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quæ pertinent ad humanam societatem, verum etiam quæ pertinent ad divinam religionem, i. e. "when they make good laws, not only concerning "human society, but also concerning divine religion." By all which it is evident, that the civil powers for several ages after they became Christians did claim and exercise a supreme legislative power in causes ecclesiastical as well as civil, and this without any contradiction from the bishops and governors of the church: for as for that saying, Quid imperatori cum ecclesia? "What hath the emperor "to do with the church?" it was not the language of the church, but of that firebrand Donatus, who was the ringleader of one of the most factious and turbulent heresies that ever infested the Christian world and if in those instances wherein they exerted their legislative power in ecclesiastical causes, the church had no power to control or countermand them, then neither hath it in any other instance of the same nature: and if so, then, notwithstanding their subjection to our Saviour, they still retain their supreme commanding power over all matters of indifference, whether it be in civil or ecclesiastical causes. But then,

Secondly, By this their subjection to our Saviour, they are not deprived of their natural right of being unaccountable to any but to God alone, through Jesus Christ; for all the difference between the state of sovereign powers in this matter, before and after their subjection to Christ's mediatorial sceptre, is only this, that before they were accountable to God only immediately, whereas now they are accountable to God only through Jesus Christ: for Christ being authorized by God to mediate for him, or, which is

the same thing, to be his vicegerent in the world, all things are now subjected to him; and God now rules and judges, rewards and punishes all men by him, whether they are subjects or sovereigns, vassals or emperors; for so in the great transaction of the last day we are told that the kings of the earth shall be arraigned before his judgment-seat, Rev. vi. 15, 16, 17. But though they are now accountable immediately to Christ, who during this evangelical economy is to rule and judge for God; yet in respect of any earthly tribunal they remain altogether as sovereign and unaccountable as ever: for to be sovereign and unaccountable are convertible terms: and it is nonsense to say, either that any power is unaccountable which hath any superior, or that any power is accountable which is sovereign and supreme: so that by necessity of nature those powers which are sovereign upon earth must be unaccountable to any power upon earth; because to call to account is an act of superiority, and that which is supreme can have no superior to account to: so that unless it be made appear that Christ hath erected some earthly tribunal that is superior to the tribunals of the supreme civil powers, he must of necessity have left them as unaccountable as he found them. Now it is plain that our Saviour erected no other tribunal in this world, but only that of the spiritual or ecclesiastical government, which he was so far from advancing above the tribunal of the civil sovereign, that while he was upon earth he acknowledged himself to be subject and accountable thereunto, though he was then the supreme bishop and head of that spiritual regiment; and this he did not only by recognising Cæsar's right of receiving tribute

from him, of which I have spoken before, (for by bidding them render to Cæsar the things that are Cæsar's, he leaves sovereign princes in the quiet possession of all those rights which he found them possessed of, and requires their subjects to pay them whatsoever is essentially due to their sovereignty, and whatsoever the laws and customs of nations had before determined to be their right,) but also by acknowledging before Pilate the right of the civil tribunal to call him to account, John xix. 11. where he confesses that the power by which Pilate arraigned him was given him from above; and by reprehending St. Peter, for endeavouring by force to rescue him out of the hands of the civil powers: Put up thy sword, saith he, into his place: for all that take the sword shall perish by the sword, Matt. xxvi. 52. In which words it was far from his intention to prohibit the use of the sword either to governors, who, as St. Paul tells us, bear not the sword in vain; or to private persons in their own lawful defence; for he commands his own disciples to buy them swords to defend themselves against robbers and lawless cut-throats, who, as Josephus tells, did very much abound in those days, Luke xxii. 36. but all that he intended was, to forbid drawing the sword against lawful authority in any case whatsoever, though it were for the defence and security of his own person for this was St. Peter's case, who in the defence of his Saviour resisted the high priest's officers, who came armed with a lawful authority to seize and apprehend him; in which our Saviour plainly owns himself accountable to the civil authority of his country: for if he had not been so, it could be no fault in St. Peter to endeavour to

rescue him from its ministers; and if Christ himself, while he was upon earth, were subject to the civil authority, what an high piece of arrogance is it for those who are at most but his vicars and ministers, to claim or pretend an exemption? And if it were so great a fault in St. Peter to draw his sword against lawful authority, though it were in the defence of his Saviour's person, then doubtless it is no less a fault in his successors to pretend a right from St. Peter to draw their swords against sovereign princes, though it be in the defence of their Saviour's religion. And as our Saviour owned himself subject and accountable to the civil tribunal, so St. Paul's injunction is universal, Let every soul be subject to the higher powers; and surely every soul must include the whole body of the clergy as well as of the laity, unless we can produce some clear and express exception to the contrary; and as the commands extend universally to all, so doth the reason of it also, for the powers that are, are ordained of God; and if we must be subject to them, because they rule by God's authority, then it is certain there are none that are subject to God, but are under the force and obligation of this reason. And then he goes on, Whosoever resisteth the power, (of whatsoever degree or order of men he be,) resisteth the ordinance of God; and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation: and if, according to the law of our Saviour, it be a damnable sin for any person or persons whatsoever to resist the civil authority, then it is a plain case, that our Saviour hath not at all depressed the sovereignty of the secular powers, by subjecting it to any superior tribunal; but hath left it as absolute and unaccountable

as ever it was before it was subjected to his empire. And thus having proved that sovereign princes are not divested of any natural right of their sovereignty by their subjection in the mediatorial sceptre of our Saviour, I proceed, in the

Second place, To shew what those ministries are which they are obliged to render to our Saviour, by virtue of this their subjection to him. In general it is foretold, that, upon their subjection to Christ, they should become nursing fathers and nursing mothers to his church, Isa. xlix. 23. that is, that they should tenderly cherish, protect, and defend it, and liberally minister to it whatsoever is necessary for its support and preservation: and to be sure Christ expects of them that they should accomplish this prediction by doing all those good offices to his church which the relation of a foster father or mother imports: for when God predicts any good thing of men, it is plain that he would have them be what he foretells they shall be; so that in this case the prophecy carries precept in it, and doth not only signify what shall be, but also what ought to be. When therefore God prophesies of kings, that they shall be nursing fathers to his church, he doth as well declare what they should be, as what they shall be; and so he foretells of them, and commands them in the same breath. If therefore we would know what those ministries are which Christ now requires sovereign powers to render to his church, our best way will be to inquire what those duties are which are implied in the relation of a foster father to his foster child. Now the duties of this relation may be all of them comprehended under these four particulars :