UC-NRLF SB mi THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA GIFT OF Lewis F. Langfeld ',$* THE y< K ! a. A Stone of (8>U; THE FAITHFUL WITNESS FOR MAGISTRACY AND MINISTRY UPON A SCRIPTUKAL BASIS. BY REV. SAMUEL B. YWYLIE, A. M, "And I will give power unto my witnesses, and they shall pro- phesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth." 4 * These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks stand- ing before the God of the earth." Rev. xi, 3, 4. THIRD EDITION. WITH on .Sufimtssfon to (Etbfi fobecnmcnt. PHILADELPHIA ! WAI. S. JTQUNG, PRINTER,-50 NORTH SIXTH STREET. 1850. Published with funds raised by the Missionary Society of the Reformed Presbyterian Congregation, Cherry Street, Philadelphia. GUT PREFACE. THE principles of reformation are not fashion- able. They were once, however, considered as the glory of Presbyterians. The time has been, when the whole body of Presbyterians, in Scotland, England, and Ireland, unanimously subscribed them. For civil and ecclesiastical reformation; for a glorious covenanted cause, thousands have bled and died. In the following discourse I have endea- voured to advocate that cause. Not because it is an ancient cause ; not because many have sealed it with their blood ; but, because I thought it the doctrine of the Bible, and the cause of Christ. I make no apology I court no one's favour. A conviction of truth was the cause of publica- tion. There may, no doubt, be unguarded ex- pressions. Any thing that is so, if demon- strated, will be candidly acknowledged. SAMUEL B. WYLIE. R/1890774 THE TWO SONS OF OIL, &c. ZECHARIAH iv. 14. "Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth." THIS chapter is replete with abundant comfort to the returning captives. In their embarrassing circumstances, they stood in great need of conso- lation. They were disposed to consider their situation as helpless and deplorable ; and doubted much, whether the temple they were about to erect, would ever acquire the respectability of the former one, or their city abound with its usual population. They could scarcely believe, that, il The glory of this latter house would be greater than of the former." Hag. ii. 9. The scope of this vision, therefore, is, to show that God would, by his own omnipotent arm, con- summate the work, notwithstanding the imbecility of its friends, and the malignant opposition of its enemies. To this purpose he informs them, by his prophet, that the head stone would be put on with shoutings of joy; and that this was not to be attributed so much to visible instrumentality, as to the superintending influences of his own omni- potent Spirit. Verses 1, 10. From the eleventh verse to the end of the chap- ter, we have a brief explication of this vision, in- tended as an illustration of the assurances already 6 THE TWO SONS OF OIL. given. This is done by the angel, at the request of the prophet, verse 11: "What are these two olive trees upon the right side of the candlestick, and upon the left side thereof?" The angel having sufficiently humbled him, by leaving him to re- peat his request, lower his terms, (confining it to the two olive branches,) and confess his ignorance, answers in the words of the text, " These are the two anointed ones," &c. The answer itself requires explanation. Who are intended by these two Anointed Ones, or Sons of Oil, as it reads in the original? Who these are, will perhaps be best ascertained by attending to the functions which they discharge, compared with collateral texts. By comparing together the se- cond, third, and twelfth verses of this chapter, it would appear, that they pour golden oil into the bowl on the head of the golden candlestick. That this golden candlestick represented the Church of Christ, is abundantly evident from several passages in Scripture, see Exod. xxv. 31, and 1st Kings vii. 49, and Rev. i. 20. The seven golden candle- slicks are expressly declared, by the Spirit of God, to represent the seven churches. The Church of Christ may be considered under a twofold point of view, namely, invisible and visible. In relation to the first, the two olive branches may be emblematical f Christ and his Spirit, the Redeemer and Comforter. Jesus is not only the Messiah, the Anointed One himself, but he is also the good Olive Tree to his church. John i. 16: "Out of his fulness have all we re- ceived, and grace for grace." The Spirit is the Unction or Anointing, which replenishes the mind with divine illumination. 1st John ii. 20: "But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye THE TWO SONS OF OIL. 7 know all things." From Christ, the Olive Tree, by his Spirit, the Olive Branch, is communicated to believers all the golden oil of grace, whereby their lamps are kept burning and luminous. In relation to the second, viz., the visible church, they may be symbolical of the two great ordinances of Magistracy and Ministry, vested at that time in these two illustrious characters, Zerubbabel and Joshua, the former in the state, and the latter in the church. They are characterized as "Sons of Oil." Kings and priests were anointed, and thus solemnly set apart to their respective functions. They "stood by the Lord of the whole earth," importing that they were faithful adherents to his cause and testimony, continually emptying them- selves into the golden bowl, contributing their re- spective influences to the advancement of civil and religious reformation, as the objects of his pecu- liar care. In allusion to this passage in Zechariah, the two Witnesses mentioned, Rev. xi. 4, are designated by the same emblems, viz., "The two Olive Trees standing before the God of the earth." The analogy of Scripture, as also the current of the best commentators, agree, that by these two Witnesses is meant, that succession of men, who, in all ages, and against all opposition, have va- liantly contended for the purity of these divine or- dinances, both in constitution and administration. In this sense, consider these two Anointed Ones. In the prosecution of the subject, we shall I. Premise a few things, which, if duly attended to, may be useful in the farther illustration of this text. And, 1st. God, the Father, Son, and Spirit, is the Supreme Governor of the universe. Rev. xix. 6: "The Lord God Omnipotent reigneth." This will be generally admitted. THE TWO SONS OF OIL. 2. All physical and moral power is, naturally, necessarily, and independently in God. Gen. xvii. 1: "I am God Almighty." This is admitted even by the haughty Babylonish monarch. Dan. iv. 35: "He doth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth ; and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What dost thou?" 3. All power to be found among the creatures is necessarily derived from him. He is the origi- nal source and fountain from which it flows. Acts xvii. 28 : " For in him we live, and move, and have our being." 4. All this delegated, or derived power, should be exercised to his glory, and regulated by his law. 1st Cor. x. 31: "Whether, therefore, ye eat or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God." To effect this end, all our powers should be directed, and of this, his law is the unerring rule. By this, therefore, all rational beings are indispensably bound. God has given them no right to do what it prohibits. To sup- pose men to possess any such right, is wicked and blasphemous. This would be the same as to sup- pose God to say to them, I, as the Supreme Legis- lator, give you my law. To the least breach of it, I annex the penalty of eternal damnation; yet I give you a right to violate this, my law, and to wage war with your God, and direct your artil- lery against the Sovereign of the Universe !!! The Scriptures inform us otherwise. Deut. xii. 32: " What thing soever I command you, observe to do it; thou shalt not add to it, nor diminish from it." 5. This delegated power appears most conspi- cuous in the person of the Mediator. Into his THE TWO SONS OF OIL. 9 hands universal dominion is committed. Matt, xxviii. 18 : "All power is given unto me, in hea- ven and in earth." Here the donation is univer- sal. Its extent is unlimited, as to created nature. 1 Cor. xv. 27. The apostle expressly declares that nothing is excepted from his dominion, but the Godhead itself. Remarkable to this purpose is John v. 22: " The Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son." As Mediator, therefore, he pronounces sentence upon the reprobate, " Depart from me, ye cursed," &c., for this is a part of his judiciary functions. That this power, and the exercise of it, belong to him, as Mediator, is abundantly evident, not only from the circumstance of donation, which can in no sense apply to him as God, (for in this character nothing could be given him, being necessarily Lord of all,) but also from the explicit and positive as- sertion, in the twenty-seventh verse, that all this authority was committed to him, " Because he is the Son of Man." 6. This universal dominion, committed to him, as it respects the human family, in its administra- tion, consists in two great branches, namely, Ma- gistracy and Ministry. Through these channels it flows down to human kind, contributing its in- fluences to ameliorate the character of those who are destined to everlasting life, to whom "all things shall work together for good." Rom. viii. 28. While it issues in the obduracy of those who con- tinue implacable enemies, on whom every divine dispensation shall have a contrary operation. 7. Though both these branches are put under the Mediator's control, yet they are so, under dif- ferent regulations. Ecclesiastical power is dele- gated to him in such a manner, that all ordinances 10 THE TWO SONS OF OIL. and institutions, necessary to the formal organiza- tion of a visible church, flow immediately from him as Mediator. Matt. xvi. J8. He is the builder of the church, the author of all her sacred institutions. All ecclesiastical functionaries, like- wise, receive their authority from him, in the same character, for every part of their administration. Hence, Matt. xvi. 19, he commits unto them the keys of the kingdom, and the exclusive power of binding and loosing. But civil power is under a different regulation. It flows immediately from God Creator, as the Governor of the universe. Jer. x. 7: " Who would not fear thee, O King of nations ?" It existed previously to the fall, and would necessarily have existed, even had we never revolted against God ; though, no doubt, in that case, it would not have been clothed in some of its pre- sent modifications. Man's subjection to the moral government of his Maker would have then been similar to that of beings of a more dignified order. Civil government does not, as some modern politicians affirm, originate either in the people, as its fountain, or in the vices consequent upon the fall. Among the angels, who retained their primi- tive rectitude, we find certain orders, suggested by the denominations of Archangels, Thrones, Do- minions, Principalities, and Powers. Col. i. 16. This testifies regular subordination among them, agreeable to the constitutional laws of their nature, and their amenability to God, their Creator and Lord. But though civil government is no new order of things, predicated upon the fall, nor, like the ministry, in all its circumstances, flowing im- mediately from Christ as Mediator; yet it is among the all things, committed to him by the donation of the Father. Eph, i. 22. Its officers, likewise, THE TWO SONS OF OIL. 11 are enjoined, under pain of perdition, to make all their administrations bend to the honour of Im- manuel : and the body politic, indispensably bound to modify their constitutions by his word, when in his goodness he has revealed it to them. Ps. ii. 10, 12 : " Be wise now, therefore, O ye kings, be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little." Can any thing be more explicit in demonstrating the obligation of the civil authorities to render homage and respect to Messiah? But as it is suggested that these two branches are under dif- ferent regulations, we shall endeavour, In the II. head, to show a little more particularly wherein they differ. 1. They differ in their immediate origin, as already hinted. Magistracy flows immediately from God Creator, and is predicated upon his universal dominion over all nations. Ps. xlvii. 7: "God is King of all the earth." To the same purpose we are informed, Jer. x. 7: '* Who would not fear thee, thou King of nations ? For to thee doth it appertain." And as it flows from God Creator, the common Parent and Head of all, the law of nature, common to all men, must be the immediate rule of all its administrations. A relation common to all should be regulated by a rule common to all. All stand in the same rela- tion to God, considered as Creator and Moral Go- vernor. The standard for regulating this relation, must, of course, be common. This standard is the law of nature, which all men necessarily pos- sess. Revelation is introduced as a rule, by the requisitions of the law of nature, which binds 12 THE TWO SONS OF OIL. men to receive with gratitude whatever God is pleased to reveal; and to adhere to it, as the per- fect rule, under pain of condemnation, and being treated as rebels against his moral authority. But Ecclesiastical power flows immediately from Christ, as Mediator, and is founded on his econo- mical Headship over the church. Eph. i. 22, 23 : God " gave him to be Head over all things to the church, which is his body." As this power flows thus from Christ, as Mediator, the law of revela- tion, announced by him as the Angel of the Cove- nant, must, consequently, be the immediate stan- dard for the regulation of every part of the system : and the law of nature comes in to be a rule, only in subserviency to the general rules of Scripture. Phil. iv. 8 : "Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, what- soever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report: if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." 2. They differ in their immediate objects. Ma- gistracy respects things external, relating imme- diately to the outward man, 2d Chron. xxvi. 16, 20. Where Uzziah usurped the sacerdotal func- tions, and presumed to burn incense, contrary to the express command of God, the priests valiantly withstood him, and said, " It appertained not unto thee, Uzziah, to burn incense unto the Lord ; but to the priests, the sons of Aaron, who are conse- crated to burn incense : go out of the sanctuary," &c. Yea, the Lord punished his presumption, and smote him with leprosy, and they thrust him out of the temple. Whatever provisions of ex- ternal accommodations he is authorized to make, calling synodical assemblies, and issuing compul- THE TWO SONS OF OIL. 13 sory process for attending spiritual courts, respect men, as members of the commonwealth, and sub- jects of the realm. His ratification of church de- crees, is nothing more than civilly adopting them, as good and wholesome laws, calculated to pro- mote the welfare of the state. But all ecclesiastical power is exercised about things spiritual. 2d Cor. x. 4 : " For the wea- pons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty," &c. It considers men as members of the mys- tical body of Jesus ; and if it takes any concern with the external man, such as the eyes and ears, it is only that it may thereby reach their con- sciences. To those that are without the pale of the visible church, its jurisdiction does not extend. 1st Cor. v. 12, 13: "For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? Do not ye judge them that are within ?" 3. They differ in their form. The magistrati- cal power is lordly and imperial. It belongs to its functionaries to exercise dominion, as the vice- gerents of God ; use compulsory measures with the disobedient, and enforce obedience to the laws of which they are the executors. Rom. xiii. 1: " Let every soul be subject to the higher powers." And in case of disobedience to his. legitimate au- thority, the magistrate ought not "to bear the sword in vain." He must not, indeed, exercise dominion capriciously, but act as the "minister of God for good" to his subjects. But ecclesiastical power is altogether ministerial. Its functionaries are considered as stewards of the manifold mysteries of the spiritual kingdom, and are positively discharged from acting as " Lords over God's heritage," 1st Pet. v. 3. Like their great master, they ought not to come to be minis- 2 14 THE TWO SONS OF OIL. tered unto, but to minister to the spiritual exi- gencies of perishing sinners. They are, however, entitled to attention and obedience to their spiri- tual ministrations. Heb. xiii. 17: "Obey them that have the rule over you in the Lord," &c. But still they can exercise no compulsion upon the persons of men. This belongs exclusively to the civil magistrate. And whereas civil rulers may and ought to punish transgressions, as crimes dis- honouring to God, as King of nations, and preju- dicial to the state; church rulers are to consider them as scandals, wounding to the honour of Jesus Christ, dishonouring to God, in him, and ruinous to the souls of men. 4. They differ in their proper end. The im- mediate and proper end of all civil power, is, that the good of the commonwealth may be provided for, their temporal security and civil liberty se- cured upon the footing of the moral law, Rom. xiii. 4. The magistrate is accordingly called a 4; minister of God for good" to men. The ulti- mate end to be attained is the advancement of the glory of God, as King of nations, and a concern to promote the prosperity of the church; and the propagation of truth should be exercised as the means best calculated to obtain that end. Or the good of the church may be considered as an ac- cessary end. The more faithful the administra- tion of justice, the fewer will be the violations of the divine law; and consequently the fewer scan- dals to annoy the peace and happiness of the church. But the proper and immediate end of all ecclesi- astical power is, that the conviction, conversion, and edification of the souls of men may be pro- mated, Eph. iv. 11, 12. Here we find that the THE TWO SONS OF OIL. 15 immediate end of appointing all church officers was, "For the perfecting of the saints, and the edifying of the body of Christ." The ultimate end is the glory of God, as he is "in Christ recon- ciling the world unto himself," 2d Cor. v. 19. The welfare of the state is only an accessary end, at which the church officers, as subjects of the state, ought to aim. The better they discharge their ecclesiastical functions, the fewer will be the crimes in the state, and the more faithfully will every civil relative duty be performed, and thus the welfare of the nation greatly promoted. 5. They differ in their effects. The effects of all civil powers are either proper or redundant. The proper effect of civil power is, the temporal safety and welfare of the commonwealth, together with the undisturbed > enjoyment of all civil privi- leges. The redundant effect is the good of the church, as far as this may result from the righteous ad- ministration of the divine law in rewarding the righteous, and punishing offenders, Rom. xiii. 3. And in removing all impediments that would ob- struct the propagation of the religion of Jesus ; like as Josiah and other reforming kings of Israel did. But the proper effect of all ecclesiastical power is wholly spiritual, agreeable to the spiritual na- ture of Christ's kingdom. John xviii. 36: " My kingdom is not of this world." It is spiritual, and its exercise produces spiritual effects, ope- rating on the souls and consciences of men. The welfare of the state, as such, is only a re- dundant or accessary effect. It may, however, be very considerable. The amelioration of charac- ter, produced by the benign influences of the re- 16 THE TWO SONS OF OIL. ligion of Jesus, upon the human heart, may be highly advantageous to national prosperity : as true godliness has the promise of the life that now is, as well as of that which is to come. 6. They differ in their subjects. Civil power may be vested in one or more. This is left to the discretion of the body politic, and is hence called "an ordinance of man." 1st Pet. ii. 13. Whatever the particular form be, whether monar- chical or republican, it is legitimate, and entitled to obedience, provided the constitution be agreeable to the moral law. It may also be delegated from one to another. 1st Pet. ii. 14. We are commanded to yield con- scientious obedience, not only to the supreme ma- gistrate, but also to his delegates. " Unto gover- nors, as unto them that are sent by him, for the punishment of evil doers, and for the praise of them that do well." But ecclesiastical power of jurisdiction cannot vest in one. 2d Cor. ii. 6. When speaking of the restoration of the incestuous person, who had been excommunicated, the apostle informs us, that his censure "was inflicted by many." Though the power of ORDER, or the administration of the word and sacraments, belongs to every regu- lar gospel minister, yet the power of jurisdiction be- longs exclusively to a consistory of presbyters. Neither can one ecclesiastical officer delegate au- thority to another, to perform ministerial functions. It can only come from Christ, the head, by the medium of proper officers. See Matt. xvi. 19, compared with Titus i. 5. 7. They differ in their correlatives, or the per- sons on whom they are exercised respectively. The civil power extends to all persons, resi- THE TWO SONS OF OIL. 17 dent within the realm, be their estate, character or condition what it may. Rom. xiii. 1: " Let every soul be subject to the higher powers." Here there is no exception of any class or condition of men. But, Ecclesiastical jurisdiction extends only to those who are professed members of the mystical body of Jesus Christ, and operates upon them exclu- sively under that character, 1st Cor. v. 12, 13, where we are informed, that all church power of jurisdiction is confined solely to those that are within. Hence those who are not church mem- bers, if guilty of any thing scandalous, requiring public censure, must become members of the church, before they can become proper objects of ecclesiastical censure. Church jurisdiction ex- tends not beyond the walls of the house of God. 8. They differ in their distinct and divided ex- ercise. Thus, should the one neglect the perfor- mance of duty, that is no reason why the other should be remiss, but rather the contrary. Should the state take no notice of the murderer, or the adulterer, their neglect by no means unnerves the arm of ecclesiastical jurisdiction, neither should it relax the rigour of church censure. The same will hold equally in a change of cases. Again, when either has done what is just and right, by a process issuing in the acquittal or condemnation of the person arraigned, the other is bound to take cognizance of the offence, and proceed accord- ingly. Thus, when a church member has satis- fied the civil law for a crime committed against the state, the ecclesiastical authority ought to pro- secute him for it, as a scandal, and deprive him of privileges, until he give due evidences of contrition, and satisfy the laws in that case made and pro- 18 THE TWO SONS OF OIL. vided. Thus both the civil and ecclesiastical au- thority may, and in many cases ought, to punish for the same offence ; yet the process ought to be en- tirely distinct, and the powers independent of each other. But as we have endeavoured to show wherein they differ, it will be necessary also in the III. Place, to show wherein they agree. 1 . They agree in this, that God the Father, Son, and Spirit, is the original fountain from which they flow. To suppose any power or authority whatever not originating from God, essentially considered, would necessarily lead to atheistical principles. It must, therefore, emanate from him. Rom. xiii. 1: "There is no power but of God." To the same purpose is 2d Cor. v. 18: "All things are of God." Civil power was already shown to originate from God, as Creator, and to be founded on his universal dominion, as the King of nations, Jer. x. 7. And though all ecclesiastical power flows immediately from Christ, as Mediator, yet it is radically and fontally in a three-one God. All the right and authority of Christ, as Mediator, is originally derived from God, as well as civil power. They are, to be sure, under different regula- tions: these have been already stated. By virtue of this derived right, Jesus is constituted the sole Legislator in Zion, and is the immediate, as the Father is the ultimate, source of all ecclesiastical authority. Hence the authority of church offi- cers is analogous to that of Christ himself, namely, by delegation. John xvii. 18. Christ himself states his own and his ambassador's commission, as being parallel in this particular point, "as thou has sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world." THE TWO SONS OF OIL. 19 2. They agree in this, that both are subjected to the Mediator, though under different considera- tions. Matt, xxviii. 18. John v. 22 and 27. Eph. i. 21, 23, with many other portions of Scripture, leave no room for the candid mind to doubt of the universality of the donation. But the different regulations under which these two branches are subjected unto him, are very important, and highly worthy of the most serious attention. In civil matters, he does not commission rulers and officers. These receive their commissions from God, from whom their authority emanates, and upon whose sovereignty over the nations it was founded, previously to, and independent of, the development of the new covenant economy. But, in virtue of the Father's donation, he has a right to require the execution of the orders given to civil rulers. Ps. ii. 10, 12. "Now, therefore, be wise, ye kings, w< 104 SUBMISSION TO CIVIL GOVERNMENT. supreme; or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evil-doers, and for the praise of them that do well. For so is the will of God, that with well-doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men: as free, and not using your liberty for a cloak of maliciousness, but as the servants of God." On this, we remark I. That the terms employed here denote civil authorities, whatever the titles of their magistrates, higher and subordinate. From the use, in this passage, and elsewhere in Scripture, of the title "king," to denote civil powers, we are not to infer, as some have done, that the Scriptures sanc- tion, much less enjoin, monarchical government, as alone agreeable to God's ordinance of magis- tracy. And, first, if monarchs alone are meant here, inferior magistrates must be called governors, for so they are styled in the text. 2. The ma- gistrates of ancient Israel were called in different periods by different names, and the government itself was far from having always the same form. For four hundred years after their settlement in the land of Canaan, they had no regular and un- broken succession of chief magistrates. Such as they had, and their administrations embraced* the largest part of the four hundred years, they were styled D'Bfltf, or judges. The highest authorities in the various tribes were even less distinctly de- signated. 3. So far from enjoining monarchical, the Scriptures favour a republican or representa- tive form of government. The example of Is- rael, just referred to, is exactly in point. Among that people, many of their ordinary magistrates were evidently elective. " Choose ye out from among you," says Moses to the twelve tribes; SUBMISSION TO CIVIL GOVERNMENT. 105 and this was certainly the principle of the political arrangements of Moses; a principle but little in- terfered with upon the introduction of the monarchi- cal form at a subsequent period. Hence, though God had designated the person in whose hands the royal power was to be lodged, the voice of the people was not disregarded. Witness the election of Saul, and of David, and the supplica- tions presented by the people to Rehoboam when the people came to " Shechem to make him king." (1 Kings xii. 1.) The truth is, 4. That the name of the chief magistrate, and even the particular form, as it relates to distribution of powers, and the whole subject of checks and balances, is a matter, in itself, of indifference. The grand re- quisite, as we shall show presently, is, that in all these matters there be a constant regard in every element and principle to bring them into accor- dance with the moral law of God. This appears in the passage, for II. Civil government is here described as an " ordinance of man :" " submit yourselves to every ordinance of man." The term " ordinance " is not used here in the same sense which we now frequently put upon it. In common parlance a civil " ordinance " is a municipal regulation, a law ordained by a town council, or some peculiar enactment of the supreme authority. Here, it sig- nifies the system of government set up and in operation. Hence, it follows, "to the king as su- preme," &c. But how is government an "ordi- nance of man?" Does it mean that civil go- vernment is a mere human device, that it has no higher origin than the voice of the nation? That it is a mere voluntary association which men may form or not, or that when formed it may be mo- 106 SUBMISSION TO CIVIL GOVERNMENT. delled as men please, irrespective of the claims of the Most High ? Certainly not: " the powers that be are ordained of God," Rom. xiii. 1, a fact which we may gather from the very constitution of man as a social being, made for society, for co-operation with his fellows. Civil government has a higher origin than mere human ingenuity: God is its author. He has denned its ends, its duties, and the principles of its administration. He has even determined the class of men who should alone be the depositaries of civil authority : "able men, men that fear God, men of truth, and hating covetousness." How, then, is civil go- vernment an "ordinance of man?" 1. It is so called from the fact that human in- strumentality is concerned in making its arrange- ments. Observe, not merely in giving it being, but in establishing the specific and peculiar terms of its constitution. This will appear more clearly in a literal rendering of the original words rtacq av6p*>7twt) xtiGi-i every human creation.* As we have already intimated, civil government is an or- dinance of God. but not in such a sense as to pre- clude the exercise of human wisdom in what re- lates to its form, its various departments, its checks and balances. And hence, forms of government, in some respects very different, have existed with divine approbation. During the period of the Judges, Israel was a confederated republic. It was afterwards a limited, and, with certain reser- vations, an hereditary monarchy. In both these periods, however, the nation was in avowed sub- jection to the Most High, and its affairs were * M'Knight translates it "every human creation of magistrates." This supply is undoubtedly correct, as government is the subject spoken of. SUBMISSION TO CIVIL GOVERNMENT. 107 managed with divine approbation in the spirit of the love of God, and with avowed subjection to its authority ; the rights and liberties of all the people and the interest of religion being properly guarded and maintained. In this respect, there is a wide difference between civil and ecclesiastical government. The latter is, in every particular, completely arranged by Jesus Christ: the Bible contains the church's constitution. Every thing relating to the officers of the church, their duties, and their powers, is fully set forth in the Scrip- tures. To these, nothing can be added ; from them nothing taken. Our business and our only busi- ness is to ascertain and carry out the divine will. Hence, ecclesiastical government is never denominated, as that of the state is, an "ordi- nance of man." But this is not all. 2. Government is a human creation, inasmuch as the constituted civil authorities are left to the exercise of a wise discretion in the enactment and rescinding of laws, as demanded by emergent cir- cumstances. For example, in regulating com- merce, the currency, taxation, and, to some extent, even what relates to education and police, states are left free to choose that plan which the times and the existing stale of things render advisable. True, all civil enactments are to be brought to scriptural tests none of these must run counter to the moral law and in some departments, as in relation to marriage, to the penalties of gross crimes, to the vindication of the Sabbath, to the support of religion the state is directly bound by the precepts and directions of the revealed will of God. Still, there remains a wide margin. In this, again, differing from the church all whose laws, as well as constitutional privileges, are em- 108 SUBMISSION TO CIVIL GOVERNMENT. bodied in the Scriptures, our sole business being to discover and apply them. Hence, in perfect consistency with the principle that civil government is an "ordinance of God," it is here styled "an ordinance of man;" and we add, that in this title we find no indistinct intima- tion that lawful .civil authority is not cannot be founded in the sword, nor in any absolute scheme of hereditary descent, nor in any thing else which stifles the popular will. III. This passage describes, and requires sub- mission to, a righteous civil government. And, 1. The magistrates here spoken of are "sent" of God: " as unto them that are sent by him."* But what means this term ? Are we to apply it to any existing government? Are we to suppose that, irrespective of the origin of their power, or its nature, or the spirit in which it is exercised, all civil rulers that happen to occupy the seat of power are to be honoured with conscientious alle- giance ? Certainly not. For (1.) There have been civil rulers, of whom God declared, in the most express terms, that He had not sent them. We refer to the kings of the ten tribes after they became an independent kingdom: "They have set up kings, but not by me; they have made princes, and I knew it not." Hos. viii. 4. Can language be more explicit? "Not by me;" "they have made princes." Yet this was an existing govern- ment; and, still more and to this we ask particu- lar attention it was a popular government, having had its origin in a great national revolution, exer- cised and upheld by the voice of the people. The * We take for granted, that the person sending is here not the "king," but the "Lord." Rom. xiii., a parallel passage, confirms this. SUBMISSION TO CIVIL GOVERNMENT. 109 kings of Israel, in other words, were no usurpers ; they swayed no sceptre gained by conquest and blood. Yet even of these God said they were set up "not by Him," He "knew it not." The assent of the people they had, but God did not acknow- ledge nor recognise them. Surely, it would have been no "damnable" sin for a fearer of God to withhold from such kings conscientious submis- sion; to such no allegiance could be clue "for the Lord's sake." (2.) We have declarations equally explicit in relation to the existing idola- trous, tyrannical authorities of the old world. We refer to the language of prophecy, which denomi- nates them as "beastly" in their origin and cha- racter, and blasphemous in their pretensions, and denounces them as doomed of God. "I saw," says Daniel, (chap, vii.,) " and, behold, the four winds of heaven strove upon the great sea, and four great beasts came up from the sea." The last of these the fourth beast was "dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly, and it had great iron teeth : it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with its feet." And so John: (Rev. xiii. 7,) " And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, haivng seven heads and ten horns, and upon his heads ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blas- phemy." All intelligent Protestants apply these symbolic representations to the divided Roman empire the existing anti-Christian thrones of Eu- rope. Did God send them? No. For even still more expressly as to their origin, John says "And the dragon" the devil "gave him his power, and seat, and great authority." Can any thing be clearer? How could this beast these kings claim conscientious submission'? The 10 110 SUBMISSION TO CIVIL GOVERNMENT. devil not God gave them their power: a fact written as clear as the sun in the heavens upon their constitution and administration. The former, adverse to the rights of the people the latter, directed not to the advancement of God's glory, and the interests of morality and religion, but in diametrical opposition to all these. God sends them ! Yes. As he sends tempests and plagues, to scourge the nations for their sins. As he raised up Pharaoh, to show in these last times his power in their utter and signal ruin.* (3.) It cannot be that God, in any such way, sends immoral powers, for then the only inquiry would be, Does a govern- ment exist ? Has it the requisite vigour and re- sources to compel obedience to its decrees ? Behind this, we could not dare not go. Every usurper, every tyrant, every Nero, Caligula, Heliogabalus, or Borgia, might justly demand conscientious alle- giance as God's minister ! Do the advocates of existing powers, as God's ordinance, admit this 1 No. They fall back from their own argument * We append Dr. Junkin's exposition of this passage "The dragon invested him with authority. . . The Scripture account of absolute despotism, is, that Satan gave it, and the blasphemous slander of God is the argu- ment by which the doctrine of legitimacy is sustained from the Bible. . . c All power is of God ; the powers that be are ordained of God/ therefore iron-handed despot- ism is a divine institution. This is the conclusion of its friends, but the word of truth proclaims it to be from below. The same kind of logic will prove the devil's own usurpations to be right and proper. . . The fal- lacy here lies in a false assumption. Paul says, ( The powers that be, 5 stovo-iat, that is, the civil government, is an ordinance of God ; but the assumption is, that he means arbitrary power, might without right. This is the logic by which Diabolus has blasphemed the Creator for a score of centuries." SUBMISSION TO CIVIL GOVERNMENT. Ill they insist upon some attributes as essential to a right to reign. We live in the age of revolutions. The world will not hear even the enunciation of the doctrine of passive obedience. The nations have risen, and are still rising, to demand, at least seme, credentials of these pretended vicegerents of the Almighty. But, are they not powers^? are they not "powers that be?" How, then, except on our principle, can we go behind this fact, and investigate the validity of their commission ? We affirm, on no other. Who, then, are " sent" of God ? We answer, those who come bearing the law, and exhibiting, in measure, the image of God. Those who, ho- nouring God, and seeking to accomplish the ends of his moral ordinance of magistracy, do really sustain the character, as they perform the duties of his ministers. To no others are we called upon, in God's name, and for his sake, to yield a conscientious submission. 2. The passage expressly defines them as righteous v. 14 " As unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evil-doers, and for the praise of them that do well." That this language defines a righteous administra- tion of justice between man and man as an indis- pensable feature of civil government, without which it would have no validity no claims upon our allegiance, is scarcely disputable. Few will be even disposed to deny this, at least in this land. For, whatever the abettors of a " divine right^to rule wrong" may affirm, it is here universally acknowledged, (we go farther, maintained,) that tyrants have no claim upon the conscientious sub- mission of their subjects : that, instead, it is even a duty to throw off the yoke the very first oppor- 112 SUBMISSION TO CIVIL GOVERNMENT. tunity. The contrary doctrine would involve the notion reproachful to the Almighty that He not merely recognises the proud and hard-hearted despot as His vicegerent, but obliges the wretched victims of his power to look up to him with reve- rence as God's minister to him for good. But, is this all? Is it enough to characterize a government as "sent" of God "for the punish- ment of the evil-doers, and for the praise of them that do well," that common justice be dispensed, the lawless and the turbulent restrained, and the rights of the peaceable guarded? Certainly not. Are none, in the sight of God's law we speak of it as revealed as the law of society are none "evil-doers" but rioters and robbers, disturbers of the public penc?, and invaders of private rights? And are we to limit the phrase, " such as do well," to those who pay due regard to the common wel- fare, and to the rights of their fellow -citizens? By no means. Wrong-doing and well-doing are both to be measured by the divine law not merely its second, but its first table. He does wrong who dishonours God, and blasphemes his name, and profanes his Sabbath, he does well, in a high sense, who does the opposite of all these. We might rest our argument on this point with a fair interpretation of the phrases themselves eviland well-doing but we have additional evidence. God so explained it in the code which he prepared for ancient Israel. The book of Revelation exhi- bits the same principle in its denunciation of civil government not as tyrannical merely, but as im- pious; and, finally, we may appeal to the common opinion of all nations pagan and Christian, an- cient and modern. For where is the nation which has taken no account we except revolutionary SUBMISSION TO CIVIL GOVERNMENT. 113 France for a very short time of such crimes as open blasphemy? If this be granted, our principle is established. The government that claims the conscientious submission of the faithful, must be, in the sense in which we have now explained it, as well as in the former, a restraint upon evil doers, and a praise to them that do well. And why not? We admit, as we have already said, that a government that tramples upon human rights is not to be ac- knowledged as the minister of God. How, then, we ask, can a government be so acknowledged which puts no restraint upon the open enemies of the Most High, pays no regard to the prerogatives of Christ, and throws open its honours, and thus gives "power" to the avowed despisers of his law? Is this to answer the ends of a divine or- dinance ? Surely the rights of God and of Christ, are not less worthy of recognition than human rights. To permit, and especially to patronize, their violation, is no less a crime than to refuse to the citizens of the commonwealth protection of life or property.* Now observe, all agree, with the few excep- tions already referred to, that there are limits to the duty of submission, that at least the rights of man must not be seriously infringed. Some would, however, stop at this point. They would be satisfied with the very narrowest sense that the terms will possibly bear. We make no such re- * It is implied in the above, and follows as a conse- quence from it, that a government which itself refuses to own God and Christ, must be invalid. For if the mere refusal to vindicate the honour of Jehovah, invalidates, much more, the practical denial of his supreme domi- nion. 10* 114 SUBMISSION TO CIVIL GOVERNMENT. strictions. We interpret them in the light of Scrip- ture, and of the entire history of our race, so far as it contains examples worthy of being followed. Without hesitation, we repeat our assertion that the passage enjoins conscientious submission to such a government, and to such a one only, as vindicates not merely human rights, but the rights of God, of Him who is "King of kings and Lord of lords."* 3. The fact that civil government is a divine ordinance demands this interpretation. As we have already said, provision has been made in the very constitution of human nature for the exis- tence of civil institutions among men. And the language of Rom. xiii. 1, is express to the point that civil government is, not a mere contrivance of men, a matter of expedience or necessity, but an ordinance of God. "The powers that be are or- dained of God." " He," the ruler. " is the minis- ter of God to thee for good." But what does this ordinance comprehend? Does it embrace no more than the affixing of a divine sanction to the exercise of such authority among men as is de- nominated civil? leaving every thing relating to its ends, its limits, its exercise, completely inde- pendent of God's will and direction? Certainly not. A divine ordinance is something. God's minister has something to do in that character. * It is a singular fact that many expositors in explain- ing Rom. xiii. 1 7, introduce, and make essential to the being of a lawful government, what is not in that pas- sage, viz.: that it originates with the people, or has their assent, while they leave out, both in that passage and in the one before us, or at all events, lay little stress upon what is the turning point of both, the descrip- tion of the power ! SUBMISSION TO CIVIL GOVERNMENT. 115 And whatever government is, it must be moral for God is holy and good. Whatever his servant has to do, he must, in doing it, bear the image of God for whom he acts. It is monstrous even to imagine that the Most High has impressed his sanction upon every kind of human authority, however immoral, profane, blasphemous, requiring of the unhappy and tempted subject of such do- minion, not merely a peaceful subjection to irre- sistible power, but a conscientious reverence of its officers and agents, as his ministers. We are not left to adopt any such revolting conclusion. The scriptures are plain. They define, as we have already remarked, the ends of civil authority, the good of society, and God's glory; they fix the character of its officers able men. Ex. xviii. 2 1 ; just men, " He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God," 2 Kings xxiii. 3. They prescribe many of its laws, and enjoin upon it special duties. Now, we repeat, every ordinance of God, in its institution, is like himself, and only as it bears his image in its constitution and ad- ministration, can it possibly be required of us to yield it that high regard, and hearty acquiescence, and conscientious obedience, which is due to those to whom so high and important trusts are com- mitted. But, it will be said, the government then exist- ing, which claimed the submission of Christians, the Roman, certainly did not possess the cha- racter of a righteous government, as we have de- fined it, did not acknowledge Christ nor re- gard his law. The fact is admitted, the conclu- sion is denied. Because, (1.) This government was one of conquest, so far as related to the pro- vinces in which the Christians resided, whom 1 1 6 SUBMISSION TO CIVIL GOVERNMENT. Peter addresses, and even in Rome itself, was a military and not a popular government, and, hence, on the principles of objectors themselves, could not claim a conscientious allegiance : in other words, it was a government which might lawfully have been thrown off, even by a violent revolution. The advocates of passive obedience, and non-re- sistance, are consistent no others are, in adducing this objection. It strikes at the fundamental, and, in this country, generally admitted doctrine, that a mere government of force cannot claim to be God's ordinance, cannot demand conscientious allegi- ance, but may be resisted, overturned, and another substituted in its stead. (2.) Intelligent Christians knew, as they know now, that this government had been denounced by the Spirit of God as the enemy of the kingdom of Christ. They under- stood the prophecies of Daniel, to which we have already referred, and could have had no difficulty in applying them to a government with whose his- tory they were familiar, as one of destruction, of trampling down and breaking in pieces. Nor, (3.) does our view involve the conclusion that these directions were of no use to the churches. This passage was designed, and would have this effect, to arrest any tendency on the part of Chris- tians to reject entirely the ordinance of civil 'go- vernment; to meet the case of a class of persons which began to make their appearance at that early age, as we learn from Peter's Second Epis- tle to these churches, as they have often since, who rejected the ordinance of civil government altogether, true anti-government men, holding it to be inconsistent with Christianity, under any circumstances, to have to do with civil power. Moreover, the Scriptures were intended to be a SUBMISSION TO CIVIL GOVERNMENT. 117 complete rule in every age, and such passages as the one before us, would point out to the faithful one grand object at which they should aim the reformation of national organizations until they should be brought into conformity with the cha- racteristics embodied summarily, but distinctly, in these passages themselves. These admonitions, then, were far from being useless or inapplicable, at the time, and are of immense use now. In- deed, the very fact that such directions were needed at that time, is no inconsiderable argument in favour of our view. For how could the idea have originated that Christians were adverse to civil authority, unless from the perversion of the apostolic teachings in regard to the unholy nature and unchristian character of existing institutions? Our interpretation must stand. The passage teaches the duty of acknowledging a righteous civil government, and no other. It makes this an essential characteristic. And that, as much when the government is of popular origin, as under any other circumstances. Even of such a government, if it had this attribute, God says, as he said of the popular government of the ten tribes, "They have set up kings, but not by me; they have made princes, and I knew it not." 4. To a righteous government hearty allegiance is imperatively required. "Submit yourselves therefore." There are two kinds of submission to civil authority. One is forced for " wrath's sake:" the other is that to which we have so often alluded, a sincere, cheerful subjection for "con- science sake," for "the Lord's sake." As to the former, circumstances may render it expedient, and even dutiful. It may be expedient, from re- gard to a man's personal safety, like the submis- 118 SUBMISSION TO CIVIL GOVERNMENT. sion of the peaceable inhabitant to the unjust exac- tions of an invading host, pouring into his country with irresistible might; or, more nearly, like the peaceable subjection of the slave to the unjust and sinful claims of his pretended owner. A subjec- tion based upon no higher principle than the im- possibility of successful resistance, and the fear of making things worse by attempting the use of vio- lent means of relief. On these grounds, submis- sion for wrath's sake may be expedient, and even in a sense, dutiful. Still more, the Christian re- gards the peace of society he knows that the re- formation of the government is a work of time and of Christian effort he has, as a willing subject of Christ's government, a high regard for the welfare of the body politic, and is thankful for every law, and every act of administration that accords with the divine will, and thus tends to promote the ob- ject of the ordinance of magistracy and, besides, is careful that no just reproach shall fall, through any^act of his, upon the pure and peaceful charac- ter of the gospel of Christ, and cherishes, with ha- bitual concern, the honour of his exalted Prince and Saviour. On these grounds, the intelligent Christian demeans himself quietly and honestly in all godliness, so long as his privileges and those of his fellow-Christians, and the community, are not interfered with, whatever the moral character of the government. And thus, as a matter of duty, and we may even say for "conscience sake," not as regarding the existing authorities as God's ministers, but as for other and higher reasons.* * In fact, those who adopt the views which we advo- cate will be found the most peaceful members of society, better deserving of its protection than a large proportion of those who acknowledge, merely as existing, the powers that be. SUBMISSION TO CIVIL GOVERNMENT. 119 God's ordinance, however, requires more than this. It demands, as we have all along suggested, a hearty and cheerful recognition of its being and its authority, and a ready submission to its enact- ments, as bearing the stamp and impress of God's institution. Such a government, and such officers, the Christian will honour, support, maintain and defend, This is the submission enjoined in the passage before us: * Submit, for the Lord's sake," " for so is the will of God." Such a submission as the godly Israelites gave to the Mosaic institu- tions, and the officers by whom they were admi- nistered to the authority of David, and his godly successors. Such a submission as the saints will yield to the governments of the earth at that time when "the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ." Here we might enter upon a more minute exami- nation of the elements which enter into the consti- tution of a righteous civil government. For these, however, we refer the reader, as well as for the application of the principles which we have vindi- cated, to the pages of the "Sons of Oil:" adding, only, that no government can claim to be in accord- ance with God's moral ordinance, which does not, in Christian lands, honour God in Christ, adopt his law as supreme, regard the rights and privi- leges of the entire community, particularly of the most needy, which does not deny its bounties to the open enemies of Christ, and direct its opera- tions to the advancement of moral order and the glory of God, in the maintenance of God's law, the support of religion and the restraint of those who do evil against both tables of the decalogue. These are not "high and ultimate attainments." They are primary and fundamental principles. 120 SUBMISSION TO CIVIL GOVERNMENT. We do not demand absolute perfection; but we do demand of any government that asks our conscien- tious support, that it "kiss the Son," that it put itself under that law which only needs to be under- stood and applied to reach every interest of social life, and every element of moral order, that it trample upon none of its subjects or citizens, that it regard with interest the special kingdom of Christ, bought with his blood, and cherished as his peculiar possession. In this way, and in this way alone, can we vindicate with effect God's or- dinance of magistracy, and perpetuate its claims to future generations, and so secure for them the rich heritage of Christian institutions, and the fa- vour of the Most High. Adopting these views, we must withhold, for reasons which are so well stated in the preceding pamphlet, our conscientious allegiance from the government of our land, en- deavouring, in the mean time, while we labour for a reformation, to demean ourselves as becomes the subjects, disciples, and witnesses of Jesus Christ the King of kings, and the Lord of lords the Saviour of his body the church. THE END.