not therefore upon every leaning of your soule upon conditionall promises for so you may build upon a Covenant made upon a worke and so you and your Covenant may faile together But when you read how the Lord hath made such promises to such and such qualifications then consider that those things are indeed requisite to be found in you but who is there in heaven or earth that can worke them in you there is none but Jesus Christ and unlesse you have him to be in you you cannot have any of these things wrought in you But will a poore soule say I am not able to reach the Lord Jesus Christ therefore all the promises doe fall heavie upon a man and he seeth that they are too burthensome and too weighty for him he doth not say here is the qualification and here is the blessing promised to it and therefore I will take it to my selfe but one that is taught of God doth forthwith goe and pray unto God that he will set him in the way of those blessings and that so he will make him partaker of them he prayeth that God will give him his Sonne and that he will adorne him with his grace as a bride of Jesus Christ Thus while the soule doth looke towards Jesus Christ and grace in him the Lord doth secretly transforme him into the image of Christ by working such qualifications in him and then beareth witnesse to that sanctification which is wrought in his heart thereby enlarging his soule with strong consolation in Jesus Christ and in the same way it is that the Lord doth strengthen the faith of his people to believe that all those things which God hath promised are accomplished in Jesus Christ and the Law fullfilled in me so farre as Christ is in me and therefore I come unto God in prayer to make good those promises unto me in a right way which would have been preposterously applyed before Christ was given And this may serve for Answer to the 5th Question Quest 6. Wee come now unto a sixt Question If the Lord doe give himselfe first in the Covenant of his grace this may then be a doubt and a question in a Christian soule If God give himselfe before any blessing before any promise in order of nature though he giveth himselfe alwayes in a promise if wee cannot claime any blessing from God at the first in any conditionall promise therefore not by any condition in our selves but as we received all things from God so wee claime all things from him in Jesus Christ and so doe first seeke for him and for all things in him If thus to what use then serveth the Law of God which requireth such and such conditions in us doe we not abrogate the Law make it of none effect and roote it out from having any power over Christians And truly some under pretence of the Covenant of grace have thought it altogether bootlesse to bind Christians unto the Law of God and to looke at it as any part of the direction of their Course Now because this is an imputation usually reflected upon the Covenant of Grace let us Confider therefore and enquire to what use serveth the Law of God if God give himselfe first unto his people in the Covenant of his grace Answ Though the Lord giveth himselfe freely to the soule and his Sonne and all the blessings of the Covenant of grace without respect unto any worke of the Law yet the Law is of speciall and notable use unto all the sonnes of men both unto them that are not yet brought home unto God by converting grace and also to those that are regenerate in Jesus Christ The Apostle Paul did observe that the question would arise upon the doctrine of the Covenant of grace Gal. 3.16,17,18 For if the blessing of Abraham came upon the people of God by Jesus Christ to what end then serveth the Law which came 430 yeares after It cannot disanull grace to make the promise of God of none effect to what end then serveth it Some say it is of no use others say that it is of such use that they had rather renounce the Covenant of grace than it but the Answer is it is of especiall use both unto spirituall and carnall men First unto carnall men and they are of two sorts some belong unto the election of grace though they be not yet called others are not written in the Lambs booke of life but will in the end finally perish and the Law is yet of use unto both sorts of them For the Elect it is of use unto them to aggravate their sin and to multiply it unto them as it were that is to say to aggravate the apprehension of the hainousnesse of sin upon their Consciences and to set home the burthen of sin unto their soules thereby to drive them to feele their great need of the Lord Jesus Christ whom otherwise they should for ever have despised Thus the Apostle answereth in the place aforenamed The Law was added because of transgressions that they might cleerely appeare and be aggravated thereby that a man might plainly discerne how he hath made himselfe liable to the wrath of God by so manifold breaches of so many Commandments in one kinde or other the Law giveth cleere knowledge of sinne and so much the more doth it set on the weight of it upon the Conscience working feare in the heart Rom. 8.15 And hence it is that the Apostle telleth us Gal. 3.24 The Law was our Schoole-Master to Christ As a Schoole-Master driveth his Scholler through feare unto this or that duty either to doe it himselfe or if he cannot to get others to doe it for him so the Law of God driveth the soule through feare unto Jesus Christ not that it doth reveale Christ a Saviour of free-grace but the soule being once brought downe under sense of sin by the terrours of the Law will readily willingly hearken unto the newes of Christ a Saviour for being once made sensible of his owne inability to redeeme himselfe and unworthines to be redeemed from the wrath of God now is the soule fitted to heare the voyce of the Gospell now is the newes of Christ beautifull and glad tidings And of this use is the Law unto the Elect of God before they come under the Covenant of the grace of God 2. But of what use is the Law unto other men First the Disobedience of it is of use Secondly the Obedience of it 1. The Disobedience for if men had not knowne sin it had been some pretence though they had committed sin but when men have the knowledge of the Law and yet commit sin willingly now they have no cloake for their sin Rom. 1.21 compared with 32. where the Apostle speaketh of the great sin of the Gentiles and much more of the Jewes Who though they knew God and the judgement of God and that they which commit such wickednes are worthy of death yet
not onely doe the same but have pleasure in them that doe them When a man shall not onely doe such wickednes but blesse himselfe in it this aggravateth a mans condemnation if men will not come unto Jesus Christ that they might have life Joh. 5.40 what saith our Saviour in such a Case see vers 45. Moses will judge all those that please themselves in wickednes and will not turne to the Lord Jesus Christ Thus there is use of the Law unto disobedient persons their disobedience will leave them without excuse when they sin against their consciences against the meanes which the Lord hath administred unto them for though the Lord never gave them such grace as did accompany salvation yet such Illumination he did give them that they needed not to have broken his Law so many wayes with such wicked hands as they have done therefore when they have been inlarged to performe many duties might avoyd much sin yet will sin against their consciences and tread under foot those meanes of grace that were committed unto them It is then most righteous with God that they should be condemned 2. Of what use is the Obedience of the Law unto such whom Gods soule takes no pleasure in Truly it is of sad and dreadfull use unto them for it serveth to harden them in their sinnes though that be but an accidentall use thereof their sinnes are thereby made out of measure sinfull Rom 7.13 They harden their hearts marvellously 1. By their Obedience to the Law 2. By the Comfort they finde in that Obedience For the first of these the Apostle Paul Acts 23.1 had kept so good a Conscience that he knew not any sin against the Law that he had lived in but though he was unrebukeable he did count it all losse afterward Phil. 3.7,8 Those things that before he thought had heen his gaine now he counteth them but dung that he may winne Christ when a man attaineth unto outward conformity to the Law he is then indeed ready to justifie himselfe and to thinke that it is indeed good for poore sinfull men to looke for salvation by Jesus Christ but for himselfe he hopeth in his selfe-devotion and that he is able to save himselfe these are such as justifie themselves before men to whom our Saviour speaketh Luke 16.15 And of whom he saith that Publicans and harlots shall goe into the kingdome of heaven before them Mat. 21.31,32 For many times you shall have the most deboist and prophane more humbled and readier to hearken to the voyce of Christ and sooner convinced of the necessity of the Covenant of grace than those that are morally righteous by the law Rom. 9.30,31,32 Chap. 10.21 Thus the Law becometh a snare unto them and that which is of singular and wholsome use unto the children of God is made death unto them And as their obedience to the Law is thus a snare unto them So secondly the delight and comfort which they take in their obedience is a greater snare than the other The stony and thorny soile did heare the word with joy and so those hypocrites Isai 58. did delight to approach unto God but what followed upon the delight which they tooke in God and in holy duties it made them ready to expostulate with God why he did not answer them according to their works the delight which they found did so fill their hearts with Assurance of the grace of God that they looked at their duties as so many tokens of the love of God unto their soules and then when men come to finde more comfort in their obedience than in the grace of God in Jesus Christ it maketh them ready to expostulate with God touching the worth of their owne righteousnes Isa 57.10 Thou hast found the life of thine hand therefore thou wast not grieved So long as a man findeth life and comfort in his owne performances what need can he see to be grieved for the want of Jesus Christ or at the best if he doe grieve and finde his heart comforted in grieving and delighting in the Course of humiliation he then thinketh he hath no need of being further solicitous about his spirituall estate Thus we see that the Law of God is of marvellous use in the dayes of the Gospell of great use unto those that belong unto God to breake their hearts for sinne and to drive them to Jesus Christ and for others the disobedience of the Law leaves them without excuse that so disobey it Againe the obedience of it and comfort in that obedience doth harden the hearts of others from Christ 2. But what say you then unto men that are under a Covenant of grace and brought unto fellowship with Christ therein of what use is the Law of God unto such is it utterly antiquated or is there any more to be done about it Answ The Apostle answereth this question when he saith I am not without the Law to God but under the Law to Christ 1 Cor. 9.21 So that mind you the Law is of use unto the Apostle Paul but how As the Law cometh under Christ so Paul cometh under the Law this is the summe of the Answer but that would be further explained What meaneth he when he sayth I am under the Law to Christ In some sense a Christian is freed from the Law in some sense he is under the Law so farre as the Law is any way besides or out of Christ so farre the Apostle is without the Law so farre as the Law is under Christ so farre he is under the Law keepe close to these two principles and you shall safely avoyd rockes on every hand thus by the use of the Law shall you not goe aside to a Covenant of works nor by attendance unto grace shall you neglect the Law How farre is the Law under Christ When it hath brought the soule neerer unto Christ and in a remote manner prepared him the Law is in Christ and you subject to it in him 1. As the Law is given by Christ 2. As in Christ helpe is given to performe it First as the Law is given by Christ as 1 Thes 4.2,3 and many other Commandments he gave them all which are legall Commandments and yet the Apostle gave them by the Lord Jesus So Mat. 5. to the end of the Chapter Our Saviour would not have us thinke that he came to destroy the Law or the Prophets but to fullfill them and to that end he doth there expound the spirituall true meaning of the Law that whereas the Pharisees held forth the outward letter of the Law to be observed onely as thinking that unlesse a man did commit the act of murther he was not guilty of the breach of the sixt Commandment and if he committed not the act of Adultery he transgressed not the seventh Commandment and so of the rest Our Saviour Christ expoundeth the Law more spiritually shewing that Anger against a mans brother is a breach
Rom. 4.4,5,6 He looketh not for his blessednesse from his works though he should perform all the conditions to which the Promises are made yet he expecteth all his blessing from free Justification and union with the Lord Jesus Christ Blessed is the man to whom the Lord imputeth not sin this is the blessednesse of Christians It is true the Lord doth blesse the workings of his servants and accept them Mat. 25.34,35,36 Thus Christ blesseth them but they are not sensible of their good deeds so as to expect blessings for their obedience sake and therefore they make answere and say Lord when saw we thee an hungry and fed thee or thirsty and gave thee drink c Neither do they fear the curse of God or that their sins should separate them from God those that are under the law indeed are cursed if they doe not continue in all things that are written in the Law to doe them But this Curse is removed from the Elect by Jesus Christ 3 This also is a third effect of the freedom from the Covenant of works that a Christian doth not look for conjugall comfort from his obedience nor fear conjugall divorce from his disobedience In a Covenant of works it is with a man as it was with Leah Jacobs wife who expected love and fellowship from her Husband because of her fruitfulnes Gen. 29.32,34 but thus doth not a man under a Covenant of grace for when he hath done all he can he is ready to say I am an unprofitable servant Luke 17.10 and doth not chalenge God for any of his dealing with him he seeth he deserveth not his daily bread and so looks for no reward from his good works though the Lord will gratiously acknowledge his servants in what they doe according to his will yet they are not wont to plead any such thing which is very observable in the practice of Jacob Gen. 32.9,10 c. where he doth not presse the performance of Gods Commandement to procure any blessing but acknowledgeth his unworthinesse and looketh for grace from the Promise of God Deliver me I pray thee from the hand of my brother for thou saidst I will surely doe thee good Nor doth a Child of God fear divorce by his disobedience though it have been very great Sometimes the people of God have not onely rejected the servants of God but the Lord himselfe 1 Sam. 8.7 But when Samuel had pressed hard upon them for their sin Cha. 12. and they were truly humbled then Samuel said unto them ver 20 21 22. Fear not c. Therefore feare you not he will not cast you off So that mind you a poor Christian doth not fear divorce from his disobedience for if we should look for blessings from the one or cursings from the other we walk as not under Christ but under the Law But he that is freed from the Covenant of works is freed also from expecting salvation or fearing damnation for what he doth He knoweth the Lord will hide his face from him if he doe evill but he knoweth the Lord will not cast him off for ever yet he dares not commit sin but being under grace he is the more affected if he shall at any time displease God and procure chastisement to himselfe and by this means the Lord doth mortifie his distempers on the other side if he doe well he will not say now my Husband will cleave unto me and dwell with me No no we are freed from the Law Rom. 7.4 But we were not so if we look for conjugall love from God for our obedience to the law it is true if a man be marryed to the Law his obedience unto it will supply comfort unto him but if we be dead unto the Law we have no life in it nor by it but onely in Jesus Christ from whom we expect our comfort indeed we are troubled that we should sin against the grace of God otherwise we look not at our obedience or disobedience to make us accepted or rejected 4 And finally the soule doth not claim his right unto any Conditionall Promise by his performance of the condition nor doth he deny himse fe the blessing that the Promise may reach forth unto him though he be wanting in obedience to this or that Commandement Pregnant for this purpose is the example of Jacob which we mentioned before Gen. 32.9,10 who though he had a plain and a full Promise of God to doe him good if he would returne unto his Countrey and to his kindred yet when he did returne according to the word of God he claimed not his interest in that Promise for that he had done as God commanded him but I am lesse than the least of thy mercies and yet he cometh unto the Lord for the performance of his Promises but upon this ground onely for the sake of mercy and truth Deliver me I pray thee for thou saidst I will surely doe thee good vers 11 12. So that mind you though the soul can make use of a conditionall Promise and come to God for the blessing of it yet not expecting it in the least manner by vertue of his obedience and truly this is the freedome of a Christian soule whereas another man if he have kept the Commandment and performed the condition he then looketh for acceptance from God as if the Lord make this Promise that He that confesseth and forsaketh his sin shall find mercy This man confesseth his sin unto God and forsaketh it and therefore he looketh for mercy But this is not the manner of Gods people and yet if they look for any mercy it is in the way of God but not for their owne goodnes their hope is in the faithfulnesse and free-grace of God they may make mention to the praise of God how he hath guided them and carryed them an end in his owne wayes yet they chalenge nothing for any thing that they have done but put the Lord in mind of his free Promise that as of his free grace he hath freely promised so from the same grace he may make good what he hath promised Vse 1. If any therefore shall accuse the Doctrine of the Covenant of free grace of Antinomianisme and say it teacheth men freedome from the Law of Moses and if they commit any sin they plead they are not bound unto the Law we see how false such an aspersion would be for all the people of God know that the Lord is an avenger of every such wickednesse There is none under a Covenant of Grace that dare allow himselfe in any fin for if a man should negligently commit any sin the Lord will schoole him throughly and make him sadly to apprehend how unworthily he hath made bold to abuse imbeazle the treasures of the grace of God Shall we continue in sinne that grace may abound God forbid None that have a portion in the grace of God dare allow himselfe in sin but if through strength of temptation he be
of the sixt Commandment and whosoever shall looke on a woman to lust after her hath committed Adultery with her already in his heart and broken the seventh Commandment Thus Christ hath as it were revived Moses but as the Law given by Christ is not a Covenant of works but a Commandment of well-doing and he having given it we take our selves bound to be subject unto it The Apostle also presseth the morall Law upon severall relations of men Eph. 6.1,2,3 c. It is an honour to Christ that his servants should be holy as he is holy it is for the glory of God and he requireth it the Apostle James presseth it Chap. 2.8 to the end of the Chapter If you fullfill the Royall Law according to the Scripture Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thy selfe ye doe well And againe Whosoever shall keepe the whole Law and yet offend in one point he is guilty of all Thus wee see the Apostles of Jesus Christ put it upon Christians to keepe the Law of God and Christ himselfe beareth witnes to the Law for God will never justifie sin to be no sin though he will justifie the person of a sinner Now as the Lord Jesus giveth the Law and as it were renueth it so he doth also give his Spirit unto his servants enabling them to keep it Jer. 31.33 and Ezek. 36.27 Now this Law would he not write in the hearts of his people nor give unto them his holy Spirit enabling them to keepe it were it not his will in Jesus Christ that the Law should be the Rule of holines and righteousnes unto his people hence it is that the children of God though they be not under the Covenant of the Law yet take themselves to be bound to the obedience of it for if Christ have given the Law as well as Moses and if he have ratified it by giving them his Spirit to teach and strengthen them to keepe it though not perfectly yet sincerely then they take themselves bound to obey the Law though they be under the Covenant of grace for doe we make voyd the Law through faith God forbid yea we establish the Law for what need have Christians of free justification by Christ if they were not bound unto the obedience of the Law by the Commandment of the Law therefore the free justification of men under a free Covenant of grace doth establish the obedience of the Law otherwise what need they run to Christ to save them from the Curse of the Law Why doe we still run to Christ for the continuance of our Justification but that we find our selves ungodly Creatures against the righteous and holy Law of God Therefore if God have given men the Law his Holy Spirit to strengthen them in the obedience of it and his grace to save them from the curse of it then Christians are to know that they are bound to keep the Law they lye under the authority of it and dare not pluck their necks from under that yoke Now there are divers effects springing from the subjection of Gods people to the Commandement of the Law 1 As they take themselves bound to the obedience of it so they believe and many times feele the fatherly displeasure of God when they transgresse it now the transgression of the Law could not bring them under the displeasure of God unlesse they were bound unto the Commandement of the Law This displeasure David was sensible of Psal 38.1,2,3 c. where he makes many complaints which doe all of them spring from the conscience of the disobedience of the Law which God hath framed in the hearts of his servants whereby they reflect upon their sin as the ground of all the distempers which lye upon their bodies or minds This is the first effect of the subjection of Gods people to his Law they lye under the faith and sense of the danger of the disobedience of it 2 They are under the faith and sense also of Gods gratious acceptance of their wayes when they are sutable to the blessed directions of his word not that they can raise there-from their justified estate but by the same Spirit of God whereby they are helped to obey the Commandements of God they doe see the Lords gratious approbation of them in their poore and weake endeavours for the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous that is acknowledgeth and approveth it Psal 1.6 When the Lord by his Spirit boweth the hearts of his people unto obedience then he knoweth and accepteth their obedience Gen. 22.12 Thus the Lord beareth witness unto his Servants that he doth accept their works so that they sensibly know and believe that the Lord doth acknowledge their poorest and weakest endeavours unto which they are carried forth by his Spirit in the Obedience of his word this the Prophet David confirmeth Psal 18.20 to 26. where he speaketh of his righteous dealing with Saul and whereas his enemies laid it to his charge that he was an enemy unto Saul the Lord beareth him witnes that he had walked toward Saul with a good conscience now the Lord having led him an end to deale justly and righteously and purely with Saul having kept him from all the malice and outrage of Saul and maintained his cause against him and delivered him out of his hands whom the Lord had now rejected herein the Prophet seeth the Lord accepting him when in the name of his Son by the power of his Spirit he is helped to attend unto the Commandements of God This is commfortable unto a Christian spirit when the Lord beareth witnesse unto his soule that he hath an eye to all the Commandments of God And all this argueth that the servants of God being in a state of grace in Jesus Christ have looked at themselves as bound by the Commandements of the Law and as being under the Law to Christ who hath given the Law and power unto his servants sincerely to keep it both by writing in their hearts a Law of obedience and by putting his Holy Spirit within them for if the people of God were not sensible of their bounden duty to the observation of the Law of God they would neither have faith nor sence of Gods fatherly displeasure when they negligently breake these Lawes neither would they be sensible of Gods acceptance of their conformity thereunto But we know what the Apostle saith 2 Cor. 1.12 For our rejoycing is this the Testimony of our Conscience c. And truly the Lord doth often beare witnesse unto the integrity of his Servants against the oppositions of men So he did to Abraham to David to Paul and to sundry of the Servants of God though they are not wont to build their safe estate thereupon Yet this kind of Gods acceptance of their wayes and obedience they doe discern c. yet in their best obedience which they doe perform they see the need they have to goe unto God for justifying grace because if they have failed in
doctrine a matter of Religion was of Gods appointment Jer. 29.21 with 23. and hence by Gods appointment was this execution of Gods vengeance on them made a proverbial Curse vers 22. Argum 2 A second Argument is in that it 's recorded as a most desperate and accursed estate of old that they had no King or chief Ruler in Israel to restrain as Adultery and Murther sins against the second Table Judges 19.1 with chap. 20. so Idolatry a sin against the first Table chap. 17.1 18.1 compared but every man had his liberty to doe what was right in his owne eyes Argum 3 The third Argument is in that it is recorded as a matter of speciall guidance and direction of God and acknowledged by Ezra inspired by the Spirit as a special mercy of God to his people that Artaxerxes an Heathen King had an heart to put forth his coercive power injoyning things commanded of God and forbidding with sanction of sutable punishments the evils whether against the Lawes of the King or against the Lawes of God whether concerning Religion or righteousnesse whence we argue that this use of the civil power was of God of old and therefore the same is as well of God now Artaxerxes was indeed an instrument in the hand of Christ but not therefore a Type of Christ Nor was this of the nature of a meer Jewish judiciall Law because injoining punishments moral offences being punishable and yet not therefore of a meer judicial nature or meerly against a judicial Law besides this act of Artaxerxes respected civil matters and matters of the second Table which none will challenge as not imitable as well as matters of Religion And that which some object that he did this for fear of wrath rather confirmeth the morality of the use of such power then otherwise For what ground of fear in not putting forth such coercive power if the omission of it were not sinfull Yea if the use of such a coercive power in matters of Religion were not according to Gods mind as our opposites say he might rather more groundedly have feared Gods wrath for such an high offence as usurpation of a power which the Lord disliked and forbade Thus much of the first head of Arguments from the Old Testament those from the New follow and they are foure From the New Testament Argum 1 The first is taken from Rom. 13. If God will have every soul in and of the Churches and that of Rome as well as others to be subject to civill Magistrates as being powers ordained of God v. 1. an Ordinance of God v. 2. a terrour not to good works but to evill v. 3. the ministry of God for their good v. 4. and that for conscience sake v. 5. Then Magistrates are to put forth coercive power in such matters of Religion respecting the outward man But the former is true ergo the latter Object All this may be true and yet verified onely in matters of the second Table and is extended to matters of the first yet onely to such things as are against the Law of Nations or the light of Nature and so no proof of that for which it is urged He is a terrour to evil works but it is not said he is so to all evill works Answ 1 If all this be restrained according to the intent of the Objection then is none to have praise approbation incouragement from Civil Authority by reason of matters of Faith or of Religion but for matters of righteousnesse onely or if for any matters of Religion yet onely for such as stand with the light of nature and Law of Nations as the third Verse must be Expounded For if it be supposed that it is an act of Justice whereof the Magistrate is Minister to distribute rewards in any matters of Religion that appeares in the walk of the outward man and respect godly peace in way of encouragement it must needs be an act of like justice to distribute punishments to the contrary The Magistrate being according to the Apostles distribution a Minister of God as well when he encourageth good as when he represseth and punisheth evil 2 The Objection would make onely offences against the rules of the second Table or at most those that are against the Law of nature and Nations which come under the view of the Magistrate as a publick Minister of God to be evill works and not other sins of like publick cognizance concernment respecting other matters of Religion For if both sorts of offences are evil he being a terrour to evil works indefinitely which come to his publick cognizance he is a terrour ex officio to both and it is vaine to say he saith evill works not all evil works for so he saith he is not a terrour to good works but saith not to all good works and therefore if that indefinite good works be not equivalent to that general all good works he may then it seems be a terrour to some good works which come under his publick cognizance 3 We are yet to speak of that limitation where the New Testament alloweth the civil Magistrate power as in matters of righteousnesse so in matters of Religion so far namely as the light of nature and Law of Nations extendeth in matters of the outward man which come to his publick view but restraineth him from medling further in any matters of Religion of like publick cognizance and concernment That Scripture ground of this distinction and restriction would be produced Object I when Paul wrote this Epistle to the Romans their Rulers were Pagans and what coercive power was it likely they would put forth in any matters of Religion unlesse against the true Religion as undermining their Paganisme Crying downe the same as worship of Devils and teaching them to cast off their Heathen Gods as no Gods They did not look at Jesus Christ as their Supream Lord but as a new upstart God in comparison of their Roman Gods and to make penall Laws against false doctrine or Religion had been to make Lawes against themselves as well as others and to make Lawes against the present light of their owne consciences Answ This no way weakneth but strengthneth what we have said For if even those Pagan Rulers in Pauls time were by their Office Ministers of God then bound to improve their Authority for the ratifying and establishing of his Lawes and for those of the first as well as second Table and then bound by their Office as Ministers of God to rule for him and the exacting of his rule in and over their subjects And that they did not know and doe thus it was their sin Many of them thought plurality of wives fornication rash divorces incestuous marriages usury c. no sin and it may be said if they had made Lawes against these they had made Lawes against themselves and the light of their owne consciences as thinking in their seduced blinded consciences that these were lawfull yet