The Lord strooke him with leprousie vers 19. and then the Priests thrust him out of the holy place because of his uncleannesse according to the Law Nay sayes the Text vers 20. himselfe hasted also to goe out because the Lord had smitten him this example therefore makes nothing at all for the lawfulnesse of resisting the Kings person commanding against his owne Lawes Other examples as little to the purpose are also alleadged by those that would faine winde Gods Word to speake the language of their owne spirits but these onely were mentioned at our conference and therefore I will not spend time to answer any other which indeed are already answered by abler pens then mine Sect. 11 Now I come to the Argument from reason which in your thoughts as it seemes if you be in earnest doth imply a necessity of resistance in such a case Salus populi which is Suprema lex doth require it for thus you argue It is according to reason that every particular man should endeavour the preservation of his owne being yea 't is Lex naturae every member of the body every creature in the world will doe it ergo much more man who hath also the use of Reason to perswade him to defend himselfe against an unjust violence Indeed say you Christianity commands us patiently to submit when we are wronged by the Law but if against Law then we may stand upon our owne guard by all the Lawes of Nature and Nations As for example say you if a father or master whose commands are to be bounded within the compasse of their particlar relations shall by unjust violence require things unsuteable to be done the childe or servant may and ought to defend himselfe even to the disarming of his Governour so if a Prince shall command any thing beyond or beside the relation of his Kingly office as for example when a sentence is passed by a triall at Law for me against him he shall notwithstanding in his passion send to my house to do me violence I must defend my selfe and disarme him if I can for if in such a case I shall yeild my throat to his fury to be cut I shall be guilty of selfe murder and if this may be done for the safety of a private man then much more when Salus populi wrich is suprema lex doth require it These in breife as I remember were your Arguments and illustrations to which I thus answer First in generall Reason I grant ruleth well when Religion opposeth not but 't is her duty to vaile unto faith and therefore as you and I have often taught even reason her selfe must be denied in some cases as well as nature a Christian as well as another creature may and must looke to his owne preservation but we are bought with a price 1 Cor. 6.20 and so are not our owne nor must be in the first place for our selves the Honour of that profession which he that bought us hath entrusted us to maintaine must be preserved by us before life it selfe if selfe defence will blemish my Holy profession if resisting the King speakes rather the doctrine of the Iesuits then of Iesus I had rather by patience possesse my soule in safety then by opposing endeavour the preservation of my body Ob. But for the particular instances every member of the body say you will defend it selfe Answ True and all the Head yea every one of them will defend the Head before it selfe 't is naturall to them and if wee be right members of the Commonwealth the King is our Head Ob. Every Creature will endeavour the preservation of its own being Answ So will a reasonable man and a Christian in speciall ought so to do that he may do his Creator the more service but onely in that way and by those meanes as may not crosse the end of his beeing Ob. But Christianity commands to submit with patience onely when wronged by the Law Answ It hath beene already answered that Christian patience is not so limited if the Law be on my side when the King wrongs me my wrong is the greater and my patience in such a case is more glorious and comes nearer to perfection Ob. But the Kings Commands are bounded as those of a Father or master within the compasse of their particular relations Answ That is already denyed and must be better proved before I answer further onely this I adde that the similitude of a father or master is not to this case corresponding for 1. I am equall to my father or master as I am a Subject though their inferiour in my particular relation to them but so I am not to my Prince 2. I have a Law to warrant me to stand upon mine owne defence against them and to disarme them when they breake the Kings peace upon mee but I have not to justify me in my so doing against my Prince 3. The King hath not given a father or master potestatem vitae et necis over those that in their relations are under them as God hath given the King therefore although I may defend my selfe against them yet not against him to whom being the publick father and Lord I owe the greater duty and obedience and am to forsake them to serve him Answ 2 Besides I do not wholely yeild to the lawfulnesse of resisting a father or master onely for the unsuteablenesse of their command or perhaps because jujurious to the childe or servant if it be not impious in it selfe for that place of the Apostle seemeth to gainsay it servants bâ— subject to your Masters with all feare 1 Pet. 1 18.19 not onely to the good and gentle but also to the froward for this is thanke worthy if a man for Conscience sake toward God indure griefe suffering wrongfully q. d. when in the frowardnesse of their Spirits they command things unsuteable submit your selves and resist not now if subjection in such a case be due to Masters much more is it unto a Prince Answ 3 Or lastly I answer there is a medium between obeying and resisting in a case of that nature and that is complaining to those that are above them for fathers and masters are themselves also under Authourity unto which their children or servants may appeale for their own defence when unreasonable commands with violence are forced upon them and so may and must the Subjects do appeale to God in such a case 1 Sam. 8.18 who onely is above their Prince 1 Sam. 8.18 Ob. But suppose the streight be such that the Son or servant cannot appeale to the Magistrate hee must either yeild to the thing unlawfull or be killed if he do not resist Answ The case is never so between us and God Gen. 22.14 hee is every where to whom we may appeale yea providebit in monte our extremity is his best oportunity Quest But what warrant for this Answ I know your selfe at leasure can finde many I 'le minde
and love peculiar to himselfe he loves not his father onely because he begat him or his mother because she bare him in her wombe and gave him sucke or his friend because beneficiall unto him or his Soveraigne because he doth protect him these are vulgar grounds and of meere naturalls yea of bruit creatures but his principall foundation is the Command of God and the apprehension of Gods love to himselfe and as Gods Love and Word is capable of no alteration no more is a Christians love and duty which is built upon it it is in its measure and degree like that constant and unfeigned yea though the Prince should change and omit what belongs to him yet a true Christian Subject changeth never nor dareth he to neglect the least tittle of his duty O sayes he Gods love to me in Jesus Christ hath kindled in my heart a love unto my Soveraigne set over me by himselfe Gods word in my soule is the root of my duty to my Prince therefore so long as God continues to love me so long will I continue an obedient Subject as nothing can separate Gods love from me neither life nor death nor Principalities nor Powers so nothing shall separate my heart from my King neither feares nor threatnings nor plunderings nor persecutions as nothing can nullifie Gods word Heaven and earth shall passe away before the least tittle of that shall perish so nothing can or shall alienate me from my Allegiance to my Prince but him will I Honour him will I love feare and obey actively or passively although he should account of me and deale with me as with an Enemy 6. We Honour God by rejoycing his Spirit and by being carefull not to greive the same after which manner also we must Honour the King our endeavours must be to glad his heart and our studies to make him chearfull that so he may govern us with comfort Heb. 13.17 and give up his account with joy which will be most for our advantage as the Apostle speaketh in another case Indeed crossenesse and perversnesse is a great wickednesse when exercised against any specially against a Prince yet even such a Person is sometime so afflicted When I speake of Peace saies King David then they make them ready to battaile such was their crossenesse Ps 120.7 in another place they dealt perversely with me without a cause Ps 119 78. indeed when ever men deale perversely with their Prince they do so without cause for there neither can nor ought to be any cause to move a man to break his duty to his Sovereigne or rather to his God who hath commanded his constant and loyall obedience It is not spoken in Scripture to the commendation of those vexatious Sonnes of Zerviah that they were too hard for David and so often greived his Spirit but every true David must meet with such men to discover him to the rest of his people to be a man after Gods owne Heart meeke wise and patient Theophilus Bishop of Alexandria as some write having got power with the Empresse did vex Ioh. Chrysostome to death by tormenting his Spirit and molesting of him who can thinke of that act without indignation it was reported of you know whom that he vexeda minister to death by his unjust and incessant troubling of him an horrid thing if it were true and worthy of a sharpe censure but I pray God that some of them that blaimed him have not since had a finger in such endeavours and against a more High and Sacred person omne occultum tandem revelabitur Thus reverend Sir by this glimpse you see what kind of Honour I believe is due unto a King and how the Subjects are to expresse the same and now Sir I instance not in every particular way as in paying tribute or the like which our Savior and Saint Paul commandeth because that will naturally follow upon that which hath been said And now Sir discern my faith in the whole case the grounds of it you may perceive I am one of those that conceive the Standard of Gods word to be the best rule to measure at a subjects duty by indeed I would have all men obey for Conscience sake Rom. 13.5 the great Apostle I am sure is of the same minde Sect. 8 And now I come to the second thing namely to shew how those objections are removeable which as I remember were opposed against my judgement of the unlawfulnesse to resist a King I then desired to maintaine and indeed do still believe that to whatsoever the King commands we must either yeild our active obedience or if against Conscience we must suffer or fly you added a fourth which I did not acknowledge and you called it defensive resistance And your position was this A defensive resistance against the Kings will or Personall commands when contrary to his legall is lawfull yea necessary To make good this position there was to prove the lawfulnesse alleadged the Example of the peoples resisting Saul in the behalfe of Ionathan of Davids strengthening himselfe against Saul of Davids purpose at Keilah if the men therof would have stood unto him of Vzziah the King his beeing resisted and thrust out of the temple by the Priests Arguments from reason also were produced or rather similitudes instead of Arguments which I suppose were to shew the necessity of it as of resisting a father or master commanding by unjust violence things unlawfull and unsutable to his fatherly or masterly relation And then the Oath or Covenant which the King takes or makes at his Coronation was alleadged as giving countenance to a defensive resistance on the Subjects part if the Prince doth make a breach thereof Lastly I was required to shew some Scripture oppugning this resistance which I then promised Sir If my memory doth not faile mee this was the summe to which according to my Conscience and weake ability I shall now more fully answer then I could in regard of your own or my precedeing labours it being the Lords day at night do then Intreating you to remember that as then so now we discourse of the matter onely as a case in Divinity 1. Concerning the Position the termes thereof and then of the matter therein The practice of some in this sinfull Nation doth at this present too too sufficiently expound what is to be understood by the terme of defensive resistance but I confesse their exposition is very new or els 't is figurative per 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 quae vox est signans cuntraria dicto as war is called bellum quód minimé bellum so defensive resistance quod oppugnat magis To defend of old and properly was and is to keep of or to avoyd not to give blowes not to begin the assault but it inferres an Assault made a staying at home rather then a going abroad or a being driven from thence rather then a driveing it is not to
almost as good be failing in all I must pray as they do either not mentioning the King at all or speake of him in a defameing way I must preach as they do and cry Cursed be the Parent that diswades his Child Cursed be the wife that withholds her Husband Cursed be the Master that hinders his servant from going to this warre to helpe the Lord against the mighty that is to say against the King for so I must interpret it yea I must turne my pulpit into mount Eball and curse with Bell Booke and Candle with the great curse and the little curse with Meroz Curse the most bitter Curse under the name of Malignants that is to say Devills and enemies to God and truth all persons of what ranke soever that have set their hands to the petition for peace I must argue that the King is not an absolute God therefore he is mortall and may be resisted He shall dy like a man and therefore we may fight against him though my conscience did never yet learne such Logick And then too in stead of Gods word I must tell some fearfull tales of the Cavaliers how bloudy they be in their actions and how blasphemous in their expressions to fright and imbitter the good womens spirits that so they may solicite their Husbands to be more liberall of their purses in maintaining the warre against them and then I must to comfort them again and further to incourage them relate some valiant exploits done by some of Gods poore ROUNDHEADS accordingly as they say they are scoffingly termed affirming all to be as true as God is in heaven thus must I beautify and adorne my sermons or else they will not be worth a rush nor shall I be free from being suspected But Sir nobis non licet esse tam disertis qui musas colimus sacratiores I dare not in that place relate any thing as matter of faith but what I know is in Gods word or grounded thereupon Nay and further yet I must not onely follow thus but also approve of what ever injury and wrong is done by others of that side to those whom my Conscience thinks to be Honest and Conscionable men I must allow of all rifling plundering robbing and stealing and commend the actors though never so vile in life and carriage as friends to the good cause I must delight to see reverend grave and aged Divines for preaching obedience haled from their Churches flockes and families to prisons and insulted over and shamefully abused by the basest men even as the Christians were by those bloudy wretches under the Heathen Emperours and as the Martyrs were in Queene Maries daies I must joy to beare that they are turned out of meanes and maintainance unheard and perhaps unseene only upon the bare information of some malicious and beastly drunkard whom the same Minister hath formerly indeavoured to reclaime from sinne and I must laugh when I heare they are hunted and pursued as the Indians were by the Spaniards Doggs in the fields and Highwaies by the ungodly Soldiers with swords and Polaxes unhorsed and forced to betake themselves to woods to hide themselves though I know them to be Godly learned holy and unblameable yet I must deny such my knowledge and conclude of them as some did of Christ that they are justly smitten of God even because they are not of our opinion and I must beleeve all the rude people that are imployed to do this mischeife and delight therein to be very zealous for God and worthy of thanks for their care of the cause And I must also rejoyce to see noble worshipfull and gallant Gentlemen that have borne the office of Magistracy with Honour many yeares who have spent themselves and their estates to do their Country service fetch'd from their houses by the rabble of men and haled to prison spoiled of their goods or forced to fly from place to place only for their Conscience sake because they beleeve that according to Gods Command they are bound to love and Honour their Soveraigne and not to joyne in a mortall resistance against him these things and many such like must I approve on which Sir I professe I cannot I dare not I had rather loose my life then my Conscience Nay Sir let mee adde one thing more if I should imitate my Brethren and humour the people in this their heady way I should but like the foole in the Gospell build upon a Sandy foundation for vulgus est mobile you know they that cry Kill the King today will upon better information cry hang up the Seditious Preachers to morrow when they come home lamed from the Battaile and frustrate of all their expectations or have well payed with their purses for their ungodly and inconsiderate undertakings who doe we thinke they will cry out upon but on those that provoked them to the businesse even the Ministers that promised Heaven and assurance of Victory and rich spoiles out of the estates of Delinquents whom shall the desolate widow curse that hath lost her husband in the Battaile or the fatherlesse childe that hath lost his parent or the childlesse old man that hath lost the staffe of his age in the Warre against his Soveraigne who hath preserved him and his hitherto in safety under the arme of his protection but onely the Ministers that scared them with the curses of God if they did not yeild them up to that service The Lord in mercy deliver me from the curse of the aged the fatherlesse and the widow Sir it hath beene observed of some that being maimed have with much difficulty returned from Edge-hill Battaile where if their Soveraignes fatherly bowels had not yearned with pitty towards them when they were taken in regard of their simplicity they had beene hanged according to their merits when they have come for reliefe to the rich of the Parish discovering their wounds they have beene sleighted with this Answer Who bad you goe Who bad you goe now whom shall these poore afflicted cry out upon but on the Preachers whose seducing tongues wrought most upon their ignorance and good meaning And alas should I be thus cruell to impoverish men to lame their bodies to defile their soules to undoe them every way the Lord keepe me from doing such a thing When Abigail disswaded David from slaughtering Nabal and his family she used this Argument Ne sit in singultum cordis Domini mei in posterum lest it be a corrosive to my Lords spirit afterward and I professe unto you I do beleeve that had I beene at Edge hill as some Ministers were against his Majestie all the bloud that was there shed would roare continually night and day in my conscience but the Lord I hope will ever preserve the soule of his poore Minister from the hearing of so hideous a cry Nay Sir may it not be imagined that all the bloud that hath beene shed throughout the Land in this unchristian and unnaturall Warre
you but of two one a precept and another an example the first is Esay 50.10 whoever feares the Lord when he is in darkenesse and hath no light that is Es 50.10 in such great streightes and deep dangers that he can see no glimpse of deliverance from the creatures no hopes of escape let him namely at such a time trust in the name of the Lord and stay himselfe upon his God O! Master M. when shall wee live by faith if not in such a Condition The second warrant is the example of David in the wildernesse of Maon Saul had beset him round hee was in a great distresse 1 Sam. 23.26 27. fly hee could not from his Prince fight he durst not against his Prince what shall he doe He stayed himselfe upon his God who appeared to his helpe by diverting the King to a businesse of better consequence a messenger comes all on the suddaine and brings him word the Philistines had invaded his Land Ob. But suppose the Prince sets upon me in mine owne House and I therein am able to defend my selfe which perhaps David in his distresse was not why may I not so do and trust to Gods Assistance that way my House is my Castle Answ I yeild your house is and may be your Castle to defend you against any private Person but whether against your Leige Lord the King or no I question or if the Law yeilds you this that the House which was left you by your predecessors be your owne and the weapons therein which you bought with your owne money be solely yours for your defence and for that purpose you may use them But not forgetting your similitude suppose you be in your fathers or masters House and the weapons therein be his weapons whether you may keep his owne house or use his owne weapons against himselfe Hoc restat probandum Ob. But shall I yeild my throat to be cut then I shall be guilty of selfe-murder Answ It doth not follow that if you yeild to your Prince in such a case that your throat must needs be cut for we read of some that by faith stopped the mouth of Lions Heb. 11.34 and escaped the edge of the sword God is able and will if you pray and trust to him by your yeilding to your offended and displeased Prince mollify his heart towards you as hee did Sauls heart to David Labans to Iacob at one time and Esau's towards him at another O deare Sir have wee beene preaching faith and patience thus many yeares to others and shall we thus boggle and wriggle against the Power of faith and the practice of patience when we are put to trials nay shall we argue in the behalfe of flesh and bloud against the power of faith But I returne Ob. To permit a Prince said you to do what he will without resistance is the way to destroy the whole society of men and the Church in speciall if a Prince be so minded Answ It doth not follow for Church and Commonwealth are both preserved by Gods providence God is Governour of and in both and so far as the rage of men shall make to the praise either of his wisedome and justice in punishing the wicked or of his Power and grace in the trials of his servants Psa 76.10 Es 10. so far doth he permit it and the remainder thereof doth he restraine we see it in Assur Es 10. and in all the Tyrants of all Ages the Romane Emperours that had their wils had also but their time and did no more by all their fury then Gods hand and counsell had foredetermined should be done Ob. But this is Anabaptisme to hold it unlawfull for Christians to fight Answ It is one thing for Christians to fight under their Princes Banner and at his command and another thing to fight against his standard and contrary to his will to fight for him is Christianity but to fight against him is Anabaptisme nor indeed do the Anabaptists hold it unlawfull to fight when they thinke themselves strong enough to resist as appeared by their behaviour at Munster but as Jsrael had beene in peace if Ahab had been as free from troubling it as Elias was whom hee accused 1 King 18.17 so should England at this time be if they that oppose Regality and indeavour the dammage of it were as far from Anabaptisme as they are that hold such resistance unlawfull Ob. But Salus populi is suprema lex and for the preservation of the whole we may resist a part Answ There is indeed much talke of Salus populi now adayes but I believe there is a great mistake both in Salus and in Populi 1. In Salus which as appeares by mens proceedings is thought to consist in fighting rather then in flying in resisting rather then in yeilding in shedding one anothers bloud rather then in sleeping in peace God the generall conserver of mankinde hath created man for that end conservare speciem and his will is that those vertues should be specially practiced and maintained that are most conducible thereunto and those are not warres and contentions strife and debate but love meeknesse and patience bearing and forbearing one another I professe Sir it is a Paradox to me that men should lead people from peace to warre to preserve them sure there is a mistake in Salus 2 And so there is in Populi too for whereas some say by the people they meane all who conjunctiâ—â— are as much above the King as hee is above any one of them sigillâ—atim and therefore though one may not resist him yet all may as if the sinne were the lesse because many commit it or rather none at all if they have but strength and company for to act it others againe by the people do interpret every mans particular selfe whence arise those expressions I value the King no more then I do another man I would rather disarme the King then he should disarme me yea and kill him too to save my selfe I tremble to mention these sayings doubtlesse these varlets to save themselves would deale so with God himselfe if he were capable and they could reach him I do believe your selfe will yeild that there is a mistake also in Populi But Sir is not the King the Head of the people and can they be safe without him I admire at some of us that dare in the pulpit separate betwixt them and vilify Majestie to advance popularity O cry some the whole must be preferred before a part Ob. for Christ saies if thy right eye or right hand offend thee cut it off and cast it from thee 't is better that a part perish then the whole Answ Yea but Christ doth not say if thine head offend the cut off that for that would be to the ruine of the whole Ob. O say others the Kingdome is cheifly to be regarded the King is but for the Kingdomes sake Hee is the younger of the two there was