Selected quad for the lemma: power_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
power_n	king_n	ordinance_n	resist_v	5,553	5	9.4425	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A90769	A plea for peace: shewing the dignitie of princes, against the many railings of the rabble, the invectives of the ignorant, and murmurs of the malicious. Written by a well-wisher to the peace of this our Sion.	A Well-Wisher to the Peace of This Our Sion.	1642 (1642)	Wing P2515; Thomason E118_23; ESTC R212774	5,658	8

A PLEA FOR PEACE SHEWING THE DIGNITIE OF Princes against the many Railings of the Rabble the Invectives of the Ignorant and Murmurs of the Malicious Written by a Well-wisher to the peace of this our Sion September 22. London Printed for Francis Coles 1642. A Plea for Peace THat the Government of the Civil Magistrate is the Ordinance and Institution of the Almighty I hope at this time needs no disputation for that I beleeve it remaines without and beyond all matter of controversie the Lord himselfe not having onely testified with acceptation and approbation thereof but with much commendation hath set forth its honour and dignity to his people as in Psal 82. 1 6. God standeth in the Congregation of the mighty he judgeth among the Gods I have said ye are Gods and all of yee are children of the most High Prov. 8. 15. By me Kings reigne and Princes decree Justice And in the 16. By me Princes rule Rom. 13. 1 2. Let every soul be subject to the higher Powers for there is no power but of God the powers that be are ordained of God whosoever resisteth the power resisteth the Ordinance of God and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation And in the 5. vers he concludeth that we must needs be subject not onely for wrath but for conscience sake Esay 49. 23. Kings shall be nursing fathers and Queenes shall be nursing mothers 1 Tim. 2. 1 2. I exhort therefore that first of all supplications prayers and intercessions and giving of thankes be made for all men for Kings and all that are in Authority as if the Apostle had said especially for them adding further reason That we may leade a quiet life in all godlinesse and honesty as if he there intended to teach Christians whatsoever their condition were not to thinke of other weapons to mend themselves than onely their prayers many other places of Scripture might be alleaged to this purpose but these I suppose are sufficient to let men know how detestable it is to the eares of God to heat a wicked Shimei cursing and railing against the Prince of his people a sin too too common in these our dayes not onely among the basest of men but even in the Priests and pastours of the people who should teach them a lesson of meeknesse modesty and moderation in stead of which they stir them up to madnesse sedition tumults and faction by rendring in what in them lie the person of sacred Majesty odious to all men but whether in so doing they spit not in the face of the Almighty and strike at his honour in the person of his Ministery he that hath an eye to see let him see To stand here to make a large relation of the severall sorts of Government or what jurisdiction would best suit with this or that people were a businesse to as little purpose as profit and therefore briefly the best way is to fall quickly on the matter intended for if we compare without circumstance the severall estates together it will not be difficult to discerne which of them in profit over-balanceth the other if they be impartially compared together for as the way is easie to fall from kingdom into tyranny so it is no way harder to fall from the rule of many to the faction of a few and most facill of all from a plebean Government to fall to sedition but whatsoever the Lord hath establisht among us it is not onely unsound but unsafe to seek to alter it for that in so doing we contemne the providence of God whatsoever therefore it hath pleased that eternall Majesty to set over us whether Kings over Kingdomes Senators or Officers over free Cities whosoever he maketh Rulers in power over us it is our praise to yeeld obedience to them and first acknowledging their powers from God let us reverently esteem them as the deputies of God Many indeed there are who hold the Civil Magistrate in a kinde of venerable estimation as things expedient for the common benefit accounting them in themselves no more in a manner than as necessary evils but if they cast their eye upon the rule of all good they shall finde themselves bound to a far greater respect 1 Pet. 2. 17. Fear God and honour the King as if the fear of the one were inseperably joyned with the honour of the other Solomon Prov 24. 21. as with a selfe fame conclusion saith My son fear thou the Lord and the King And no whit inferiour is that example of Paul before alleaged that we obey not onely for wrath but conscience as he had said that in so doing we yeeld our obedience to God we must be obedient to them in every respect obeying their proclamations paying their tributes and what not which stands not opposite to the Almighty for as Paul saith Every soul must be subject to the higher powers and who so resisteth it resisteth the Ordinance of God and since the Magistrate cannot be resisted but with the resistance of God himselfe though he be altogether naked the Almighty is ever strongly armed to take vengeance on those who in themselves do fight against him Nor is this subjection and obedience limited or restrained so that it shall extend no further than to such Princes whose pious and godly endeavours are still executing their duties to the people but even to the most lewd and malevolent Magistrate amongst men and to that purpose marke the close of that most reverend learned and orthodox Divine Master Iohn Cal. l. 4. c. 2. sect 24. he cals a Prince the father of his Countrey the Pastor of his People the keeper of peace the protector of righteousnesse the revenger of innocency and saith he he is worthy to be accompted a mad man who alloweth not of such a Government But where as this is in a manner the experience of all ages that of Princes some being carelesse of all things do without all care slothfully wallow in delights other some addicted to their gain do set out to sale all Lawes privileges judgements and grants other some spoil the poor Communalty for money to be wasted on their own prodigall and lavish expendings other some exercise meer robberies in pilling of houses defiling of virgins and matrons murdering of innocents many cannot be perswaded that such should be acknowledged for Princes whose authority they ought to obey so far as they may for that in so great an unworthinesse so much contrarie not only to the dutie of a Magistrate but even of a man they behold no forme of the image of God which should be in a Magistrate and therefore conclude that they ought not to acknowledge such a Governour And to say truth this feeling of affection hath ever beene naturally implanted in the minds of all men no lesse to hate and abhor Tyrants than to love and honour lawfull Kings But if we look to the word of God saith he it will lead as further teaching not only to subject

our selves to the government of such who execute their office toward us well and as they ought but also unto theirs who performe nothing lesse than the dutie of Princes for as those who rule for the good and benefit of a Common-wealth are true patternes of his bountie so they that rule unjustly wickedly and wilfully are set up by him to punish the naughtinesse of the people And that both equally have that Majestie wherewith hee furnisheth lawfull power concluding thus in these words that in a most naughtie man and most unworthy of all honour if he have the Publike Power in possession remaineth that noble and divine power which the Lord by his Word giveth to the Ministers or his righteousnesse and judgement and therefore that of his Subjects he ought to be had in as great reverence and estimation for matter of publike obedience as if hee were the verie best of Kings that could be given them Nebuchadnezzar was little better than a robber and murderer for he was a strong invader and destroyer of others and most certainly he was an Idolater yet mark what the Prophet Daniel speaketh of him Dan. 2. 37. Thou O King art a King of Kings for the God of Heaven hath given thee a Kingdome power and strength and glorie and wheresoever the children of men dwell The beasts of the field and the fowles of the Heaven hath hee given into thine hand and hath made thee Ruler over them all Then againe Dan. 5 18 19. O thou King the most mightie God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father a kingdome and majestie and glorie and honour and for the Majestie that he gave him all people nations and languages trembled and feared before him whom he would he slue and whom he would he kept alive and whom he would he set up and whom hee would he put downe Samuel likewise premonishing the children of Israel of what they should suffer under their Kingly government telleth them yet in Gods owne words 1 Sam. 8. 10 11 12. And Samuel told all the words of the Lord unto the people that asked of him a King and he said This shall be the manner of the King that shall 〈◊〉 over you he will take your sons and appoint them for himselfe for his charriots and to be his horse-men and some shall run before his charriots and he will appoint him Captaines over thousands and Captaines over fifties and will set them to eate his ground and to reap his harvest and to make his instruments of war and instruments of his charriots and he will take your daughters to be Confectionaries and to be Cooks and to be Bakers and he will take your fields and your vineyards and your olive-yards even the best of them and give them to his servants And he will take the tenth of your seed and of your vineyards and give to his Officers and to his servants and hee will take your men-servants and your maid-servants and your goodliest young men and your Asses and put them to his work c. As if Samuel should have absolutely concluded that whatsoever be the lewdnesse and licentiousnesse of the Prince there is nothing but obedience left to the people which they no sooner run out of but they as it were run from God in his Ordinances and not only absolutely oppose him but contemptuously despite him and spit in his face David when he had his great persecutour Saul at his mercy and though himselfe by the ordinance of God was anointed King in his room yet would not so much as lift up his hand to hurt him for when Abishai with his own spear would have smote him and nailed his body to that ground whereon he lay 1 Sam. 26. 9 23 24 25. David cries out Who can stretch forth his hand against the Lords Anointed and be guiltlesse No saith that good man the Lord shall smite him ere his day shall come to die ere he shall descend into the battle and perish the Lord forbid that I should stretch forth my hand against the Lords Anointed and well might Saul freely confesse and proclaim him more righteous than himselfe who when he took the spear and pot from his head might as easily have taken his head from his shoulders but he was well content with this consciencious conclusion As thy life was set by this day in mine eyes so let my life be much set by in the eyes of the Lord and let him deliver me out of all tribulation as if that Worthy of Worthies should have made this inference though thou wickedly and maliciously seekest my life yet art thou the Anointed of the Lord so that should I have laid hand on thee I should have made my selfe abominable to him and in stead of delivering me from he would have cast me into for my crying offence even the greatest tribulation Curse not neither speak evill of the Princes of thy people no not in thought saith Solomon 1 Sam. 24. 4 5 6. And the same David in another place when he might have cut the throat of his enemy Saul was conscious of sin in the cutting his garment for saith the Text his heart smote him because he had cut off onely Sauls skirt good men are consciencious of the credit of a King while the wicked curse and blaspheme his name if cutting onely the skirt of a King made such smitings in the heart of a King what may it do in Subjects who would clip the wing of their Princes power and inslave him to infranchise themselves This amongst us is dayly done in the common discourse of every scoundrell but let such remember that cursing Shimei escaped not without reward for his cursings even then when he thought himselfe safe and secure What the power of Parliaments are I question not yet it is out of all question that they are by dutie bound carefully and conscienciously to discharge that trust which the people have committed unto them and to defend their just liberties and privileges so far as they bold correspondencie with the knowne Lawes of the Land yet with obedience unto that Majestie from whence as from their fountaine and originall next under God those freedomes first came rather willingly to lose some thing of what is ours that any way to encroach on the least of his with consideration that as Princes have their Jurisdictions from Heaven so Parliaments hold their power from Princes It is a most horrible and hatefull hearing for men continually to cry out on Authority one part of the King the other of the Parliament and that without either meane or moderation and for the most part setting their malevolent dispositions aside without the least shew of reason for their railings nay should they goe to it to morrow as many call it and desire not one of a thousand I beleeve except by tradition were able to give an account for what though for whom they fight and which is most to be lamented Ministers in the Pulpit are not ashamed to preach pray against all means of moderation or reconciliation lest as they say all should again be spoyled which hath been so happily begun These men little consider the great division of the Kingdome where the father is of one side the sonne on the other one brother on the one side another on that the Nephew for his Prince the Uncle for the Parliament here one Kinsman there another the Father ready to sheathe his sword in the body of his sonne the sonne ready to rip out the bowels of his father a brother bathing in the blood of a brother and kinsman cutting the throat of another friend butchering friend and neighbour killing neighbour and all things brought to such a barbarous cruelty as if there were no Religion left amongst men beside murder no rule but rapine no regulation but ruine and destruction children snatcht from the parents wing babes from the mothers tender brest and barborously butchered before their eyes wives rent from the bosome of their mourning husbands and ravisht they being forc'd to be spectators Virgins whose tender yeeres scarce ever did admit so much as thought of man deflowred before their parents mournefull eyes Nay Churches will scarce escape from being orespread with gore the Table where wee have often freely fed on by faith the Body and Blood of a Redeemer now stained even with the blood of those our painfull Pastors who all their times have laboured to instruct those to eternall life who now with earnestnes do seek their death Sure if wee could but attain to a true apprehension of these insuing miseries the inseparable companions of homebred broyles it could not chuse but mollifie the flintiest heart and make the marble melt with teares of mourning and force these praters which now preach nothing else but warre to tune their tongues with pious prayers for peace which God of his infinite mercy once more settle amongst us to the glory of his sacred name and the good of his poore distressed people and let all good subjects say Amen I will conclude all with two verses of the Propheticall Psalmist He that delighteth in blood shall not live out halfe his dayes and the Lord shall scatter the people that delight in warre FINIS