Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	comply_v	enemy_n	great_a	18	3	2.1554	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A62670	An essay concerning obedience to the supreme powers, and the duty of subjects in all revolutions with some considerations touching the present juncture of affairs.	Tindal, Matthew, 1653?-1733.	1694 (1694)	Wing T1299; ESTC R5554	50,889	92

Magistrate whom he calls the Ordinance of Man so that it is plain that God by approving this Human Ordinance approves it as Human and requires obedience to it for the same Reasons that men at first instituted it And it is the power Governors have to do Good that makes them to be not only God's Ordinance and God's Ministers but even Gods for since they are not Gods by nature tho by some peoples arguing one would suppose they though them such or at least Beings in themselves superior to the rest of Mankind it must be for the protection they afford that they are termed so who when they do no longer protect the people cease to be a Human Ordinance and then too they cease to be a Divine one And the same Reasons that obliges people to submit to them when they act for the good of the Society does as much oblige people to oppose them if they design to ruin and destroy them It cannot well be supposed that God who has obliged Mankind to preserve their lives and consequently to use the means that are necessary for that end should require People to suffer themselves to be destroyed to gratify the Lust or Barbarity of a single Person or a few who are by Nature but their Equals and only above them by being in an Office which they erected only for their Convenience Obj. St. Paul makes no manner of exception but declareth Whosoever resists shall receive damnation Ans. The Apostle requireth obedience to Parents in all things so he requireth obedience to Masters Husbands Pastors without mentioning any Exceptions so here the Apostle which was sufficient for his purpose declareth all people ought to obey the Supream Powers without mentioning this exception which from the nature end and design of Government and even from those Reasons which he gives for Obedience does necessarily flow It cannot be presumed that Christ gave Authority to his Apostles to make Slaves of Mankind by giving the Emperors a new Power who before by no Law of God or Nature had such a power over peoples lives All the Power the Roman Government had was immediatly from the people who as it is plain in History by their mutual Consent erected that Commonwealth and what power the Emperors had was given them too by the people who by the Lex Regia conferred it upon them All that can be deduced from Scripture is That obedience is due to those that protect the people and nothing can be plainet than those Texts which require it By which plain and ignorant people may know their duty as well as the learned and wise It would have been inconsistent with the Goodness of God to have required obedience on the greatest penalties and yet leave it so uncertain as the Jacobitish Principles would render it to whom obedience is to be paid What can be more uncertain than generally Titles are And are there not innumerable intricate difficulties about long Possession presumed Consent a just cause for a total Conquest c. If about these Points the Learned do so extreamly differ as any one may perceive that gives himself the trouble to examine what Authors have writ upon it who give good Reasons for destroying one another's Hypothesis but none for confirming their own but what are liable to equal Exceptions what means or possibility have almost all Mankind the unlearned and common people of knowing their duty But it may be objected Though the common people should be mistaken invincible Ignorance will excuse them Ans. Not to dispute how far such Ignorance will excuse them I am sure it is inconsistent with the Infinite Wisdom of God to give such Rules as almost all Mankind are utterly uncapable of understanding or guiding their Actions by But whoever considereth these Texts of Scripture will see the falseness of such impious Reflections and must admire the Goodness of God in laying down Rules so plain that a well-meaning man cannot mistake them But if men will be wiser than God himself and not be content with those Laws he prescribes them but will invent new Rules and new ways or by following the Tradition of the Jewish Priests will disturb the peace and quiet of Human Societies by opposing the Powers that be If by so doing they incur the severest Punishments here as well as Eternal Torments hereafter with those damned ill-natured Spirits the grand Enemies of Mankind who at first possessed men with these Maxims so pernicious to Human Societies they must thank themselves and their too great Subtilty The Primitive Christians all along complied with the Revolution of the Empire and whoever was in possession of it without examing his Title paid him allegiance and thought him invested with God's Authority And as the Goths and Vandals and other barbarous Nations on one hand and the Saracens Turks and Persians on the other without any just cause overturn'd the Roman Empire the Christians were so far from disputing their Titles or refusing to transfer their Allegiance to them that they never scrupled to own their Government If these Pharisaical Notions had then been believed or practised those Nations would have extirpated all the Professors of Christianity as Enemies to Government and Order instead of being converted to their Religion as most of the Northern Nations were Nor do the Christians that now live under the Dominions of the Infidels vary from this Primitive Practice or scruple to transfer their Allegiance to any that gets possession of the Sacred Office of Governing tho the Legal Prince be still alive Did not the Jews though they were commanded by a Divine Law to take a King from amongst their Brethren and God himself had intailed the Crown on the Posterity of David practice the same as they fell under the power of the four great Empires And did they not submit to Alexander without endeavouring to oppose him when Darius to whom they had sworn obedience could no longer protect them I shall add but one Instance more and that shall be of David who thought it not unlawful when Saul designed to take away his life to transfer his Allegiance and fly to Achish King of Gath for protection who made him Keeper of his Head or Captain of his Guard and whilst he was under his protection he thought it his duty to pay all manner of Allegiance to him and tho contrary to his Interest and the hopes he had of being King after Saul's death even to join with the Uncircumcised to invade his own Countrey and to sight against the Lord 's Anointed his late King and Father-in-law and as appeareth by the 1 Sam. 29. 8. was much grieved and humbly expostulateth with the King for not permitting him to attend him in the Battel But what have I done or what hast thou found in thy servant so long as I have been with thee until this day that I may not go and fight against the enemies of my Lord the King Saul by designing to destroy David had