royalty of our princely Redeemer and king was trampled on, as any might have seen in our assemblies. What way the army, and the sword, and the countenance of nobles and officers seemed to sway, that way were the censures carried. It had been better, had there been more days of humiliation in assemblies, synods, presbyteries, congregations, families, and far less adjourned commissions, new peremptory summonses, and new drawn up processes. And if the meekness and gentleness of our Master had got so much place in our hearts, that we might have waited on gainsayers and parties contrary minded; we might have driven gently, as our Master Christ, who loves not to overdrive, but carries the lambs in his bosom. "If the word of truth in the Old and New Testament be a sufficient rule, holding forth what is a Christian army, whether offensive or defensive; whether clean, or sinfully mixed, then must we leave the question betwixt our public brethren* and us to be determined by that rule but if there be no such rule in the word, then the confederacies and associations of the people of God with the idolatrous, apostate Israelites, with the Egyptians and Assyrians, as that of Jehoshaphat with Ahab, and these of Israel and Judah with Egypt and Assyria, should not be condemned; but they are often reproved and condemned in scripture. To deny the scripture to be a sufficient rule in this case, were to accuse it of being imperfect and defective;—a high and unjust reflection on the holy word of God! Beyond all question, the written word doth teach, what is a right constituted court, and what not, Psal. x.; what is a right constituted house, and what not, Josh. xxiv. 15.; what is a true church, and what is a synagogue of Satan, Rev. ii.; what is a clean camp, and what is unclean. We are not for an army of saints, and free of all mixture of ill affected men: but it seems an high prevarication for churchmen to counsel and teach, which they contended, to the very existence, and certainly to the preservation and the spread of true godliness; nor must we fail to observe, that the circumstances in which they were placed, and the encroachments with which they were still farther threatened, might have excited their vigilance, as to minor points, to a higher pitch than their individual importance might seem to war rant. * That is to say, the public resolutioners-those who were favourable to the repeal of the act of classes, and the admission of all men, of whatever religious denomination, to serve in the army and otherwise. The Scottish parliament had passed some acts, particularly the act of classes, for excluding from places of trust, civil and military, persons who had manifested a malignant opposition to the religion and liberties of the nation, as then established. After the defeat of the Scottish army at Dunbar and Hamilton, by Cromwell, the court, in the end of 1650 and beginning of 1651, put two queries to the commission of the General Assembly, with reference to the admission of malignants to places of trust. The commission's answers, otherwise called the public resolutions, were favourable to the views of the court, and the act of classes was repealed. The resolutions and subsequent procedure of the commission and General Assembly, were protested against by a considerable number of ministers and elders. This gave rise to a division between the resolutioners and protesters (as they were called), which, though accommodated, was not completely healed, when the restoration took place. The protesters (of whom Rutherford was one), being the stricter presbyterians, were most obnoxious to the restored government. that the weight and trust of the affairs of Christ, and his kingdom, should be laid upon the whole party of such as have been enemies to our cause; contrary to the word of God, and the declarations, remonstrances, solemn warnings, and serious exhortations of his church, whose public protestations the Lord did admirably bless, to the encouragement of the godly, and the terror of all the opposers of the work, "Since we are very shortly to appear before our dreadful Master and Sovereign, we cannot pass from our protestation, trusting we are therein accepted of him;-though we should lie under the imputation of dividing spirits, and unpeaceable men. We acknowledge all due obedience, in the Lord, to the king's majesty; but we disown that ecclesiastic supremacy, in and over the church, which some ascribe to him; that power of commanding external worship not appointed in the word; and laying bonds upon the consciences of men, where Christ has made them free. We disown antichristian prelacy, bowing at the name of Jesus, saints' days, canonizing of the dead, and other such corrupt inventions of men, and look on them as the highway to popery. Alas! now there is no need of a spirit of prophecy to declare what shall be the woful condition of a land that hath broken covenant, first practically, and then legally, with the Lord our God: and what shall be the day of the silent and dumb watchmen of Scotland? Where will we leave our glory? and what if Christ depart out of our land? We verily judge, they are most loyal to the king's majesty, who desire the dross may be separated from the silver, and the throne established in righteousness and judgment. We are not (our witness is in heaven) against his majesty's title by birth to the kingdom, and the right of the royal family: but that the controversy of wrath against the royal family may be removed; that the huge guilt of the throne may be mourned for before the Lord; and that his majesty may stand constantly, all the days of his life, to the covenant of God, by oath, seal, and subscription, known to the world; that so peace and the blessings of heaven may follow his government; that the Lord may be his rock and shield; that the just may flourish in his time; that men fearing God, hating covetousness, and of known integrity and godliness, may be judges and rulers under his majestyand they are not really loyal and faithful to the supreme magistrate, who wish not such qualifications in him. We are not, in this particular, contending that a prince, who is not a convert or a sound believer, falls from his royal dominion; the scriptures of God warrant us to pray for and obey, in the Lord, princes and supreme magistrates, that are otherwise wicked; and to render all due obedience to them, Rom. xiii. 2, 5. 2 Tim. ii. 12. 1 Pet. ii. 18. Our souls should be afflicted before the Lord, for the burning of the Causes of God's Wrath,' A sad practice, too like the burning of the roll by Jehudi, Jer. xxxvi. 22. In these controversies, we should take special heed to this, that Christ is a free, independent Sovereign, King, and Lawgiver. The Father hath appointed him his own King in mount Zion; and he cannot endure, that the powers of the world should encroach upon his royal prerogatives, and prescribe laws to him: this presumption is not far from that of citizens that hated him, Luke xix. 14 'He shall not rule over us;' and from the intolerable pride of those who are for breaking asunder the bands of the Lord, and his anointed, and for casting away their cords from them, Psal. ii. 3. especially seeing the man Christ would not take the office of a judge upon him, Luke xii. 14. and discharged his disciples, to exercise a civil lordship over their brethren. True it is, the godly magistrate may command the ministers of the gospel to do their duty, but not under the pain of ecclesiastic censure, as if it were proper for him to call and uncall, depose and suspend from the holy ministry. The lordly spiritual government in and over the church, is given unto Christ, and none else he is the sole ecclesiastic lawgiver. It is proper to him to smite with the rod of his mouth; nor is there any other shoulder, in heaven or on earth, that is able to bear the government. As this hath been the great controversy betwixt our Lord Jesus and the powers of the world from the beginning, so it has ruined all that coped with him. Christ has proved a rock of offence to them; they have been dashed to pieces by the stone that was cut out of the mountain without hands, Dan. ii. 34, 45. And the other powers that enter the lists with him shall have the same dismal exit. Whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken; and on whomsoever it shall fall, it shall grind them to powder, Matth. xxi. 44. As the blessed prophets and apostles of our Lord contended not a little with the rulers of the earth, that Christ should be head corner stone: that Christ is the only head of the church, is as sure, as that he died, was buried, and rose again. It is a most victorious and prevailing truth, not only preached and attested by the ambassadors of the Lord of hosts, but confirmed by blood, martyrdom, and suffering. Many precious saints have thought it their honour and dignity, to suffer shame and reproach for the name of Jesus; and it is beyond doubt, that passive suffering for the preci ous name of Christ comes nearest to that noble sampler, wherein Christ, though a Son, learned obedience by the things which he suffered, Heb. v. 8. Now blessed is the soul, who loves not his life to death, Rev. xii. 11. For on such rests the Spirit of glory and of God, 1 Pet. iv. 14. We cannot but say, it is a sad time to our land at present, it is a day of darkness, and rebuke, and blasphemy. The Lord hath covered himself with a cloud in his anger, we looked for peace, but behold evil: our souls rejoiced, when his majesty did swear the covenant of God, and put thereto his seal and subscription; and therefore confirmed it by his royal promise. So that the subjects' hearts blessed the Lord, and rested upon the healing word of a prince. But now, alas! the contrary is enacted by law, the carved work is broken down, ordinances are defaced, and we are brought into the former bondage and chaos of prelatical confusions. The royal prerogative of Christ is pulled from his head, and, after all the days of sorrow we have seen, we have just cause to fear we shall be made to read and eat that book, wherein is written mourning, and lamentation, and wo. Yet we are to believe Christ will not so depart from the land, but a remnant shall be saved; and he shall reign a victorious conquering king to the ends of the earth. ✪ that there were nations, kindreds, tongues, and all the people of Christ's babitable world, en |