non esse penes Regeâ— sed aut penes Ordines aut certe penes id corpus quod Rex juncti constituunt ut Bodinus Suarezius Victoria aliique abunde demonstratunt Certum summum Imperium totum aliquid imperare non posse ideo tantum quod alter veteâ— aut intercedat plane sunt 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to this or that or the other thing or not Nor whether it shall be exercised thus or thus by standing Courts or temporary Judges c. 3. Nor hath he named the person or family that shall rule § 6. Prop. 5. Though these in the constitution are determined of by explicite or implicite contract or consent between the Ruler and the Community yet by none of these three can the people be truly and properly said to Give the Ruler his Power of Government Not by the first or last for both those do but determine who shall be the Recipient of that power whether one or more and who individually Not the second for that is but a limiting or bounding or regulating the Governing power that it be not exercised to their hurt The bounding and regulating of their power is not the Giving them power The People having the strength cannot be ruled against their concordant wills And therefore if they contract with their Governours that they will be Ruled thus and thus or not at all this is not to Give them power Yet Propriety they have and there they may be Givers So that this Bounding or Regulating and Choosing the form and Persons and giving of their propriety is all that they have to do And the choosing of the Family or person is not at all a Giving the Power They are but sine quibus non to that They do but open the door to let in the Governour They do but name the family or man to whom God and not they shall Give the power As when God hath already determined what authority the Husband shall have over the Wife the Wife by choosing him to be her Husband giveth him not his power but only chooseth the man to whom God giveth it by his standing Law Though about the disposing of her estate she may limit him by pre-contracts But if she contract against his Goâ—ernment it is acontradiction and null Nor if he abuse his power doth it at all fall into her hands If the King by Charter give power to a Corporation to choose their Mayor or other Officer they do but nominate the persons that shall receive it but it is the Kings Charter and not they that give him the power If a Souldier voluntarily list himself under the Kings General or other Commanders he doth but choose the man that shall command him but it is the Kings Commission that giveth him the power to command those that voluntarily so list themselves And if the authority be abused or forfeited it is not into the Souldiers hands but into the Kings § 7. Prop. 6. The Constituting-Consent or Contract of Ancestors obligeth all their posterity if Prop. 6. they will have any of the protection or other benefit of Government to stand to the constitution Else Governments should be so unsetled and mutable as to be uncapable of their proper End § 8. Prop. 7. God hath neither in nature or Scripture estated this Power of Government in whole or Prop. 7. in part upon the people of a meer Community much less on Subjects whether Noble or Ignoble So foolish and bad â—s the 〈◊〉 tâ—o 〈…〉 man shâ—uâ—d not endanger himself for his Countrey because wisdom is not to be cast away for the commodity of fools Laert. in Aristip. But a wise man must be wise for others and not only for himself Learned or unlearned the part of the Community or the whole body Real or Representative The people as such have not this Power either to Use or to Give But the absolute Soveraign of all the world doth communicate the Soveraign power in every Kingdom or other sort of Common-wealth from himself Immediately I say Immediately not without the Mediation of an Instrument signifying his will for the Law of Nature and Scripture are his Instrument and the Charter of Authority nor yet so Immediately as without any kind of medium for the Consent and Nomination of the Community before expressed may be Conditio sine qua non so far as aforesaid But it is so Immediately from God as that there is no immediate Recipient to receive the power first from God and convey it to the Soveraign § 9. Prop. 8. The Natural power of individual persons over themselves is tota specie different from Prop. 8. this Political or Civil Power And it is not the Individuals resignation of this Natural power of selfdisposal It was one of the Roman Laws of the twelve Tables Vendendi filium patri potestas esâ—o But this Law rather giveth the Father that power than declareth it to be naturally in him Nature alloweth him no other selling of him than what is for his Child 's own good unto one or more which is the efficient Cause of Soveraignty or Civil Power § 10. Prop. 9. If you take the word Law properly for the expression of a Rulers Will obliging Prop. 9. the Governed or making their duty and not improperly for meer Contracts between the Soveraign and the people then it is clear in the definition it self that neither Subjects nor the Community as such have any Legislative power Neither Nature nor Scripture hath given the people a Power of making Laws either by themselves or with the Soveraign Either the sole power or a part of it But the very Nature of Government requireth that the whole Legislative power that is the power of making Governing Laws belong to the summa Majestas or Soveraign alone Unless when the summa potestas is in many hands you compare the partakers among themselves and call one Party the Soveraign as having more of the Soveraignty than the rest For those that are no Governours at all cannot perform the chief act of Government which is the making of Governing-Laws But the people are no Governours at all either as a Community or as Subjects So that you may easily perceive that all the Arguments for a natural Democracy are built upon false suppositions and where ever the People have any part in the Soveraignty it is by the after-Constitution and not by Nature And that Kings receive not their Power from the peoples gift who never had it themselves to use or give but from God alone § 11. Prop. 10. Though God have not made an Universal determination for any one sort of Government against the rest whether Monarchy Aristocracy or Democracy because that is best for one people which may be worse for others yet ordinarily Monarchy is accounted better than Aristocracy and Aristocracy better than Democracy So much briefly of the Original of Power § 12. Object 1. But saith worthy Mr. Richard Hooker
him Heb. 13. 7. 17. And if the governing power of one Pastor be not suspended for want of the consent of any or all the people then much less the Governing Power of King and Parliament § 20. Object 9. Lib. 8. p. 220. It is a thing even undoubtedly natural that all free and independent Object 9. societies should themselves make their own Laws and that this power should belong to the whole not to any certain part of a politick body Answ. This is oft affirmed but no proof at all of it In many Nations the Representatives of the whole Body have the Legislative power or part of it But that is from the special constitution of that particular Common-wealth and not from Nature nor common to all Nations All that naturally belongeth to the people as such was but to choose their Law-makers and secure their liberties and not to make Laws themselves by themselves or meer representers § 21. Object 10. Lib. 8. p. 221. For of this thing no man doubteth namely that in all societies Object 10. Companies and Corporations what severally each shall be bound unto it must be with all their assents ratified Against all equity it were that a man should suffer detriment at the hands of men for not observing that which he never did either by himself or by others mediately or immediately agree to Answ. I am one that more than doubt of that which you say no man doubteth of Do you not Answ. so much as except Gods Laws and all those that only do enforce them or drive men to obey them As men are obliged to obey God whether they consent or not so are they to obey the Laws of their Soveraigns though they never consented to them no nor to their Soveraignty as long as they are members of that Common-wealth to the Government whereof the Soveraign is lawfully called Millions of dissenters may be bound to obey till they quit the Society § 22. Object 11. Lib. 8. p. 205. If Magistrates be Heads of the Church they are of Necessity Object 11. Christians Answ. That can never be proved A Constitutive Head indeed must be a Christian and more even Answ. a Pastor to a particular Church and Christ to the universal This Headship our Kings disclaim But a Head of the Church that is Over the Church or a Coercive Governour of it the King would be if he were no Christian. As one that is no Physicion may be Head over all the Physicions in his Kingdom or though he be no Philosopher or Artist he may be Head over all the Philosophers and Artists and in all their Causes have the Supream Coercive power so would the King over all Protestants if he were no Protestant and over all Christians if he were no Christian But you think that he that is no member of the Church cannot be the Head of it I answer Not a Constitutive Essential Head as the Pastor is But he may be the Head over it and have all the coercive power over it What if the King be not a member of many Corporations in his Kingdom Yet as he is Head of the Kingdom he is Head of or over them as they are parts of it § 23 Object 12. Lib. 8. p. 218 223 224. What power the King hath he hath it by Law Object 12. the bounds and limits of it are known the entire community giveth order c. p. 223. As for them that exercise power altogether against order although the kind of power which they have may be of God yet is their exercise thereof against God and therefore not of God otherwise than by permission as all injustice is Pag. 224. Usurpers of Power whereby we do not mean them that by violence have aspired unto places of highest authority but them that use more authority than they did ever receive in form and manner before mentioned Such Usurpers thereof as in the exercise of their power do more than they have been authorized to do cannot in conscience bind any man to obedience Answ. It is true that no man can exercise more power than he hath The power that we speak Answ. of being 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Ius regendi it is impossible to use more Authority than they have though they may command beyond and without authority And it is true that where a man hath no authority or right to command he cannot directly bind to obedience But yet a Ruler may exercise more power than Man ever gave him and oblige men to obedience thereby God giveth them Power to Govern for his Glory according to his Laws and to promote Obedience to those Laws of God in Nature and Scripture by subordinate Laws of their own And all this the Soveraign may do if the people at the choice of him or his family should only say We take you for our Soveraign Ruler For then he may do all that true Reason or Scripture make the work of a Soveraign Ruler even Govern the people by all such just means as tend to the publick good and their everlasting happiness And yet that people that should do no more but choose persons or families to Govern them and set them no bounds doth Give no Power to those they choose but determine of the persons that shall have power from God Yet it is granted you that if the person or family chosen contract with them to Govern only with such and such limitations they have bound themselves by their own contract and thus both specifications of Government and Degrees of power come in by men But alwayes distinguish 1. Between the peoples Giving away their Propriety in their Goods Labours c. which they may do and giving Authority or Governing power which they have not Potestas Maritalis est à Deo applicatio ejus potestatis ad certam personam ex consensu venit quo tamen ipsum jus non datur Nam si ex consensâ—â— daretur posset consensu etiam dissolvi matrimonium aut conveniri ne maritus foeminae imperaret Quid minime verum est Imperatoria potestas non est penes Electores ergo nec ab ipsis datur sed ab ipsis tamen certae personae applicatur Jus vitae necis non est peneâ— cives antequam in rempublicam coeant Privatus enim jus vindictae non habet ab iisâ—â—em tamen applicatur ad coetum ant personam aliquam Grotius de Imperiâ— p. 270. to give 2. Between their Naming the persons that shall receive it from the Universal King and Giving it themselves 3. Between bounding and limiting Power and Giving Power 4. And between a Soveraigns binding himself by contract and being bound by the Authority of others If they be limited by contracts which are commonly called the Constitutive or fundamental Laws it is their own consent and contract that effectively obligeth and limiteth them of which indeed the Peoples will may be the Occasion when they resolve that they
but desired in this life but not attained Much less for others 3. When the principal causes co-operate not with us and we are but subservient Moral Causes We can but perswade men to Repent Believe and Love God and goodness We cannot save men without and against themselves Their hearts are out of our reach Therefore in all these cases we are naturally unable to hinder sin II. It is not in our power to do any thing which God forbiddeth us That which is sinful is to be accounted out of our power in this sense To cure the sin of a Wife by such cruelty or harshness as is contrary to our Conjugal Relation and to the office of necessary Love is out of our power because forbidden as contrary to our duty and so of other III. Those actions are out of our power which are acts of higher authority than we have A subject cannot reform by such actions as are proper to the Soveraign nor a Lay-man by actions proper to the Pastor for want of Authority So a Schoolmaster cannot do that which is proper to a Patient Nor the Master of a family that which is proper to the Magistrate as to punish with death c. IV. We have not power to do that which a Superiour power forbiddeth us unless it be that which God indisponsibly commandeth us The Wife may not correct a Child or Servant or turn him away when the Husband forbiddeth it Nor the Master of a family so punish a sin as the King and Laws forbid on the account of the publick interest V. We have not Power to do that for the cure of sin which is like to do more hurt than good yea perhaps to prove a perniâ—ious mischief If my correcting a servant would make him kill me or set my house on fire I may not do it If my sharp reproof is like to do more hurt or less good than milder dealing If I have reason to believe that correction will make a servant worse I am not to use it because we have our power to edification and not to destruction God hath not tyed us just to speak such and such words or to use this or that correction but to use reproofs and corrections only in that time measure and manner as true reason telleth us is likest to attain their end To do it iâ— it would do never so much hurt with a fiat Iustitia etsi pereat Mundus is to be Rightâ—ous overmuch Yea great and heynous sins may be endured in families sometimes to avoid a greater hurt and because there is no other means to cure them For instance A Wife may be guilty of notorious Pride and of malignant dâ—riding the exercises of Religion and of railing lying slandering back-biting covetousness swearing cursing c. and the Husband be necessitated to bear it not so far as not to reprove it but so far as not to correct her much less cure her Divines use to say that it is unlawful for a man to beat his Wife But the reason is not that he wanteth Authority to do it But 1. Because he is by his relation obliged to a Life of Love with her and therefore must so Rule as tendeth not to destroy Love And 2. Because it may often do otherwise more hurt to her self and the family than good It may make her furious and desperate and make her contemptible in the family and diminish the reverence of inferiours both to Wife and Husband for living so uncomely a life Quest. But is there any case in which a man may silently bear the sins of a Wife or other inferiour without reproof or urging them to amend Answ. Yes In case 1. That Reproof hath been tryed to the utmost 2. And it is most evident by full experience that it is like to do a great deal more hurt than good The Rule given by Christ extendeth as well to families as to others not to cast Pearls before Swine nor to give that which is holy to dogs because it is more to the discomposure of a mans Matâ—h 7. 6. own pâ—ace to have a Wife turn again and all to rend him than a stranger As the Church may cease admonishing a sinner after a certain time of obstinacy when experience hath ended their present hopes of bringing the person to Repentance and thereupon may excommunicate him so a Husband may be brought to the same despair with a Wife and may be disobliged from ordinary reproof though the nearness of the Relation forbid him to eject her And in such a case where the family and neighbourhood knoweth the intractableness and obstinacy of the Wife it is no scandal nor sign of approbation or neglect of duty for a man to be silent at her sin Because they look upon her Psâ—l 81. 11. c. Râ—v 22 10 11. Prov. 1. 24 25. as at present incorrigible by that means And it is the sharpest Reproof to such a one to be unreproved and to be let alone in her sin as it is Gods greatest judgement on a sinner to leave him to himself and say Be filthy still And there are some Women whose Phantasies and Passions are naturally so strong as that it seemeth to me that in many cases they have not so much as Natural Free-will or power to restrain them but if in all other cases they acted as in some I should take them for meer Bruites that had no true reason They seem naturally necessitated to do as they do I have known the long professiâ—n of piâ—ty which in other respects hath seemed sincere to consist in a Wife with such unmastered furious passion that she could not before strangers forbear throwing what was in her hand in her Husbands face or thrusting the burning Candle into his face and slandering him of the filthiest sins and when the passion was over confess all to be false and her rage to be the reason of her speech and actions And the man though a Minister of more than ordinary wit and strength yet fain to endure all without returns of violence till her death They that never knew such a case by tryal can tell how all might be cured easily but so cannot they that are put upon the Cure And there are some other women of the same uncurable strength of Imagination and Passion who in other respects are very pious and prudent too and too wise and conscionable to wrong their Husbands with their hands or tongues who yet are utterly unable to forbear an injury of the highest nature to themselves but are so utterly impatient of being crossed of their wills that it would in all likelihood cast them into Melancholy or Madness or some mortal sickness And no reason signifieth any thing to abate such passions In case of Pride or some sinful custome they are not able to bear reproof and to be hindered in the sin without apparent danger of distraction or death I suppose thâ—se cases are but few but what to do in such
that he is better acquainted with your spiritual state and life than others are and therefore in less danger of wronging you by mistake and misapplications For it s supposed that you have acquainted him with your personal condition in your health having taken him as your ordinary Counsellor for your souls and that he hath acquainted himself with your condition and confirmed you and watcht over you by name as Ignatius to Polycarpe Bishop of Smyrna saith Saepe Congregationes fiant ex nomine omnes quaere servos ancillas ne despicias as Bishop Ushers old Latine Transl. hath Vid. Iastiâ— Marâ— Apol. 2. Vid. Tertul. Apol. c. 39. it Let Congregations be often held Enquire after all by name Despise not Servants and Maids The Bishop took notice of every Servant and Maid by name and he had opportunity to see whether they were in the Congregation 9. You must use him as your Leader or Champion against all Hereticks Infidels and subtle adversaries of the truth with whom you are unable to contend your selves that your Bishop may clear up and defend the cause of Christ and righteousness and by irresistible evidence stop the mouths of all I hope all this will tell you what a Bishop indeed is gain-sayers It is for your own benefit and not for theirs that you are required in all these works of their office to use them and readily obey them And what hurt can it do you to obey them in any of these § 9. Direct 3. Understand how it is that Christ doth authorize and send forth his Ministers lest Direct 3. Wolves and deceivers should either obtrude themselves upon you as your lawful Pastors or should alienate you from thâ—se that God hath set over you by puzling you in subtle questioring or disputing against their call Not only Pauls warnings Act. 20. 30. and 2 Tim. 3. 6. but lamentable experience telleth us what an eager desire there is in Proud and Self-conceited men to obtrude themselves as Teachers and Pastors on the Churches to creep into houses and lead people captive and draw away Disciples after them and say and perhaps think that others are deceivers and none are the true Teachers indeed but they And the first part of the art and work of wolves is to separate you from your Pastors and catch up the straglers that are thus separated The malice and slanders and lies and railing of hirelings and deceivers and all the powers of Hell are principally poured out on the faithful Pastors and leaders of the flocks The principal work of the Jesuits against you is to make you believe that Gâ—ot de Imp. p. 273. Pastorum est ordinare Pastores Neque id officâ—um eis competit quâ hujus aut illius ecclesiae Pastores sunt sed quâ uâ— nistriâ— ecclesiae Catholicae your Pastors are no true Pastors but uncalled private persons and meer usurpers and the reason must be because they have not an Ordination of Bishops successively from the Apostles without interruption I confess if our interruptions had been half as lamentable as theirs by their Schisms and variety of Popes at once and Popes accused or condemned by General Councils for Hereticks and their variety of wayes of electing Popes and their incapacities by Simony Usurpation c. I should think at least that our Ancestors had cause to have questioned the calling of some that were then over them But I will help you in a few words to discern the jugling of these deceivers by shewing you the truth concerning the way of Christs giving his commission to the Ministers that are truly called and the needlesness of the proof of an uninterrupted succession of regular ordination to your reception of your Pastors and their Ministrations § 10. The ministerial commission is contained in and conveyed by the Law of Christ which is the See in Grotius de Imper. sum potest p. 269. The necessary distinction of 1. Ipsa facultas praedicandi sacramenta claves administrandi quod Mandatum vocat 2. Applicatio hujus facultatis ad certam personam viz. Ordinatio 3. Applicatio hujus personae ad certum coeâ—um locum viz. Electio 4. Iliud quo certa persona in certo loco ministerium suum exercet publico praesidio ac publicâ authoritate viz. Coâ—fiâ—matio p. 273. Constat munetis institutionem à Deo esse Ordinationem à Pastoribus Confirmationem publicam à summa potestate So that the doubt is only about election Which yet must be differenced from consenâ— Charter of the Church and every true Bishop or Pastor hath his Power from Christ and not at all from the efficient conveyance of any mortal man Even as Kings have their power not from man but from God himself but with this difference that in the Church Christ hath immediatly determined of the species of Church offices but in the Civil Government only of the Genus absolutely and immediatly You cannot have a plainer illustration than by considering how Mayors and Bailiffs and Constables are annually made in Corporations The King by his Charter saith that every year at a certain time the freemen or Burgesses shall meet and choose one to be their Mayor and the Steward or Town Clerk shall give him his oath and thus or he shall be invested in his place and this shall be his power and work and no other So the King by his Law appointeth that Constables and Church-wardens shall be chosen in every Parish Now let our two questions be here decided 1. Who it is that giveth these Officers their Power 2. Whether an uninterrupted succession of such officers through all generations since the enacting of that Law be necessary to the validity of the present officers authority To the first It is certain that it is the King by his Law or Charter that giveth the officers their power and that the Corporations and Parishes do not give it them by electing or investing them yea though the King hath made such election and Investiture to be in a sort his instrument in the conveying it it is but as the opening of the door to let them in sine quo non but it doth not make the Instruments to be at all the Givers of the Power nor were they the receiving or containing mediate causes of it The King never gave them the Power which the officers receive either to Use or to Give but only makes the Electors his Instruments to determine of the person that shall receive the Power immediately from the Law or Charter and the Investers he ma keth his Instruments of solemnizing the Tradition and admission which if the Law or Charter make absolutely Necessary ad esse officii it will be so but if it make it necessary only ad melius esse or but for order and regular admittance when no necessity hindereth it the necessity will be no more And to the second question It is plain that the Law which is the Fundamentum
intercision as I have proved it hath had as to lawful Popes the whole Catholick Church is nullified and it is impossible to give it a new being but by a new Pope But the best is that by their Doctrine indeed they need not to plead for an uninterrupted succession either of Popes Bishops or Presbyters but that they think it a useful cheat to perplex all that are not their subjects For if the Papacy were extinct an hundred years Christ is still alive And seeing it is no matter ad esse who be the Electors or Consecrators so it be but made known conveniently to the people and Men only Elect and Receive the person and Christ only giveth the power by his stated Law what hindereth after the longest extinction or intercision but that some body or some sort of persons may choose a Pope again and so Christ make him Pope And thus the Catholick Church may dye and live again by a new Creation many times over And when the Pope hath a Resurrection after the longest intercision so may all the Bishops and Priests in the world because a new Pope can make new Bishops and new Bishops can make new Priests And where then is there any shew of necessity of an uninterrupted succession of any of them All that will follow is that the particular Churches dye till a Resurrection And so doth the whole Church on earth every time the Pope dyeth till another be made if he be the Constitutive Head 2. But as they say that Christ only Efficiently giveth the Power to the Pope so say we to the Bishops or Pastors of the Church For there is no act of Christs Collation to be proved but the Scripture Law or Grant And if that standing Law give Power to the Pope when men have but designed the Person the same Law will do the same to Bishops or Pastors For it establisheth their Office in the same sort Or rather in truth there is no word that giveth power to any such Officer as an Universal Head or Pope but the Law for the Pastoral Office is uncontrovertible And what the Spanish Bishops at Trent thought of the Divine Right of the Bishops Office I need not mention I shall therefore thus truly resolve the question 1. In all Ordinations and Elections man doth but first choose the Recipient person 2. And Ceremoniously and Ministerially Invest him in the Possession when God hath given him the power But the efficient Collation or Grant of the Power is done only by Christ by the Instrumentality of his Law or Institution As when the King by a Charter saith Whoever the City shall choose shall be their Mayor and have such and such power and be Invested in it by the Recorder or Steward Here the person elected receiveth all his Power from the King by his Charter which is a standing Efficient conveying it to the Capable Chosen person and not from the Choosers or Recorder only the last is as a servant to deliver possession So is it in this case 2. The regular way of entrance appointed by Christ to make a person capable is the said Election and Ordination And for order sake where that may be had the unordained are not to be received as Pastors 3. If any get Possession by false pretended Ordination or Mission and be Received by the Church I have before told you that he is a Pastor as to the Churches use and benefit though not to his own And so the Church is not extinct by every fraudulent usurpation or mistake and so not by want of a true Ordination or Mission 4. If the way of regular Ordination fail God may otherwise by the Churches necessity and the notorious aptitude of the person notifie his will to the Church what person they shall receive As if a Lay-man were cast on the Indian shoar and converted thousands who could have no Ordination And upon the peoples Reception or Consent that man will be a true Pastor And seeing the Papists in the conclusion as Iohnson ubi supra are fain to cast all their cause on the Churches Reception of the Pope they cannot deny reasonably but ad esse the Churches reception may serve also for another Officer And indeed much better than for a Pope For 1. The Universal Church is so great that no man can know when the Greater part Receiveth him and when not except in some notorious declarations 2. And it is now known that the far greater part of the Universal Church the Greeks Armenians Abassines Copties Protestants c. do not receive the Roman Head 3. And when one part of Europe received one Pope and another part another Pope for above fourty years together who could tell which of the parties was to be accounted the Church It was not then known nor it is not known yet to this day And no Papist can prove it who affirmeth it As a Church e. g. Constantinople may be gathered or oriri de novo where there is none before so may it be restored where it is extinct And possibly a Lay-man as Frumentius and Edesiâ—s in the Indies may be the instrument of mens conversion And if so they may by consent become their Pastors when regular Ordination cannot be had I have said more of this in my Disputations of Church-Government Disp. 2. The truth is this pretence of a Necessity of uninterrupted successive Ordination Mission or Jurisdictional Collation ad esse to the being of Ministry or Church is but a cheat of men that have an interest of their own which requireth such a plea when they may easily know that it would overthrow themselves Quest. 12. Whether there be or ever was such a thing in the world as one Catholick Church Constituted by any Head besides or under Christ THe greatest and first controversie between us and the Papists is not What man or Politick person is the Head of the whole Visible Church But Whether there be any such Head at all eiPersonal or Collective Monarchical Aristocratical or Democratical under Christ of his appointment or allowance Or any such thing as a Catholick Church so Headed or Constituted Which they affirm and we deny That neither Pope nor General Council is such a Head I have proved so fully in my Key for Catholicks and other Books that I will not here stay to make repetition of it That the Pope is no such Head we may take for granted 1. Because they bring no proof of it whatever they vainly pretendâ—â— 2. Because our Divines have copiously disproved it to whom I refer you 3. Because the Universal Church never received such a Head as I have proved against Iohnson 4. And whether it be the Pope their Bishop of Calcedon ubi sup Sancta Clara System â—id say is not de fide That a Council is no such Head I have largely proved as aforesaid Part 2. Key for Cath. And 1. The use of it being but for Concord proveth it 2. Most Papists confess it
pernicious underminers of Monarchy it self For what readier way to set all the world against it than to make them believe that it standeth at enmity to all that is good These secret enemies would set up a Lâ—viâ—than to be the butt of common enmity and opposition The other sort are the professed enemies of Monarchy who in their zeal for Popular Government do bring in all that is excellent as if it were adverse to Monarchy 1. They would both set it at enmity with Politicians 2. With Lawyers 3. With History 4. With Learning 5. With Divines 6. With all Christian Religion 7. And with Humanity it self § 73. Obj. 1. The Painters of the Leviathan scorn all Politicks as ignorant of the power of Monarchs Object 1. except the Atheistical inventions of their own brains And the adversaries of Monarchy say The reading of Politicks will satisfie men against Monarchy For in them you ordinarily find that the Majestas Realis is in the people and the Majestas personalis in the Prince that the Prince receiveth all his power from the people to whom it is first given and to whom it may be forfeited and esâ—heat with much more of the like as is to be sâ—en in Politicians of all Religions Answ. Answ. 1. It is not all Politicks that go upon those principles and one mistake in writers is no disgrace to the true doctrine of politicks which may be vindicated from such mistakes 2. As almost all Authors of Politicks take Monarchy for a lawful species of Government so most or very many especially of the moderns do take it to be the most excellent sort of unmixt Government Therefore they are no enemies to it Object 2. § 74. Obj. 2. For Lawyers they say that 1. Civilians set up reason so high that they dangerously Leg. quae de Grotio post p. 731. measure the power of Monarchs by it In so much that the most famous pair of zealous and learned defenders of Monarchy Barclay and Grotius do assign many cases in which it is lawful to resist Princes by arms and more than so 2. And the Common-Lawyers they say are all for the Law and ready to say as Hooker Lex facit Regem and what power the King hath he hath it by Law the bounds are known p. 218. he is Singulis major universis minor c. Answ. 1. Sure the Roman Civil Laws were not against Monarchy when Monarchs made so many Answ. of them And what Power Reason truly hath it hath from God whom none can over-top and that which reason is abused unjustly to defend may be well contradicted by Reason indeed 2. And what power the Laws of the Land have they have by the Kings Consent and Act And it is strange impudency to pretend that his own Laws are against him If any mis-interpret them he may be confuted § 75. Obj. 3. For Historians say they Be but well verst in ancient History Greek and Roman Object 3. and you shall find them speak so ill of Monarchy and so much for popularity and liberty and magnifying so much the defenders of the peoples liberty against Monarchs that it will secretly steal the So Hollingshead maketh Parliaments so mighty as to take down the greatest Kings c. dislike of Monarchy and the Love of popular liberty into your minds Answ. It must be considered in what times and places the ancient Greek and Roman Historians did Answ. live They that lived where popular Government was in force and credit wrote acording to the time and Government which they lived under yet do they extol the virtues and heroick acts of Monarchs and often speak of the vulgar giddiness and unconstancy And for my part I think he that readeth in them those popular tumults irrationalities furies unconstancies cruelties which even As Augustus Trajan the Antonines c. in Rome and Athens they committed and all Historians record will rather find his heart much alienated from such Democratical confusions And the Historians of other times and places do write as much for Monarchy as they did for Democracy It is confessed that most Historians write much for Liberty against Tyranny But the Heathens do it much more than the Christians § 76. Obj. 4. Some of them revile at Aristotle and all Universities and say that while multitudes Object 4. must be tasters and pretenders to the learning which they never throughly can attain they read many dangerous Laâ—gius saith that in his own hearing Iodocus praeses Senat. Mechlin Magnâ contentione tuebatur neminem posse vel unius legis intelligentiam consequi qui quicquam â—sciret in bonis literis addebat vix esse tres in orbe qui leges Caesareas intelligerent books and receive false notions and these half-witted men are the disturbers of all societies Do you not see say they that the two strongest Kingdoms in the world are kept up by keeping the subjects ignorant The Greek and Latine Empires were ruined by the contention of men that did pretend to learning The Turk keepeth all in quiet by suppressing it And the Pope confineth it almost all to his Instruments in Government and keepeth the common people in ignorance which keepeth them from matter of quarrel and disobedience Ans. I hope you will not say that Rome or Athens of old did take this course And we will not Answ. deny but men of knowledge are more subject to debates and questionings and quarrels about right and wrong than men of utter ignorance are Beasts fall not out about Crowns or Kingdoms as men do Dogs and Swine will not not scramble for Gold as men will do if you cast it among them And it is easier to keep Swine or Sheep quiet than men And yet it is not better to be Swine or Sheep thâ—n men nor to be Governours of beasts than men Dead men are quieter than the living and blind men will submit to be led more easily than those that see And yet it is not better to be a King of bruits or blind men or dead men than of the living that have their sight A King of men that have many disagreements is better than a King of beasts that all agree And yet true knowledge tendeth to concord and to the surest and constantest obedience § 77. Obj. 5. But their chief calumniations are against Divines They say that Divines make a trade Object 5. of Religion and under pretence of Divine Laws and Conscience and Ecclesiastical discipline they subjugate Read B. Andrâ—ws Tort. Tort. B. Bilson of Christ. sâ—bjâ—ctioâ— â—â—b Aâ—hoâ—s Iewel Fâ—â—ld c. who will â—ully shew that true Church-power is no way injurious to Kings De Regum authoritate quod ex jure divino non sit Tortus probat Asseri enim scriptorum sententià communi At nec omnium nec optimorum Andrews Tort. Tort. p. 384. both Princes and people to their will and set up Courts which
g. The Law against relieving a beggar bindeth not when he is like to dye if he be not relieved or in such a case as after the burning of London when there was no Parish to bring him to A Law that is but for the ordering of mens charity to soul or body by preaching or alms will not disoblige me from the Duties of Charity themselves in cases where Scripture or Nature proveeth them to be imposed by God A Law for fasting will not bind me when it would be destructive to my body even on Gods Sabbaths duties of mercy were to be preferred to Rest and Sacrifices 14. If Gods own Laws must be thus expounded that When two duties come together and both cannot be done the lesser ceaseth at that time to be a duty and the greater is to be preferred mans Laws must also be necessarily so expounded And the rather because mans Laws may be contradictory when Gods never are so rightly understood 15. Where the subject is to obey so far he must discern which of the Laws inconsistent is to be preferred But in the Magistratical execution the Magistrate or Judge must determine E. g. One Law commandeth that all the needy poor be kept on the Parish where they were born or last lived Another Law saith that Non-conformable Ministers of the Gospel who take not the Oxford Oath shall not come within five miles of City or Corporation though they were born there or any place where they have been Preachers In case of necessity what shall they do Answ. Whither they shall go for relief they must discern as well as they can But whither they shall be carried or sent the Magistrate or Constable must discern and judge Also Whether he shall go with a Constable that by one Law bringeth him to a place which by the other Law he is forbid on pain of six months imprisonment in the Common Gaol to come to Answ. If he be not voluntary in it it is not his fault And if one bring him thither by force and and another imprison him for being there he must patiently suffer it 16. But out of such excepted Cases the Laws of our Rulers as the commands of Parents do bind us as is afore explained And it is a sin against God to violate them 17. Yea When the reason of the Law reacheth not our particular case and person yet when we have reason to judge that it is the Rulers will that all be bound for the sake of some and the common order and good will be hindered by our exemption we must obey to our corporal detriment to avoid the publick detriment and to promote the publick good CHAP. IV. Directions to Lawyers about their Duty to God GEntlemen you need not meet these Directions with the usual censures or suspicions that Divines are busying themselves with the matters of your Calling which belong not to them and which they do not understand You shall see that I will as much forbear such matters as you can well desire If your Calling be not to be sanctified by serving God in it and regulating it by his Law it is then neither honourable nor desirable But if it be permit me very Legum mihi placet autoritas sed earum usus hominum nequitia depravatur Itaque piguit perdiscere quo inhoneste uti nollem honeste vix possem etsi vellem Petrarch i◠vita sua briefly so far to Direct you § 1. Direct 1. Take the whole frame of Polity together and study each part in its proper place and Direct 1. know it in its due relation to the rest that is Understand first the Doctrine of Polity and Laws in genere and next the Universal Polity and Laws of God in specie and then study Humane Polity and Laws as they stand in their due subordination to the Polity and Laws of God as the by-Laws of Corporations do to the General Laws of the Land § 2. He that understandeth not what Polity and Law is in genere is unlike to understand what Divine or Humane Polity or Law is in specie He that knoweth not what Government is and what a community and what a politick society is will hardly know what a Common-wealth or Church is And he that knoweth not what a Common-wealth is in genere what is its End and what its constitutive parts and what the efficient causes and what a Law and Judgement and Execution is will study but unhappily the Constitution or Laws of the Kingdom which he liveth in § 3. 2. And he that understandeth not the Divine Dominium Imperium as founded in Creation and refounded in Redemption and mans subjection to his Absolute Lord and the Universal Laws which he hath given in Nature and Scripture to the world can never have any true understanding of the Polity or Laws of any Kingdom in particular No more than he can well understand the true state of a Corporation or the power of a Mayor or Justice or Constable who knoweth nothing of the state of the Kingdom or of the King or of his Laws What ridiculous discourses would such a man make of his Local Polity or Laws He knoweth nothing worth the knowing who knoweth not that all Kings and States have no power but what is derived from God and subservient to him and are all his Officers much more below him than their Justices and Officers are to them and that their Laws are of no force against the Laws of God whether of Natural or Supernatural Revelation And therefore it is most easie to see that he that will be a good Lawyer must first be a Divine And that the Atheists that deride or slight Divinity do but play the fools in all their independent broken studies A man may be a good Divine that is no Lawyer but he can be no good Lawyer that understandeth not Theology Therefore let the Government and Laws of God have the first and chiefest place in your studies and in all your observation and regard 1. Because it is the Ground of Humane Government and the Fountain of mans Power and Laws 2. Because the Divine Polity is also the End of Humane Policy Mans Laws being ultimately to promote our Obedience to the Laws of God and the honour of his Government 3. Because Gods Laws are the measure and bounds of Humane Laws against which no man can have power Male se rectum putat qui regulam summae rectitudinis ignorat Ambros. de Offic. 4. Because Gods Rewards and Punishments are incomparably more regardable than mans Eternal joy or misery being so much more considerable than temporal peace or suffering Therefore though it be a dishonour to Lawyers to be ignorant of Languages History and other needful parts of Learning yet it is much more their dishonour to be ignorant of the Universal Government and Laws of God § 4. Direct 2. Be sure that you make not the getting of money to be your principal end in the
any such necessary p. 916 Q. 173. What particular Directions for Order of Studies and Books should be observed by young Students who intend the Sacred Ministry p. 917 Q. 174. What Books should a poor man choose that for want of money or Time can have or read but few There are three Catalogues set down but somewhat disorderly as they came into my memory 1. The smallest or Poorest Library 2. A poor Library that hath considerable Additions to the former 3. Some more Additions to them for them that can go higher With some additional Notes p. 921 TOME IV. Christian Politicks CHAP. I. GEneral Directions for an Upright Life p. 1 The most passed by on necessary reasons CHAP. II. A few brief Memoranda to Rulers for the interest of Christ the Church and mens salvation p. 5 CHAP. III. Directions to Subjects concerning their duty to Rulers p. 9. Of the Nature and Causes of Government Mr. Richard Hookers Ecclesiastical Policy as it is for Popularity examined and confuted Directions for obedience Duty to Rulers Q. Is the Magistrate Iudge in Controversies of faith or worship p. 20. Q. 2. May the Oath of Supremacy be lawfully taken in which the King is pronounced Supream Governour in all Causes as well Ecclesiastical as Civil p. 20. Q. 3. Doth not this give the Pastors power to the Magistrate Q. 4. Hath the King power of Church Discipline and Excommunication Q. 5. If Kings and Bishops differ which must be obeyed Q. Is he obliged to suffer who is not obliged to obey p. 25. Of admonition of Rulers Q. 1. Whether the sound Authors of Politicks be against Monarchy Q. 2. Whether Civilians be against it Q. 3. Are Historians against it Greek Roman or Christian Q. 4. Whether Athens Rome Aristotle Philosophers Academies be against it Q. 5. Are Divines and Church discipline against it Q. 6. Is Scripture and Christianity against it Objections answered Q. Are Papists Prelatists and Puritans against it Bilson and Andrews Vindication of the Puritans Christianity is the greatest help to Government Further Directions Tit. 2. Q. Whether mans Laws bind the Conscience Q. Is it a sin to break every Law of man More fully answered p. 36 37 CHAP. IV. Directions to Lawyers about their Duty to God p. 39 CHAP. V. The Duty of Physicions p. 43 CHAP. VI. Directions to Schâ—olmasters about their duties for Childrens souls p. 44 CHAP. VII Directions for Souldiers about their duty in point of Conscience Princes Nobles Iudges and Iustices are past by lest they take Counsel for injury p. 46 CHAP. VIII Advice against Murder p. 50. The Causes of it Wars Tyranny malignant persecuting fury Unrighteous judgement oppression and uncharitableness Robbery Wrath Guilt and Shame Malice and Revenge wicked Impatience Covetousness Ambition c. The Greatness of the sin The Consequents Tit. 2. Advice against Self-murder The Causes to be avoided Melancholy worldly trouble discontent passion c. p. 54. Besides Gluttony Tipling and Idleness the great Murderers CHHP. IX Directions for the forgiving of injuries and enemies Against wrath malice revenge and persecution Practical Directions Curing Considerations Twenty p. 56 CHAP. X. Cases resolved about forgiving wrongs and debts and about self defence and seeking â—ur Right by Law or otherwise p. 61 Q. What injuries are we bound to forgive Neg. and Affir resolved Q. 2. What is the meaning of Matth. 5. 38 c. Resist not evil but whosoever shall smite thee c. p. 63 Q. 3. Am I bound to forgive another if he ask me not forgiveness Luke 17. 3 c. p. 64 Q. 4. Is it lawful to sue another at Law 1 Cor. 6. 7. Q. 5. Is it lawful to defend our lives or estates against a Robber Murderer or unjust Invader by force of Arms Q. 6. Is it lawful to take away anothers life in defending my purse or estate only p. 65 Q. 7. May we kill or wound another in defence or vindication of our honour or good name p. 66 CHAP. XI Special Directions to escape the guilt of persecution Determining much of the Case about Liberty in matters of Religion p 67. What is persecution The several kinds of it The greatness of the sin Understand the Case of Christs interest in the world Q. Whether particular Churches should require more of their members as Conditions of Communion than the Catholick Church and What Penalties to be chosen that hinder the Gospel least More Directions to the number of forty one CHAP. XII Directions against Scandal as Given p. 80. What Scandal is and what not The sorts of scandalizing The Scripture sense of it Twenty Directions CHAP. XIII Directions against Scandal taken or an aptness to receive hurt by the words or deeds of others Especially quarrelling with Godliness p. 88. or taking encouragement to sin Practical Directions against taking hurt by others p. 90. CHAP. XIV Directions against soul-murder and partaking of other mens sins p. 92 The several wayes of destroying souls How we are not guilty of other mens sin and ruine CHAP. XV. General Directions for furthering the salvation of others p. 95 CHAP. XVI Special Directions for holy Conference Exhortation and Reproof Tit. 1. Motives to holy Conference and Exhortation p 97 Tit. 2. Directions to Christian edifying discourse p. 100 Tit. 3. Special Directions for Exhortations and Reproofs p. 101 CHAP. XVII Directions for keeping Peace with all men How the Proud do hinder Peace Many more Causes and Cures opened p. 103 CHAP. XVIII Directions against all Theft fraud or injurious getting keeping or desiring that which is anothers p. 107 Tit. 2. Cases of Conscience about Theft and such injuries Q. 1. Is it sin to steal to save ones life Q. 2. May I take that which another is bound to give me and will not Q. 3. May I take my own from an unjust borrower or possessor if I cannot otherwise get it Q. 4. May I recover my own by force from him that taketh it by force from me Q. 5. May we take from the Rich to relieve the poor Q. 6. If he have so much as that he will not miss it may I take some Q. 7. May not one pluck ears of Corn or an Apple from a Tree c. Q. 8. May a Wife Child or Servant take more than a Cruel Husband Parent or Master doth allâ—w May Children forsake their Parents for such Cruelty Q. 9. May I take what a man forfeiteth penally Q. 10. What if I resolve when I take a thing in necessity to make satisfaction if ever I be able Q. 11. What if I know not whether the Owner would consent Q. 12. May I take in jeast from a friend with a purpose to restore it Q 13. May I not take from another to prevent his hurting himself Q. 14. May I take away Cards Dice Play-books Papist-books by which he would hurt his soul. Q 15. May not a Magistrate take the Subjects goods when it is necessary to their own preservation Q 16. May I take from
God and from a holy life when you run but into sin and Hell § 60. Tempt 30. Another great Temptation is in making them believe that their sins are but such Tempt 30. common infirmities as the best have They cannot deny but they have their faults but are not all men sinners They hope that they are not reigning unpardoned sins § 61. Direct 30. But O how great a difference is between a converted and an unconverted sinner Direct 30. between the failings of a Child and the contempt of a Rebel between a sinner that hath no gross or mortal sin and hateth bewaileth and striveth against his infirmities and a sinner that loveth his sin and is loth to leave it and maketh light of it and loveth not a holy life God will one day shew you a difference between these two when you see that there are siners that are justified and saved and sinners that are condemned § 62. BUt here are many subordinate Temptations by which Satan perswades them that their sins Tempt Temp. 1. are but infirmities One is because their sin is but in the heart and appeareth not in outward deeds And they take restraint for sanctification § 63. Direct 1. Alas man the Life and Reign of sin is in the Heart That is it's Garrison and Direct 1. Throne The life of sin lyeth in the prevalence of your lusts within against the Power of Reason and Will All outward sins are but acts of obedience to the reigning sin within and a gathering Tribute for this which is the King For this it is that they make provision Rom. 13. 14. On this all is consumed Iames 4. 3. Original sin may be reigning sin as a King may be born a King Sin certainly reigneth till the soul be converted and born again § 64. Tempt 2. The Devil tells them it is but an infirmity because it is no open gross disgraceful Tempt 2. sin It 's hard to believe that they are in danger of Hell for sins which are accounted small § 65. Direct 2. But do you think it is no mortal heinous sin to be void of the Love of God and Direct 2. holiness to Love the flesh and the world above him to set more by Earth than Heaven and do more for it However they shew themselves these are the great and mortal sins Sin is not less dangerous for lying secret in the heart The root and heart are usually unseen Some Kings as in China Persia c. keep out of sight for the honour of their Majesty Kings are the spring of Government but actions of State are executed by Officers When you see a man go or work you know that it is something within which is the Cause of all If sin appeared without as it is within it would lose much of its Power and Majesty Then Ministers and friends and every good man would cast a stone at it but its secresie is its peace The Devil himself prevaileth by keeping out of sight If he were seen he would be less obeyed So is it with the Reigning sins of the heart Pride and Covetousness may be Reigning sins though they appear not in any notorious disgraceful course of life David's hiding his sin or Rachel her Idol made them not the better It is a mercy to some men See Jer. 4. 14. Hos. 7. 6 7. that God permitteth them to fall into some open scandalous sin which may tend to humble them who would not have been humbled nor convinced by heart-sins alone An Oven is hottest when it is stopped § 66. Tempt 3. Satan tells them they are not unpardoned reigning sins because they are common Tempt 3. in the world If all that are as bad as I must be condemned say they God help a great number § 67. Direct 3. But know you not that Reigning sin is much more common than saving holiness Direct 3. and that the gate is wide and the way is broad that leadeth to destruction and many go in at it Salvation is as rare as holiness and damnation as common as Reigning sin where it is not cured This sign therefore makes against you § 69. Tempt 4. But saith the Tempter they are such sins as you see good men commit You play Tempt 4. at the same games as they you do but what you see them do and they are pardoned § 68. Direct 4. You must judge the man by his works and not the works by the man And there Direct 4. is more to be lookt at than the bare matter of an act A good man and a bad may play at the same game but not with the same end nor with the same love to sport nor so frequently and long to the loss of time Many drops may wear a stone Many stripes with small twigs may draw blood Many mean men in a Senate have been as great Kings You may have many of these little sins set all together which plainly make up a carnal life The power of a sin is more considerable than the outward shew A poor man if he be in the place of a Magistrate may be a Ruler And a sin materially small and such as better men commit may be a sin in Power and Rule with you and concur with others which are greater § 70. Tempt 5. But saith the Tempter they are but sins of Omission and such are not reigning Tempt 5. sins § 71. Direct 5. Sins of Omission are alwayes accompanied with some positive sensual affection Direct 5. to the creature which diverteth the soul and causeth the omission And so Omission is no small part of the Reigning sin The not using of Reason and the Will for God and for the mastering of sensuality is much of the state of ungodliness in man Denying God the heart and life is no small sin God made you to do good and not only to do no harm Else a Stone or Corpse were as good a Christian as you for they do less harm than you If sin have a Negative Voice in your Religion whether God shall be worshipped and obeyed or not it is your King It may shew its power as well by commanding you not to pray and not to consider and not to read as in commanding you to be drunk or swear The wicked are described by omissions such as will not seek after God God is not in all his thoughts Psal. 10. 4. Such as know not God and call not on his name Jer. 10. 25. That have no truth or mercy or knowledge of God Hos. 4. 1. That feed not cloath not visit not Christ in his members Matth. 25. that hide their Talents Matth. 25. Indeed if God have not your hearts the creature hath it and so it is omission and commission that go together in your reigning sin § 72. Tempt 6. But saith the Tempter they are but sins of ignorance and therefore they are not reigning Tempt 6. sins At least you are not certain that
that is bestowed in sin upon Gods enemies is used against him and noâ— as his Own 6. And that he that hideth his Talent or useth it not at all cannot be said to Use it for God Both idleness and alienating the gifts of God are a robbing him of his own § 9. III. To help you in this work of self-resignation often consider 1. That if you were your Own you were most miserable You could not support preserve or provide for your selves who should save you in the hour of temptation or distress Alas if you are humbled Christians you know so much of your Own insufficiency and feel your selves such a daily burden to your selves that you have sure enough of your selves ere now And beg of God above all your enemies to save you from your selves and of all judgements to save you from being forsaken of God and given up to your selves 2. Remember that none in the world hath sufficient Power Wisdom and Goodness to take the full care and charge of you but God None else can save you or sanctifie you or keep you alive one hour And therefore it is your happiness and honour that you are His. 3. His Right is absolute and none hath Right to you but he None else did Create you Redeem you or Regenerate you 4. He will Use you only in safe and honourable services and to no worse an end than your endless happiness 5. What you deny him or steal from him you give to the Devil the World and the flesh And do they better deserve it 6. You are his own in Tiâ—le whether you will or not and he will fulfil his will upon you Your Consent and Resignation is necessary to your good to â—ase you of your cares and secure you from present and eternal misery DIRECT VI. Gr. Dir. 6. Remember that God is your Soveraign King to Rule and Iudge you And that it is your Rectitude and happiness to obey and please him Labour therefore to bring Of subjection to God as our Supream Governour your souls and bodies into the most absolute subjection to him and to make it your Delight and business sincerely and exactly to obey his Will § 1. HAving Resigned your selves absolutely to God as your Owner you are next to subject your selves absolutely to God as your Governour or King How much of our Religion consisteth in this you may see in the nature of the thing in the design of the Law and Word of God in the doctrine and example of Jesus Christ in the description of the last judgement and in the common consent of all the world Though Love is the highest work of man yet is it so far from discharging Aristipâ—us rogatus aliquando quiâ— haberent ex mâ—um Philosophi Si omnes inquit leges interâ—ant aequabiliter vivemus Laâ—tius us from our subjection and obedience that it constraineth us to it most powerfully and most sweetly and must it self be judged of by these effects John 14. 15. If ye love me keep my Commandments 21. He that hath my Commandments and keepeth them he it is that loveth me 23. If any man love me he will keep my words and my Father will Love him and we will come unto him and make our abode with him 24. He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings John 15. 10. If ye keep my Commandments ye shall abide in my Love even as I have kept my Fathers Commandments and abide in his Love 14. Ye are my friends if ye do whatsoever I command you John 13. 17. If ye know these things happy are ye if ye do them 1 John 5. 3. For this is the Love of God that ye keep his Commandments and his Commandments are not grievous 1 John 2. 4. He that saith I know him and keepeth not his Commandments is a lyar and the truth is not in him 5. But who so keepeth his word in him verily is the Love of God perfected hereby know we that we are in him 6. He that saith he is in him ought himself also to walk even as he walked 29. If ye know that he is Righteous you know that every one that doth Righteousness is born of him 1 John 3. 6. Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not whosoever sinneth hath not seen him neither known him 7. Little children let no man deceive you he that doth righteousness is righteous even as he is righeeous 8. He that committeth sin is of the Devil for the Devil sinneth from the beginning for this purpose the Son of God was manifested that he might destroy the works of the Devil 9. Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin for his seed remaineth in him and he cannot sin because he is born of God 10. In this the children of God are manifest and the children of the Devil whosoever doth not righteousness is not of God 22. And whatsoever we ask we receive of him because we keep his Commandments and do those things that are pleasing in his sight Rev. 22. 14. Blessed are they that do his Commandments that they may have right to the Tree of Life and may enter in by the gates into the City I set together these testimonies of the Scripture that the stream of Divine authority may carry you to a lively sense of the necessity of Obedience § 2. I shall here first tell you what this full subjection is and then I shall Direct you how to attain it I. As in God there is first his Relation of our King and then his actual Government of us by his Laws and Iudgement so in us there is first our Relation of Subjects to God and then our actual obedience Subjection what We are Subjects by Divine obligation before we consent as Rebels are but our Consent or self-obligation is necessary to our Voluntary obedience and acceptation with God Subjection is our stated obligation to Obedience This subjection and habit of Obedience is then right and full 1. When the sense of Gods authority over us is Practical and not notional only 2. And when it is deep-rooted and fixed and become as a Nature to us As a mans intention of his End is that hath a long journey to go which carryeth him on to the last step or as a Childs subjection to his Parents or a Servant to his Master which is the Habit or principle of his daily course of life 3. When it is Lively and ready to put the soul upon obedience 4. When it is constant keeping the soul in a continual attendance upon the Will of God 5. When it hath universal respect to all his Commandments 6. When it is resolute powerful and victorious against temptations to disobedience 7. When it is superlative respecting God as our supream King and owning no authority against him nor any but what is subordinate to him 8. When it is Voluntary Pleasant Chearful and delectable to us to Obey him to the utmost of our Power § 3. II. To bring
in case they were all sinful but yet I am most strongly suspicious of sinfulness in the subscription and less suspicious of sinfullness in my forbearing in such a case to preach and least of all suspicious of sinfullness in my preaching though prohibited In this case to subscribe sinfully is the greatest sin and to forbear sinfully to exercise my office is the next and to preach unwarrantably is the least § 52. Rule 8. If I could perceive no difference in the degrees of evil in the Omission and the Rule Commission nor yet in the degrees of my suspicion or doubting then that is the greater sin which I had greater helps and evidence to have known and did not § 53. Rule 9. If both greater material evil be on one side than on the other and greater suspicion Rule or evidence of the sinfullness also then that must needs be the greater sin § 54. Rule 10. If the Greatness of the Material Evil be on one side and the greatness of the Rule suspicion and evidence be on the other then the former if sin will be materially and in it self considered the worst but the later will be formally the greater disobedience to God But the comparison will be very difficult As suppose that I swear to God that I will cast away a shilling or that I will forbear to pray for a week together Here I take perjury to be a greater sin than my casting away a shilling or forbearing to pray a week But when I question whether the Oath should be kept or not I have greater suspicion that it should not than that it should because no oath must be the bond of the least iniquity Here if the not keeping it prove a sin I shall do that which is the Greater sin in it self if I keep it not but I shall shew more disobedience in keeping it if it be not to be kept § 55. Rule 11. If it be a double sin that I suspect on one side and but a single one on the other Rule it maketh an inequality in the case As suppose that in my Fathers family there are Hereticks and Drunkards and I swear that in my place and calling I will endeavour to cast them out My Mother approveth my Vow My Father is against it and dischargeth me of it because I did it not by his advice On one side I doubt whether I am bound or may act against my Fathers will On the other side I as much doubt whether I am not perjured and disobedient to my Mother if I do it not and whether I disobey not God that made it my duty to endeavour the thing in my place and calling before I vowed it § 56. Rule 12. There is a great deal of difference between omitting the substance of a duty for Rule â—ver and the delaying it or altering the time and â—place and manner For instance that which will justifie or excuse me for shortning my prayer or for praying but once a day or at noon rather than in the morning or for defect in method or fervency or Expressions may not justifie or excuse me for denying renouncing or long forbearing prayer And that which may excuse an Apostle for not preaching in the Temple or Synagogues or not having the Emperors or the High-Priests allowance or consent or for not continuing in one City or Country would not excuse them if they had renounced their callings or totally as to all times and places and manner of performance have ceased their work for fear of men § 57. Rule 13. If the duty to be omitted and the sin to be committed seem equal in greatness and Rule our doubt be equal as to both it is commonly held safer to avoid the Commission more studiously than the â—mission For which there are many reasons given § 58. Rule 14. There is usually much more matter for fear and suspicion caeteris paribus of sins Rule to be committed than of Duties to be omitted when the Commission is made necessary to the doing of the duty Both because it is there that the fear beginneth For I am certain that the Good work is no Duty to me if the act be a sin which is its necessary Condition Therefore so far as I suspect the act to be sinful I must needs suspect the duty to be no duty to me at that time It is not possible I should be rationally more perswaded that the Duty is my duty than that the Condition is no sin If it were the saving of the lives of all the men in the Country I could no further take it to be my duty than I take that to be no sin by which it must be done it being a thing past controversie that we must not sin for the accomplishment of any good whatsoever And also because the sin is supposed to be allwaies sin but few duties are at all timeâ— duties And the sin is a sin to every man but the duty may be another mans duty and not mine For instance Charles the fifth imposeth the Interim upon Germany Some Paâ—â—â—â—rs yielded to it Others refused it and were cast out Those that yielded pleaded the Good of the Churches and the prevention of their utter desolation but yet confessed that if the thing imposed were sinful it was not their duty to do it for any Good whatsoever but to seek the Good of the Church as well as they could without it The other that were cast out argued that so far as they were confident the Interim was sinful they must be confident that nothing was their duty that could not be done without it and that God knew best what is Good for his Church and there is no accomplishing its good by sin and Gods displeasure and that they did not therefore forsake their Ministry but only lose the Rulers License for they resolved to preach in one place or other till they were imprisoned and God can serve himself by their imprisonment or death as well as by their preaching And while others took their places that thought the Interim lawful the Churches were not wholy destitute and if God saw it meet he could restore their fuller liberties again In the mean time to serve him as all Pastors did for three hundred years after Christ without the License of the Civil Magistrate was not to cast away their office Another instance The zealous Papists in the Reign of Hen. 3. in France thought that there was a Necessity of entring the League and warring against the King because Religion was in danger the preservation whereof is an unquestionable duty The Learned and moderate Lawyers that were against them said that there being no question but the King had the total soveraingty over them they were sure it was a sin to resist the Higher powers and therefore no preservation of Religion could be a duty or lawful to them which must be done by such a certain sin Sin is not the means to save
campos ecclesiâ— decurrebat ipso metu siccatum est â—lumen When Gâ—â—sericus besieged Hippo. of his 〈…〉 ill His breath is in his Nostrils he is hasting to his dust and in that day his worldly hop 〈…〉 ghts do perish with him He is a worm that God can in one moment tread into the E 〈…〉 He is a dream a shadow a dry leaf or a little chaff that 's blown awhile about the W 〈…〉 He is just ready in the height of his pride and fury to drop into the grave and that same â—â—n or all those men whom now thou fearest shall one of these days most certainly lye rotting in the dust and be hid in darkness lâ—st their ugly sight and stink be an annoyance to the living Where now are all the proud ones that made such a bussle in the world but awhile agoe In one age they look big and boast of their power and rebel and usurp authority and are mad to be Great and Rulers in the World or persecute the Ministers and people of the Lord and in the next or in the same they are viler thâ—n the dirt their carkasses are buried or their bones scattered abroad and made the horrour and wonder of beholders And is this a creature to be feared above God or against God see Isa. 51. 7. Hearken to me ye that know righteousness the people in whose heart is my Law Fear ye not the reproach of men neither be afraid of their revilings For the moth shall eat them up like a garment and the worm shall cat them like wool but my righteousness shall be fâ—r ever and my salvation from generation to generation Isa. 2. 22. cease ye from man whose breath is in his nostrils for wherein is he to be accounted of Psal. 146. 3 4. Put not your trust in Princes nor in the son of man in whom there is no help his breath goeth forth he returneth to his earth in that very day all his thoughts perish When Herod was magnified as a God he could not save himself from being devoured alive by worms When Pharaoh was in his pride and glory he could not save his people from Frogs and Flies and Lice Saith God to Sennacharib The Virgin the Daughter of Zion hath despised thee and laughed thee to scorn and hath shaken her head at thee whom hast thou reproached and blaspheamed and against whom hast thou exalted thy voice and lifted thine eyes on high O what a worm is man that you are so afraid of § 4. Direct 4. Remember that men as well as Devils are chained and dependant upon God and have Direct 4. no power but what he giveth them and can do nothing but by his permission And if God will have it done thou hast his promise that it shall work unto thy good Rom. 8. 28. And are you afraid leâ—t God should do you good by them If you see the knife or lancet in an enemies hand only you might fear it but if you see it in the Surgeons or in a fathers hand though nature will a little Valentinianus jussus ab Imperatore Juliano immolare idolis aut militia excedere sponâ—e discessit nec mora qui pro nomine Christi am serat tribunatum in locum persecutoris sui accepit imperium Paull Diaconus l. 1. p. 1. shrink yet Reason will forbid you to make any great matter of it or inordinately to fear What if God will permit Iosephs brethren to bind him and sell him to the Amalekites and his masters Wife to cause him to be imprisoned Is he not to be trusted in all this that he will turn it to his good what if he will permit Shimei to curse David or the King to cast Daniel into the Lyons Den or the three Confessors into the Furnace of Fire Do you believe that your Fathers will is the disposer of all and yet are you afraid of man Our Lord told Pilate when he boasted of his power to take away his life or save it Thou couldst have no power at all against me except it were given thee from above Joh. 19. 11. I know you will say that it is only as Gods instruments that you fear them and that if you were certain Obj. We fear them only as Gods instruments Answered of his favour and were not first afraid of his wrath you should not fear the wrath of men Answ. By this you may see then what it is to be disobedient and to cherish your fears of Gods displeasure and to hinder your own assurance of his love when this must be the cause of or the pretense for so many other sins But if really you fear them but as the instruments of Gods displeasure 1. Why then did you no more fear his displeasure before when the danger from men did not appear you know God never wanteth instruments to execute his wrath or will 2. And why fear you not the sin which doth displease him more than the instruments when they could do you no hurt were it not for sin 3. And why do you not more fear them as tempters than as afflictâ—rs and consequently why fear you not their flatteries and enticements and preferments and your prosperity more than adversity when prosperity more draweth you away to sin 4. And why fear you not Hell more than any thing that man can do against you when God threatneth Hell more than humane penalties 5. And why do you not apply your selves to God chiefly for deliverance but study how to pacifie man why do you with more fear and care and diligence and complyance apply your selves to those that you are afraid of if you fear God more than them Repent and make your peace with God through Christ and then be quiet if it be God that you are afraid of Your business then is not first with the Creature but with God 6. And if you fear them only as Gods instruments why doth not your fear make you the more cautelously to fly from further guilt but rather make you to think of stretching your consciences as far as ever you dare and venturing as far as you dare upon Gods displeasure to escape mans Are these signes that you fear them only as the Instruments of Gods displeasure or do you see how deceitful a thing your heart is Indeed man is to be feared in a full subordination to God 1. As his officers commanding us to obey him 2. As his executioners punishing us for disobeying him 3 But not as Satans instruments by Gods permission afflicting us for obeying him or without desert Rom. 13. 3 4. For Rulers are not a terrour to good works but to the evil wilt thou then not be afraid of the power Do that which is good and thou shalt have praise of the same For he is the minister of God to thee for good But if thou do that which is evil be afraid for he beareth not the sword in vain for he is the minister of God a
covering him § 4. 3. And that God hath not put this Law into mans nature without very great cause albeit the Implicite belief and submission due to him should satisfie us though we knew not the causes particularly yet much of them is notorious to common observation As that if God had not restrained lust by Laws it would have made the female sex most contemptible and miserable and used worse by men than dogs are For first rapes and violence would deflowre them because they are too weak to make resistance And if that had been restrained yet the lust of men would have been unsatisfied and most would have grown weary of the same woman whom they had abused and taken another at least when she grew old they would choose a younger and so the aged women would be the most calamitous creatures upon earth Besides that lust is addicted to variety and groweth weary of the same the fallings out between men and women and the sicknesses that make their persons less pleasing and age and other accidents would expose them almost all to utter misery And men would be Law-makers and therefore would make no Laws for their relief but what consisted with their lusts and ends So that half the world would have been ruined had it not been for the Laws of matrimony and such other as restrain the lusts of men § 5. 4. Also there would be a confused mixture in procreation and no men would well know what children are their own which is worse than not to know their Lands or Houses § 6. 5. Hereby all natural affection would be diminished or extinguished As the love of Husband and Wife so the Love between Fathers and Children would be diminished § 7. 6. And consequently the due education of children would be hindered or utterly overthrown The mothers that should first take care of them would be disabled and turned away that fresh harlots might be received who would hate the offspring of the former So that by this means the world and all societies and civility would be ruined and men would be made worse than bruits whom nature hath either better taught or else made for them some other supply Learning Religion and civility would be all in a manner extinct as we see they are among those few savage Cannibals that are under no restraint For how much all these depend upon education experience telleth us In a word this confusion in procreation would introduce such confusion in mens hearts and families and all societies by corrupting and destroying necessary affection and education that it would be the greatest plague imaginable to mankind and make the world so base and beastly that to destroy mankind from off the earth would seem much more desirable Judge then whether God should have left mens Lusts unrestrained § 8. Object But you 'll say there might have been some moderate restraint to a certain number as Object it is with the Mahometans without so much strictness as Christ doth use Answ. That this strictness is necessary and is an excellency in Gods law appeareth thus 1. By Answ. the greatness of the mischief which else would follow To be remiss in preventing such a confusion in the world would be an enmity to the world 2. In that mans nature is so violently inclined to break over that if the hedge were not close there were no sufficient restraining them they would quickly run out at a little gap 3. The wiser and the better any nation or persons are even among the Heathens the more fully do they consent to the strictness of Gods Laws 4. The cleanest sort of bruits themselves are taught by nature to be as strict in their copulations Though it be otherwise with the meer terrestrial beasts and birds yet the aërial go by couples Those that are called the fowles of the Heavens that fly in the air are commonly taught this chastity by nature as if God would not have lust come near to Heaven 5. The families of the Mahometans that have more wives than one do shew the mischief of it in the effects in the hatred and disagreement of their wives and the great slavery that women are kept in making them like slaves that they may keep them quiet And when women are thus enslaved who have so great a part in the education of children by which all virtue and civility are maintained in the world it must needs tend to the debasing and brutifying of mankind § 9. 7. Children being the pretiousest of all our treasure it is necessary that the strictest Laws be made for the securing of their good education and their welfare If it shall be treason to debase or counterfeit the Kings coyn and if men must be hanged for robbing you of your goods or money and the Laws are not thought too strict that are made to secure your estates how much more is it necessary that the Laws be strict against the vitiating of mankind and against the debasement of your image on your children and against that which tendeth to the extirpation of all virtue and the ruine of all societies and souls § 10. 8. God will have a holy seed in the world that shall bear his image of holiness and therefore he will have all means fitted thereunto Bruitish promiscuous generation tendeth to the production of a bruitish seed And though the word preached is the means of sanctifying those that remain unsanctified from their youth yet a holy marriage and holy dedication of children to God and holy education of them are the former means which God would not have neglected or corrupted and to which he promiseth his blessing As you may see 1 Cor. 7. 14. Mal. 2. 15. Did not he make one Yet had he the residue of the spirit And wherefore one That he might seek a godly seed Therefore take heed to your spirit and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth For the Lord bateth putting away § 11. 9. Yea lust corrupteth the mind of the person himself if it be not very much restrained and moderated It turneth it from the only excellent pleasure by the force of that bruitish kind of pleasure It carrieth away the thoughts and distempereth the passions and corrupteth the phantasie and Solomons wives turned away his heart aâ—ter other Gods 1 Kings 11. 4. The wisdom of Solomon preserved him not from the power of lust and the deceit of women 1 Pet. 2. 10. Fleshly â—â—â—â—ts that fight against the â—oâ—l thereby doth easily corrupt the intellect and heart Pleasure is so much of the End of man which his Nature leadeth him to desire that the chief thing in the world to make a man Good and Happy is to engage his heart to those Pleasures which are Good and make men Happy And the chief thing to make him Bad and Miserable is to engage him in the pleasures which make men Bad and end in Misery And the principal thing by which you may know
Laert. in Aristip. a man is such are his speeches such his works and such his life Therefore by vain or sinful words you tell men the vanity and corruption of your minds § 4. 3. Mens works have a great dependance on their words Therefore if their deeds be regardable their words are regardable Deeds are stirred up or caused by words Daily experience telleth us the power of speech A speech hath saved a Kingdom and a speech hath lost a Kingdom Great actions depend on them and greater consequents § 5. 4. If the men that we speak to be regardable words are regardable For words are powerful instruments of their good or hurt God useth them by his Ministers for mens conversion and salvation And Satan useth them by his Ministers for mens subversion and damnation How many thousand souls are hurt every day by the words of others Some deceived some puffed up some hardned and some provoked to sinful passions And how many thousand are every day edified by words either instructed admonished quickned or comforted Paul saith The weapons of our warfare are 2 Cor. 10. 4. mighty through God And Pythagoras could say that Tongues cut deeper than swords because they reach even to the soul Tongue sins and duties therefore must needs be great § 6. 5. Our Tongues are the Instruments of our Creators praise purposely given us to speak good of Psal. 66. 2. â—â— 2 135. 3. 148. 13. â—9 2. 100. his Name and to declare his works with rejoycing It is no small part of that service which God expects from man which is performed by the Tongue nor a small part of the end of our Creation The use of all our highest faculties parts and graces are expressively by the Tongue Our Wisdom and Knowledge our Love and Holiness are much lost as to the Honour of God and the good of others if not expressed The tongue is the Lanthorn or Casement of the soul by which it looketh out and shineth unto others Therefore the sin or duty of so noble an instrument are not to be made light of by any that regard the honour of our Maker § 7. 6. Our words have a great reflection and operation upon our own hearts As they come from them so they recoil to them as in prayer and conference we daily observe Therefore for our own good or hurt our words are not to be made light of § 8. 7. Gods Law and Iudgement will best teach you what regard you should have to words Christ telleth you that by your words you shall be justified and by your words you shall be condemned Matth. Matth. 12. 32. They who use but few words need not many Laws said Charyllus when he was asked why â—yâ—â—â—â—gus made so few Laws Pâ—â—t Apophâ—hâ—g p. 423. 12. 37. And it is words of Blasphemy against the Holy Ghost which are the unpardonable sin Jam. 3. 2. If any man offend not in word the same is a perfect man and able to bridle the whole body v. 6. The tongue is a fire a world of iniquity so is the tongue amongst our members that it defileth the whole body and setteth on fire the course of nature and it is set on fire of Hell Jam. 1. 26. If any man among you seem to be Religious and bridleth not his tongue but deceiveth his own heart this mans Religion is vain 1 Pet. 3. 10. For he that will love life and see good dayes let him refrain his tongue from evil and his lips that they speak no guile Matth. 12. 36. But I say unto you that every idle word that men shall speak they shall give account thereof in the day of judgement The third Commandment telleth us that God will not hold him guiltless that taketh his Name in vain And Psal. 15. 1 2 3. Speaking the truth in his heart and not backbiting with the tongue is the mark of him that shall abide in Gods Tabernacle and dwell in his holy Hill And the very work of Heaven is said to be the perpetual praising of God Rev. 14. 11. Judge now how God judgeth of your words § 9. 8. And some conjecture may be made by the judgement of all the world Do you not care your selves what men speak of you and to you Do you not care what language your children or servants or neighbours give you Are not words against the King treasonable and capital as well as deeds The wheel of affairs or course of nature is set on fire by words Jam. 3. 6. I may conclude then with Prov. 18. 21. Death and life are in the power of the tongue and Prov. 21. 23. Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from trouble § 10. Direct 2. Understand well and remember the particular duties of the Tongue For the meer Direct 2. restraint of it from evil is not enough And they are these 1. To glorifie God by the magnifying of The Duties of the Tongue his Name To speak of the praises of his Attributes and Works 2. To sing Psalms of Praise to him and delight our souls in the sweet commemoration of his excellencies 3. To give him thanks for the mercies already received and declare to others what he hath done for our souls and bodies for Plato Rectâ— diceâ—e in quatuor scindit 1. Quid dicere oportet 2. Quam multa dicere 3. Ad quos 4. Quando sit dicendum Ea oportet dicere quae sint utilia dicenti auditori Nec nimis multa nec pauciora quam satis est Sâ—ad peccâ—ntes seniores dicendum sit verba illi aetati congrua loquamur sin vero ad juniores dicâ—ndum sit majore autoritate uâ—amur in dicendo Laâ—rt in Plat. his Church and for the world 4. To pray to him for what we want and for our brethren for the Church and for the conversion of his and our enemies 5. To appeal to him and swear by his Name when we are called to it lawfully 6. To make our necessary Covenants and Vows to him and to make open profession of our belief subjection and obedience to him before men 7. To preach his Word or declare it in discourse and to teach those that are committed to our care and edifie the ignorant and erroneous as we have opportunity 8. To defend the truth of God by conference or disputation and consute the false doctrine of deceivers 9. To exhort men to their particular duties and to reprove their particular sins and endeavour to do them good as we are able 10. To confess our own sins to God and man as we have occasion 11. To crave the advice and help of others for our souls and enquire after the will of God and the way to salvation 12. To praise that which is good in others and speak good of all men superiours equals and inferiors so far as there is just ground and cause 13. To bear witness to the truth when we are called
7. All sports are unlawful which take up any part of the Time which we should spend in greater works such are all those that are unseasonable as on the Lords-Day without necessity or when we should be at prayer or any other duty And all those that take up more time than the end of a recreation doth necessarily require which is too common § 12. Qual 8. 8. If a Recreation be Prophane as making sport of holy things it is a mocking of 2 King â—3 23. God and â— villany unbeseeming any of his creatures and laying them open to his heaviest vengeance The children that made sport with calling the Prophet Bald-head were slain by Bears § 13. Qual 9. 9. They are unlawful sports which are used to the wrong of others as Players that defame and reproach other men And Hunters and Hawkers that tread down poor mens corn and hedges § 14. Qual 10. 10. It is sinful to make sport of other mens sinning or to act it our selves so as to become partakers of it which is too common with Comoedians and other prophane wits § 15. Qual 11. 11. Unclean obscene recreations are unlawful When filthiness or wantonness is represented without a due expression of its odiousness or with obscene words or actions Eph. 5. 3. But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness let it not once be once named among you as becometh Saints neither filthiness nor foolish talking nor jeasting c. § 16. Qual 12. 12. Those sports are unlawful which occasion the multiplying of idle words about them and engage the Players in foolish needless unprofitable Preaching § 17. Qual 13. 13. And those sports are sinful which plainly tend to provoke our selves or others to sin As to lust to swearing and cursing and railing and fighting or the like § 18. Qual 14. 14. Those also are sinful which are the exercise of Covetousness to win other mens money of them Or that tend to stir up covetousness in those you play with § 19. Qual 15. 15. Cruel recreations also are unlawful As taking pleasure in the beholding of Dueliers Fighters or any that abuse each other or any other Creatures that needlesly torment each other § 20. Qual 16. 16. Too costly recreation also is unlawful when you are but Gods stewards and must be accountable to him for all you have it 's sinful to expend it needlesly on sports § 21. Qual 17. 17. Unnecessary recreations forbidden by our lawful Governours are unlawful If they were before lawful to thee yet now they are not because your King your Pastor your Parents your Masters have power to rule and restrain you in such things and you must obey them § 22. Qual 18. 18. Lastly if have the choice of divers recreations before you you must choose the fittest And if you choose one that is less fit and profitable when a fitter might be chosen it is your sin Though that which you choose were lawful if you had no other § 23. By all this it is easie to judge of our common Stage-Plays gaming Cards Dice and divers Qu. What to think of common Stage-plays Gaming Cards Dice c. other such kind of sports If they have but any one of these evil qualifications they are sinful And when are they used without very many of them 1. They are too commonly used by men that never intended to fit themselves for their work and duty by them Yea by men that live not at all to the Pleasing and Glorifying of God and know not what it is to be obediently addicted to his service Yea by men that live not in any constant honest labour but make a very trade of their recreations and use them as the chief business of the day § 24. 2. They are sports unfit for the ends of a lawful recreation as will easily appear to the impartial Hor. For it is either your Bodys or your Minds that need most the recreations Either you are sedentary persons or have a Calling of Bodily Labour If you are sedentary persons as Students Scribes and divers others then it is your Bodys that have most need of exercise and recreation and Labour is fitter for you than sport or at least a stirring labouring sport And in this case to sit at Cards or Dice or a Stage-Play is instead of exercising your bodies to increase the need of exercising them It stirreth not your parts it warmeth not your blood it helpeth not concoction attraction assimilation c. It doth you much more harm than good as to your very health But if you are hard Labourers and need Rest for your Bodys and recreation for your minds or are lame or sickly that you cannot use bodily exercise than surely a hundred profitable exercises are at hand which are more suitable to your case You have books of necessity to read as the word of God and books of profit to your souls and books that tend to increase your knowledge in common things as History Geography and all Arts and Sciences And should not these be any of them pleasanter than your Dice and Cards and Plays § 25. 3. At least it is plain that they are not the fittest recreations for any man that intends a lawful end If you are Students or idle Gentlemen is not walking or riding or shooting or some honest bodily labour rather that joyneth pleasure and profit together a fitter kind of exercise for you Or if you are Labouring persons and need only pleasure for your minds should you not take pleasure in God in Scripture in holy conference meditation or good books Or if indeed you need a relaxation from both these have you not profitable History or Geography to read Have you not Herbs and Flowers and Trees and Beasts and Birds and other Creatures to behold Have you not Fields or Gardens or Medows or Woods to walk into Have you not your near Relations to delight in your Wives or Children or Friends or Servants May you not talk with good and wise and chearful men about things that are both pleasing and edifying to you Hath God given you such a world of lawful pleasures and will none of them nor all of them serve your turns without unlawful ones Among the Ep. of Bonifac. Mog There is a Council held under Carloman King of France which saith in the Kings name Nec non illas Venationes sylvatiâ—as vagationes cum canibus omnibus servis Deâ— interdiximus Similiter ut accipitres falcones non habeant And sure these are better than Cards and Dice which yet some Priests now use too much or at least unfit ones which therefore are unlawful All these are undoubtedly lawful But Cards and Dice and Stage-Plays are at best very questionable Among wise and learned men and good men and no small number of these they are condemned as unlawful And should one that feareth God and loveth his salvation choose so doubtful a sport before such abundance of undoubtedly lawful ones
fuller Title than to make them of nothing and redeem them from a state far worse than nothing And after all this shall the very Parents of such children steal them from their absolute Lord and Father and fell them to slavery and torment § 3. Motive 3. Remember that in their Baptism you did dedicate them to God you entred them into Motive 3. a solemn Vow and Covenant to be wholly his and to live to him Therein they renounced the flesh the world and the Devil Therein you promised to bring them up vertuously to lead a godly and Christian life that they might obediently keep Gods holy Will and Commandments and walk in the same all the dayes of their lives And after all this will you break so solemn a promise and cause them to break such a Vow and Covenant by bringing them up in ignorance and ungodliness Did you understand and and consider what you then did How solemnly you your selves engaged them in a Vow to God to live a mortified and a holy life And will you so solemnly do that in an hour which all their life after with you you will endeavour to destroy § 4. Motive 4. Consider how great power the education of children hath upon all their following lives Motive 4. Except Nature and Grace there is nothing that usually doth prevail so much with them Indeed the obstinacy of Natural Vitiousness doth often frustrate a good education But if any means be like to do good it is this But ill education is more constantly successful to make them evil This cherisheth those seeds of wickedness which spring up when they come to age This maketh so many to be proud and idle and flesh pleasers and licentious and lustful and covetous and all that is naught And he hath a hard task that cometh after to root out these vices which an ungodly education hath so deeply radicated Ungodly Parents do serve the Devil so effectually in the first impressions on their childrens minds that it is more than Magistrates and Ministers and all reforming means can afterwards do to recover them from that sin to God Whereas if you would first engage their hearts to God by a religious education Piety would then have all those advantages that sin hath now Prov. 22. 6. Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it The language which you teach them to speak when they are children they will use all their life after if they live with those that use it And so the Opinions which they first receive and the customs which they are used to at first are very hardly changed afterward I doubt not to affirm that a godly Education is Gods first and ordinary appointed means for the begetting of actual faith and other graces in the children of believers Many may have seminal grace before but they cannot sooner have actual faith repentance love or any Grace than they have Reason it self in act and exercise And the Preaching of the Word by publick Ministers is not the first ordinary means of grace to any but those that were graceless till they come to hear such preaching that is to those on whom the first appointed means hath been neglected or proved in vain that is It is but the second means to do that which was not done by the first The proof is undenyable Because God appointeth Parents diligently to teach their children the Doctrine of his holy Word before they come to the publick Ministry Parents teaching is the first teaching And Parents teaching is for this end as well as publick teaching even to beget faith and love and holiness And God appointeth no means to be used by us on which we may not expect his blessing Therefore it is apparent that the ordinary appointed means for the first actual Grace is Parents godly instruction and education of their children And publick preaching is appointed for the Conversion of those only that have mist the blessing of the first appointed means Therefore if you deny your children religious education you deny them the first appointed means of their actual faith and sanctification and then the second cometh upon disadvantage § 5. Motive 5. Consider also how many and great are your advantages above all others for your childrens Motive 5. good As 1. Nothing doth take so much with any one as that which is known to come from Love The greater Love is discerned in your instruction the greater success may you expect Now your children are more confident of their Parents Love than of any others Whether Ministers and Strangers speak to them in Love they cannot tell But of their Parents Love they make no doubt 2. And their Love to you is as great a preparative to your success We all hearken to them that we dearly Love with greater attention and willingness than to others They Love not the Minister as they do their Parents 3. You have them in hand betime before they have received any false opinions or bad impressions before they have any sin but that which was born with them You are to make the first impressions upon them You have them while they are most teachable and flexible and tender and make least resistance against instruction They rise not up at first against your teaching with self-conceitedness and proud objections But when they come to the Minister they are as Paper that is written on or printed before unapt to receive another impression They have much to be untaught before they can be taught And come with proud and stiff resistance to strive against instruction rather than readily to receive it 4. Your children do wholly depend on you for their present maintenance and much for their future livelyhood and portions And therefore they know that it is their interest to obey and please you And as interest is the common byass of the world so is it with your children You may easilier rule them that have this handle to hold them by than any other can do that have not this advantage They know they serve you not for nought 5. Your authority over your children is most unquestionable They will dispute the authority of Ministers yea and of Magistrates and ask them who gave them the power to teach them and to command them But the Parents authority is beyond all dispute They will not call you Tyrants or Usurpers nor bid you prove the validity of your Ordination or the uninterruptedness of your succession Therefore Father and Mother as the first Natural Power are mentioned rather than Kings or Queens in the fifth Commandment 6. You have the power of the Rod to force them Prov. 22. 15. Foolishness it bound in the heart of a child but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him And your correction will be better understood to come from Love than that of the Magistrate or any other 7. You have best opportunity to know both the diseases
be desperate which is not Nor must we so easily deâ—ist with so near a relation as with a stranger or a neighbour But yet Christs indulgence of not exposing our selves to be torn by Dogs and his Word trodden in the dirt by Swine doth extend to relations as well as others But then you must observe that she that is justly discouraged from sharp reproofs may yet have hope that gentle and humble perswasions may succeed And she that is discouraged from open or frequent or plain reproofs may yet have hope that secret or more seldome or more distant and general admonitions may not be lost And she that is discouraged from one way of doing him good may yet have many other wayes as to set some Minister whom he reverenceth to speak to him to put some suitable Book into his hand c. And she that is discouraged at the present ought not totally to despair but may make some more attempts hereafter either in some sickness or time of mortality or danger or affliction or when possibly time and consideration may have better prepared him to hear And in the mean time she is to continue all Conjugal affection and duty and a convincing winning course of life which may prove the most effectual reproof Quest. 5. What should a Woman do in controverted cases of Religion when her judgement and her Quest. 5. Husbands differ Answ. 1. Some make a controversie of that which with all good Christians or sober persons should be past controversie and some controversies are indeed of real if not insuperable difficulty 2. Some controversies are about important necessary things and some about things of lesser moment 3. Some are about meer Opinion or other mens practice and some about our own practice 1. In all differences of judgement the Wife must exercise such self-suspicion and modesty and submission as may signifie her due sense both of the weakness of her Sex and of her subjection to her Husband 2. In things indifferent she must in practice obey her Husband unless when superiour powers do forbid it and that in cases where their authority is greater 3. She may modestly give her reasons of dissent 4. She must not turn it to an unpeaceable quarrel or matter of disaffection or pretend any differences against her Conjugal duties 5. In dark and difficult cases she should not be peremptory and self-conceited nor importunate but if she have faith that is some more knowledge than he have it to her self in quietness and silence and seek further information lest she err 6. She must speak no untruth nor commit any known sin in obedience to her Husbands judgement 7. When she strongly suspecteth it to be sin she must not do it meerly in obedience to him but seek for better satisfaction For she is sure that he hath no power to force her to sin And therefore hath no more assurance of his power in that point than she hath of the lawfulness of the thing 8. But if she prove to be in the error she will sin on either side till she recover 9. If a Husband be in dangerous error she must wisely but unweariedly seek his reformation by her self or others Cases about Divorce and Separation Quest. 1. IS it lawful for Husband and Wife to be long absent from each other and how long and Quest. 1. in what Cases Answ. It is lawful to be absent either in the case of prayer which Paul mentioneth or in case of the needful affairs of their estates so long as may be no danger to either of them as to mental or corporal incontinency nor to any other hurt which will be greater than the benefits of their absence nor cause them to be guilty of the neglect of any real duty Therefore the cases of several persons do much differ according to the different tempers of their minds and bodies and affairs He that hath a Wife of a chaste contented prudent temper may stay many moneths or years in some cases when all things considered it tendeth to more good than hurt As Lawyers by their Callings are often necessitated to follow their Callings at Terms and Assizes And Merchants may be some years absent in some weighty cases But if you ask Whether the getting of money be a sufficient cause I answer that it is sufficient to those whose families must be so maintained and their Wives are easily continent and so the good of their gain is greater than any loss or danger that cometh by it But when Covetousness puts them upon it needlesly and their Wives cannot bear it or in any case when the hurt that is like to follow is greater than the good it is unlawful Quest. 2. May Husband and Wife be separated by the bare command of Princes If they make a Law Quest. 2. that in certain cases they shall part As suppose it to Ministers Iudges or Soldiers Answ. You must distinguish between the bare Command or Law and the Reasons and Ends of that Command and so between a Lawful Command and an Unlawful In some Cases a Prince may justly command a separation for a time or such as is like to prove for perpetuity and in some cases he may not If a King command a separation without sufficient cause so that you have no Motive but his Authority and the question is Whether formally you are bound to obedience I answer No Because what God hath joyned no man hath power to puâ— asunder Nor can either Prince Pope or Prelate dispeâ—se with your Marriage Covenant In such a case it is as a Private act because God hath given them no authority for it and therefore their Commands or Laws are Nullities 〈◊〉 Only if a Prince say He that will be a Judge or a Justice shall part with his Wife it is lawful to leave the Office and so obey the Law But if he say to all Ministers of the Gospel you shall forsake your Wives or your Ministry they should do neither because they are Divinely obliged to both and he hath no power to forbid them or to dispense with that obligation But it may fall out that the Ends of the Command may be so great as to make it Lawful and then it must be obeyed both formally for the authority of the Prince and finally for the reasons of the thing As if the safety of the Commonwealth should require that Married persons be Souldiers and that they go far off yea though there be no likelihood of returning to their families and withal they cannot take their Wives with them without detriment or danger to their service In this case men must obey the Magistrate and are called by God to forsake their Wives as if it were by death Nor is it any violation of their Marriage Covenant because that was intended or meant to suppose the Exception of any such Call of God which cannot be resisted when it will make a separation Quest. 3. May Ministers leave their Wives to go
5. 9 10. Rev. 4. 11 8. Rev. 15. 3. Heb. 12. 9. Matth. 6. 13. thâ—u not said Behold I come quickly Even so Come Lord and let the great Marriage day of the Lamb make haste when thy Spouse shall be presented spotless unblamable and glorious and the glory of God in the New Jerusalem shall be Revealed to all his holy ones to delight and glorifie them for ever In the mean time Remember Lord thy promise Because I live therefore shall ye live also And let the dead that dye in thee be blessed And thou that art made a quickning Spirit and art the Lord and Prince of life and hast said that not a hair of our heads shall perish Gather our departing souls unto thy self into the Heavenly Jerusalem and Mount Zion the City of the living God and to the Myriads of holy Angels and to the general Assembly and Church of the first born and to the perfected Spirits of the just where thou wilt make us Kings and Priests to God whom we shall See and Love and Praise for ever For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things and for his pleasure they are and were created And O thou the blessed God of Love the Father of Spirits and King of Saints receive this unworthy Member of thy Son into the heavenly Chore which sing thy Praise who rest not saying night and day Holy Holy Holy Lord God Almighty who Is and Was and Is to Come For Thine is the Kingdom the Power and the Glory for ever and ever Amen The End of the Second TOME A Christian Directory The Third Part. Christian Ecclesiasticks OR DIRECTIONS TO PASTORS PEOPLE About Sacred Doctrine Worship and Discipline and their mutual Duties With the Solution of a multitude of Church-Controversies and Cases of Conscience By RICHARD BAXTER 1 Cor. 12. 25 27 28. That there should be no Schism in the body but the Members should have the same care one for another Now ye are the Body of Christ and Members in particular And God hath set some in the Church first Apostles c. Eph. 4. 3 4 12 c. Endeavouring to keep the Unity of the SPIRIT in the bond of Peace There is one Body one Spirit one Hope one Lord one Faith one Baptism Not One Ministerial Head one God * And he gave some Apostles and some Prophets and some Evangelists and some Pastors and Teachers for the perfecting of the Saints for the work of the Ministry for the edifying of the body of Christ Till we all come into the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God to a perfect man unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ That we henceforth be no more Children tossed to and fro and carryed about with every wind of doctrine by the cogging or sleight of men and cunning craftiness whereby they lye in wait to deceive But keeping the Truth in Love may grow up into him in all things which is the head even Christ From whom the whole body compacted and cemented together by every joynt of supply according to its power in proportion of each part worketh increase of the body to the edifying of it self in Love 1 Tim. 3. 15. That thou maist know how thou oughtest to behave thy self in the House of God which is the Church of the living God as A pillar and basis of the truth 1 Thess. 5. 12 13. We beseech you brethren to know them which labour among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you and to esteem them very highly in love for their work sake and be at peace among your selves LONDON Printed by Robert White for Nevill Simmons at the Sign of the Princes-Arms in St. Pauls Church-yard 1673. Reader THat this part and the next are Imperfect and so much only is written as I might and not as I would I need not excuse to thee if thou know me and where and when I live But some of that which is wanting if thou desire thou maist find 1. In my Universal Concord 2. In my Christian Concord 3. In our Agreement for Catechising and my Reformed Pastor 4. In the Reformed Lyturgie offered to the Commissioned Bishops at the Savoy Farewel A Christian Directory TOM III. Christian Ecclesiasticks CHAP. I. Of the Worship of God in general § 1. THAT God is to be Worshipped solemnly by man is confessed by Qui totos dies precabantur immolabant ut sui liberi sibi superstites essent Superstitiosi sunt appellati quod nomen paâ—uit postea latius Qui autem omnia quae ad cultum Deorum pertinerent diligenter pertractarent tanquam relegerent sunt dicti Religiosi ex relegendo ut elegantes ex eligendo à diligendo diligentes ex intelligendo intelligentes Superstitiosi Religiosi alterum vitii nomen alterum laudis Cicer. nat Deor. lib. 2. pag. 73 74. all that acknowledge that there is a God But about the Matter and Manner of his Worship there are no small dissensions and contentions in the world I am not now attempting a reconciliation of these contenders The sickness of mens minds and wills doth make that impossible to any but God which else were not only possible but easie the terms of reconciliation being in themselves so plain and obvious as they are But it is Directions to those that are willing to worship God aright which I am now to give § 2. Direct 1. Understand what it is to worship God aright lest you offer him Vanity and sin for Direct 1. Worship The worshipping of God is the direct acknowledging of his Being and Perfections to his honour Indirectly or consequentially he is acknowledged in every obediential act by those that truly obey and serve him And this is indirectly and participatively to worship him And therefore all things are Holy to the Holy because they are Holy in the use of all and Holiness to the Lord is as it were written upon all that they possess or do as they are Holy But this is not the worship which we are here to speak of but that which is Primarily and Directly done to glorifie him by the acknowledgement of his excellencies Thus God is worshipped either inwardly by the soul alone or also outwardly by the body expressing the worship of the soul. For that which is done by the Body alone without the concurrence of the Heart is not true worship but an Hypocritical Image or shew of it equivocally called Worship The inward worship of the Heart alone I have spoken If they that serve their God with meer word and ceremony and mimâ—ca actions were so served themselves they might be â—ilâ—â—ced with Aristâ—ppâ—â— his defence of his gallantry and sumptuâ—uâ— fare Si vituâ—â—randum ait hoc essâ—t in celebritatibus deorum profectò non fieret Laert. iâ— Aristip. So Plato allowed drunkenness only in the Feasts oâ— Baâ—châ—s of in the former Tome The outward or expressive worship
Matth. 18. 10. being his Messengers to man § 9. 7. Much of their work is to oppose the malice of evil spirits that seek our hurt and to defend 1 Kings 22. 19 20 21 22. us from them against whom they are engaged under Christ in daily Warr or Conflict Rev. 12. 7 9. Psal. 68. 17. 78. 49. Matth. 4. 11. 1 Thess. 2. 18. § 10. 8. In this their Ministration they are ordered into different degrees of superiority and inferiority Luke 1. 19 26. and are not equal among themselves 1 Thess. 4. 16. Iude 9. Dan. 10. 13 20 21. Eph. 1. 21. Col. 2. 10. Eph. 3. 10. 6. 12. Col. 1. 16. Zech. 4. 10. Rev. 4 5. 5 6. § 11. 9. Angels are employed not only about our bodies but our souls by furthering the means of Acts. 7. 53. our salvation They preached the Gospel themselves as they delivered the Law Luke 2. 10 9. Luke 1. 11 c. Heb. 2. 2. Gal. 3. 19. Acts 10. 4. Dan. 7. 16. 8. 15 16 17. 9. 21 22. Luke 1. 29. 2. 19. Especially they deliver particular messages which suppose the sufficiency of the Laws of Christ and only help to the obedience of it § 12. 10. They are sometime Gods instruments to confirm and warn and comfort and excite the Acts 27. 24. Luke 1. 13 30. 2. 10. Dan. 10. 12. 2 Kings 6. 16. Gen. 16. 9 10. Numb 22. 32. soul and to work upon the mind and will and affections That they do this perswasively and have as much access and power to do us good as Satan hath to do us evil is very clear Good Angels have as much power and access to the soul to move to duty as Devils have to tempt to sin As God hath sent them oft upon monitory and consolatory messages to his servants in visible shapes so doth he send them on the like messages invisibly Iudg. 5. 23. Mat. 1. 20. Psal. 104. 4. Luke 22. 43. An Angel from Heaven is sent to strengthen Christ himself in his agony § 13. 11. They persecute and chase the enemies of the Church and sometimes destroy them as Psal. 35. 5 6. 2 Kings 19. 35. Isa. 37. 36. and hinder them from doing hurt Numb 22. 24. § 14. 12. They are a Convoy for the departing souls of the godly to bring them to the place of their felicity Luke 16. 22. though how they do it we cannot understand § 15. 13. They are the attendants of Christ at his coming to judgement and his Ministers to gather his elect and sâ—ver thâ— wicked from the just in order to their endless Punishment or Joy 1 Thess. 4. 16. The Lord himself shall descend from Heaven with a shout with the voice of the Arch-angel and with the trumpet of God and the dead in Christ shall rise first Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up c. Matth. 13. 41 49. The Son of man shall send forth his Angels and they shall gather 2 Thess. 1. 7. Mark 8. 38. Matth. 25. 31. out of his Kingdom all offences or scandals and them which do iniquity and shall cast them into a furnace of fire At the end of the world the Angels shall come forth and sever the wicked from among the just and shall cast them into the furnace of fire c. § 16. Direct 3. Understand our near affinity or relation to the Angels and how they and we are concerned Direct 3. in each others condition and affairs As to our Nature our Immortal souls are kin or like unto the Angels though our Bodies are but like the Brutes Those souls that are created after the Image of God in their very Natural Essence as Rational and Free agents besides his Moral Image of sanctity Gen. 9. 6. may well be said to be like the Angels He made us little lower than the Angels Psal. 8. 5. And God hath made us their charge and care and therefore no doubt hath given them a special Love unto us to fit them to the due performance of their trust As Ministers have a special paternal Love to their flocks and as Christians are to have a special Love to one another to enable and engage them to the duties appointed them by God towards each other so these excellent Spirits have no doubt a far purer and greater Love to the Image of God upon the Saints and to the Saints for the Image and sake of God than the dearest friends and holiest persons on earth can have For they are more holy and they are more perfectly conformed to the mind of God and they love God himself more perfectly than we and therefore for his sake do love his people much more perfectly than we And therefore they are more to be loved by us than any mortals are both because they are more excellent pure and amiable and because they have more Love to us Moreover the Angels are servants of the same God and members of the same society which we belong to They are the Inhabitants of the heavenly Ierusalem of which we are heirs They have possession and we have title and shall in time possess it We are called to much of the same employment with them we must love the same God and glorifie him by obedience thanks and praise and so do they Therefore they are Ministers for our good and rejoyce in the success of their labours as the Ministers of Christ on earth do Heb. 1. 14. There is not a sinner converted but it is the Angels Joy Luke 15. 10. which sheweth how much they attend that work We are come to Mount Zion and unto the City of the living God the heavenly Jerusalem and to myriads of Angels c. Heb. 12. 22 23. 24. They are especially present and attendant on us in our holy Assemblies and services of God and therefore we are admonished to reverence their presence and do nothing before them that is sinful or unseemly 1 Cor. 11. 10. Eccles. 5. 6. The presence of God and the Lord Iesus Christ and the elect Angels must continually awe us into exact obedience 1 Tim. 5. 21. With the Church they pry into the mysterie of the dispensations of the Spirit to the Church 1 Pet. 1. 12. And so by the Church that is by Gods dealings with the Church is made known the manifold wisdom of God even to these heavenly principalities and powers Eph. 3. 10. In conclusion Christ telleth us that in our state of blessedness we shall be equal to the Angels Luke 20. 36. and so shall live with them for ever § 17. Direct 4. When your thoughts of Heaven are staggering or strange and when you are tempted Direct 4. to doubt whether indeed there is such a life of glory for the Saints it may be a great help to your faith to think of the world of Angels that already do possess it That there are such excellent and happy inhabitants of the superiour
place 2. And great haste allowed me not Time to transpose them If you say that in such a work I should take time I answer You are no competent judges unless you knew me and the rest of my work and the likelyhood that my time will be but short They that had rather take my Writings with such defects which are the effects of haste than have none of them may use them and the rest are free to despise them and neglect them Two or three Questions about the Scripture I would have put nearer the beginning if I could have time But seeing I cannot it 's easie for you to transpose them in the reading III. The resolution of these Cases so much avoideth all the extreams that I look they should be displeasing to all that vast number of Christians who involve themselves in the opinions and interests of their several sects as such and that hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ with respect of persons But there will be still a certain number of truly Catholick impartial Readers whose favourable acceptance I confidently prognosticate and who being out of the dust and noise and passions of contending sides and parties and their interests will see a self-evidencing Light in those solutions which are put off here briefly without the pomp of formal argumentation or perswading Oratory The eternal Light reveal himself to us by Christ who is the Light of the World and by the Illumination of the spirit and word of Light that we may walk in the Light as the Children of Light till we come to the World of Glorious Everlasting Light And what other defect soever our knowledge have if any man hath knowledge enough to kindle in him the Love of God the same is known of Him and therefore is Beloved by Him and shall be Blessed with and in Him for ever 1 Cor. 8. 1 2 3. CASES OF CONSCIENCE ABOUT Matters Ecclesiastical Quest. 1. How to know which is the true Church among all pretenders that a Christians Conscience may be quiet in his Relation and Communion I HAVE written so much of this already in four Books viz. one called The Safe Religion another called A Key for Catholicks another called The Visibility of the Church another called A true Catholick and the Catholick Church described that I shall say now but a little and yet enough to an impartial considerate Reader The terms must first be opened 1. By a Church is meant a Society of Christians as such And it is sometimes taken Narrowly for the Body or Members as distinct from the Head as the word Kingdom is taken for the Subjects only as distinct from the King And sometimes more fully and properly for the whole Political Society as constituted of its Head and Body or the Pars Imperans pars Subdita 2. The word Church thus taken signifieth sometime the Universal Church called Catholick which consisteth of Christ and his Body Politick or Mystical And sometime some Part only of the Universal Church And so it is taken either for a subordinate Political Part or for a Community or a Part considered as Consociate but not Political or as many particular Political Churches Agreeing and holding Concord and Communion without any Comon Head save the Universal Head 3. Such Political Churches are either of Divine Constitution and Policy or only of Humane 2. By Christians I mean such as Profess the Essentials of the Christian Religion For we speak of the Church as Visible 3. By True may be meant either Reality of Essence opposite to that which is not really a 1 Cor. 11. 3. 1 Cor. 12 12. Eph. 1. 22 23. 1 Cor. 6 15. 1 Cor. 12. 27. Eph. 4. 4 5. Matth. 28. 19 20. Church in this univocal acception or else Sound and Orthodox in the Integrals as opposite to erroneous and defiled with much enormity And now I thus decide that question Prop. 1. The True Catholick Church consisteth of Christ the Heâ—d and all Christians as his Body or the Members As the Kingdom consisteth of the King and his Subjects Prop. 2. As all the sincere Heart-Covenanters make up the Church as regenerate and mystical or invisible so that all that are Christened that is Baptized and profess Consent to all the Essentials of the Baptismal Covenant not having Apostatized nor being by lawful Power Excommunicated are Christians and make up the Church as Visible Prop. 3. Therefore there is but One Universal Church because it containeth all Christians and so Ephes. 4 4 5. 1 Cor. 1â— 12. Mark 16 16. Rom 14. 1 6 7. 15. 1 3 4 leaveth out none to be the matter of another Prop. 4. It is not Ignorance or Error about the meer Integrals of Christianity which maketh them no Christians who hold the Essentials that is the Baptismal Covenant Prop. 5. That the Baptismal Covenant might be rightly understood and professed the Churches have still used the Creed as the explication of the Covenant in point of faith and taken it for 1 Cor. 15 1 2 c. the Symbol of the Christian Belief And no further profession of faith was or is to be required as Matth. 28. 19 20. necessary to the Being of Christianity Prop. 6. If proud Usurpers or Censurers take on them to excommunicate or unchristian or unchurch others without authority and cause this maketh them not to be no Christians or no Churches Rom. 14. 3 4. John that are so used Prop. 7. Therefore to know which is the true Catholick or Universal Church is but to know who Rom. 6 1 2 c. are Baptized-Professing-Christians Prop. 8. The Reformed Churches the Lutherans the Abassines the Copties the Syrians the Armenians Ephes. 4. 4. 5. the Jacobites the Georgians the Maronites the Greeks the Moscovites and the Romanists do all receive Baptism in all its visible Essentials and profess all the Essentials of the Christian Religion though not with the same Integrity Prop. 9. He that denyeth any one essential part in it self is so a Heretick as to be no Christian nor true member of the Church if it be justly proved or notorious that is none ought to take him Tit. 3. â—â— 3 John for a Visible Christian who know the proof of his denying that essential part of Christianity or to whom it is notorious Prop. 10. He that holdeth the Essentials primarily and with them holdeth some error which by James 3 â— Phi. 3. 15 16. Heb. 5. 1 2. unseen consequence subverteth some Essential point but holdeth the Essentials so much faster that he would forsake his error if he saw the inconsistence is a Christian notwithstanding And if the name Heretick be applicable to him it is but in such a sense as is consistent with Christianity Prop. 11. He that is judged a Heretick and no Christian justly by others must be lawfully T it 3. 10. Matth. 18. 15. cited and heard plead his Cause and be judged upon sufficient proof and not
Church 11. Though the Sacrament of the Lords Supper be appointed for the renewing of our Covenant at age yet is it not the first owning of the Covenant by the aged For that Sacrament belongeth neither to Infants nor Infidels And he that claimeth it must be an adult Church-member or Christian which those are not who at full age no way ever owned their baptismal Covenant nor made any personal profession of Christianity But of this I have written purposely in a Treatise of Confirmation long ago Quest. 52. Whether the Universal Church consist only of particular Churches and their members Answ. NO Particular Churches are the most Regular and noble parts of the Universal Church but not the whole no more than Cities and Corporations be all the Kingdom 1. Some may be as the Eunuch baptized before they can come to any particular Church or as Acts 8. 37 c. Acts 9. 17 18 19 20 26 27 28. Paul before they can be received 2. Some may live where Church-tyranny hindereth them by sinful impositions As all that live among the Papists 3. Some may live in times of doubting distraction and confusion and not know what Church ordinarily to joyn with and may providently go promiscuously to many and keep in an unfixed state for a time 4. Some may be Wives Children or Servants who may be violently hindered 5. Some may live where no particular Churches are As Merchants and Embassadours among Mâ—hometans and Heathens Quest. 53. Must the Pastor first Call the Church and aggregate them to himself or the Church first Congregate themselves and then choose the Pastor Answ. THe Pastors are in order of Nature if not in time first Ministers of Christ in general before they are related to a particular Charge 2. As such Ministers they first make men fit to be congregate and tell them their duty therein 3. But it is a matter variable and indifferent Whether the Minister first say All that will joyn with me and submit to me as their Pastor shall be my particular Charge Or the people before Congregated do call a man to be their Pastor Quest. 54. Wherein doth a particular Church of Christs institution differ from a Consociation of many Churches Answ. 1. IN that such a particular Church is a company of Christians associated for personal immediate Acts 2. 1 24 44 46. 4. 32. 5. 12. 1 Thess. 5. 12 13. 1 Cor. 14. 19 23 24 28 35. Acts 14. 23. Titus 1. 5. Acts 11. 26. James 2. â— Communion in Gods worship and in holy living Whereas Consociations of Churches are combined for mediate distinct Communion or by Delegates or Representatives as in Synods 2. Such a particular Church is constituted of one or more Pastors with the people officiating in the Sacred Ministry among them in Doctrine Worship and Discipline in order to the said personal Communion But a Consociation of Churches hath no particular Head as such of divine institution to Constitute and Govern them as one In Ignatius's time every particular Church was characterized or known by two marks of Unity 1. One Altar that is one place of assembling for holy communion 2. One Bishop with the Presbyters and Deacons And two Altars and two Bishops proved two Churches 3. A particular Church under one Bishop or the some Pastors is a Political holy Society But a combination of many Churches consociate is not so but only 1. Either a Community agreeing to live in Concord as neighbour Kingdoms may 2. Or else a humane Policy or Society and not of Divine immediate institution So that if this Consociation of Churches be called a Church it must be either equivocally or in a humane sense Quest. 55. Whether a particular Church may consist of more Assemblies than one Or must needs meet all in one place Answ. 1. THe true distinguishing note of a particular Church is that They be associated for holy Communion in Worship and holy living not by Delegates nor distâ—ntly only by owning the same faith and loving one another as we may do with those at the Antipodes but Personally in presence 2. Therefore they must necessarily be so near as to be capable of personal present Communion 1 Cor. 14. 19 23. Acts 11. 26 c. as before cited 3. And it is most convenient that they be no more than can ordinarily meet in the same Assembly at least for Sacramental Communion 4. But yet they may meet in many places or Assemblies as Chappels or Oratories or other subordinate meetings which are appointed to supply the necessity of the weak and aged and them that cannot travail far And in times of persecution when the Church dare not all meet in one place they may make up several smaller meetings under several Pastors of the same Church But they should come all together as oft as they can 5. And it is to be considered that all the persons of a family can seldome go to the Assembly at one time especially when they live far off Therefore if a Church-place would receive but ten thousand yet twenty thousand might be members while half meet one day and half another or another part of the day 6. Two Congregations distinctly associated for personal Worship under distinct Pastors or having statedly as Ignatius speaketh two Bishops and two Altars are two particular Churches and can no otherwise be one Church than â—s that may be called One which is a Consoâ—iation of divers Quest. 56. Is any Form of Church Government of Divine Institution Answ. YEa There are two Essentially different Policies or Forms of Church Government of Christs Eph. 1 22. 23. 5. 25 26 c. 4. 4 5 6 16. Heb. 10. 25. 1 Cor. 14. Acts 14. 23. Titus 1 5. 1 Tim. 5. 17. 1 Thess. 5. 12 13. 1 Tim 3 3 4 6. 1 Pet 5. 1 2 3. Acts 20 28. Phil. 1. 1 2. own Institution never to be altered by man 1. The form of the Universal Church as headed by Christ himself which all Christians own as they are Christians in their Baptism 2. Particular Churches which are headed by their particular Bishops or Pastors and are parts of the Universal as a Troop is of an Army or a City of a Kingdom Here it is of Divine Institution 1. That there be holy Assemblies for the Publick Worship of God 2. That these Assemblies be Societies constituted of the people with their Pastors who are to them as Captains to their Troops under the General or as Mayors to Cities under the King 3. That these Pastors have the power of the Keyes or the special Guidance and Governance by the Word not by the Sword of their own particular charge in the matters of Faith Worship and holy living and that the flocks obey them And when all this is Iure divino why should any say that No form of Government is jure divino 3. Moreover it is of Divine appointment that these Churches hold the nearest Concord and help each other
Ministers of Christ or Lay men If Lay men their actions are unlawful If Ministers they are Commissioned officers of Christ themselves and it is the work of their own office which they do and it is they that shall have the reward or punishment But if preaching to all these Churches or giving to all these persons in a thousand Parishes the Sacraments c. were the Bishops or Archbishops work that is which they are obliged to do then they would sin in not doing it But if they are the Governours only of those that are obliged 〈◊〉 do it and are not obliged to do it themselves then Governing the doers of it is only their work And therefore it is but equivocally said that the work is theirs which others and not they are obliged to do and that they do their work per alios when they do but Govern those others in doing their own work Of this read the Lord Bacons Considerations and Grotius de Imper. summ Potest Cirâ—a Sacra who soundly resolve the case against doing the Pastoral work per alium Quest. 59. May a Lay man preach or expound the Scriptures Or what of this is proper to the Pastors office Answ. 1. NO doubt but there is some Preaching or Teaching and Expounding which a Lay man may use So did Origen so did Constantine so may a King or Iudge on the Bench so may a Parent to his Children and a Master to his family and a Schoolmaster or Tutor to his Scholars 2. It is not any one Method or Sermon-fashion which is proper to a Minister and forbidden to a Lay man That Method which is most meet to the Matter and hearers may be used by one as well as by the other 3. It is not the meer publickness of the Teaching which must tell us what is unlawful for a Lay man For Writing and Printing are the most publick wayes of Teaching And these no man taketh to be forbidden the Laity Scaliger Causabon Grotius Erasmus Constantine King Iames the Lord Bacon and abundance more Lay men have done the Church great service by their Writings And Judges on the Bench speak oft Theologically to many But that which is proper to the Ministers or Pastors of the Church is 1. To make a stated office of it and to be separated set a part devoted or consecrated and appropriated to this sacred work and not to do it occasionally only or sometimes or on the by but as their Calling and the Employment of their lives 2. To do it as Called and Commissioned Ministers of Christ who have a special nunciative and Teaching Authority committed to them And therefore are in a special manner to be heard according to their special Authority 3. To be the stated Teachers of particular Churches as their Pastors and Guides Though they may sometime permit a Lay man when there is cause to Teach them pro tempore These three are proper to the Ministerial and Pastors office But for the regulating of Lay mens Teaching 1. They must statedly keep in their families or within their proper bounds 2. They must not presume to go beyond their abilities especially in matters dark and difficult 3. They must not thrust themselves without a just call and need into publick or numerous meetings as Teachers nor do that which savoureth of Pride or Ostentation or which tendeth to cherish those vices in others 4. They must not live or Preach as from under the Government of the Church Pastors But being members of their flocks must do all as under their lawful oversight and guidance much less must they proudly and schismatically set up themselves against their lawful Pastors and bring them into Act. 20. 30. Heb. 13 7 17 24. 1 Thes. 5. 12 13. 1 Tim. 5. 17. contempt to get themselves reputation and to draw away Disciples after them 5. Times and places must be greatly distinguished In Infidel or grosly ignorant Countreys where through the want of Preachers there is a true necessity men may go much further than in Countreys where Teachers and knowledge do abound Quest. 60. What is the true sense of the distinction of Pastoral power in foro interiore exteriore rightly used Answ. 1. NOt as if the Pastors had any power of the sword or outward force or of mens Bodies or Estates immediately For all the Pastoral power is Immediately on the soul and but secondarily on the body so far as the perswaded soul will move it Reason and Love and the Authority of a messenger of Christ are all the power by which Bishops or Pastors as such can work in foro interiore vel exteriore They Rule the body but by Ruling the soul. 2. But the true use of the distinction is only to serve instead of the usual distinction of Publick and personal obligation It is one thing to satisfie a mans private Conscience about his own personal case or matters And another thing to oblige the whole Church or a particular person of his duty as a member of the society to the rest When the Pastor Absolveth a penitent person in foro interiore that is in his own Conscience he delivereth him a discharge in the name of Christ on Condition he be truly penitent Else not But in foro exteriore he actually and absolutely restoreth him to his visible state of Church Communion The rest of the members perhaps may justly think this man unlike to prove a true penitent And then in foro interiore they are not bound to believe him certainly penitent or pardoned by God But in foro exteriore that he is restored to Church Communion and that for order sake they are bound to hold Communion with him they are bound internally to believe So that it comes neer the sense of the distinction of the secret Iudgement of God and Conscience and Church judgement Quest. 61. In what sense is it true that some say that the Magistrate only hath the External Government of the Church and the Pastors the Internal Answ. 1. NOt as External and Internal are opposed in the nature of the Action For the Voice of the Pastor in Preaching is External as well as the Kings 2. Not as they are opposed in the manner of Reception For the Ears of the Auditors are external Recipients from the Preacher as well as from the King 3. Not as distinguishing the parts that are to obey the duties commanded and the sins forbidden as if the King ruled the Body only and the Pastor the soul. For the soul is bound to obey the King or else the Body could not be bound to obey him unless by cords And the Body must obey the Preacher as well as the soul. Murder drunkenness swearing lying and such other external Vices are under the Pastors power to forbid in Christs name as well as the Kings 4. Not as if all the external parts or actions of Religion were exempted from the Pastors power For preaching praying reading Sacraments Church-assemblies are external parts
Father Mother c. for his service and swearing to prefer it and his safety before them all See Martinius reciting the Oath out of divers Authors This is our sense of the word Let no man now that taketh it in other sense pretend therefore that we differ in doctrine 2. Seeing it is no Scripture word it is not of necessity to the faith or peace of the Church but when disputers agree not of the sense of the word they are best lay it by and use such terms whose sense they can agree on 3. The name Sacrament is either taken from the Covenant sworn to or from the Sign or Ceremony of Consent by which we oblige our selves or from both together 4. The Covenant of Christianity is different from a particular Covenant of some Office And accordingly the Sacrament is to be distinguished 5. As Civil Oeconomical and Ecclesiastical Offices are distinct so are their several Sacraments 6. The solemn renewing of the sacred Vow or Covenant without any instituted obliging sign is to be distinguished from the renewing it by such a sign of Gods institution And now I conclude 1. As the word Sacrament is taken improperly secundum quid from the nobler part only that is the Covenant as a mans â—oul is called the Man so there are as many Sacraments as Covenants and there is in specie but one Covenant of Christianity and so but one Sacrament of Christianity variously expressed 2. As the word Sacrament is taken properly and fully according to the foresaid description so there are properly two Sacraments of Christianity or of the Covenant of Grace that is Baptism the Sacrament of initiation most â—ully so called and the Lords Supper or the Sacrament of Confirmation Exercise and Progress 3. As the word Sacrament is taken less properly defectively secundum quid for the same Covenant of Grace or Christianity renewed by any arbitrary sign of our own without a solemn Ceremony of Divine institution so there are divers Sacraments of Christianity or the Covenant of Grace that is Divers solemn renewals of our Covenant with God As 1. At our solemn transition from the state of Infant-membership unto that of the Adult when we solemnly own our baptismal Covenant which Calvin and many Protestants and the English Rubrick call Confirmation 2. The solemn owning the Christian Faith and Covenant in our constant Church-assemblies when we stand up at the Creed or profession of our saith and all renew our Covenant with God and dedication to him 3. At solemn dayes of Fasting or humiliation and of Thanksgiving when this should be solemnly done Specially upon some publick defection 4. Upon the publick Repentance of a particular sinner before his absolution 5. When a man is going out of the world and recommending his soul to God by Christ All these are solemn renewings of our Covenant with God in which we may use any Lawful Natural or Arbitrary signs or expressions to signifie our own minds by as speaking subscribing standing up lifting up the hand laying it upon a book kissing the book c. These Sacraments are improperly so called And are Divine as to the Covenant renewed but Humane as to the expressing signs 4. Ordination is not improperly or unfitly called a Sacrament because it is the solemnizing of a mutual Covenant between God and man for our dedication to his special service and his reception of us and blessing on us though Imposition of hands be not so solemn a Ceremony by meer Institution as Baptism and the Lords Supper But then it must be noted that this is not Sacramentum Christianitaâ—is a Sacrament of the Christian Covenant but Sacramentum Ordinis vel officii particularis a Sacrament of Orders or a particular Office but yet of Divine institution 5. The solemn Celebration of Marriage is an Oeconomical Sacrament that is a solemn obligation of man and woman by Vow to one another and of both to God in that relation which may be arbitrarily expressed by lawful signs or ceremonies 6. The solemn Covenant of a Master with his servant is on the same account an Oeconomical Sacrament 7. The inauguration of a King in which he is sworn to his subjects and dedicated to God in that Office and his subjects sworn or consent to him is a Civil Sacrament whether Unction be added or not And so is a Judges entrance on his Office when it is done so solemnly by an obliging Vâ—w or Covenant 8. Confirmation in the Papists sense as conferred by Chrysm on Infants for giving them the Holy Ghost is but an unwarrantable imitation of the old miraculous operation by the Apostles and neither a Christian Sacrament nor a warrantable practice but a presumption 9. The same may be said of their Sacrament of Extream Unction 10. Their Sacrament of Marriage is no otherwise a Sacrament than the Inauguration of a King is which is approved by God as well as Marriage and signifieth also an honourable Collation of Power from the Universal King 11. Their Sacrament of Penance is no otherwise a Sacrament than many other fore-mentioned renewings of our Covenant are 12. Therefore the Papists seven Sacraments or septenary distribution is confused partly redundant partly defective and unworthy to be made a part of their faith or Religion or the matter of their pievish and ignorant contendings And they that peremptorily say without distinguishing that there are but two Sacraments in all do but harden them by the unwarrantable narrowing of the word Quest. 100. How far is it lawful needful or unlawful for a man to afflict himself by external Penances for sin Answ. Neg. 1. NOt to the destroying of his body life or health or the disabling or unfitting Isa. 58. â— 5 6 7 8 c. Matth. 9. 13. 12. 7. Matth. 6 1 3 5 6 17. Zâ—ch 8. 19. 2 Cor. 2. 7. Col. 2 22 23 24. Joel 1. 14. 2. 15. Dan. 9. 3. Aâ—â—â—â— 10. 13. 1 Cor 7. 5. â—uke 2 37. Maâ—â—h 4. 2. â— Sâ—m 12. 22. â—uke 18. 12. body or mind for the service of God 2. Not to be the expression of any sinful inordinate dejection despondency sorrow or despair 3. Not so as may be an outward appearance of such inordinate passions or as may be a scandal to others and deter them from Religion as a melancholy hurtful thing 4. Not as if God would accept the meer external self-afflicting for it self or as if he loved our hurt or as if we merited of him by our unprofitable voluntary troubles But 1. It is a duty to express true godly sorrow by its proper exercise and signs so far as either the acting of it or the increase or continuance by the means of those expressions is profitable to our selves 2. And also so far as is needful to the profiting of others by shewing them the evil of sin and drawing them to repentance 3. And so far as is necessary to the satisfying of the Church of the truth of our Repentance in
as much as may be in a way of Concord with the united faithful Pastors and Churches in your proximity or Countrey 3. Look to the publick good and interest of Religion more than to your particular Congregation 4. Neglect not the greatest advantages for your own edification But rather take them by a removal of your dwelling though you suffer by it in your estates than by any division disturbance of the Churches peace or common detriment 5. Do not easily go against the Magistrates Commands unless they be apparently unlawful and to the Churches detriment or ruine in the reception of your Pastors 6. Do not easily forsake him that hath been justly received by the Church and hath possession that is till necessity require it Quest. 106. To whom doth it belong to Reform a Corrupted Church to the Magistrates Pastors or People Answ. A Church is reformed three several wayes 1. By the personal reformation of every member 2. By doctrinal Direction and 3. By publick forcible Execution and constraint of others 1. Every member whether Magistrates Pastors or People must reform themselves by forsaking 1 Cor. 11. 28 29 31 33 34. 1 Cor. 5. 11. Dan. 3. 6. all their own sins and doing their own duties If a Ruler command a private person to go to Mass to own any falshood or to do any sin he is not to be obeyed because God is to be first obeyed 2. The Bishops or Pastors are to Reform the Church by Doctrine Reproof and just Exhortations 1 Cor. 5. 3. 4 5 1. Pet. 5. 2 3. Luke 22. 24 25 26 27. and Nunciative Commands in the name of Christ to Rulers and people to do their several duties and by the actual doing of his own 3. The King and Magistrates under him only must Reform by the Sword that is by outward force and Civil Laws and Corporal Penalties As forcibly to break down Images to cast out Idolaters or the Instruments of Idolatry from the Temples to put true Ministers in possession of the Temples or the Legal publick maintenance to destroy punish or hurt Idolaters c. Supposing still the Power of Parents and Masters in their several families Quest. 107. Who is to Call Synods Princes Pastors or People Answ. 1. THere are several wayes of Calling Synods 1. By Force and Civil Mandates 2. By The question of the power of Synods is sufficiently answered before Pastoral Perswasion and Counsel and 3. By humble intreaty and petition 1. Magistrates only that is the Supream by his own power and the Inferiour by power derived from him may call Synods by Laws and Mandates enforced by the Sword or Corporal Penalties or Mulcts 2. Bishops or Pastors in due Circumstances may call Synods by Counsel and perswasive invitation 3. The people in due Circumstances and necessity may Call Synods by way of Petition and Intreaty But what are the due Circumstances Answ. 1. The Magistrate may Call them by Command at his discretion for his own Counsel or for the Civil peace or the Churches good 2. The Pastors and people may not Call them nor meet when the Magistrate forbiddeth it except when the necessity of the Church requireth it Synods may profitably be stated for order when it may be lawfulâ—y obtained both as to limits of Place numbers and Time But these prudential Orders are not of stated necessity but must give place to weightier reasons on the contrary 3. Synods themselves are not ordinarily necessary by Nature or Institution Let him that affirmeth it prove it But that which is statedly necessary is The Concord of the Churches as the End and a necessary correspondency of the Churches as the Means and Synods when they may well be had as a convenient sort of means 4. When Synods cannot be had or are needless Messengers and Letters from Church to Church may keep up the Correspondency and Concord 5. In cases of real necessity which are very rare though usefulness be more frequent the Bishops and people should first petition the King for his consent And if that cannot be had they may meet secretly and in small numbers for mutual consultation and advice about the work of God and not by keeping up the formality of their set numbers times and places and orders provoke the King against them 6. The contempt of Synods by the separatists and the placing more power in Synods than ever God gave them by others yea and the insisting on their circumstantial orders making them like a Civil Senate or Court have been the two extreams which have greatly injured and divided the Churches throughout the World Quest. 108. To whom doth it belong to appoint dayes and assemblies for publick Humiliation and Thanksgiving Answ. THe answer of the last question may serve for this 1. The Magistrate only may do it by way of Laws or civil Mandate enforced by the sword 2. The Pastors may do it in case of necessity by Pastoral advice and exhortation and nunciative command in the name of Christ. 3. The people may do it by Petition 4. As ordinary Church Assemblies must be held if the Magistrate forbid them of which next so must extraordinary ones when extraordinary causes make it a duty 5. When the Magistrate forcibly hindereth them natural impossibility resolveth the question about our duty Quest. 109. May we omit Church-assemblies on the Lords day if the Magistrate forbid them Answ. 1. IT is one thing to forbid them for a time upon some special cause as Infection by May we omit Church-Assemblies on the Lords day if forbidden by Magistrates pestilence fire war c. And another thing to forbid them statedly or prophanely 2. It is one thing to omit them for a time and another to do it ordinarily 3. It is one thing to omit them in formal obedience to the Law and another thing to omit them in prudence or for necessity because we cannot keep them 4. The Assembly and the circumstances of the Assembly must be distinguished 1. If the Magistrate for a greater good as the common safety forbid Church Assemblies in a time of pestilence assault of enemies or fire or the like necessity it is a duty to obey him Because positive duties give place to those great natural duties which are their end so Christ justified himself and his disciples violation of the external rest of the Sabbath For the Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath 2. Because Affirmatives bind not ad semper and out of season duties become sins 3. Because one Lords day or Assembly is not to be preferred before Many which by the omission of that one are like to be obtained 2. If Princes prophanely forbid holy assemblies and publick worship either statedly or as a renunciation of Christ and our religion it is not Lawful formally to obey them 3. But it is lawful prudently to do that secretly for the present necessity which we cannot do publickly and to do that with smaller numbers which we
God and disobey his Laws and the matter doubted of is confessed unnecessary by the Imposers So Infinite is the distance between God and Man and so wholly dependent on him are the Highest that they should be exceeding unwilling to vie with the Authority of their maker in mens Consciences or to do any thing unnecessary which tendeth to compell men to tread down Gods Authority in their Consciences and to prefer mans Much more unwilling should they be to silence the sober Preachers of Christs Gospel upon such accounts Quest. 132. Is it unlawful to obey in all those cases where it is unlawful to impose and command Or in what cases And how far Pastors must be believed and obeyed Answ. I Must intreat the Reader carefully to distinguish here 1. Between Gods Law forbidding Rulers to do evil and his Law forbidding Subjects or private men 2. Between Obedience formally so called which is when we therefore obey in conscience because it is commanded and the commanders Authority is the Formal Reason and object of our obedience And Obedience Material only which is properly no obedience but a doing the thing which is commanded upon other Reasons and not at all because it is commanded 3. Between Formal obedience to the Office of the Ruler in General and formal obedience to him as commanding this very Matter in particular 4. Between such Authority in the Ruler as will warrant his Impositions before God for his own justification And such Authority as may make it my duty to obey him And so I answer 1. We shall not be judged by those Laws of God which made the Rulers duty but by that which made our own It is not all one to say Thou shalt not command it and to say Thou shalt not do it 2. Whatever God absolutely forbiddeth men to do we must not do whoever command it 3. There are many of the things forementioned Absolutely and alwayes unlawful as being evil of themselves which no man may either command or do And there are some of them which are only evil by accident which may not be commanded but may be done when contrary weightier Accidents do preponderate 4. Many such things may be done Materially on other reasons as for the Churches good the furtherance of the Gospel the winning of men to God the avoiding of scandal or of hurt to others or our selves c. when they are not to be done in formal obedience out of Conscience to the Authority imposing As if it be commanded by one that hath no just power 5. Our Actions may participate of obedience in general as being actions of subjects when they are not obedience in the full and perfect formality as to the particular The last leaf of Rich. Hooker's eighth Book of Eccl. Polit. will shew you the reason of this He that hath not just power to command me this one particular Act yet may be my Ruler in the General and I am bound to Honour Eph. 5. 24. Col. 3. 20 22. Rom. 13. 1 2 3 4 5 6. him in General as my Ruler And to disobey him in a thing Lawful for me to do though not for him to command may be dishonouring of him and an appearance of disobedience and denyall of his power A Parent is forbidden by God to command his Child to speak an idle word or to do a vain and useless action much more a hurtful Yet if a Parent should command a Child to speak an idle word or do a vain action the duty of obedience would make it at that time not to be vain and idle to him yea if he bid him throw away a cup of Wine or a piece of bread which is evil when causeless the Child may be bound to do it not only because he knoweth not but the Parents may have lawful ends and reasons for their command as to try and exercise his obedience but also if he were sure that it were not so Because he is a subject and the honouring of a Parent is so great a good and the dishonouring him by that disobedience may have such ill consequents as will preponderate the evil of the lâ—ss of a Cup of Wine c. Yet in this case the Act of obedience is but mixt It is an act of subjection or Honour to a Parent because in General he is a Governour But it is but Materially obedience in respect of that particular matter which we know he had no Authority to command 6. In this respect therefore A Ruler may have so much power as may induce on the subject an obligation to obey and yet not so much as may justifie his commands before God nor save himself from Divine punishment I add this so distinctly lest any should misapply Mr. Rich. Hooker's doctrine aforesaid Eccl. Pol. l. 8. p. 223 224. As for them that exercise power altogether against order though the kind of power which they have may be of God yet in their exercise thereof against God and therefore not of God otherwise than by permission as all injustice is Usurpers of power whereby we do not mean them that by violence have aspired unto places of highest authority but them that use more authority than they did ever receive in form and manner before mentioned Such Usurpers thereof as in the Exercise of their power do more than they have been authorized to do cannot in Conscience bind any man to obedience Lest any should gather hence that they are never bound in Conscience to obey their Parents their Job 19. 11. Rom. 13. 1. King their Pastors in any point wherein they exercise more power than God gave them I thought meet to speak more exactly to that point which needed this distinguishing For the ground is sure that There is no power but of God And that God hath given no man power against himself his Laws and service But yet there are many cases in which God bindeth children and subjects to obey their superiours in such matters as they did sinfully command 7. It greatly concerneth all sober Christians therefore to be well studied in the Law of God that we may certainly know what those things are which God hath absolutely forbidden us to do whoever command them and to distinguish them from things that depend on mutable accidents That as the three Witnesses and Daniel Dan. 3. 6. we may be true to God whatever we suffer for it and yet may obey men in all â—hat is our duty to them Thus the Apostles knew that no man had power from God to silence them or persecute them for the Gospel Therefore they would not obey those that forbad them to Preach And yet they would appear before any Magistrate that commanded them and obey their 〈◊〉 And so we may do even to an Usurper or a private man 8. The principal and most notable Case in which we must obey when a Ruleâ— sinfully commandeth is when the matter which he commandeth is not such as is either forbidden us by
was an Ecclesiastical Usurper quoad personam that had no true Call to a Lawful Office shall after have a Call or if any thing fall out which shall make it our duty to Consent and Call him then the impediment from his Usurpation is removed 3. It is not lawful though the Civil Magistrate command us to swear obedience even in licitis honestis to such an Usurper whose Office it self is unlawful or forbidden by Christ as he is such an Officer No Protestant thinketh it lawful to swear obedience to the Pope as Pope nor do any that take Lay-Elders to be an unlawful Office think it lawful to swear obedience to them as such 4. If one that is in an unlawful Ecclesiastical Office be also at once in another that is lawful we may swear obedience to him in respect of the Lawful Office So it is Lawful to swear obedience to the Pope in Italy as a Temporal Prince in his own Dominions And to a Cardinal as Richelieu Mazarine Ximenes c. as the Kings Minister exercising a power derived from him So it is lawful for a Tenant where Law and Custome requireth it to swear fidelity to a Lay Elder as his Landlord or Temporal Lord and Master And so the old Non-conformists who thought the English Prelacy an unlawful Office yet maintained that it is Lawful to take the Oath of Canonical obedience because they thought it was imposed by the King and Laws and that we swear to them not as Officers claiming a Divine Right in the Spiritual Government but as Ordinaries or Officers made by the King to exercise so much of Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction under him as he can delegate according to the Oath of Supremacy in which we all acknowledge the King to be Supream in all Ecclesiastical Causes that is Not the Supream Pastor Bishop or Spiritual Key-bearer or Ruler but the Supream Civil Ruler of the Church who hath the power of the Sword and of determining all things extrinsick to the Pastoral Office and so of the Coercive Government of all Pastors and Churches as well as of other Subjects And if Prelacy were proved never so unlawful no doubt but by the Kings Command we may swear or perform formal obedience to a Prelate as he is the Kings Officer Of the Non-conformists judgement in this read Bradshaw against Canne c. 5. But in such a case no Oath to Inferiours is lawful without the Consent of the Soveraign power or at least against his will 6. Though it be a duty for the flock to obey every Presbyter yet if they would make all the people swear obedience to them all wise and conscionable Christians should dissent from the introduction of such a custome and deny such Oaths as far as lawfully they may that is 1. If the King be against it we must refuse it 2. If he be neutral or meerly passive in it we must refuse unless some apparent necessity for the Churches good require it 1. Because it favoureth of Pride in such Presbyters 2. Because it is a new Custome in the Church and contrary to the antient practice 3. It is not only without any authority given them by Christ that they exact such Oaths but Mat. 22. 4 10. Luke 22. 27 c. Mark 9. 35. 1 Pet. 5. 2 3. 1 Cor. 9. 19. 1 Cor. 4. 1. 2 Cor. 4. 5. also contrary to the great humility lowliness and condescension in which he describeth his Ministers who must be Great by being the servants of all 4. And it tendeth to corrupt the Clergy for the future 5. And such new impositions give just reason to Princes and to the People to suspect that the Presbyters are aspiring after some inordinate exaltation or have some ill project for the advancement of themselves 7. But yet if it be not only their own ambition which imposeth it but either the King and Laws command it or necessity require it for the avoidance of a greater evil it may be Lawful and a duty to take an Oath of Obedience to a Lawful Presbyter or Bishop Because 1. It is a ☜ duty to Obey them 2. And it is not forbidden us by Christ to promise or swear to do our duty even when they may sin in demanding such an Oath 8. If an Office be Lawful in the essential parts and yet have unlawful integrals or adjuncts or be abused in exercise it will not by such additions or abuses be made unlawful to swear Obedience to the Officer as such 9. If one Presbyter or Bishop would make another Presbyter or Bishop to swear obedience to him without authority the Case is the same as of the Usurpers before mentioned Quest. 154. Must all our preaching be upon a Text of Scripture Answ. 1. IN many Cases it may be lawful to preach without a Text to make Sacred Orations Act◠2 3. like Greg. Nazianzenes and Homilies like Macarius's Ephrem Syrus's and many other antients and like our own Church-Homilies 2. But ordinarily it is the fittest way to preach upon a Text of Scripture 1. Because it is our Luke 4. 18. very Office to Teach the people the Scripture The Prophets brought a new word or message from God but the Priests did but keep interpret and teach the Law already received And we are not Mal. 2. 7. successors of the inspired Prophets but as the Priests were Teachers of Gods received Word And this practice will help the people to understand our Office 2. And it will preserve the due esteem and reverence of the Holy Scriptures which the contrary practice may diminish Quest. 155. Is not the Law of Moses abrogated and the whole Old Testament out of date and therefore not to be Read publickly and preached on Answ. 1. THe Covenant of Innocency is ceased cessante subditorum capacitate as a Covenant or promise And so are the Positive Laws proper to Adam in that state and to many particular persons since 2. The Covenant mixt of Grace and Works proper to the Jews with all the Jewish Law as such was never made to us or to the rest of the world and to the Jews it is ceased by the coming and perfecter Laws and Covenant of Christ. 3. The Prophecies and Types of Christ and the Promises made to Adam Abraham and others of his Coming in the flesh are all fulfilled and therefore not useful to all the ends of their first making And the many Prophecies of particular things and persons past and gone are accomplished 4. But the Law of Nature is still Christs Law And that Law is much expounded to us in the Old Testament And if God once for another use did say This is the Law of Nature the truth of these words as a Divine Doctrine and Exposition of the Law of Nature is still the same 5. The Covenant of Grace made with Adam and Noah for all mankind is still in force as to the great benefits and main condition that is as to pardon given by it
more congruously and it seems with less offence than we Saith the Geographia Nubiensis aptly There is a certain King dwelling at Rome called the Pope c. when he goeth to describe him Nothing well suites with our function but the pure Doctrine of Salvation Let States-men and Lawyers mind the rest Two things I must apologize for in this Part 1. That it 's maimed by defect of those Directions to Princes Nobles Parliament-men and other Magistrates on whose duty the happiness of Kingdoms Churches and the World dependeth To which I answer that those must teach them whom they will hear while my Reason and experience forbid me as an unacceptable person to speak to them without a special invitation I can bear the Censures of Strangers who knew not them or me I am not so proud as to expect that men so much above me should stoop to read any Directions of mine much less to think me fit to teach them Every one may reprove a poor servant or a beggar It 's part of their priviledge But Great men must not be so much as admonished by any but themselves and such as they will hear At least nothing is a duty which a man hath reason to think is like to do much more harm than good And my own judgement is much against pragmatical presumptuous Preachers who are over-forward to meddle with their Governours or their affairs and think that God sendeth them to reprove persons and things that are strange to them and above them and vent their distastes upon uncertain reports or without a Call 2. And I expect to be both blamed and mis-understood for what I hear say in the Confutation of Mr. Richard Hooker his Political Principles and my Citation of B. Bilson and such others But they must observe 1. That it is not all in Mr. Hookers first and eighth Book which I gainsay but the principle of the Peoples being the fountain of Authority or that Kings receive their Office it self from them with the consequents hereof How far the people have in any Countrys the power of Electing the Persons Families or Forms of Government or how far nature giveth them propriety and the consequents of this I meddle not with at all 2. Nor do I choose Mr. Hooker out of any envy to his name and honour but I confess I do it to let men know truly whose Principles these are And if any causelesly question whether the eighth imperfect Book be in those passages his own let them remember that the sum of all that I confute is in his first Book which is old and highly honoured by you know whom And I will do him the honour and my self the dishonour to confess that I think the far greater number of Casuists and Authors of Politicks Papists and Protestants are on his side and fewest on mine But truth is truth On the subjects duty I am larger because if they will not hear at least I may boldly and freely instruct them If in the later part there be any useful Cases of Conscience left out it is because I could not remember them Farewell A Christian Directory TOM IV. Christian Politicks CHAP. I. General Rules for an Upright Conversation § 1. SOLOMON saith Prov. 10. 9. He that walketh uprightly walketh surely And Perfection and Uprightness are the characters of Iob Chap. 1. 1 8. 2. 3. And in the Scripture to be Upright or Righteous and to walk uprightly and to do righteously are the titles of those that are acceptable to God And by Uprightness is meant not only sincerity as opposed to Hypocrisie but also Rectitude of Heart and Life as opposed to crookedness or sin and this as it is found in various Degrees of which we use to call the lowest degree that is saving by the name of sincerity and the highest by the name of Perfection § 2. Concerning Uprightness of life I shall I. Briefly tell you some of those blessings that should make us all in love with it and II. Give you some necessary Rules of practice § 3. I. Uprightness of heart and life is a certain fruit of the Spirit of Grace and consequently a mark of our Union with Christ and a proof of our acceptableness with God Psal. 7. 10. My defence is of God who saveth the upright in heart Psal. 11. 7. For the righteous Lord loveth righteousness and his countenance doth behold the upright It is a title that God himself assumeth Psal. 25. 8. Good and upright is the Lord. Psal. 92. 15. To shew that the Lord is upright He is my rock and no unrighteousness is in him And God-calleth himself the Maker the Director the Protector and the Lover of the upright Eccl. 7. 29. God made man upright Psal. 1. 6. The Lord knoweth the way of the righteous Psal. 25. 12. What man is he that feareth the Lord him will he teach in the way that he shall choose Prov. 2. 7. He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly 2. The Upright are the Pillars of humane society that keep up Truth and Iustice in the world without whom it would be but a company of lyers deceivers robbers and enemies that live in constant rapine or â—ostility There were no Trust to be put in one another further than self-interest did oblige men Psal. 15. 1 2. Lord who shall abide in thy Tabernacle Who shall dwell in thy holy hill He that walketh uprightly and worketh righteousness and speaketh the truth in his heart Therefore the wicked and the enemies of Peace and destroyers of Societies are still described as Enemies to the upright Psal. 11. 2 3. For lo the wicked bend their bow they make ready their arrow upon the string that they may privily shoot at the upright in heart If the foundations be destroyed what can the righteous do Job 12. 4. The just and upright man is laughed to scorn Psal. 37. 14. The wicked have drawn out the sword to slay such as be of upright conversation And indeed it is for the uprights sake that societies are preserved by God as Sodom might have been for ten Lots At least they are under the protection of Omnipotency themselves Isa. 33. 15 16. He that walketh righteously and speaketh uprightly he that despiseth the gain of oppression that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes that stoppeth his ear from hearing of blood that shutteth his eyes from seeing evil He shall dwell on high his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks bread shall be given him his waters shall be sure Thine eyes shall see the King in his beauty they shall behold the Land that is very far off Prov. â—8 10. The upright shall have good things in possession Prov. 14. 11. The house of the wicked shall be overthrown but the tabernacle of the upright shall flourish 3. Uprightness affordeth Peace of Conscience and quietness and holy security to the soul. This was Pauls rejoycing the testimony
Nobles and thy Princes eat in due season for strength and not for drunkenness It is an abomination to Kings to commit wickedness for the Throne is established by Righteousness Prov. 16. 12. 4. To remember alwayes the End of Holiness How sure a way it is to Glory hereafter and to leave a sweet and glorious name and memorial upon earth when wickedness is the certain way to shame on earth and misery for ever § 18. Memorand 18. Rulers should not be contented to do good at home and to be the Joy and Memor 18. blessing of their own subjects but also set their hearts to the promoting of faith and holiness and Concord throughout the Churches of the World And to improve their interests in Princes and States by amicable correspondencies and treaties to these ends that they may be blessings to the utmost extent of their capacities As Constantine interceded with the Persian King to forbear the Eâ—sâ—b in vitâ Coast. persecuting of Christians in his Dominion c But I shall presume to speak no farther to my Superiours In the Golden Age these Memorandum's will be practised I will only annex Erasmus his Image of a Good Prince and of a Bad recited by Alstedius Encyclop l. 23. Polit. c. 3. pag. 173 174. The Image of a good Prince out of Erasmus If you will draw the picture of a good Prince delineate some Coelestial wight liker to God than to a man absolute in all perfections of virtue Given for the good of all yea sent from Heaven for the relief of mortal mens affairs which being oculaâ—issimum most discerning looketh to all to whom nothing is more regarded nothing more sweet than the Common-wealth who hath more than a fatherly affection unto all To whom every ones life is dearer than his own who night and day is doing and endeavouring nothing else but that it may be very well with all who hath Rewards in readiness for all that are good and pardon for the bad if so be they will betake them to a better course That so freely desireth to deserve well of his Subjects that if it be needful he will not stick to preserve their safety by his own peril that taketh his Countrys Commodity to be his own gain that alwayes watcheth that others may sleep quietly that leaveth himself no quiet vacancy that his Countrey may live in quiet vacancy or peace that afflicteth himself with successive cares that his Subjects may enjoy tranquellity To conclude on whose Virtue it is that the Publick happiness doth depend The Image of a bad Prince Ibid. If you would set forth a bad Prince to the eye you must paint some savage horrid beast made up of such monstrosities as a Dragon a Wolf a Lyon a Viper a Bear c. every way armed with six hundred eyes every way toothed every way terrible with hooked talons of an insatiable paunch fed with mens bowels drunk with mans blood that watcheth to prey upon the lives and fortunes of all the people troublesome to all but specially to the good a fatal evil to the World which all curse and hate who wish well to the Common-wealth which can neither be endured because of his cruelty nor yet taken away without the great calamity of the World because wickedness is armed with Guards and Riches CHAP. III. Directions for Subjects concerning their duty to their Rulers BEing now to speak of the duties which I must practise and to those of my own rank I shall do it with some more freedom confidence and expectation of regard and practice § 1. Direct 1. Though I shall pass by most of the theory and especially of the controversal points in Politicks and not presume to play the Lawyers part yet I must advise you to understand so much of the cause and nature and end of Government as is necessary to direct you in your obedience and to preserve you from all temptations to rebellion Especially take heed of those mistakes which confound soveraignty and subjection and which delude the people with a conceit that they are the Original of power and may entrust it as they please and call their Rulers to account and take the forfeiture and recall their trust c. It is not to flatter Kings but to give God his due that I shall caution you against these mistakes of Popularity And first I shall briefly lay down the truth and then answer some few of the chief objections § 2. Propos. 1. That there be Government in genere and obedience thereto is determined even in Nature Nihil Deo qui omnem mundum hunc regit acceptius quam concilia caetusque homiâ—â—â—â— quae ci 〈…〉 appellantur Cicero by the God of Nature in making man a sociable creature and each man insufficient for himself and in making Republicks necessâ—â—â—â— to the welfare and safety of individuals and Government necessary to these Republicks This therefore is not left to the peoples wills Though some odd cases may be imagined in which some individual persons may live out of a Common-wealth and not bâ— obliged to live under Civil-Government yet that exception doth but confirm the general Rule Even as all men ordinarily are bound to live in Communion with some particular Church and know their own Pastor though yet some few may be excepted as some Embassadours Travellers Seamen Souldiers banished men c. So here the obligation to live under Government lyeth upon the generality of the World though some few may be excepted § 3. Prop. 2. Rulers therefore are Gods officers placed under him in his Kingdom as he is the Universal absolute Soveraign of the World And they receive their power from God who is the only Original of Power Not only their strength from his strength but their Authority or Governing power which is Ius regendi from his supream authority as Mayors and Bayliffs in Corporations receive their power from the King Rom. 13. 1 2 3. There is no power but of God the powers that be are ordained of God § 4. Prop. 3. This Governing power in genere is not an empty name but in the very institution containeth in it those things Materially which are absolutely necessary to the end of Government § 5. Prop. 4. Yet God hath left that which is commonly called the specification of Government and some lower parts of the Matter and Manner of exercise undetermined as also the Individual persons or families that shall Rule In these three therefore it is that Communities interpose 1. Whether the soveraignty shall be in one or two or ten or how many and how divided for their exercise God hath not determined 2. Nor hath he determined of every particular whether the Power shall extend Grotius de Imper sum Potest c. 1. p. 7 8. Sunt qui objiciant Reges quaedam impâ—rare non posse nisi consensus Ordinum accesserit sed hi non vident quibus in locis id juris est ibi summum Imperium
Eccl. Pol. l. 1. § 10. p. 21. That which Object 1. So p. 23. The same error of the Original of Power hath Acosta l. 2. c. 5. p. â—08 with many other â—esuites and Papists we spake of the power of Government must here be applyed to the power of making Laws whereby to govern which power God hath over all and by the Natural Law whereto he hath made all subject the lawful power of making Laws to command whole politick societies of men belongeth so properly to the same entire societies that for any Prince or Potentate of what kind soever upon earth to exercise the same of himself and not either by express Commission immediately and personally received from God or else by Authority derived at first from their Consent upon whose persons they impose Laws it is no better than meer Tyranny Laws they are not therefore which publick approbation hath not made so Answ. Because the Authority of this famous Divine is with his Party so great I shall adventure to Answ. say something lest his words do the more harm but not by confident opposition but humble proposal and submission of my judgement to superiours and wiser men as being conscious of my own inferiority and infirmity I take all this to be an assertion no where by him proved and by me elsewhere disproved fully Laws are the Effects and signs of the Rulers Will and instruments of Government Legislation is the first part of Government And if the whole Body are naturally Governours the Pares imperans and pars subdita are confounded If the most Absolute Monarch can make Bishop Audâ—â—ws iâ— Tortar Tortâ— p. 385 Acuius homo non distinguit inter Formam atque Authoritatem regiminis Forma de hominibus esse potest de coeâ—o semper est authoritas An Rex sit supra Leges Vid. Seb. Fox lib 2. de Iâ—stit Reg. no Laws then disobeying them were no fault It is enough that their Power be derived from God immediately though the persons be chosen by men Their Authority is not derived from the peoples consent but from God by their consent as a bare condition sine qua non What if a Community say all to their elected King We take not our selves to have any Governing power to give or use but we only choose you or your family to that Office which God hath instituted who in that Institution giveth you the power upon our choice Can any man prove that such a King hath no power but is a Tyrant because the people disclaim the Giving of the Power When indeed they do their duty Remember that in all this we speak not of the Government of this or that particular Kingdom but of Kingdoms and other Commonwealths indefinitely Object 2. But saith he Lib. 8. p. 192. Unto me it seemeth almost out of doubt and controversie Object 2. that every independent multitude before any certain form of regiment established hath under God Supream Authority full Dominion over it self Answ. If by Dominion were meant Propriety every Individual hath it But for Governing Power Answ. it seemeth as clear to me that your independent multitude hath no Civil Power of Government at all but only a Power to choose them Governours While they have no Governours they have no Governing Power for that maketh a Governour § 14. Object 3. Ibid. A man who is Lord of himself may be made anothers servant c. Object 3. Answ. 1. He may hire out himself to Labour for another because he hath so far the power of Answ. himself and his Labour is his own which he may sell for wages But in a family that the Master be the Governour to see Gods Laws obeyed by his servants is of Divine appointment and this Governing power the servant giveth not to his Master but only maketh himself the object of it 2. The power that nature giveth a man over himself is tota specie distinct from Civil Government as Dr. Hammond hath well shewed against I. G. An Individual person hath not that power of his own Dion Cass. saith that when Eâ—phates the Philosopher would kill himself Veniam dederat ei Adrianus citra ignominiam infamiam ut cicutam tum propter senectutem tum etiam propter gravem morbum bibere posset In vita Adriani life as the King hath He may not put himself to death for that which the King may put him to death for 3. If this were true that every individual by self-resignation might give a King his power over him yet a posse ad esse non valet consequentia And that it is not so is proved in that God the Universal Soveraign hath prevented them by determining himself of his own Officers and giving them their power in the same Charter by which he enableth the people to choose them Therefore it is no better reasoning than to say If all the persons in London subjected themselves to the Lord Mayor he would thereby receive his power from them when the King hath prevented that already by giving him the power himself in his Charter and leaving only the choice of the person to them and that under the direction of the Rules which he hath given them § 15. Object 4. But saith he pag. 193. l. 8. In Kingdoms of this quality as this we live Object 4. in the Highest Governour hath indeed universal dominion but with dependency upon that whole entire body over the several parts whereof he hath dominion so that it standeth for an axiome in this â—ase The King is major singulis universis minor Answ. If you had included Himself its certain that he cannot be Greater than the whole because he Answ. cannot be greater than himself But seeing you speak of the whole in contradistinction from him I answer That indeed in genere causae finalis the Soveraign is Universis Minor that is The whole Kingdom is naturally more worth than One and their felicity a greater good or else the bonum publicum or salus populi could not be the End of Government But this is nothing to our case For we are speaking of Governing power as a means to this end And so in genere causae efficientis the Soveraign yea and his lowest Officer hath more Authority or Ius Regendi than all the people as such for they all as such have none at all Even as the Church is of more worth than the Pastor and yet the Pastor alone hath more Authority to administer the Sacraments and to Govern the people than all the flock hath For they have none either to use or give what ever some say to the contrary but Against the peoples being the Givers of Power by conjoyning all their own in one in Church or State see Mr. D. Cawdry's Review of Mr. Hookers Survey p. 154 c. only choose him to whom God will give it § 16. Object 5. Saith the Reverend Author lib. 8. p. 194. Neither
can any man with reason think Object 5. but that the first institution of Kings a sufficient consideration wherefore their power should alwayes depend on that from which it did alwayes flow by original influence of power from the Body into the King is the cause of Kings dependency in power upon the body By dependency we mean subordination and subjection ☜ Answ. 1. But it their institution in genere was of God and that give them their power and it never Answ. flowed from the Body at all then all your superstructure falleth with your ground-work 2. And here you seem plainly to confound all Kingdoms by turning the pars imperans into the pars subdita vice versa If the King be subject how are they his subjects I will not inferr what this will lead them to do when they are taught that Kings are in subordination and subjection to them Sad experience hath shewed us what this very principle would effect § 17. Object 6. Ibid. A manifest token of which dependency may be this as there is no more certain Object 6. argument that Lands are held under any as Lords than if we see that such lands in defect of heirs So Lib 8 â— 211 p 218 p. 220. fall unto them by Escheat In like manner it doth follow rightly that seeing Dominion when there is none to inherit it returneth unto the body therefore they which before were inheritors of it did hold it in dependance on the body So that by comparing the Body with the Head as touching power it seemeth alwayes to reside in both fundamentally and radically in one in the other derivatively in one the Habit in the other the Act of Power Answ. Power no more falleth to the multitude by Escheat than the Power of the Pastor falls to the Answ. Church or the Power of the Physicion to the Hospital or the Power of the Schoolmaster to the Scholars that is not at all When all the Heirs are dead they are an ungoverned Community that have power to choose a Governour but no Power to Govern neither as you distinguish it in Habit nor in act originally nâ—r derivatively As it is with a Corporation when the Mayor is dead the power falleth not to the people Therefore there is no good ground given for your following question May a body politick than at all times withdraw in whole or in part the influence of dominion which passeth from it if inconveniences do â—row thereby Though you answer this question soberly your self its easie to see how the multitude may be tempted to answer it on your grounds especially if they think your inconvenience turn into a necessity and what use they will make of your next words It must be presumed that Supream Governours will not in such cases oppose themselves and be stiff in detaining that the use whereof is with publick detriment A strange presumption § 18. Object 7. The Axioms of our Regal Government are these Lex facit Regem The Kings Object 7. grant of any favour made contrary to Law is void Rex nihil potest nisi quod jure potest Answ. If Lex be taken improperly for the constituting contract between Prince and people and Answ. if your facit have respect only to the species and person and not the substance of the Power it self Lib. 8. p. 195. Trita in Scholis Nem nem sibi impâ—râ—e possâ— nominem sibi legem posse dicere à qua mutata voluntate nequeat recedere Summum ejus esse Imperium qui ordinario jure derogare valeat Equibus evinâ—itur jus summae potestaâ—â—s non limâ—tari per legem positivam Hinc Augustinus dixit Imperatorem non esse subjectum legibus suis Gâ—â—iuâ— de Imp. p. 149 150. then I contradict you not But if Lex be taken properly for Authoritativa constitutio debiti or the signification of the Soveraigns will to oblige the Subject then Lex non facit Regem sed Rex Legem § 19 Object 8. Lib. 8. p. 210. When all which the wisdom of all sorts can do is done for the devising Object 8. of Laws in the Church it is the general consent of all that giveth them the form and vigor of Laws without which they could be no more to us than the Councils of Physicions to the sick Well might they seem is wholesome admonitions and instructions but Laws could they never be without consent of the whole Church to be guided by them whereunto both nature and the practice of the Church of God set down in Scripture is found every way so fully consonant that God himself would not impose no not his own Laws upon his people by the hand of Moses without their free and open consent ☜ Answ. 1. Wisdom doth but prepare Laws and Governing power enacteth them and giveth them Answ. their form But the whole Body hath no such Governing power Therefore they give them not their form 2. The peoples consent to Gods Laws gave them not their form or authority This opinion I Hanc video sapien issimorum fuisse sentâ—ntiam Leâ—em nec homâ—num ingeniis excogitatam nec sâ—itum aliquod esse populorum sed aeterâ—um quiddam quod universum mundum regeret â—mperandi prohibendique sapientia Cicero de Leg. have elsewhere confuted against a more erroneous Author Their consent to Gods Laws was required indeed as naturally necessary to their obedience but not as necessary to the Being or Obligation of the Law Can you think that it had been no sin in them to have disobeyed Gods Laws unless they had first consented to them Then all the world might escape sin and damnation by denying consent to the Laws of God 3. This doctrine will teach men that * How considerable a part of England is London Yet in this Convocation which hath made the Neâ— Changes in the Liturgy and Book of Ordination London had not one Clerk of their choosing For being to choose but two they chose only Mr. Calaâ—y and my self who were neither of us accepted or ever thâ—re Now if your opinion be true Quar. 1. Whether you make not this Convocations Decrees to be but Counsels to us a. Or at least whether the City of London or the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Ministers be not made free from detriment as not consenters You will free them and me especially from Detriment for our Not Conforming to this Convocations Acts as such upon reasons which I do not own my self as generally by you laid down we have no Church-Laws For the whole Church never signified their consent Millions of the poorer sort have no voices in choosing Parliament men or Convocations And this will teach the minor dissenting part to think themselves disobliged for want of consenting and will give every dissenting part or person a Negative voice to all Church Laws 4. A single Bishop hath a Governing power over his particular Church and they are bound to obey
will be governed on no other terms But if the contract limit them not but they be chosen simply to be the summae Potestates without naming any particular powers either by concession or restraint than as to Ruling they are Absolute as to men and limited only by God from whose highest Power they can never be exempt who in Nature and Scripture restraineth them from all that is impious and unjust against his Laws and honour or against the publick happiness and safety And here also remember that if any shall imagine that God restraineth a Magistrate when it is not so and that the commands of their Governours are contrary to the Word of God when it is no such matter their error will not justifie their disobedience Though I have answered these Passages of this Reverend Author it is not to draw any to undervalue his learned Writings but to set right the Reader in the Principles of his Obedience on which the Practice doth so much depend And I confess that other Authors of Politicks say as much as Mr. Hooker saith both Papists and Protestants but not all nor I think the soundest I will instance now in Alstedius only an excellent person but in this mistaken who saith Encyclop l. 23. Polit. c. 3. p. 178. Populus Universus dignior potior est tum magistratu tum Ephoris Hinc recte docent Doct. Politici populum obtinere regnum jura Majestatis proprietate dominio Principem Ephoros Usu administratione whereas the people have not the Regnum vel jura Majestatis any way at all Si administratores efficium suum facere nolint si impia iniqua mandent si contra dilectionem Dei proximi agant populus propriae salutis curam arripiet imperium male utentibus abrogabit in locum eorum alios substituet Porro Ephori validiora ipso Rege imperia obtinent Principem enim constitâ—â—nt deponunt id quod amplissimum est praeeminentiae argumentum Atque haec prerogativa mutuis pactis stabilitur Interinâ— princeps summam potestatem obtinere dicitur quatenus Ephori administrationem imperii cumulum potestatis ipsi committunt Denique optimatum universorum potestas non est infinita absoluta sed certis veluti rhetris clathris definita utpote non ad propriam libidinem sed ad utilitatem salutem populi alligata Hinc illorum munia sunt Regem designare constituere inaugurare constitutum consiliis auxiliis juvare sine consensu approbatione Principis quamdiu ille suum officium facit nihil in Reipublicae negotiis suscipere Nonnâ—â—quam conventum inscio Principe agere necessitate reipublicae exigente Populum contra omnis generis turbatores violatores defendere I suppose Mr. Hookers Principles and Alstedius's were much the same I will not venture to recite the Conclusion cap. 12. pag. 199. R. 5. de resistendo Tyranno Many other Authors go the same way and say that the people have the Majestas Realis both Papists and Protestants and Heathens But I suppose that what I have said against Hooker will serve to shew the weakness of their grounds Though it is none of my purpose to contradict either Hooker or any other so far as they open the odiousness of the sin of Tyranny which at this day keepeth out the Gospel from the far greatest part of the world and is the greatest enemy to the Kingdom of Christ nor yet as they plead for the just Liberties of the People But I am not for their Authority § 24. Direct 2. Begin with an Absolute Universal resolved Obedience to God your Creator and Redeemer Direct 2. who is your Soveraign King and will be your final righteous Iudge As he that is no loyal Subject to the King can never well obey his Officers so he that subjecteth not his soul to the Original Power of his Creator can never well obey the Derivative Power of earthly Governours Object But you may say experience teacheth us that many ungodly people are obedient to their superiours as well as others I answer Materially they are but not Formally and from a right principle and to right ends As a Rebel against the King may obey a Justice of Peace for his own Ends as long as he will let him alone or take his part But not formally as he is the Kings Officer So ungodly men may flatter Princes and Magistrates for their own ends or on some low and by account but not sincerely as the Officers of God He is not like to be truly obedient to man that is so foollish dishonest and impious as to rebel against his Maker nor to obey that authority which he first denyeth in its Original and first efficient cause What ever Satan and his servants may say and however some hypocrites may contradict in their practices the Religion which they profess yet nothing is more certain than that the most serious godly Christians are the best subjects upon earth As their principles themselves will easily demonstrate § 25. Direct 3. Having begun with God obey your Governours as the Officers of God with an obedience Direct 3. ultimately Divine All things must be done in Holiness by the Holy That is God must be Greg. Nazianz. cited by Bilson of Subject p. 361. Thou reignest together with Christ Thou rulest with him Thy Sword is from him Thou art the Image of God discerned obeyed and intended in all And therefore in Magistrates in a special manner In two respects Magistrates are obeyed or rather flattered by the ungodly First as they are men that are able to do them corporal good or hurt As a Horse or Dog or other Bruit will follow you for his belly and loveth to be where he fareth best Secondly As the Head of his Party and encourager of him in his evil way when he meets with Rulers that will be so bad Wicked men Love wicked Magistrates for being the servants of Satan But faithful men must Honour and Obey a Magistrate as an Officer of God Even a Magistrate as a Magistrate and not only as Holy is an Officer of the Lord of all Therefore the fifth Commandment is as the hinge of the two Tables Many of the Antients thought that it was the last Commandment of the first Table and the Moderns think it is the first Comandment of the last Table For it commandeth our duty to the noblest sort of men but not meerly as men but as the Officers of God They debase Magistrates that look at them meerly as those that master other men as the strongest Beast doth by the weaker Nothing will make you sincere and constant in your honouring and obeying them but taking them as the Officers of God and remembring by whose commission they rule and whose work they do that They are Ministers of God to us for good Rom. 13. 1 2 3 4 5. If you do not this 1. You wrong God whose servants they are For he
infer ergo Bâ—shop be no Governours in those things meaning No dispensers guiders nor directors of those things your Conclusion is larger c. so p. 256. Ecclesiastical so far as coercive Government is required it belongeth not to Pope or Prelates under him but to the King and his Officers or Courts alone Or that the King is chief in Governing by the Sword in causes Ecclesiastical as well as Civil So that if you put spiritual instead of Ecclesiastical the word is taken materially and not formally not that the King is chief in the spiritual Government by the Keyes of Excommunication and Absolution but that he is chief in the coercive Government about spiritual matters as before explained § 51. Quest. 3. Is not this to confound the Church and State and to give the Pastors Power to the Magistrate Quest. 3. Answ. Not at all It is but to say that there may be need of the use both of the Word and Sword against the same persons for the same offence and the Magistrate only must use one and the Pastors the other An heretical Preacher may be silenced by the King upon pain of banishment and silenced by the Church upon pain of excommunication And what confusion is there in this § 52. Quest. 4. But hath not the King Power in Cases of Church Discipline and Excommunication it Quest. 4. self Answ. There is a Magistrates Discipline and a Pastoral Discipline Discipline by the Sword is It was somewhat far that Carolus Magnus went to be actual Guide of all in his Chappel in Reading even in all their stops as it is at large declared by Abbas Usperg Chroa p. 181. the Magistrates work Discipline by the Word is the Pastors work And there is a Coercive Excommunication and a Pastoral Excommunication To command upon pain of corporal punishment that a Heretick or Impenitent wicked man shall forbear the Sacred Ordinances and Priviledges a Magistrate may do But to command it only upon Divine and Spiritual penalties belongeth to the Pastors of the Church The Magistrate hath power over their very Pastoral work though he have not power in it so as to do it himself Suppose but all the Physicions of the Nation to be of Divine Institution with their Colledges and Hospitals and in the similitude you will see all the difficulties resolved and the next Question fully answered § 53. Quest. 5. Seeing the King and the Pastors of the Church may Command and Iudge to several Ends in the same cause suppose they should differ which of them should the Church obey Answ. Distinguish here 1. Between a right Judgement and a wrong 2. Between the matter in question Quest. 5. which is either 1. Proper in its primary state to the Magistrate 2. Or proper primarily to the Pastor 3. Or common to both though in several sorts of judgement And so I answer the question thus 1. If it be a matter wherein God himself hath first determined and his Officers do but judge in subordination to his Law and declare his Will then we must obey him that speaketh according to Bishop Bilson p. 313. We grant they must rather hazard their lives than Baptize Princes which believe not or distribute the Lords Mysteries to them that repâ—nt not but give wilful and open signification of impiety c Bâ—da Hist. Eccles. lib. 2. cap. 5. telleth us that Melitus Bishop of London with Iustus was banished by the heirs of King Sabereth because he would not give them the Sacrament of the Lords Supper which they would needs have before they were baptized the Word of God if we can truly discern it and not him that we know goeth contrary to God As if the Magistrate should forbid communion with Arrians as Hereticks and the Pastors command us to hold communion with them as no Hereticks here the Magistrate is to be obeyed because God is to be obeyed before the Pastors though it be in a matter of Faith and Worship If you say Thus you make all the people Judges I answer you and so you must make them such Private Iudges to discern their own duty and so must every man or else you must rule them as Beasts or mad men and prove that there is no Heaven or Hell for any in the world but Kings and Pastors or at least that the people shall be saved or damned for nothing but obeying or not obeying their Governours And if you could prove that you are never the nearer reconciling the contradictory commands of those Governours 2. But if the matter be not fore-determined by God but left to Man then 1. If it be the Magistrates proper work we must obey the Magistrate only 2. If it be about the Pastors proper work the Pastor is to be obeyed though the Magistrate gainsay it so be it he proceed according to the General Rules of his instructions and the matter be of weight As if the Magistrate and the Pastors of the Church do command different translations or expositions of the Bible to be used or one forbiddeth and another commandeth the same individual person to be baptized or receive the Sacrament of the Lords Supper or to be esteemed a member of the Church if the people know not which of them judgeth right it seemeth to me they should first obey their Pastors because it is only in matters intimately pertaining to their office I speak only of formal obedience and that of the people only for materially Prudence may require us rather to do as the Magistrate commandeth quod non quia to avoid a greater evil And it s alwayes supposed that we patiently bear the Magistrates penalties when we obey not his Commands 3. But in points common to them both the case is more difficult But here you must further distinguish 1. Between points equally common and points unequally common 2. Between determinations of Good or Bad or Indifferent consequence as to the main End and Interest of God and souls 1. In points equally common to both the Magistrate is to be obeyed against the Pastors Because he is more properly a Commanding Governour and they are but the Guides or Governours of Volunteers And because in such cases the Pastors themselves should obey the Magistrate and therefore the people should first obey him 2. Much more in points unequally common which the Magistrate is more concerned in than the Pastors the Magistrate is undoubtedly to be first obeyed Of both there might instances be given about the Circumstantials or Adjuncts of Gods Worship As the Place of publick Worship the Scituation Form Bells Fonts Pulpits Seats precedency in Seats Tables Cups and other Utensils Church Bounds by Parishes Church Ornaments Gestures Habits some Councils and their Order with other such like in all which caeteris paribus Bish. Andrews in Tart. Tort. p. 383. Cohibeat Regem Diaconus si cum indignus sit idque palam constet accedat tamen ad Sacramentum Cohibeat Medicus si ad noxiam
of them confess For if once the Sword were taken from them the world would quickly see that their Church had the hearts of few of those multitudes whom by Fire and Sword they forced to seem their members or at least that when the windows were opened the light would quickly deliver poor souls from the servitude of those men of darkness For then few would fear the unrighteous excommunications of meer Usurpers It is a manifold Usurpation by which their Kingdom is upheld For a Kingdom it is rather to be called than a Church 1. They Usurp the Power of the Keyes or Ecclesiastical Government Lege Epist. Caroli Calvi ad Papam inter Hincâ—ari Rhemeâ—sis Epistolas cont Papae usurpationes Isidor Hispal sent 3. c. 51. Cognoscant Principes seculi Deo debere se rationem reddere propter Ecclesiam quam a Christo tuâ—ndam suscipiuâ—t Nam five augeatur pax disciplina Ecclesiae per fideles Principes sive solvatur ille ab eis rationem exigit qui eorum potestati suam Ecclesiam credidit Leo Ep. ad Lâ—onem Imp. Debes incunctanâ—er advertere Regiam potestatem tibi non solum ad mundi regimen sed maxime ad Ecclesiae praesidium esse collatam See the judgement of Io. Paâ—isiensis Francis Victoria and Widdrington in Groâ— de Imper. p. 23. Lege Lud. Molinâ—i Discourse of the Powers of Cardinal Chigi over all the world and make themselves Pastors of those Churches which they have nothing to do to Govern Their Excommunications of Princes or people in other Lands or Churches that never took them for their Pastors is an Usurpation the more odious by how much the power usurped is more holy and the performance in so large a Parish as the whole World is naturally impossible to the Roman Usurper 2. Under the name of Ecclesiastical Iurisdiction they usurp the Magistrates Coercive power in such causes as they call Ecclesiastical 3. Yea and they claim an immunity to their Clergy from the Civil Government as if they were no subjects of the King or the King had not power to punish his offending subjects 4. In ordine ad spiritualia they claim yet more of the Magistrates power 5. And one part of them give the Pope directly in Temporals a Power over Kings and Kingdoms 6. Their most eminent Divines do ordinarily maintain that the Pope may excommunicate Kings and interdict Kingdoms and that an excommunicated King is no King and may be killed It is an Article of their Religion determined of in one of their approved General Councils Later sub Innoc. 3. Can. 3. that if Temporal Lords will not exterminate Hereticks from their Lands such as the Albigenses that denyed Transubstantiation mentioned Can. 2. the Pope may give their Dominions to others and absolve their Vassals from their fealty And when some of late would have so far salved their honour as to invalidate the authority of that Council they will not endure it but have strenuously vindicated it And indeed what ever it be to us with them it is already enrolled among the Approved General Councils Between the Erastians who would have no Government but by Magistrates and the Papists who give the Magistrates power to the Pope and his Prelates the truth is in the middle that the Pastors have a Nunciative and Directive Power from Christ and a Discipline to exercise by the Word alone on Volunteers much like the Power of a Philosopher in his School or a Physicion in his Hospital supposing them to be by Divine Right § 55. Direct 26. Refuse not to swear Allegiance to your lawful Soveraign Though Oaths are Direct 26. fearful and not to be taken without weighty cause yet are they not to be refused when the cause is weighty as here it is Must the Soveraign be sworn to do his Office for you and must he undertake so hard and perillous a charge for you which he is no way able to go through if his Subjects be not faithful to him and shall those Subjects refuse to promise and swear fidelity This is against all reason and equity § 56. Direct 27. Think not that either the Pope or any power in the world can dispense with this Direct 27. your Oath or absolve you from the bond of it or save you from the punishment due from God to the perjured and perfidious Of this see what I have written before against Perjury § 57. Direct 28. Do nothing that tendeth to bring the sacred bonds of Oaths into an irreligious contempt Direct 28. or to make men take the horrid crime of Perjury to be a little sin Soveraigns have no sufficient Perjurii poenâ— diviâ—â—a exitium humana dedecus Cicero Agesilaus sent thanks to his enemies for their perjury as making then no question of their overthrow Perjuri numinis contemptores Plutarch Thâ—odosius execrabatur cum legisset superbâ—am dominantium praecipue perfidos ingratos Paul Diaconus l. 2. security of the fidelity of their Subjects or of their lives or Kingdoms if once Oaths and Covenants be made light of and men can play fast and loose with the bonds of God which lye upon them He is virtually a Traytor to Princes and States who would bring perjury and perfidiousness into credit and teacheth men to violate Oaths and Vows For there is no keeping up humane Societies and Governments where there is no trust to be put in one another And there is no trust to be put in that man that maketh no Conscience of an Oath or Vow § 58. Direct 29. Be ready to your power to defend your Governours against all Treasons Conspiracies Direct 29. and Rebellions For this is a great part of the duty of your relation The Wisdom and Goodness necessary to Government is much personal in the Governours themselves But the strength without which Laws cannot be executed nor the people preserved is in the People and the Princes interest See the instance of loyalty in Mascelzer against his own Brother Gildo a Rebel Paul Diacon l. 3. initio in them Therefore if you withdraw your help in time of need you desert and betray your Rulers whom you should defend If you say It is they that are your Protectors I answer True but by your selves They protect you by Wisdom Counsel and Authority and you must protect them by obedience and strength Would you have them protect you rather by mercenaries or foreigners If not you must be willing to do your parts and not think it enough in Treasons Invasions or Rebellions to sit still and save your selves and let him that can lay hold on the Crown possess it What Prince would â—s the Governour of a people that he knew would forsake him in his need § 59. Direct 30. Murmurr not at the payment of those necessary Tributes by which the common safety Direct 29. must be preserved and the due honour of your Governours kept up Sordid Covetousness hath been the ruine of
many a Common-wealth When every one is shifting for himself and saving his own and murmurring at the charge by which their safety must be defended as if Kings could fight for them without men and money this selfishness is the most pernitious enemy to Government and to the common good Tribute and Honour must be paid to whom it doth belong Rom. 13. 6 7. For they are Gods Ministers attending continually on this very thing And none of your Goods or Cabins will be saved if by your Covetousness the Ship should perish § 60. Direct 31. Resist not where you cannot actually obey And let no appearance of probable Direct 31. good that might come to your selves or the Church by any unlawful means as Treason Sedition or Rebellion Bâ—â—â—â—oâ—â—â— Sâ—bâ—â—â—â— p. 236. Princes have no right to call oâ— confirm Prâ—achers but to recâ—ive such as be seâ—t of Gâ—d and give them liberty for their preaching and security for their persons And if Princes refuse so to do Gods labourers must go forward with that which is commanded them from â—â—â—â—ven not by disturbing Princes from their Thrones nor invading their Realms as your Holy Father doth and 〈…〉 may do but by miâ—â—lly submiâ—ting themselves to the powers on earth and meekly suffering for the defence of the Truth what they shall inflict So â—e ever tempt you to it For evil must not be done that good may come by it And all evil means are but palliate and deceitful Cures that seem to help a little while but will leave the malady more perillous at last than it was before As it is possible that lying or perjury might be used to the seeming service of a Governour at the time which yet would prepare for his after danger by teaching men perâ—idiousness even so Rebellions and Treasons may seem at present to be very conducible to the ends of a people or party that think themselves opprest But in the end it will leave them much worse than it found them § 61. Object But if we must let Rulers destroy us at their pleasure the Gospel will be rooted out of the Object earth When they know that we hold it unlawful to resist them they will be emboldned to destroy us and sport themselves in our blood As the Papists did by the poor Albigenses c. Answ. All this did signifie something if there were no God that can easilier restrain and destroy Answ. them at his pleasure than they can destroy or injure you But if there be a God and all the world is in his hand and with a word he can speak them all into dust and if this God be engaged to protect you and hath told you that the very hairs of your head are numbered and more regardeth his Honour and Gospel and Church than you do and accounteth his servants as the apple of his eye and hath promised to hear them and avenge them speedily and forbid them to avenge themselves then it is but atheistical distrust of God to save your selves by sinful means as if God either could not or would not do it Thus he that saveth his life shall lose it Do you believe that you are in the hands of Christ and that men cannot touch you but by his permission and that he will turn all your sufferings to your exceeding benefit and yet will you venture on sin and Hell to scape such sufferings from men Wolves and Bears and Lyons that fight most for themselves are hated and destroyed by all so that there are but few of them in the Land but though a hundred sheep will run before a little Dog the master of them taketh care for their preservation And little Children that cannot go out of the way from a Horse or Cart every one is afraid of hurting If Christians behaved themselves with that eminent Love and Lowliness and Meekness and Patience and Harmlesness as their Lord hath taught them and required perhaps the very cruelty and malice of their enemies would abate and relent and when a mans wayes please God he would make his enemies to be at peace with him But if not their fury would but hasten us to our Joy and Glory Yet note that I speak all this only against Rebellion and unlawful Arms and Acts. Prov. 16. 7. § 62. Direct 32. Obey inferiour Magistrates according to the authority derived to them from the Supream Direct 32. but never against the Supream from whom it is derived The same reasons which oblige you to obey the personal commands of the King do bind you also to obey the lowest Constable or other Officer for they are necessary instruments of the Soveraign Power and if you obey not them the obedience of the Soveraign signifieth almost nothing But no man is bound to obey them beyond the measure of their authority much less against those that give them their authority § 63. Direct 33. No humane Power is at all to be obeyed against God For they have no power but Direct 33. what they receive from God And all that is from Him is for Him He giveth no power against Himself Rom. 13. 1 2 3 4. Rom. 11. 36. He is the first efficient the chief dirigent and ultimate final cause of all It is no act of Authority but Resistance of his Authority which contradicteth his Law and is against him All humane Laws are subservient to his Laws and not co-ordinate much less superiour Therefore they are ipso facto null or have no obligation which are against him Yet is not the Office it self Null when it is in some things thus abused nor the Magistrates power null as to other things No man must commit the least sin against God to please the greatest Prince on earth or to avoid the greatest corporal Si aliquid juâ—â—eâ—iâ— Procoâ—ful aliud jubeat Imperator nunquid dubitatur illo contempto illi esse serviendum Ergo si aliud Imperator aliud jubeat Deus quid judicatur Major potestas Deâ—s da veniam O Imperator Aug 〈…〉 de Verb. Domin Matth. Serm. 6. suffering Luke 12. 4. Fear not them that can kill the body and after that have no more that they can do but fear him who is able to destroy hoth body and soul in Hell yea I say unto you fear him Acts 5. 29. Whether we ought to obey God rather than men judge ye Heb. 11. 27. Not fearing the wrath of the King for he endured as seeing him that is invisible Ver. 35. Others were tortured not accepting deliverance c. Dan. 3. 18. Be it known unto thee O King that we will not serve thy Gods nor worship the Golden Image c. § 64. Object If we are not obliged to obey we are not obliged to suffer For the Law obligeth Object primarily to obedience and only secondarily ad poenam for want of obedience Therefore where there iâ— no primary obligation to obedience there is no secundary obligation to punishment Answ.
them to be teachers of Rebellion It is not every different opinion in politicks that proveth men to be against subjection He that can read such a Book as Bilsons for Christian subjection against Antichristian rebelion and yet deny him to be a Teacher of Subjection hath a very hard forhead For the Controversies I shall say no more of them here but what I have said before to Mr. Hooker And as for Calvin and the Disciplinarians or Puritans as they are called They subscribe all the same confessions for Magistracy and take the same oaths of Allegiance and Supremacy as others do and they plead and write for them so that for my part I know not of any difference in their Doctrine Hear what B. Andrews saith who was no rebel in his Tortura Torti pag. 379 380. Calvinus autem ut Papam Regem ita Regem Papam non probavit Neque nos quod in Papâ detestamur in Rege approbamus At ille nobiscum nos cum illo sentimus easdem esse in Ecclesia Christiana Regis Iacobi partes quae Iosiae fuerunt in Iudaica nec nos ultra quicquam fieri ambimus that is But Calvin neither liked a Pope King nor a King Pope Nor do we approve of that in the King which we detest in the Pope But he with us and we with him do judge that King James hath as much to do in a Christian Church as Josias had in the Iewish Church and we go not about to get any more And after Sub Primatus nomine Papatum novum Rex non invebit in Ecclesiam sic enim statuit ut non Aaroni Pontifici ita nec Ieroboamo Regi jus ullam esse conflatum à se vitulum populo proponendi ut adoret idest non vel fidei novos articulos vel cultus Divini novas formulas procudendi that is The King doth not bring into the Church a new Papacy under the name of Primacy For thus he judgeth or determineth that neither Aaron the Priest nor Jeroboam the King had any Right to propose the Calf which they had made to the people to be adored that is neither to hammer or make new articles of faith or new forms of Divine Worship And pag. 379 380. Quos vero Puritanos appellat si Regium primatum detestantur detestandi ipsi Profitentur enim subscribunt jurant indies sed illi quod faciunt ingenuè faciunt societatem in hoc Torti ipsumque adeo Tortum tanquam mendacem hominem alibi de aliis hic de se ac sycophantem egregium detestantur that is And for those he calleth Puritans if they detest the Kings Supremacy they are to be detested For they daily profess subscribe and swear to it And what they do they do ingenuously and they detest the society of Tortus in this and Tortus himself as a lying man elsewhere of others and here of themselves and an egregious sycophant By these testimonies judge what Protestants think of one another in point of loyalty 5. And why are not all the other Christians taken into your enumeration The Armenians Abassins and all the Greek Churches whom the Papists so frequently reproach as flatterers or servile because they still gave so much to their Emperours Have you any pretence for your accusation as against them Unless perhaps from the tumults which Alexandria in its greatness was much addicted to which is nothing to the doctrine of Christianity nor to the practice of all the rest § 84. Having answered these cavils of the late Atheistical or Infidel Politicians I shall next shew Christianity is most for Loyalty and subjection though briefly yet by plentiful evidence that Christianity and true Godliness is the greatest strength of Government and bond of subjection and means of Peace that ever was revealed to the World which will appear in all these Evidences following 1. Christianity teacheth men to take the higher powers as ordained of God and to obey them as Gods Ministers or Officers having an Authority derived immediately from God so that it advanceth the Magistrate as Gods officer as much higher than Infidels advance him who fetch his Rom. 13. 1. 2 3 4. power no higher than Force or Choice as a servant of God is above a servant of men which is more than a man is above a Dog § 85. 2. Christianity telleth us that our obedience to Magistrates is Gods own command and so that we must obey him by obeying them And as obedience to a Constable is more procured by the Kings Laws than by his own commands so obedience to a King is far more effectually procured by Gods Laws than by his own If God be more above a King than a King is above a a Worm the command of God must be a more powerful obligation upon every understanding person than the Kings And what greater advantage can a King have in Governing than to have subjects whose Consciences do feel themselves bound by God himself to obey the King and all his officers Obj. But this is still with exception If it be not in things forbidden of God And the subjects are Object made judges whether it be so or no. Ans. And woe to that man that grudgeth that God must be obeyed Answ. before him and would be himself a God to be obeyed in things which God is against The subjects are made no publick Judges but private discerners of their duties And so you make them your selves or else they must not judge whether the King or a Usurper were to be obeyed or whether the word of the King or of a Constable if they be contradictory is to be preferred To judge what we B. â—ilsoâ— ubi sup p. 259. As Bishops ought to discern which is truth before they teach so must the people discern who teacheth right before they believe Pag. 261 262. Princes as well as others must yield obedience to Bishops speaking the word of God But if bishops pass their commission and speak besides the Word of God what they list both Prince and people may despise them See him further pag. 259 260 261 262. proving that all have a judiciun discretionis must choose or refuse is proper to a Rational Creature even bruits themselves will do something like it by instinct of nature and will not do all things according to your will You would have us obey a Justice of Peace no further than our Loyalty to the King will give leave and therefore there is greater reason that we should obey the higher powers no farther than our Loyalty to God will give leave But if men pretend Gods commands for any thing which he commandeth not Magistrates bear not the sword in vain and subjects are commanded by God not to resist If they punish them rightfully God will bear the Rulers out in it If they punish them wrongfully or persecute them for well-doing God will severely punish them who so wronged his subjects and abused
the authority which he committed to their trust § 86. 3. The Christian Religion bindeth subjects to obedience upon sorer penalties than Magistrates can inflict even upon pain of Gods displeasure and everlasting damnation Rom. 13. 2 3. And how great a help this is to Government it is so easie to discern that the simpler sort of Atheists do perswade themselves that Kings devised Religion to keep people in obedience with the fears of Hell Take away the fears of the life to come and the punishment of God in Hell upon the wicked and the world will be turned into worse than a den of Serpents and wild beasts adulteries and murders and poysoning Kings and all abomination will be freely committed which wit or power can think to cover or bear out Who will trust that man that believeth not that God doth judge and punish § 87. 4. The Christian Religion doth encourage obedience and peace with the Promise of the Reward of endless happiness caeteris paribus Heaven is more than any Prince can give If that will not move men there is no greater thing to move them Atheism and Infidelity have no such motives § 88. 5. Christianity teacheth subjects to obey not only good Rulers but bad ones even Heathens themselves and not to resist when we cannot obey Whereas among Heathens Princes ruled no longer than they pleased the Souldiers or the people so that Lampridius marvelled that Heliogabalus was no sooner butchered but suffered to reign three years Mirum fortasse cuipiam videatur Constantine venerabilis quod haec clades quam retuli loco principum fuerit quidem propè trienio ita ut nemo inventus Cicero saith that every Good man was in his heart or as much as in him lay one that killed Caesar. fuerit qui istum à gubernaculis Romonanae majestatis abduceret cum Neroni Vitellio Caligulae caeterisque hujusmâ—di nunquam tyranniceda defuerit § 89. 6. Christianity and Godliness do not only restrain the outward acts but rule the very hearts and lay a charge upon the thoughts which the power of Princes cannot reach It forbiddeth to curse the King in our bed-chamber or to have a thought or desire of evil against him It quencheth the first sparks of disloyalty and disorder And the rule of the outward man followeth the ordering of the heart And therefore Atheism which leaveth the Heart free and open to all desires and designes of rebellion doth kindle that fire in the minds of men which Government cannot quench It corrupteth the fountain It breaketh the spring that should set all a going It poisoneth the heart of Common-wealths § 90. 7. Christianity and Godliness teach men Patience that it may not seem strange to them to bear the Cross and suffer injuries from high and low And therefore that Impatience which is 1 Pet. 4. 12. the beginning of all rebellion being repressed it stayeth the distemper from going any further § 91. 8. Christianity teacheth men self-denyal as a great part of their religion And when selfishness Luk. 14. 29 33. is mortified there is nothing left to be a principle of Rebellion against God or our superiors Selfishness is the very predominant principle of the ungodly It is only for themselves that they obey when they do obey No wonder therefore if the Author of Leviathan allow men to do any thing when the saving of themselves requireth it And so many selfish persons as there be in a Kingdom so many several Interests are first sought which for the most part stand cross to the Interests of others The Godly have all one common center They unite in God and therefore may be kept in concord For Gods will is a thing that may be fulfilled by all as well as one But the selfish and ungodly are every one his own Center and have no common center to unite in their interests being ordinarily cross and inconsistent § 92. 9. Christianity teacheth men by most effectual arguments so set light by the Riches and honours of the world and not to strive for superiority but to mind higher things and lay up our Ungebantur Reges non pet dominum sed qui caeteris crudeliores existerent paulo post ab unctoribus non pro veri examinatione trucidabantur aliis electis trucioribuâ— Gildas de exc Brit. treasure in a better world and to condescend to men of low degree It forbiddeth men to exalt themselves lest they be brought low and commandeth them to humble themselves that God may exalt them And he that knoweth not that Pride and Covetousness are the great disquieters of the world and the cause of contentions and the ruine of States knoweth nothing of these matters Therefore if it were but by the great urging of humility and heavenly mindedness and the strict condemning of Ambition and Earthly-mindedness Christianity and Godliness must needs be the greatest preservers of Government and of order peace and quietness in the World § 93. 10. Christianity teacheth men to live in the Love of God and man It maketh Love the very heart and life and sum and end of all other duties of Religion Faith it self is but the bellows to kindle in us the sacred flames of Love Love is the end of the Gospel and the fulfilling of the Law To Love all Saints with a special Love even with a pure heart and fervently and to Love all men heartily with a common love To love our Neighbour as our selves and to Love our very enemies this is the life which Christ requireth upon the penalty of damnation And if Love thus prevail what should disturb the Government peace or order of the world § 94. 11. Christianity teacheth men to be exact in Justice distributive and commutative and to do to others as we would they should do to us And where this is followed Kings and States will have little to molest them when Gens sine justitiâ est sine remige navis in undâ § 95. 12. Christianity teacheth men to do good to all men as far as we are able and to abound in good works as that for which we are Redeemed and new made And if men will set themselves wholly to do good and be hurtful and injurious to none how easie will it be to govern such § 96. 13. Christianity teacheth men to forbear and to forgive as ever they will be forgiven of Rom. 14 15. 1. God and the strong to bear the infirmities of the weak and not to please themselves but one another to their edification Not to be censorious harsh or cruel nor to place the Kingdom of Gal. 6. 1 2 3 4. Jam â—3 15 16 17. Titus 3. 2. God in meats and drinks and dayes but in righteousness peace and joy in the Holy Ghost To bear one anothers burdens and to restore them with the Spirit of meekness that are overtaken in a fault and to be peaceable gentle easie to be intreated full of mercy and good
fruits without partiality and hypocrisie and to speak evil of no man And where this is obeyed how quietly and easily may Princes govern § 97. 14. Christianity setteth before us the perfectest pattern of all this humility meekness contempt of worldly wealth and greatness self-denyal and obedience that ever was given in the world The Eternal Son of God incarnate would condescend to earth and flesh and would obey his Superiours after the flesh in the repute of the world and would pay tribute and never be drawn to any contempt of the Governours of the world though he suffered death under the false accusation of it He that is a Christian endeavoureth to imitate his Lord And can the imitation of Christ or of Luke 20 18. Matth. 21. 42 44. Acts 4 11. 1 Pet. 2. 7. 8. Zâ—ch 1â— 3. his peaceable Apostles be injurious to Governours Could the world but lay by their Serpentine enmity against the holy doctrine and practice of Christianity and not take themselves engaged to persecute it nor dash themselves in pieces on the stone which they should build upon nor by striving against it provoke it to fall on them and grind them to powder they never need to complain of disturbances by Christianity or Godliness § 98. 15. Christianity and true Godliness containeth not only all these Precepts that tend to peace and order in the world but also strength and willingness and holy dispositions for the practising of such precepts Other Teachers can speak but to the ears but Christ doth write his Laws upon the heart so that he maketh them such as he commandeth them to be Only this is the remnant of our unhappiness that while he is performing the Cure on us we retain a remnant of our old diseases and so his work is yet imperfect And as sin in strength is it that setteth on fire the course of nature so the relicts of it will make some disturbance in the world according to its degree But nothing is more sure than that the Godliest Christian is the most orderly and loyal subject and the best member according to his parts and power in the Common-wealth and that sin is the cause and holiness the cure of all the disorders and calamities of the world § 99. 16. Lastly Consult with experience it self and you will find that all this which I have spoken hath been ordinarily verified What Heathenism tendeth to you may see even in the Roman Government for there you will confess it was at the best To read of the tumults the cruelties Read the lives of all the Philosophers Orators and famous men of Greece or Rome and try whether the Christians or they were more for Monarchy Arcesilaus Regum neminem magnopere coluit Quamobâ—em legatione ad Antigonum fungens pro patria nihil obtinuit Hesich in Arces It s one of Thales sayings in Laert. Quid difficile Regum vidisse tyrannum senem Chrysippus videtur aspâ—rnator Regum modice fuisse Quod cum tam multa scripserit libros 705. nulli unquam regi quicquam adscripserit Senâ—ca faith Traged de Herc. fur perillously Victima haud ulla amplior Potest magisque opima mactari Jovi Quam Rex iniquus Cicero pro Milon Non se obstrinxit scelere siquis Tyrannum occidat quamvis familiarem Et 5. Tusc. Nulla nobis cum Tyrannis societas est neque est contra naturam spoliare eum quem honestum est necare Plura habet similia the popular unconstancy faction and injustice How rudely the Souldiers made their Emperours and how easily and barbarously they murdered them and how few of them from the dayes of Christ till Constantine did dye the common death of all men and scape the hands of those that were their subjects I think this will satisfie you whither mens enmity to Christianity tendeth And then to observe how suddenly the case was altered as soon as the Emperours and Subjects became Christian till in the declining of the Greek Empire some Officers and Courtiers who aspired to the Crown did murder the Emperours And further to observe that the rebellious doctrines and practices against Governours have been all introduced by factions and heresies which forsook Christianity so far before they incurred such guilt and that it is either the Papal Usurpation which is in its nature an enemy to Princes that hath deposed and trampled upon Emperours and Kings or else some mad Enthusiasticks that over-run Religion and their wits that at Munster and in England some lately by the advantage of their prosperity have dared to do violence against Soveraignty but the more any men were Christians and truly Godly the more they detested all such things All this will tell you that the most serious and Religious Christians are the best members of the Civil Societies upon Earth § 100. II. Having done with the first part of my last Direction I shall say but this little of the second Let Christians see that they be Christians indeed and abuse not that which is most excellent to be a cloak to that which is most vile 1. In reading Politicks swallow not all that every Author writeth in conformity to the Polity that he liveth under What perverse things shall you read in the Popish Politicks Contzen and abundance such What usurpation on Principalities and cruelties to Christians under the pretence of defending the Church and suppressing Heresies 2. Take heed in reading History that you suffer not the Spirit of your Author to infect you with any of that partiality which he expresseth to the cause which he espouseth Consider in what times and places all your Authors lived and read them accordingly with the just allowance The name of Liberty was so pretious and the name of a King so odious to the Romans Athenians c. that it is no wonder if their Historians be unfriendly unto Kings 3. Abuse not Learning it self to lift you up with self-conceitedness against Governours Learned men may be ignorant of Polity or at least unexperienced and almost as unfit to judge as of matters of Warr or Navigation 4. Take heed of giving the Magistrates power to the Clergy and setting up Secular Coercive power See Bilson of Subject p. 525 526. proving from Châ—ysost Hilary Oâ—â—gen that Pastors may use no force oâ— terror but only perswasion to recover their wandering sheep Bilson ibid. p. 541. Parliamenâ—s have been kept by the King and his Barons the Clergy wholly excluded and yet their Acts and Statutes good And when the Bishops were present their voices from the Conquest to this day were never Negative By Gods Law you have nothing to do with making Laws for Kingdoms and Common-wealths You may teach you may not command Perswasion is your part Compulsion is the Princes c. Thus Bishop Bilson So p. 358. under the name of the power of the Keys And it had been happy for the Church if God had perswaded Magistrates in all ages to have kept the
Sword in their own hands and not have put it into the Clergies hands to fulfill their wills by For 1. By this means the Clergy had escaped the odium of usurpation and domineering by which atheistical Politicians would make Religion odious to Magistrates for their sakes 2. And by this means greater unity had been preserved in the Church while one faction is not armed with the Sword to tread down the rest For if Divines contend only by dint of Argument when they have talkt themselves and others aweary they will have done But when they go to it with dint of Sword it so ill becometh them that it seldom doth good but the party often that trusteth least to their Reason must destroy the other and make their cause good by Iron arguments 3. And then the Romish Clergy had not been armed against Princes to the terrible concussions of the Christian world which Histories at large relate if Princes had not first lent them the Sword which they turned against them 4. And then Church Discipline would have been better understood and have been more effectual which is corrupted and turned to another thing and so cast out when the Sword is used instead of the Keys under pretence of making it effectual None but Consenters are capable of Church-communion No man can be a Christian nor Godly nor saved against his will And therefore Consenters and Volunteers only are capable of Church-discipline As a Sword will not make a Sermon effectual no more will it make Discipline effectual which is but the management of Gods Word to work upon the conscience So far as men are to be driven by the Sword to the use of means or restrained from offering injury to Religion the Magistrate himself is fittest to do it It is noted by Historians as the dishonour of Cyrill of Alexandria though a famous Bishop that he was the first Bishop that like a Magistrate used the Sword there and used violence against Hereticks and dissenters 5. Above all abuse not the name of Religion for the resistance of your lawful Governours Religion must be defended and propagated by no irreligious means It is easie before you are aware to catch the feavor of such a passionate zeal as Iames and Iohn had when they would have had fire from Heaven to consume the refusers and resisters of the Gospel And then you will think that any thing almost is lawful which doth but seem necessary to the prosperity of Religion But no means but those of Gods allowance do use to prosper or bring home that which men expect They may seem to do wonders for a while but they come to nothing in the latter end and spoil the work and leave all worse than it was before § 101. Direct 40. Take heed of mistaking the nature of that Liberty of the people which is truly Direct 40. valuable and desirable and of contending for an undesirable Liberty in its stead It is desirable to have 1 Pet. 2. 16. Gal. 5. 13. 2 Pet. 2. 19. Gal. 4. 26. 2 Cor. 3. 17. Liberty to do good and to possess our own and enjoy Gods mercies and live in peace But it is not desirable to have Liberty to sin and abuse one another and hinder the Gospel and contemn our Governours Some mistake Liberty for Government it self and think it is the peoples Liberty to be Governours And some mistake Liberty for an exemption from Government and think they are most free when they are most ungoverned and may do what their list But this is a misery and not a mercy and therefore was never purchased for us by Christ. Many desire servitude and calamity under the name of liberty Optima est Reipublicae forma saith Seneca ubi nulla Libertas deest nisi licentia pereundi As Mr. R. Hooker saith Lib. 8. p. 195. I am not of opinion that simply in Kings the Most but the Best limited power is best both for them and the people The Most limited is that which may deal in fewest things the best that which in dealing is tyed to the soundest perfectest and most indifferent Rule which Rule is the Law I mean not only the Law of Nature and of God but the National Law consonant thereunto Happier that people whose Law is their King in the greatest things than that whose King is himself their Law Yet no doubt but the Law-givers are as such above the Law as an Authoritative instrument of Government but under it as a man is under the obligation of his own Consent and Word It ruleth subjects in the former sense It bindeth the summam Potestatem in the later § 102. Direct 41. When you have done all that you can in just obedience look for your reward Direct 41. from God alone Let it satisfie you that he knoweth and approveth your sincerity You make it a holy work if you do it to please God and you will be fixed and constant if you take Heaven for your Reward which is enough and will not fail you But you make it but a selfish carnal work if you do it only to please your Governours or get preferment or escape some hurt which they may do you and are subject only in flattery or for fear of wrath and not for conscience sake And such obedience is uncertain and unconstant For when you fail of your hopes or think Rulers deal unjustly or unthankfully with you your subjection will be turned into passionate desires of revenge Remember still the example of your Saviour who suffered death as an enemy to Caesar when he had never failed of his duty so much as in one thought or word And are you better than your Lord and Master If God be All to you and you have laid up all your hopes in Heaven it is then but little of your concernment further than God is concerned in it whether Rulers do use you well or ill and whether they interpret your actions rightly or what they take you for or how they call you But it is your concernment that God account you Loyal and will judge you so and justifie you from mens accusations of disloyalty and reward you with more than man can give you Nothing is well done especially of so high a nature as this which is not done for God and Heaven and which the Crown of Glory is not the motive to I have purposely been the larger on this subject because the times in which we live require it both for the setling of some and for the confuting the false accusations of others who would perswade the world that our doctrine is not what it is when through the sinful practices of some the way of truth is evil spoken of 2 Pet. 2. 2. Tit. 2. A fuller resolution of the Cases 1. Whether the Laws of men do bind the Conscience 2. Especially smaller and Penal Laws THe word Conscience signifieth either 1. In general according to the notation of the word The knowledge of our own
who converse with no wiser men are ordinarily taken with the silly cavils of a drunken sot who hath but a little more volubility or looseness of tongue than his companions It would make ones head and heart to ake to hear with what reverend non-sence one of them will talk against the doctrines or practices of Godliness and how submissively the tractable herd receiveth and consenteth to his documents § 13. 13. Also it tendeth much to the helping of Satan and mudering of souls to keep up the reputation of the most ungodly and to keep down the reputation of the good The Devil knoweth that sin it self is such a thing as few men can love bare-faced or commend And that Goodness or Holiness is such a thing as few men can hate or at least condemn in its proper name and colours Therefore he seeketh to make the reputation of the Persons serve to promote or hinder the Cause which he is for or against He that is ashamed to say of Drunkenness or Whoredom that they are good and honest practices dare yet say of Drunkards and Whoremongers They are very honest men And by their reputation take off some of the odiousness of the sin and reconcile the hearers to it And he that cannot for shame say of the forbearing of sin and living a holy life in Heavenly contemplation prayer and obedience that These are hypocrisie schism or sedition covetousness deceit and pride Yet dare say of the person who practiseth them that He is as Covetous deceitful proud hypocritical schismatical or seditious as any others who make no profession of religion And the Devil knoweth that though good doctrine hath no mixture of Evil nor Christ himself any blemish or spot yet the best persons are so faulty or defectible that an ill report of them is less incredible there being too much matter to raise a suspicion on And through their sides it is easiest to wound the doctrine or holiness which they profess § 14. 14. Also perswading sinners to do evil and disswading them from a Godly life is another way of murdering souls The Devils Temptations are most by instruments He hath his Preachers as well as Christ And it were well if they did not overgoe us in earnestness frequency and constancy Where is there a poor soul that is moved by God to Turn and Live but the devil hath some at hand to drive them from it by perswading them that it is needless and that all is well with them and telling them some dismal stories of a holy life § 15. 15. Another way of soul murder is by laying baits of deceit and sin before the sinner As men destroy Rats and Mice by baits and sweetned poyson or catch Fishes or Birds by covering their death with something which they most love So doth the Devil and his instruments destroy souls the baits of a pleasant cup or pleasant company or pleasant meats or pleasant sports or Playes or Games A Feast a Tavern an Ale-house a Whore a Stage-play a Romance a pair of Cards or Dice can do the deed If he can possibly he will prove it a thing lawful If he cannot he will prove it a venial sin If that cannot be he will drown consideration and stop the mouth of Reason and Conscience and cry Drive on Some have yet higher baits than these Lordships and Lands Dominion and Honour to choak their souls § 16. 16. Also an honest name for sin and a dishonest name for duty to God doth serve the turn for many mens perdition To call drunkenness good fellowship or to take a Cup and Gluttony good house keeping and voluptuousness recreation or pastime and pride the maintaining of their honour and worldliness good husbandry and prodigality liberality and lust and whoredome Love and having a Mistris and oppression the seeking of their due and perfidious dissimulation Courtship and jeering Wittiness These and more such are traps for souls And of the same use is the calling of duties by names of vice which tend to make them odious or contemptible § 17. 17. Also the flattering of sinners and praising them in their sin is a soul murdering encouragement to them in ill doing And great sinners seldome want such enemies § 18. 18 An obedient readiness to all that wicked Superiours command is an encouragement to them to proceed in mischief If Parents or Masters command their inferiours to spend the Lords Day in dancing or other unlawful exercises or bid them steal or lye or forbid them to worship God those that obey them do harden them in their sin As Daniel and the three Witnesses had done Dan. 3. 6. the King if they had obeyed him § 19. 19. Also when those that have power to hinder sin and further godliness do not do it When they either give men leave to sin or forbear their duty when they should restrain it He that stands by and seeth his neighbour robbed or murdered and doth not what he can to save him is guilty of the sin and the sufferers hurt § 20. 20. Silence when we are obliged to reprove a sinner or to instruct the ignorant or exhort the obstinate or any way speak for mens salvation is injurious to their souls and maketh us partakers of their sin Soul murder may be done by bare omissions § 21. 21. Opposing Magistrates Ministers or any others in the discharge of their duty for godliness or against sin is an act of hostility against God and mens salvation § 22. 22. An unnecessary occasioning of sin or doing that needlesly which we may foresee that by accident another will destroy himself by is to be guilty of his sin and destruction As he is that would sell poyson to him that he might forsee would kill himself with it or lend fire to his neighbour who he knoweth will burn his house with it But of this before in the Chapter of Scandal § 23. 23. They that are guilty of Schisms or Church-divisions or murderers of souls By depriving John 17. 21 25. them of that means the concord and harmony of believers which God hath appointed for mens conviction and salvation and by setting up before them the greatest scandal to bring Religion into contempt and debilitate the godly § 24. 24. Those also that mourn not for the sins of the times and confess them not to God and Ezek. 9. 4. Zeph. 3. 17 18. pray not against them and pray not for the sinners when they ought are thus guilty § 25. 25. And so are they that secretly rejoyce in sin or consent to it or approve it when it is done which if they manifest it is pernicious to others also § 26. 26. Lastly A coldness or indifferency in the doing of our duty against sin without just zeal and pity to the sinner and reverence to the truth is a way of guilt and hurteth others To reprove sin as Eli did his sons or to speak against it lightly as between jeast and earnest