duly considered