Selected quad for the lemma: law_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
law_n	common_a	king_n	land_n	6,506	5	5.9183	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A77374	The vvounded conscience cured, the weak one strengthned, [sic] and the doubting satisfied By way of answer to Doctor Fearne. Where the main point is rightly stated, and objections throughly answered for the good of those who are willing not to be deceived. By William Bridge, preacher of Gods Word. It is ordered this 30. day of January, 1642. by the committee of the House of Commons in Parliament, concerning printing, that this answer to Dr. Fearnes book be printed. John White. The second edition, correced and amended. Whereunto are added three sermons of the same author; 1. Of courage, preached to the voluntiers. 2. Of stoppage in Gods mercies to England, with their [sic] remedies. 3. A preparation for suffering in these plundering times.	Bridge, William, 1600?-1670.	1643 (1643)	Wing B4476A; ESTC R223954	47,440	52

their ancient and acoustomed liberties regiments and lawes they may not well be accounted rebells And the title of that page is the Law sometimes permits resistance and the margent is in some cases the Nobles and Commons may stand for their publicke regiment and laws of their Kingdome All which judgements of severall Divines I doe not bring forth as if I were of their mindes for deposing or punishing of Princes by the people which we plead not for in Hereditary Princes but to shew how the Doctors Dr. Willet Co. on Ro. 13. Q. 17. judgement is different from the judgement of the Divines of all Protestant Countries notwithstanding he would insinuate that our Divines of England are of his judgement and that our judgement is no Bilsons true difference between Christ●an subjection and unchristian rebellion p. 5. 251. new upstart opinion you see what was the judgement of the Divines in the Counsell of Basil where one of them saith thus That in every well ordered Kingdome it ought specially to be desired that the whole Realme ought to be of more authority then the King which if it happened contrary it is not to be called a Kingdome but tyranny so likewise doth he thinke of the Church c. And presently another of the Divines of the s●me Co●●●●ll saith thus For the Pope is in the Church as the King is in his Kingdome and for a King to be of more authority then his Kingdome this were too absurd ergo neither ought the Pope to be above the Church for like as oftentimes Kings which doe wickedly rule the Common-weale and exercise cruelty are deprived of their Kingdomes even so it is not to he doubted but that the Bishops of Rome may be dep●sed by the Church that is to say by the generall Councell neither doe I herein allow them which attribute so large and ample authority unto Kings that they will not have them bound under any Lawes for such as doe so say are but flatterers who do talke otherwise then they think For albeit that they doe say that the moderation of the law is alwaies in the Princes power● that do I thus understand that when as reason shall perswade hee ought to digresse from the rigour of the law for he is called a King who careth and provideth for the Common-weale taketh pleasure in the profit and commodity of the subjects and in all his doings hath respect to the commodity of those over whom he ruleth which if he doe not he is not to be accounted a King● but a Tyrant whose property it is only to suck his owne profit For in this point a King differeth from a Tyrant that the one seeketh the cōmodity profit of them whom he ruleth the other only his owne The which to make more manifest the cause is also to be alledged wherefore Kings were ordained At the beginning as Cicero in his Offices saith It is certaine that there was a certaine time when the people lived without Kings but afterward when ●and and possessions began to be divided according to the custome of every Nation then were Kings ordained for no other cause but only to execute Justice For when as at the beginning the common people were oppressed by rich and mighty men they ran by and by to some good and vertuous man who should defend the poore from injury and ordaine Lawes whereby the rich and poore should dwell together But when as yet under the rule of Kings the poore were oft oppressed lawes were ordained and instituted the which should judge neither for hatred nor favour and give like care unto the poore as unto the rich whereby we doe understand not only the people but the King to be subject unto the Lawes Then the Doctor tells us that he is against the Arbitrary way of government For saith he we may and ought to deny obedience to such commands of the Prince as are unlawfull by the Law of God yea by the established Lawes of the Kingdome Ans This reason doth no way destroy Arbitrary government but rather erect it For government is not said to be Arbitrary because the subjects may deny in word and so left to suffer For then the Tur●ish government is not arbitrary For when the great Turke commands his subjects to doe any thing if they will deny and suffer for their deniall they may and doe sometimes deny their obedience If there be lawes whereby a King is to rule which he shall command his subjects to breake and his subjects are neither bound to obey him nor suffer by him then his government is not arbitrary but if there be lawes made and he may inforce his subjects either to keepe them or breake them and punish them at his pleasure that shall refuse and the whole kingdome bound in conscience to suffer whatsoever he shall inflict for not breaking those Lawes then is his government arbitrary for arbitrary government is that whereby a Prince doth rule ex arbitrio which he doth when either there is no law to rule by but his owne will or when hee hath a power to breake those lawes at his will and to punish the subject at his pleasure for not breaking them and in truth this latter is rather an arbitrary government then the former as it shewes more liberty in the will that it hath a power to act when reason perswades to the contrary then if there were no reason disswading and else there should be no arbitrary government in the world For no State but hath some lawes whereby they rule and are ruled even the very Indians onely here lyes the arbitrarinesse of a government that notwithstanding the law the Ruler may pro arbitrio force his subjects according to his owne pleasure Then the Doctor saith We must consider that they which plead for resistance in such a case as is supposed doe grant that it must be concluded upon Omnibus ordinibus regni consentientibus that is with the generall and unanimous consent of the two houses Ans 1. First these words are ill translated for omnes ordines regni may consentire and yet there may not be an unanimous and generall consent of the Members of the two houses as of one man 2. If so that the Doctor grant this to be our Sentence why then doth he object against us that the Christians in the primitive times did not take up armes for the defence of themselves against the Emperors seeing they had not the consent of all the orders of the Empire and therefore their case is nothing to ours as hee pretends afterward But if they had the whole Senate of Rome with them the representative body of the Empire then their case had beene more like unto ours and then no question but they would have taken up armes for the defence of themselves Then the Doctor saith We suppose that the Prince must be so and so disposed bent to overthrow Religion Liberties Lawes c. Ans Here he takes that

their power How can the people thinke that the Parliament doth any thing contrary to the law of the land when the Parliament are the Judges thereof and the people confesse so and therefore the Doctor may be out of feare for this matter Lastly the Doctor saith That seeing some must be trusted in every Estate it is reason that the highest and finall trust should be in the higher and supreme power and that he should have the best security which is worth ten thousand of his subjects Ans I answer therefore the people do trust the King and his Parliament who are the highest power and Court in the Kingdome and if the greatest and best security should be about the King because he is worth 10000. subjects then surely the Kingdome it selfe should have the best security because the King is ordained for his Kingdom In Fine the Doctor presses the oath of Supremacie Allegeance and the last Protestation upon the conscience and wishes men here to consider their power of resistance and taking up of armes is contrary thereto in which he saith We sweare and protest to defend the Kings person Ans And thus we do by taking up of Arms for what man is there that considers things rightly may not easily perceive that if the Popish party should prevaile which are either about the King or of his Armies I say who may not easily thinke if they should prevail that either our King must be a ranke Papist of a dead man Who knows not that if the Papists get the upper hand though now they cry out for Supremacy Supremacy that either they wil force the King to another Supremacie or else quickly make a hand of him Is it not their opinion What better service therefore can a true subject performe to his Majesties person then by force of Armes to deliver him out of the hands of those spoylers that lye in waite for his pretious soule In the oath of Supremacie we sweare him our Soveraigne to be Supreme in opposition to the Pope or any other particular person How does our doctrine or practise infringe this In the oath of Allegeance we swear to be his liege Subjects according to Law and that which we doe is so And in our Protestation we protest to maintaine the Kings Person the Parliaments priviledges the Subjects rights and our Religion if we doe not take up arms in this time of Popish insurrection how can we with good conscience say that either we defend the Kings Person from the violence of Papists which according to their owne Doctrine we know shall be made upon our King or the priviledges of Parliament whose power is to send for delinquents and those that are accused before them even by force to bring them into their triall or the liberty of subjects who have this given by nature to defend themselves or the truth of our religion which notwithstanding all flourishes we have seen such invasions made upon and now in our conscience under more hazard because those that are opposite unto it doe professe to defend it whereupon I presume that every good man that maketh conscience of his waies considering these things will not be backward to advance this publicke designe And though the Doctor be frequent with his damnation both in this Section and in others charging men from this resistance upon paine or damnation yet a setled conscience will be no more scared with the Doctors damnation then with the Cavalliers God damne us Sect. VI. NOw the Doctor comes to the application of all in these two fast Sections in which I intend not to trace him into all that he saies The application of all being left unto what men see and know experimentally yet something I must say unto these Sections In this sixth he tells us that we doe not walke up unto our own● principles which are as he saith that our resistance must be omnibus ordin but regni consentientibus that is as he translates it agreed upon and undertaken by the generall and unanimous consent of the whole States Ans But is this a good and true translation of the words The Doctor may know that when the matter comes to a scrutiny in the Regent house the matter is to passe with the consent of the Regents non-Regents and heads of the University and though all doe not manimously as one Man consent yet it may be omnibus ordinibus consentientibus But he saith How shall conscience be perswaded that this resistance was agreed upon by an unanimous and free consent of the States for saith he he that knowes how the Militia in which this resistance chiefly began was brought in with what opposition especially in the Lords House and by what number that at length was voted also how the like proceedings was voted since how that a vote passed by a few upon the place though it have the power and condition of a vote for the formality of law was not passed in full assemblies cannot be perswaded in conscience that this is such an unanimous free generall consent as makes the judgement of the whole Kingdom Ans To the which I answer that by the like reasoning there is no act of Parliament or Law shall be of any force and he may as well question any law that is made for when was there ever any law made which all did unanimously as one man consent to By the constant law of the Kingdome though there be not so many in either House which have been present at these late affairs of the Kingdome it is to be acknowledged for an act of Parliament and so the judgement of the whole Kingdom Then secondly he tells us That we doe not walk up to our second principle viz. that our resistance must be meerly defensive for saith he those that are first in armes cannot be upon the defensive part page 22. and then page 21. saith he who were first in armes He that can number the succession of months and weeks in his Almanacke may decide this he shal find that armed men were thrust into Hull the Militia set up c. Ans To which I answer If those that are first in armes cannot be on the defensive part then surely Davids act was not meere defence as the Doctor saith before for we finde in Scripture that David and his men were gotten into armes before that Saul followed him surely the Doctors Almanack hath not all the months in it for he begins his account only at the businesse at Hull wheras before that the King came in hostile manner unto the Parliament gathered forces about Windsor but this must be left unto mens eies and experienced knowledge it being matter of fact Then the Dr. I know not how comes to enquire into the cause of these armes wherein after some flourishes he saith Would an● man have defended the revolt of the ten Tribes if Rehoboam had promised to conserve their liberties Saying further what shall we then generally thinke of this

thinke of any such matter Object Why but if the people give the power then if abused they may take it away also Res No that needs not seeing they never gave away that power of selfe preservation so that this position of ours is the onely way to keepe people from such assaults whereby the power of the Prince is more fully established whereas if people were kept from power of selfe-preservation which is naturall to them it were the onely way to breake all in peeces for Nullum violentum contranaturale est perpetuum no violent thing against nature is perpetuall Thus have I clearly opened our opinion and proved our sentence give me leave now to speake with the Doctor Section I. THe Doctor saith That in the proposition or principle by the word resistance is meant not a denying of obedience to the Princes command but a rising in armes a forcible resistance this though cleare in the question yet I thought good to insinuate to take off that false imputation laid upon the Divines of this Kingdom and upon all those that appear for the King in this cause Gubernat●res ergo in ●is rebus quae cum decalog● justis legibus pugnant nihil juris aut immunitatis habent p●ae caeteris hominibus privatis perpretrantes id quod malum est Coguntur tam metuere ordinationem Dei gladium prestante ad vindictam nocentium quam alii homines privati nam Paulus Ro. 13. docet Deum ordi●asse instituisse potestatem illam gladio defendendi bonum puniendi malum praecipit ut omnis anima sic ipsi guber n●ores tali Dei ordinationi fit subjecta hoc est obligat ad sacien●●m bonum si velit defendi ist a. Dei ordinatione non ob sua facino●a impia puniri Magdeburgensis cent 1 l. 20. cap. 4. page 457. Quod a●tem ad nos proprie pertiner possum enumerare duodecim aut etiam amplius reges qui ob scelera flagitia aut in perpetuum carcetem sūt damnati aut exilio vel morte voluntaria justas scelerū poenas fugerant nos autemid contendimus populum a quo reges nostri habent quicquid juris sibi vindicant regibus ess● potentiorē Iusque idem in cos habere multitudinem quod illi in singulos a multitudine habent B●● de Gub Regni apud Sco●os Here the Dr. would insinuate in the very entrance of his book that so he might the better captare benevolentiam curry favour for the matter of his discourse following That the Divines of England are of his judgement But if they be so surely their judgement is lately changed But indeed what Divines are of his judgement not the Divines of Germany not the Divines of the French Protestant Churches not the Divines of Geneva not of Scotland not of Holland not of England Not the Divines of Germany who say thus Governours therefore in such things that are repugnant to the Law of God have no power or immunity above other private men they themselves commanding that which is evill have no power or immunity above other private men and they themselves commanding that which is evill are as much bound to feare the ordinance of God bearing the sword for the punishment of vice as other private men For Saint Paul in Rom. 3. saith that God did institute and ordaine a power both of defending that which is good and punishing that which is evill and he commands that every soule and so the Governours themselves would bee subject to this ordinance of God that is bound to doe good if they would be defended by this ordinance of God and not by their wicked deeds make themselves liable to punishment Not the Divines of the French Protestant Churches witnesse their taking up of armes for the defence of themselves at Rochell Not the Divines of Geneva For as Calvin in the 4. book of his institutions chap. 10. saith thus For though the correcting of unbridled government be revengement of the Lord let us not by and by think that it is committed to us to whom then is given no other commandment but to obey and suffer I speak alway of private men for if there be at this time any Magistrates in the behalfe of the people such as in old time were the Ephori that were set against the Kings of Lacedemonia or the tribuner of the people against the Roman Consuls or the Demarchy against the Senate at Athens and the same power which peradventure as things are now the 3 States have in every Realm when they hold their principal assemblies I do so not forbid them according to their office to withstand the outraging licentiousnesse of Kings that I affirm if they wink at Kings wilfully ranging over and treading down the poor Commonalty their dissembling is not without wicked breach of faith because they deceitfully betray the liberty of the people whereof they know themselves appointed to be protectors by the ordinance of God Not the Divines of Holland for we know what their practise is towards the King of Spaine Not the Divines of Scotland for Buca●an saith for I can number twelve ●r more Kings among our selves who for their sinne and wickednesse were either cast into prison during their life or else eschewed the punishment by banishment But this is that which we contend for that the people from whom the Kings have all that they have are greater then the Kings and the whole multitude have the same power over them as they have over particular men out of the multitude witnesse also their late taking up armes when they came into England which by the King and Parliament is not judged rebellion Not our English Divines whose judgement Dr. Willet was acquainted with as well as our present Dr. who saith thus Touching the point of resistance certaine differences are to be observed for when there is an extraordinary calling as in the time of the Judges or when the Kingdome is usurped without any right as by Athalia or when the land is invaded by forraigne enemies as in the time of Maccabees or when the government is altogether elective as the Empire of Germany in all these cases then is least question of resistance to be made by the generall Councell of the States yet where none of these concur God forbid that the Church and Common-wealth should be left without remedy the former conditions viz. those alledged by Pareus observed when havock is made of the Common-wealth or the Church and Religion Thus also Doctor Bilson whose booke was allowed by publicke authority and printed at Oxford speakes If a Prince should goe about to subject his Kingdome to a forraigne Realme or change the forme of the Common-weale from Empery to Tyranny or neglect the lawes established by common consent of Pr. and people to execute his owne pleasure in these and other cases which might be named if the Nobles and Commons joyne together to defend