Selected quad for the lemma: honour_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
honour_n	due_a	fear_v	tribute_n	3,178	5	10.8957	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A47050	The grand case of subjection to the higher powers in matters of religion resolved to which is added an appendix to a late book intituled A plea for liberty of conscience, wherein the kings supream power in ecclesiastical matters is asserted ... / by James Jones, a Protestant-dissenter, and now a prisoner in Woodstreet-compter for nonconformity.	Jones, James, fl. 1683-1684.	1684 (1684)	Wing J956A; ESTC R36209	11,281	12

Commandments of Men. Question II. But must not or may not the Higher Powers be AT ALL Concerned in Establishing Religion in their several Dominions for their Subjects to Conform thereunto Answer First Such of the Higher Powers as are without the Knowledge and Profession of Christianity are not capable to Establish Religion so as to agree with the Will and Word of the Holy God but they will be ready to Establish a Worship to a false God as the poor ignorant Indians do or else Establish the Worshipping of the true God in a false manner as the Jews and Turks do and I hope that none will Plead for the Conformity of Christians to such Established Worship Secondly Such of the Higher Powers as are Christians yea and such as are most Right in the Christian Religion have not Received any Authority from Jesus Christ to establish his own Worship in their Dominions so as to Exercise Outward Force or by Punishments to Compel their Subjects to come to Christs Divine Service Objection But some will now be ready to say that Christ hath Required the COMPELLING of Persons to be brought to his Gospel-Feast See Luke 14.23 And the Lord said unto the Servant Go out into the High-ways and Hedges and COMPEL them to come in that my House may be filled ANSWER That we may Rightly understand these words of Christ we must consider what kind of Compelling is intended by Christ whether it be Magisterial or Ministerial Compelling First It cannot be Magisterial so as to Compel by Penal Laws Because Jesus Christ had not then given any such Power to the Magistrates of that time for they were Opposers of Christ his Doctrine and his Ministers and did what they could to Compel the Professors of Christ to Conform to them in Renouncing Christianity Thus speaketh Paul when he acted by their Authority Act. 26.10 11. Which thing I also did in Jerusalem and many of the Saints did I shut in Prison having Received Authority from the Chief Priest and when they were put to Death I gave my Voice against them and I punished them oft in every Synagogue and COMPELLED them to Blaspheme and being exceedingly mad against them I Persecuted them unto strange Cities And since that time Christ hath not given any Law to any of the Higher Powers to Compel any of their Subjects to come to his Divine Service by Inflicting the Penalties of Imprisonment and Forfeitures of great or small Sums of Money for their Neglect Secondly I do Humbly conceive that the Compelling which Christ intended is to be understood Ministerially Viz. That his Gospel-Ministers should take great Pains in the Ministry of the Word so as to Inform Persons Judgments Convinces their Consciences and to Convert their Souls that so they may from a Principle of Love to Christ and his Worship Conform themselves thereunto And if after all such Spiritual Means Persons are not brought to Conform to the Doctrine and Ordinances of Christ they must be left to those Punishments that Christ will inflict upon them for their Disobedience 2 Thes 1.8 9. Taking Vengeance on them that know not God and that Obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ who shall be Punished with Everlasting Destruction from the Presence of the Lord and from the Glory of his Power But thirdly I do Humbly conceive that the best of Christian Magistrates are and ought to be much concerned to promote the Christian Religion in the Purity of it according to the best of their Knowledge briefly thus First By being good Patterns themselves in their own Profession and Practice of Godliness 2. By Encouraging a Pious and Painful Ministry to work upon Ignorant and Obstinate Persons by Sweet Intreaties and Strong Arguments But not at all to Compel Persons to Comply with Spiritual Matters by outward Punishments because that is the ready way to make men Hypocrites and such cannot be true Members though they should Conform to the Best of Churches Question III. But What kind of Subjection is intended unto the Higher Powers by those Words of the Apostle Paul Rom. 13.1 Let every Soul be Subject to the Higher Powers Answer Having already shewed that Gods Servants are not bound to be subject unto the Higher Powers in Conforming to their Established Religion it is now meet that we should know what kind of Subjection the Apostle doth Require that so we may not come short of our Duty to those that God hath set in Authority which I shall endeavour to Resolve as followeth First By Subjecting to the Higher Powers in the meaning of the Holy Apostle we are to understand not Resisting the Higher Powers Considered as the Ordinance of God whose place and Office is to be a Terror to Evil Doers and a Praise to them that do well And if at any time these Higher Powers should miss of the Right Vsing of their Authority and deal hardly with the Servants of God then it is the Duty of Gods Servants to Exercise Patience and not Resist by seeking to Avenge themselves see verse 2 3. And this is the Doctrine of the same Apostle in Rom. 12.18 19. If it be possible live Peaceably with all men Dearly Beloved Avenge not your selves but rather give place unto Wrath for it is written Vengeance is mine I will Repay saith the Lord. And in verse 21. he saith Be not overcome of evil but overcome evil with good and then cometh in these Words Let every Soul be subject to the Higher Powers And thus to be truely subject is not to Avenge our selves but to be Peaceable under Authority patiently Suffering for the Cause of Christianity and unto this agrees the Counsel of Paul Tit. 3.1 2. Put them in Mind to be subject to Principalities and Powers to Obey Magistrates to be ready to every good Work To speak Evil of no man to be no Brawlers or Fighters but gentle shewing all meekness unto all Men. Secondly To be subject to the Higher Powers in the true meaning of the Apostle is Paying them their Tributes and giving them such Reverence as is their due see verse 5 6. Wherefore ye must needs be subject not only for Wrath but for Conscience sake for this Cause Pay you Tribute for they are Gods Ministers Attending continually upon this very thing Render therefore to all their dues Tribute to whom Tribute is due Custom to whom Custom Fear to whom Fear Honour to whom Honour And to this agreeth the Words of the Apostle Peter 1 Pet. 2.13 14. Submit your selves to every Ordinance of Man for the Lords sake whether it be to the King as Supream or unto Governours as sent by him for the Punishment of Evil Doers and for the Praise of them that do well Now from these words of Peter let these Particulars be considered concerning Submitting to those in Authority 1. It cannot fairly be understood to be the meaning of the Apostle that the Servants of Christ should submit to every Ordinance of Man considered as Decrees

or Laws that such who were then in Authority had made or should make concerning Religious Matters so as to OBEY and CONFORM thereunto because then Christians must have lest the Worship of God according to the Gospel and have Conformed to the Worship of the Jews when among them and to the Worship of the Gentiles when among the Gentiles But by Submitting to every Ordinance of Man I do humbly conceive is meant a submitting to the several Orders and Degrees of Power and Dignity among Men considered in Authority viz. First to the King as the supream and chief in Authority and Secondly To such Governers as are sent or Comissionated by the King to be in places of Authority for the well managment of Affairs in his Kingdom in the Right distribution of Justice So as to punish the Evil Doers and to incourage them that do Well in all matters that should come before them between Man and Man So that we may Read and Understand the Words of the Holy Apostle thus Respecting the several Degrees of Persons in Authority in England Let the King be submitted to as the Supream Governour and let his Privy Councel and the Lord Chancellor or Lord Keeper the Lord Chief Justice with the other Judges the Secretaries of State and Attorney General and also Justices of Peace be all submitted unto as unto Governours who are put into Authority by the King who is Supream in the Government So as each Party may have that Honour that Respect and Reverence as is due unto them suitable to that Dignity that the King hath Confered upon them and this is according to the Exhortation of the Apostle Paul Rom. 13.7 Render therefore unto all their dues viz. Tribute Custom Fear and Honour And these Duties of the Saints must be suitable to and Correspondent with their Christian Love to each other in maintaining their Gospel Fellow-ship as a Brother-Hood and the true Fear of God as it is plainly Declared in the former discourse of the Apostle Peter in 1 Pet. 2.17 Honour all Men Love the Brother-Hood Fear God Honour the King In which Words of the Apostle he taught the Servants of God in that Day that while they were zealous in and for the matters of Christianity they should also make Conscience of the matters of Humanity in a right behaving of themselves towards all Men and especially towards those that were in Authority that so they might Practice according to the Doctrine of Christ Luke 20.25 Render therefore unto Caesar the things which be Caesars and unto God the things which be Gods And this kind of Subjection to the Higher Powers hath been the Profession Principle and Practice of the true Servants of God in all Ages in times past And it is now the Profession Principle and Practice of the PROTESTANT-DISSENTERS in General in all parts of this Kingdom and they have given great Demonstration of this thing even when they have been divers times loaded with many Miseries in being Prosecuted by Penal Laws only for matters of Religion And even now at this time and above a Year past they have been and still are Prosecuted divers ways viz. By the Statute of the 23 of Elizabeth many have been indicted thereupon for not coming to Common Prayer The penalty whereof is Twenty Pounds a Month and many have been Prosecuted by the Conventicle-Act and so Suffered the loss of their Goods or else have been forced to Pay the several sums of Money levied upon them because they would not suffer a greater damage by the loss of their Goods And many have been Prosecuted as Rioters for being at Protestant Peaceable Meetings and have been Fined at the pleasure of some in Authority and so have been forced to Pay such Fines or else go to Prison And many have been Prosecuted by the ECCLESIASTICAL COURTS to Excommunication and so cast into Goals by the Writ de Excommunicato Capiendo only for not frequenting Common Prayer and for not receiving the Sacrament in their Parish Church And in this way of Prosecution Doctor PINFOLD of Doctors Commons in London hath done more harm to the Protestant-Dissenters then any one of the Ecclesiastical Doctors in England having forced into the Prison called Woodstreet-Compter above Thirty Persons in less then thirteen Months time and now at the time of the writting hereof Two and twenty Honest Cittizens are in the said Prison and several of them have been very sick but God in his Mercy hath recovered them and many because they cannot under-go such hardship as to be shut up in Prison from their Families and Trades have purchased their Liberty at a Dear Rate in giving great Sums of Money to Doctor PINFOLD to take off the Excommunications and so allow a few Months from hurrying them into Prison But if they do not Conform in the time Allotted them then they are Prosecuted again so as to be sent to Prison or else brought to a new Composition And besides all this many have been sent to the New Prison being Protestant-Dissenters taken at Protestant Meetings Four and Twenty have been there at one time several weeks but some are discharged and since that some more have been committed And many have been committed to Newgate one of which viz. Mr. Francis Bampfield a Nonconformist Minister dyed in that Prison on the 16th of February last and Mr. Zacharias Ralphson another Nonconformist Minister imprisoned there died the 20th of March following Mr. Bampfield was taken from his Meeting where he was doing his Lords Work and being brought before a Magistrate had the Oath of Allegiance tendred to him for Refusal whereof he was first committed to Prison and afterwards Premunired Mr. Ralphson was taken from his own House and committed to Prison upon the Five-mile Act and afterwards fined one hundred Marks for Publishing a Book Intituled An Apology for Gods Worship and Worshippers Both these Ministers were men of great Learning Famous for true Godliness and faithful Labourers in the Lords Vineyard But now they rest from their Labours and their Works follow them Now let this be soberly Considered that the before-mentioned Prosecutions have been against and have fallen upon his Majesties Protestant and Peaceable Subjects who do make Conscience and exercise a daily care to give such a Subjection to the Higher Powers as the Word of God doth Require And as such Prosecutions for matters of Religion are without any Precept from Christ so they are contrary to the Royal Promise of the King For the full evidencing whereof let the following Discourse be candidly Considered AN APPENDIX To a late Paper called A PLEA for LIBERTY of CONSCIENCE WHEREIN The Kings Supream Power in Ecclesiastical Matters is Further Asserted FOrasmuch as I have lately Published a small Book Intituled A Plea for Liberty of Conscience Grounded upon the Holy Word of God and the Royal Word of the King I have since met with some Objections against the said Plea as it is Grounded upon the Kings Royal