ing words, or if what he has faid would bear fuch a paraphrafe, viz. Let every foul, every Chriflian be fubject to the civil government be lives under, whilst he receive protection from it. For as civil government is abfolutely neceflary to the well being of civil fociety; fo it must be pleafing to God that men live in fubjection to fuch government, whilft the ends of government are anfwered by it; and confequently, whofoever refifteth fuch a government, not only renders himself difpleafing to God, but also justly exposes himself to the punishment which fuch a government may inflict upon him. I fay, if St. Paul had expreffed himself thus, or if what he has faid would bear fuch a paraphrafe, then his reasoning the fubject would have been proper and confonant to truth; but instead of this he has put government upon fuch a foot, as renders his reafoning inconfiftent with both. For whether, by higher powers and the powers that be, St. Paul meant the various forms of civil government then in being, or the various perfons then in the poffeffion of civil power; in either cafe, these were not by the ordinance and appointment of God, but only by the ordinance and appointment of men; and confequently, all offences against thefe were upon not not offences against the ordinance of God, but only against the ordinance of men; and alfo St. Paul's preffing obedience to civil governors, under the confideration of their being the ordinance of God, was preffing it from a fictitious motive. The ground or reafon why we ought, and that it is our duty to pay obedience to civil governors, is not because they are the ordinance of God, for that they are not; but because government itself, and confequently, obedience to those who exercise it (when the ends of government are answered) are necessary to the well being of mankind. And though it is agreeable to God's will that a juft and proper government fhould take place, and that men fhould be fubject to it, becaufe it is fubfervient to the common good; yet this does not make or confiitute it to be a divine ordinance. God has not interpofed to appoint any form of government, nor the persons to govern, or at least this has not been generally the cafe; thefe being merely human, as they have arifen from the neceffities of mankind, and from the various circumstances they have been under, and these are continually varying, as they are of a changeable nature. Indeed the Jews confidered their civil government to be of divine appment, and their kings to have been anointed of the Lord. Though, by the way, if this was the cafe, then fometimes Almighty God made a very bad choice, as fome of his a`nointed ones proved to be very bad men.Now, how far foever what St. Paul has faid may be applicable to the civil government of the Jews, and to their kings, it could not, with any propriety or truth, be applied to any other government or governors; and yet the apostle affirms it in general of the powers then in being, without any restriction or limitation. But then, this, I think, is not great- ly to be wondered at. warmth of temper, or the beat of his conftitution, naturally heightened his zeal; fo it as naturally weakened his attention. And as St. Paul was bred a few, and as fuch he confidered the civil government of the Jews to be of divine appointment; fo, probably, this led him inattentively to fpeak of government in general as a divine ordinance, he looking no farther, at the time, than to the government under which he had been brought up, and to the principles he had been educated in. Whereas, had the apostle taken fuch an extenfive view of, and given that VOL. II. Z due due attention to the fubject which the cafe required; then, furely, he could not, or rather he would not have treated it in the man ner he has done. What St. Paul said farther upon the fubject, will by no means bear examining. Thus, he faith, that rulers are not a terror to good works but to the evil; and that they bear not the fword in vain. Let this be applied to king Herod, when he killed James the brother of John with the fword, and fought to take Peter alfo. As in Acts xii. 2, 3. Here the queftions will be, whether the power that was exercised in this cafe was a terror to good works or to the evil? and whether Herod bore the fword to a good, or to a bad purpofe? and the answers, I think, are obvious. IF it should be faid, that St. Paul, by admitting the fuppofition that Governors are not a terror to good works but to the evil, rather intended to obferve what those purposes are to which civil government ought always to be fubfervient, than to affert what was univerfally the cafe in fact. Anfw. For the apostle to admit a fuppofition which was not univerfally true, and then to reafon from it as if it were fo, because it ought bught to be fo; by requiring all men to pay obedience and tribute to all Governors without diftinction, and without any restriction or limitation, whether thofe rulers use their power well or ill, whether to the good or burt of fociety, whether for the protection or the enslaving of thofe who are required to submit to it, upon a preJumption that fuch power is always used well, because it ought to be fo, tho' experience shews the contrary; this is fuch a fallacious; and fuch an injurious way of reafoning, with regard to this or any other question, as fcarcely will admit of an excuse, in a writer of St. Paul's abilities; tho', I think, it was owing to his inattention, as I have already obferved. And as this bad reafoning takes place in the writings of St. Paul, by which means it is likely to be much more injurious and hurtful than were it to appear in the writings of fome other men; fo this makes it highly neceffary that it should be fufficiently laid open, in order to prevent the bad confequences which otherwise may very justly be expected to attend it. And, indeed, it feems very ftrange, that men fhould go on with maintaining that the apoftles were Z 2 divinely |