Selected quad for the lemma: authority_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
authority_n	law_n	power_n	word_n	4,342	5	4.2796	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A56155	Diotrephes catechised, or, Sixteen important questions touching the ecclesiastical jurisdiction and censures (contradistinct to civill) now eagerly pretended to and challenged by a divine right, by some over-rigid Presbyterians and Independents propounded to both these dissenting parties for the further discovery of truth, the preservation of the civil Christian magistrates interest, and speedier comprimising [sic] of our present unhappy controversies touching church-government ... / proposed, published by W. Prynne ...	Prynne, William, 1600-1669.	1646 (1646)	Wing P3945; ESTC R31935	18,373	18

on Delinquents against Gods Law as well as against the Kings Yea had there bin any other Censures Ecclefiasticall distinct from these temporall which ought by any Divine Right or institution to have bin then inflicted upon notorious scandalous offendors against Gods Law by the high Priest or any other Church Officers or Iudicatory no doubt this devcut King upon this occasion would have expresly commanded Ezra the Priest himselfe or those Church-Officers or Judicatories to have duly executed the same when he gave him this large Commission and extended so much extraordinary favour to him that he cryes out in the very next ensuing words v. 27. Blessed be the Lord God of our Fathers who hath put such a thing as this into the Kings heart c. Which as it expresly determines that this Commission and forecited direction was inspired into the Kings heart by God himselfe and so most consonant to his written word and Law so it insinuates that by the Law of God in those dayes all scandalous Offenders against Gods Law were to be punished only by the civill Majestrates and Judges with civill punishments not by any Ecclesiasticall Officers or Iudicatory with any Church-censures whatsoever This may be further evidenced by the Priests Prophets Peoples and Princes proceedings against Ieremiah Vriah who for preaching and prophecying falsly as was supposed were punished by the King and Princes upon the Priests Prophets peoples malicious accusation only by * Imprisonment Death alone not by Church-cen●res Church Iudicatories Yea Deuter. 13. 5. False Prophets are expresly enjoyned to be put to death by the Civill Majest●●●s not punished by the Ecclesiasticall powers with excommunications or suspentions And it is most cleare and undeniable by the 1 King 22. 26. 27. 2 Chron. 16. 10. c 18. 25. 26. Math. 14. 3. 4. 5. Luk. 22. 23. Acts 5. 18. 19. c. 8. 3. c. 12. 2. 3. 4. c. 16. 23. 24. c. 22 19. 20 to 30. c. 24 25 26 2 Cor. 6 5 Hebr. 11 36 37. That both in the old and new Testament False Prophets Teachers and broachers of Erronious Doctrins or such who were so reputed though true yea the Apostls Saints of Christ for preaching professing the Gospell and truth of God amongest the Jewes and others who reputed it * Heresie Scisme or false Doctrine contrary to what they had formerly received were usually convented before the civill Majestrates and punished with imprisonment stripes putting or stoning to death and the like but not with Excommunication or any Ecclesiasticall Censures of divine institution though now made matters of meere Ecclesiasticall Cognisance And if so whether the Temporall Christian Majestrates and civill Powers as such have not now the selfesame divine Authority to punish such sinnes and sinners under the Gospell only with temporall punishments without the interposition Examination or Censures of any Church-Officers or Presbyteries as the Godly temporall Majestrates Civill powers had then under the Law If not how the contrary can be evidenced by cleare Scriptures and by what texts in particular 2. Whether the texts of Deut. 17. 8. to 14. 2. Chron. 19. 8. to the end do warrant any Ecclesiasticall Iurisdiction Congregationall or Classicall in Causes meerely Ecclesiasticall or any meere Church censures distinct from the Civill Majestracy and temporall Censures as some now pretend Whether the genuine scope and sence of these texts hold forth any more or other jurisdiction and power in the Priests Levites or High Priest himselfe then this That they joyntly with the temporall Iudges and chiefe of the Fathers of Israel not alone by themselves should resolve not ordinary plaine or undisputable but only all such doubtfull civill cases or controversies which the ordinary Iudges or Majestrats in their Cities held dubious or too hard for them to determine aright between not scandall and scandall ●or who should be excommunicated suspended from the Ordinances as scandalous ignorant or unfit and who not but between blood and blood plea and plea stroke and stroke being matters of civill controversie in their gates and between Law and Commandement Statutes and Iudgments to wit the Judiciall written Law of God upon whose exposition any civill doubts or controversies should arise which the people themselves could not resolve whose superior resolutions they should submit to and proceed accordingly to execution and he that would presumptuously disobey and not submit to their sentence was not to bee excommunicated or suspended * but put to death a meere civill censure to terrify others And if this only be the ful sence and meaning of these texts whether any episcopal Presbyteriall classical or congregational Iurisdiction to correct scandalls with meer Ecclesiasticall censures can be deduced from them Whether that speech of Iehoshaphat 2. Chron. 19. 11. And behold Amariah the Chiefe Priest is over you in all matters of the Lord not scandalous sinnes and Ecclesiasticall Offences committed by the Priests or people no matters of the Lord but sins of men detested by the Lord imply or necessarily enforce that he had any Ecclesiasticall Iurisdiction in point of judicature to censure punish all or any sort of scandalous sinners with Church censures of which there is not one sillable in the text vested in him by any divine Authority And if so whether it makes not more for Papall and Archiepiscopall then Presbyteriall Classicall or Congregationall Authority this power or superintendent Iurisdiction over all matters of the Lord being vested in this High Priest alone and no other Or rather whether it be not clearly meant that as King Josiah himselfe did by his own Regal Authority appoint Iudges in the Land and in Jerusalem in the preceeding 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. verses to determin all controversies punish all Offences whatsoever according to the Lawes of God and that Kingdom so he did by the selfesame regall Authority appoint Amariah then chief Priest over the Priests Levites only implyed in the word You not over the people of the Land in all matters of the Lord that is to Order direct the Priests and Levites under him in their several courses and all matters what soever concerning the worship service Oblations and sacrifices of the Lord to be performed by them in the Temple at Ierusalem in the selfesame manner as he set Zebadiah the Ruler of the House of Judah over all the Kings matters in the very next ensuing words That is as all consent not over the people and Kingdome for to judge and governe them for that the Iudges forementioned were to do but over his househould Lands Revenews as his Lord Treasurer or Lord High Steward of the Revenewes of the Crowne as the comparing of it with ●● Chron. 26. 30. 33. And of the Hibronises Hashabiah and his Brethren men of valour a thousand and seven hundred were Officers among them of Israel on this side Jordan westward IN ALL BVSINESSES OF THE LORD in the service of the King

c. And his Brethren men of Vallour were two thousand seven hundred chiefe Fathers whom King David Made Rulers over the Rubenites Gadites and the halfe Tribe of Manasseth for EVERY MATTER PERTAINING VNTO GOD and Officers of the King joyntly therefore Church Officers made only by the King and alterable at his pleasure not by any Divine institution of God himselfe and the paralelling it with these explanatory texts 1 Chron. 9. 10. to 35. c. 23. 24. 25. 26. 2 Chron. 5. 7. to 14. c. 8. 14. 15. c. 13. 9. 10. 11. 12. c. 26. 16. to 21. c. 29. 3. to 35. c. 30. 16. c. 31. 2. 3. 11. to 20. c. 35. 2. 12. Ezra 6. 17. 18. Neh. 12. 40. to 47. compared with Heb. 5. 1. 2. For every high Priest taken from among men is ordained for men IN THINGS PERTAINING To GOD that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sinnes c. insallibly demonstrate And if so then what Divine warrant is there from hence for any such Ecclesiasticall Jurisdiction distinct from the Temporall as many now contend for from these two noted Texts or for any Priests Ministers of the Gospell or Church Officers distinct from the temporall Majestracy to examine correct any scandalous Ostences by a meere Ecclesiasticall power or to punish them with Church Censures disterent from civill punishments 3. Whether the Priests Iurisdiction to judge of (l) all causes of Leprosie no scandalous sin nor offence but a meer naturall infirmity and that only among the Jewes yea as well in Houses Garments Vessells no subjects of Ecclesiasticall censures as Persons or their proceedings in the case of (m) Jelousie by vertue of expresse speciall Leviticall or Judiciall Lawes the only cases wherein the Priests were appointed to be as Judges in the old Testament whose proper Office was (n) to offer sacrifices and make attonement for sinnes not to censure or punish them bee any infallible proofe of the Aaronicall Priests or Presbyteries Ecclesiasticall Iudicature or Jurisdiction to censure all spirituall Leprosies of the soule with Church censures Or of the Ecclesiasticall jurisdiction of Presbyteries or Independent Congregations to judge or censure all causes of spirituall Leprosie or scandalous offences under the Gospell And whither wee may not as soundly argue from the Writ * De Leproso amovendo and the Statute of 1 Iac. chap. 31. as they from these Texts Majors Bayliffes of Townes Justices of Peace Constables and other Officers may lawfully remove Lepers and shut up persons infected with the Plague of Pestilence Ergo they may excommunicate and suspend from the Sacrament all such as are scandalously or notoriously infected with the Leprosie and plague of sin 4. Whither Deut. 13. 12 13 14 Josh. 22. 10. to 34. Iudg. 20. 1. to 18. 2 Chron. 19. 9. to 11. Ezra 10. 16 17. where we read of temporall Officers Princes sent and imployed Commissioners as well as Priests to inquire after Idolaters Idolatry rapes mariages with heathenish Wives and other Ecclesiasticall crimes compared together hee not a stronger Scripture evidence for proofe of the Parliaments and Lay. Commissioners Authority to enquire after yea punish Idolaters and scandalous sinners then any texts that can bee produced by the Presbyterians or Independents out of the Old Testament for probat of a divine right either in their Classes Presbyteries or Independent Congregations to censure scandalous sins and sinners with Ecclesiasticall censures And whither the Statutes of 26. Hen. 8. cap. 1. 31. Hen. 8. c. 10. appointing a Lay Vicegerent in all Ecclesiasticall matters 37 H. 8. c. 17. 1 E. 6. c. 2. 1. Eliz. c. 1. do not justifie such Commissioners to be legall as well as these texts warrant them to be in some sort divine 5ly Whether there bee any precept or president in all the Old Testament directly or punctually determining that there was by divine institution an unquestionable Ecclesiasticall jurisdiction vested by God Himselfe in Priests Levites or any Jewish Officers to examine witnesses upon Oath convent or censure any scandalous sinners by excommunication or suspention of them from the Tabernacle Temple publike Assemblies Synagougs Sacrifices solemne publike Festivalls or other sacred Ordinances for any scandalous fin whatsoever If so then what are these precepts presidents and scandalous sins in particular And whether it be probable they had any direct authority given them by God ●…imselfe to suspend or put backe any from the Sacraments of Circumcision or the Passeover which Baptisme and the Lords Supper now succeed since both of them originally were ordered to be performed in private by the (o) Parents or Masters of the Family not Priests or Levites and executed or eaten by them in their (p) severall private houses where the Priests and Levites had no Ecclesiasticall jurisdiction that we read of and were not present at these sacred actions unlesse onely at some few solemne generall Passeovers at Ierusalem where they were but Ministeriall to (q) helpe kill the Passeover and sprinkle the bloud not Magisteriall to keep any backe from eating thereof by any pretext of Ecclesiasticall Authority 6ly Whether Ministers or Presbyteries under the Gospell have any other or greater Ecclesiasticall jurisdiction then the Jewish High Priest Priests and Levites had under the Law And whither Christian Kings Magistrates have not as large an Ecclesiasticall power and Authority under the Gospell as any godly Kings or Magistrates exercised under the Law If you answer Negatively to the first and affirmatively to the latter of these demands then how can that Ecclesiasticall jurisdiction of Presbyteries or Congregations and their power of Church-censures distinct from the civill Magistracy be any way justified or maintained by the Scripture If affirmatively in the first and Negatively in the latter then shew us direct Scripture Authorities to convince our judgements of what you thus assert or else give over your pretence of Ius divinum It is confessed both by the Presbyterians or Independents and cleare by sundry * expresse texts that Christian Majestrates are Jure divin●… and have an undoubted divine Authority yea command to punish and cut off all scandalous sinners Psal. 100 5 7 8. Rom. 13. 1. to 8. Pro. 20. 26. Whether Presbyteries or Independent Congregations have any divine Ecclesiasticall right to punish them with Church censures is very disputable and denyed by many Therefore it is the safest readiest way to Unity and Reformation to remit the punishment of all scandalous offences to the civill Magistrate rather than to the pretended disputable questioned a●…hority of Presbyteries Classes or Indedependent Congregations 7ly whether there be any expresse texts in all the New Testament and what in particular which infallibly evince an Ecclesiasticall jurisdiction by divine right to be setled by Christ in all Christian Ministers Presbyteries or Congregations in which of them in particular to continue unalterably in all Churches of Christ to the end of the world for the excommunication or