Looke else upon Athanasius for the Primitive Fathers the power of Kings is of God looke else upon Aquinas for the Schoolemen All Kings are Gods ordinance even wicked Kings to punish the peoples sinnes looke else upon Luther for the moderne Writers Yee ought not to reject the Prince whom God hath set over you It was his answer to the assembly of the German Rebells Thus it was in the dayes of Moses and the Prophets thus it was in the dayes of Christ and his Apostles thus it was in the dayes of Athanasius and the Primitive Fathers thus it was in the dayes of Aquinas and the subtle Schoolemen thus it was in the dayes of Luther and our honest Grandfathers But hath it beene so with the Kings of England looke else upon his Rights looke else upon his power 1. His right to the Crowne is by birth not by election he hath it not by the peoples votes but by Gods blessing and hereditary succession King Charles that now is and long and long may he so be was King of England Scotland and Ireland so soone as ever King James was dead by the Law of Birth-right and so had beene though he had not yet received the ceremonie of Coronation Henry 6. was not crowned untill the ninth yeare of his Raigne and yet he was King the eight preceding yeares 2. His power is universall in all Causes over all Persons both Ecclesiasticall and Civill So is his Power Military he may the people may not de jura proclaime war and establish peace So is his power curiall no Court not the Court of Parliament can meet but by the Kings authority yea the Court of Parliament it selfe was at first devised framed and instituted by the Kings of England O fortunatos Anglos bona si sua nô rint So is his power officiall He bestowes all offices the Lord Keeper the Lord Treasurer the Lord Chamberlaine and all the rest acknowledge the King their only Patron and Donor and lastly such is his power origenall and that runs thus Carolus Dei gratia not Carolus electione Populi The King hath under him free-men and slaves saies Bracton but he is under none but God And it may be said of our King in his Chaire-Royall as it was said of Solomon That he then sits not in solium Populi as if they made him King but in solium Domini because he is what he is Charles by the grace of God of England Scotland France and Ireland King c. And may Almighty God with his grace by which he made him King continue him in his Kingdomes and restore him to his power that he may punish all those men of Belial who say they made him King and He shall no longer raigne over them yea O God let all those Children of Belial taste of thy mercy and the Kings justice who say how shall this man save us And so deny his Authority to come from thee and despise him because they conceive him lesse then the whole Body though greater their particular Members Amen It is my second part and I am now to discusse it I called it the positive condition of Rebells They despised him And first what is the meaning of these words they despised him why the meaning of this consists in these three branches 1. They did malè cogitare and so came within the compasse of Solomons prohibition curse not the King in thy thought A thought of despising the King is treason as well as a word and a word as well as an action So it is said of the intentions of Bigthan and Texesh Traitors they were and yet they never came to an insurrexerunt or any act of treason but only to a voluerūt a bare intention they sought or they thought to lay hands upon King Abasuerus and for this very thought they were hanged And as the Law of God so the Law of this Kingdome construes a bare purpose against the King a despising thought of the King to be treason and makes it deadly my prayer therefore is Convert them O God if they will not bee converted confound them O God as many as have evill will against my Lord the King and do malè cogitare despise him in their thoughts 2. They did malè dicere saying How shall this man save us and so came within the compasse of Moses his prohibition thou shalt not speake evill of the Ruler of thy people A word against the King is treason as well as a thought or action greater treason then the thought and lesser then the action And they that now word it against the King if they be of the Clergy they are of Balaams ordination because they curse whom God hath blessed And he was killed with the sword If they be of the Laietie they are of Shemeies condition because they revile whom God hath anointed and he was put to a violent and shamefull death And at this time by the Law of this Kingdome there stands one Pym endited and arraigned for saying He would if he could embrue his hands in the bloud of King Charles my prayer againe is Convert them O God convert them If they will not be converted confound them O God and let them perish as many as speake evill of my Lord the King and doe malè dicere despise him with their tongues 3. They did malè facere for they brought him no presents and so came within the compasse of King Davids prohibition thou shalt not stretch forth thy hand against the Lords Anointed And drawing our hand back from the Lords Anointed is equivalent I know King David there speakes by an interrogative quis who can But I know withall that that interrogation quis is a most tryumphant Negative and saies nullus no man can unlesse he will bring guilt upon his owne soule Absolon did against his Father the King and was both hanged and stabbed for it Robert late Earle of Essex did and was beheaded for it and how many in the same conspiracy were hanged you may reade in that story my prayer againe is Convert them O God Convert them and returne them to their duety of Loyalty to thine Annointed if they will not be converted confound them O God as many as lift up their hands against or withdraw their hands frō my Lord the King You see what is meant by these words they despised him will you now see why they despised him Why it was because they looked on him as a single man how shall this man save us Happily they thought him greater then any one of themselves in particular but they thought themselves in a collective or representative Body greater then the King and this brings me to my 2a 2ae and the unfolding of my second question which is Whether the King be Singulis major but Vniversis minor But of the first branch of this question I shall not neede to speake for that the King
to lay before your face some of those fearefull judgements which have befallen some men that have borne Armes against their Kings as fearefull examples for them who now contribute for the maintenance of such warres And first for the objections I meet but with two that carrie any seeming validitie with them many more there are As 1. The peoples rescuing Jonathan from Saul 2. Elisha's shutting the doore and holding fast the messenger that came from King Joram 3. Jebues killing that King Joram 4. Ahikams defending the Prophet from the tyrany of King Jehoiakim 5. The withstanding of Vzziah the King by Azariah the Priest 6. The Deposing of Athaliah the Queene But they are all frivolous and want weight Et eâdem facilitate repelluntur quâ proponuntur The first that carries any shew with it as I conceive is Davids taking up Armes against King Saul and hence the Rebells argue thus David the Subject tooke up Armes against Saul the King and was not rebuked for it either by Divines Lawyers or States-men many of his fellow-Subjects tooke up armes with him to the number of 600. and very likely many more contributed to the maintenance of that Army nor yet were they reprehended by Divinity Law or Pollicie and therefore Subjects may in some cases take up Armes and contribute to the maintenance of a Warre against their King if he be an oppressour of their Properties Liberties or Religion And to this colourable objection it is answered the allegation is false false and absurd both false because David was so farre from taking up these Armes against King Saul that he continually fled from him and never fought with him yea so farre from fighting with King Saul he was that when God had delivered him two several times into his hands once at the Edge hill of Hackilah and once in the wildernesse of Eugedi he durst not himselfe nor would hee suffer any man else to stretch forth his hand against King Saul and for this onely reason Because he was the Lords annointed false therefore And absurd too to imagine that David should raise or entertaine 600. men to fight against King Saul who never went without 3000. men at his heeles Impar congressus and very unlearnedly is David with his 600. men urged as an example or argument to justifie disloyalty Nor will that addition helpe it viz. That King David was 40000. strong for he was not so strong till after Sauls death as appeares in the story But admit it for truth that David was 40000. strong in the dayes of Saul yet this is so farre from being an argument to justifie Rebellion or taking up Armes against the King as that it doth altogether condemne it for notwithstanding so great strength yet David never pursued Saul never let flie any murthering arrowes dart stonâ— at or against King Saul but still fled from him and to put him out of all such feares and jealousies hee got himselfe with all his Forces out of his Kingdome and begged a place for his habitation of Achish King of Gath. Let all our rebells follow David in the whole example and wee shall both allow this quotation and also commend their imitation yea and pray they may have so many followers that there may not bee one Rebell left to lift up his hand against King Charles the Lords Annointed Object 2 The second objection of any colourable strength is that of Jeroboam from whence it is thus argued Rehoboam the son of Solomon refused to ease the people of their burthens and therefore the people tooke up Armes and set up Jeroboam to be King over them and this was so farre from being a sinne that the Text sayes It was from the Lord and therefore Subjects may in some cases beare Armes against their King It was answered The Scripture here sets downe Rei gesta veritatem non facti aequitatem and hereupon sayes Saint Austin Quia factum legimus non ideo faciendum credimus sâ—ctando enim exemplum violimus praeceptum nor can wee any more free our selves from the breach of the fift Commandement if wee take up Armes against our King upon this example then wee can from the breach of the eight Commandement if wee plunder and robbe our neighbours upon the example of the Israelites spoyling the Egyptians True Jeroboam was King and that was from the Lord but by permission onely not appointment and God in that permission at once punished Solomons Idolatry and Rehoboams follie but notwithstanding this that act of the people in revolting from Rehoboam was Rebellion and so called by God himselfe in two severall places and God punished this Rebellion of theirs so fearefully that he first gave them up to Idolatry and afterwards drove them out into Captivity and this is commonly the reward of Rebells First they turne Idolaters or what is tantomount irreligious let any one say what Religion the Rebells are of and so are hated by God and afterwards are made slaves and so are hated by men That we may never fall into the one or the other either Idolatry or Captivitie Almightie God keepe us from Rebellion Amen The Scripture affords not one more colourable example to justifie the taking up of Arms against the King and therefore the Rebells of this age borrow one from our owne Country Object 3 Richard the second was deposed by Parliament and therefore a King of England may be resisted I answer it Infandum scelerate jubet renovare pudorem If the Rebells were not past all shame they would never have remembred this Factum since it is without all Aequum and to this day remaines the blemish of our Nation and this very act brought such miseries upon this Kingdome that untill two Kings one Prince ten Dukes two Marquesses 21. Earls 27. Lords 2. Viscounts one Lord Prior one Judge 139. Knights 421. Esquires Gentlemen of a vast number and 100000. Common people were slaine in these Civill Warres England never saw happy dayes This repetition hath rethorique enough to stirre you up to sorrow I say no more of it therefore but that we may againe see peace and happinesse in our dayes God put a period to them that beare Armes against King Charles Amen For it is unlawfull as appeares 2. by Scripture I will name but two instead of two hundred The first is that of Solomons whose precept is That we keepe the Kings Commandement id est Whatsoever he commands so it be not against the word of God The reason of this precept is double 1. In regard of conscience Because of the Oath of God we have sworne to it and we have called God to witnesse to the truth of our intention and endeavour to performe this Oath and accordingly we may expect Godâ— rewarder or a revenger The second reason is in regard of power For where the word of a King is there is power q. d. For a while the word of a King
capite communitas nullatenus corporatur And certainely if the King makes the community a body and the community without the King is not a boby the King is above the community for the head is above the body To these two Denominations I adde a third the King is Oecenomus or Pater familias the kingdome is Familia the King is Dominus the kingdome Domus and that Criticisme is â— truth Dominus domni praeest as well in universis is singulis Agesilaus foresaw the danger of this Destruction and therefore to a Citizen of Sparta that desired an alteration of Government he returned this answer That kind of rule which a man disdaines in his owne house is very unfit to govern a Kingdome by You disdaine that your Wife Children Servants the Representative body of your little Kingdome should carry themselves over you and command you it is a gracelesse Familie that does so and they are gracelesse and rebellious Subjects that say They are or esteeme themselves to be above the King They that say so speake against reason for the King is sponsus and the People sponsa for the King is Caput and the people Corpus for the King is Pater and the people Filij for the King is Dominus and the people servi They that say so speake against Divinity for it hath been the universall opinion of all the Fathers of all I bate not one till the yeare 1300. and odde that the King is inferior to none but God and they speake against the letter and sense of the Scripture too for the Scripture calls such despisers of the King Children of Belial And lastly they speake against the letter and sense of the common lawes of England too Omnis sub Rege saies Bracton Parem non habet in Regâ—â— de Chartis Regiis Factis Regum neo privatae personae 〈◊〉 Justiciarii debent disputare Notorium est saies Walsingham It is beyond all doubt thâ—â— the Kings of England are of an unbounded preeminence and ought not to answer before any Judge Ecclesiasticall or Civil It was an answer of that Parliament to a Popes demand and for such demands our forefathers accounted the Pope to be Antichrist I wish they had not sent that reason of Antichrist from St. Peters in Rome to St. Peters elsewhere for some wise men doe not now stick to say if this be his badge Populus is Antichristus It is an ordinary thing for Antichrist to lye and I take this for one for if the King be of an unbounded preeminence then by no meanes under the peoples girdle That objection is of no force Ad tutelam Legis subditâ—rum ac eorum corporum honorum Rex erectus est hanc potestatem affluxam ipsa habet For Fortescue there speakes of a King meerely Politick saying Rex hujusmodi whereas Regnum Anglia in Dominium Politicum Regalâ— prorupit in utroque tam Regalè quà m politico populo suo dominatur The sence of this great Lawyer is in reference to his power he is a Regall King Rex naturalis and a King by birth in reference to his duty he is a politick King or Rex nationalis a King by Law But in both a King and therefore universis major in both respects Nor does that reply from Bracton or Fleta for they both have it doe any more harme Rex sub Lege est for howsoever the King be under the Directive Power of the Law as the Law is the Rule of justice yet he is above the Corrective Power of the Law as the Law is the instrument of justice In a word the Law declares the Kings Right the people admit him to the possession of that Right the Counsell advise him in the safest way of governing his people and so they use all but as instruments and servants to him and he is above them all The King is the life the Head and Authority of all things that are done in the Realme of England saies Sir Thomas Smith in his Common wealth of England Summam supremam potestatem habet in omnes Regni orâ—â—â—s Nec praeter Deum superiorem agnoscit sayes Master Cambden and if he be under none but God he is above all the people unlesse they be God And to all this you have all sworne in the Oath of Allegiance some of you in the Oath of Supremacie and the late Protestation viz To maintaine the Kings supremacie in all causes and over all persons Ecclesiasticall and Civill A soveraignty then hee hath and you have sworne to maintaine it not onely over singular persons but over all persons and as you endeavour it so helpe you God But you may justly feare if now you unsweare that or sweare or doe against that which you have so solemnly sworn to doe that God will not onely not helpe you but wound you wound you while you live with the infamie of Rebells and a tormenting conscience and wound you when you are dead with the eternity of fire and all the torment of hell From both which Almighty God deliver you for Jesus Christ his sake and from both which that you may be delivered I pray God to give you grace to acknowledge and esteeme the King to be universis as well as singulis major Amen They that thinke lesse of him doe despise him and are therefore the children of Bellal And so are they that bring him no presents It is my last consideration I called it the Privative condition of Rebells and children of Belial they brought him as presents I need not spend any time in the explication of these words they are obvious to the thinnest understanding and they intend thus much These men these children of Belial did not contribute to the maintenance of the King in his warres they did not ayde him they did not assist him they ayded him not with Armes they assisted him not with money they withheld his vectigalia from him they brought him not his Customes his Crowne-Revenues his Subsidies and his Pollmonies I shall therefore spend my ensuing discourse in resolving that question which doth even naturally arise from these last words viz. Whether it be lawfull to beare Armes or to contribute for the maintenance of a Warre against the King And this Text resolves it negatively and sayes It is not lawfull for they who brought the King no presents were sonnes of Belial and therefore much more are they the sonnes of Belial who fight against or contribute to maintaine a fight against the King And to make this good I shall take leave 1. removere to remove those objections those grand objections which seem to check this truth 2. Movere to commend to you a choise and pregnant place of Scripture or two which give the checkmate to those objections 3. Perpendere to waigh some speeches of the Fathers and so make it good by their Theorie and practise and 4. Proponere
like the word of God may be sleighted but in the end it will appeare a word of power and shall be suffered with death where it was not obeyed with duety For against the King there is no rising up Nemo qui insurgit sayes Junius Nemo qui insurgat sayes Clarius I wish hee had beene a Prophet By Solomons rule it is unlawfull to beare Armes against the King And so it is by Saint Pauls rule too his precept is obedience to the higher powers not to the naked authority as Mr. Burrowes would make that man beleeve that is given over to beleeve a lye but to the person cloathed with that power For if {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} may signifie power in the abstract or the power of the Law without relation to the person that made that Law yet {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} must of necessity note the person and the superiority of the person that hath this power conferred upon him and such power no person in England hath but onely the King of England His great Counsell may juâ— dicere he onely can jus dare and therefore to him must every English soule be subject subject actively licitis and subject passively in illicitis both wayes so farre subject as that we may not resist The reason is for if we doe we shall receive damnation the word is {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} and that signifies not the plundering of the goods at home not the hanging of the body abroad but the everlasting damnation of the soule and body in Hell notwithstanding Mr. Marshals new Lexicon If now you beleeve Solomon or Saint Paul I could add Moses and all the other Prophets Saint Peter and all the other Apostles It is not lawfull for any man for any sort of men to beare Armes against the King Yea therefore every man must assist the King with Armes and contribute to the maintenance of his Warres for they that doe not are the children of Belial The children of Belial said How shall this man save us they despised him and brought him no presents And doe not the Fathers assent to the same Why else did Justin Martyr say For our Religions sake and preservation of publike peace we Christians O Emperour yield you our helpe and assistance It was Tertullians glory that Christians were never found Albinians Nigrians Cassians or any other sort of Traytors Athanasius professed it not lawfull to say or speake otherwise then wel of Majestie Nazianzen knew no meanes lawful to restrain the persecutour but tears St. Ambrose knew no other way to resist then with teares St. Austine commended the Christians for obeying Julian I could name St. Gregory Fulgentius St. Bernard and many more For all heare the Anathema of a full Assembly of Bishops in the Conncell of Toledo Whosoever shall violate that Oath which he hath taken for the preservation of the King's Majesty whosoever shall attempt to destroy or depose the King whosoever shall aspire to the Regall Throne Let him bee accurst cast out of the Church and together with his Complices bee condemned with the Devill and his angels eternally let them be all tyed in the bond of damnation who were joyned in the society of Sedition Here now let no man say That these Fathers command obedience to good Kings onely for some of those Kings whom they command to obey were Hereticks some Idolaters some Apostata'es some Tyrants most of them bad enough Let no man say the Christians did not resist because they had not strength and power enough for Tertullian tells you They had Cyprian tells you They had Saint Gregory the Great tells you They had the number of Christians was A principio from a few yeares after the Apostles Nimius copiosus both strong and numerous Let no man say Christian Religion and their priviledges were not yet established for they were Constantine the Great and his successors established them and daily added to their Immunities And now judge your selves Beloved whether you were better beleeve the Scriptures and the Fathers then some yong Teachers and schismatical Divines crept up but yesterday and never durst appeare in Old England till now and now they doe appeare they dare not dispute verbis but verberibus and God first or last will give them their belly full Certainely if our Brethren were not wilfully blinde they would joyne with us and conclude It is not lawfull to beare Armes or contribute to maintaine a Warre against the King They were children of Belial that brought King Saul no presents and to Belial they all must without Gods infinite mercie and their owne repentance who now maintaine a Warre or beare Armes against King Charles And this is evident fourthly and lastly by those fearefull punishments and judgements which God and man from time to time have inflicted upon Rebells and Traytors even such as have borne Armes and maintained War against their Kings Looke else upon those intentionall Rebells Corah the Clergie Rebell Dathan and Abiron the Laie-Rebells the one by a fire from Heaven is sent into the fire of Hell the other through the earth fall into the pit of the damned So Saint Basil Looke else upon that verball Rebell Shimei hee is put to an untimely and ignominious death Looke else upon those actuall Rebells Achitophel a great Polititian Absolon a Favourite of his Fathers and of the peoples affections the one hangs himselfe the other is hanged in a tree And Sheba for but blowing a seditious Trumpet for but striking up a rebellious Drumme hath his head cut-off See my Beloved see if yee can finde but one even but one Rebell either in holy or humane Histories that ever escaped unpunished either by the hand of God in a troubled and perplexed conscience or by the hand of man in an untimely and odious death Brutus with the same hand and Dagger hee stabbed his King Caesar he kils himselfe That seditious Ring-leader of the Jewes against Adrian the Emperour who called himselfe Ben-Chobab or Filius stellae is suddenly kild and ever after scornfully remembred by the name of Ben-Câ—zba or the Sonne of a Lye I have heard of a certaine Commander whose name I am not willing to remember who often wisht he might rot if ever he lift his hand or drew his Sword against the King notwithstanding he did both and God answered his wish hee rotted within and dyed A certaine Lord I have likewise heard of a great Ring-leader in a Rebellion yet a great pretender to a Reformation who in his exercises of Devotion would often desire God If the cause he took were not right if the cause he managed were not just he would take him away suddenly God heard him and answered him for by the shot of a Musket he is killed so suddenly that he had not so much time as to say God be mercifull unto me and so without signe or symptome of repentance dyed I need not remember you of Pausanias Ariobarzanes Rodolph Duke of Suevia Catiline of Rome and many of England Not one of them all nor any other that I remember or have read of but if he lived he lived the scorne of honest men and if he dyed he dyed the shame of his Friends the mirth of his enemies and the example of all God in the shamefull and fearefull punishments of them telling us That to beare Armes or contribute to maintaine a Warre against the King is utterly unlawfull That the people of this Kingdome may no longer do it With the Church I pray From all Sedition and privy Conspiracie from this present dangerous Rebellion from all false Doctrine and Heresie from hardnesse of heart and contempt of thy Word and Commandement Good Lord deliver us Amen FINIS Questions Resol. Populi Resol. Sâ—muelis Division Ps. 1. Mat. 17.21 Belial what Children of Belial how Job 8.44 â— a. â— ae Act. 4.19 Pol. l. 1. c. 8. Exod. 2.12 14. Act. 7.25 Judg. 19.8.10 1 Sam. 8.4 Pro. 8.15 Isay 45 1. Dan. â— 25 Joh. 19 1â— Rom. 11.1 Object 1 Reg 12 2â—0 Answ. Replie 1 Pet. 2.13 Resol. Ad Antioch q 55. De reg. pa. l. 1 c 6. Speed l. 9. c. 26. Polyd. Virg. l. 11. Smith C. W. l. 2. c 4. fol. 34. ab Ps. 2. Eccles. 10.20 Est 2.21.23 Deut. 27.16 Num. 23. 2. Sam. 16.5 1. Sam. 2a 2ae or Quest 2. 2 Sam. 18.2 Ps. 89.20 1 Pet. 2.13 Ad Scap. 2 a. 2 ae q. 104. ar. 6. Fortesacut l. 2. c. 8. Object Answ. Replie Resol. l. 2. c. 4. Elisab pag 391. Brit. pag. 132. Ps. 3. â—â— 3 ae 1. Mediatione non Rebellione Junius Borthâ—ius Osiander Willet non Fustibus sed precibus Peter Martyr 2. Revelatione non oppositione 3 Speciali jussu non lege 4. A populi tumultu non Regis tyrannide 5. Verbis non Gladits persuasione non insurrectione leprosus fuit 6. Usurpatrix fuit Object 1 Sam. â—2 1.2.24.28 Answ. 1 Sam. 26.1 1 Chr. 12.22 1 Reg. 12. Answ. 1 Reg. 12.19 2 Cro. 10.19 Answ. 4 a. 3 ae Eccles. 8.2.3.4 Pro. 30.31 Rom. 13.1.2 5 a. 3 ae Apol. 2. ad Ant. Imp. pag. 113. Ad scap Apol. ad Const. Orat in Julian 1. Contr. Auxent Ep. 31.32.33 In Ps. 114. Conc. 5. Canc. 2. In Apol. Ep. l. 7. ep. 1. 6 a. 3 ae Hom. 9. Euseb. l. 4. c. 7.