Thesis 20

THESIS 20.

In the Scriptures of the new Testament, there are clear grounds and full proofs, that heretics and false teachers, corrupters of religion, deserve to be punished corporally, as well as spiritually by excommunication, and that magistrates ought to punish in cases of idolatry, heresy and such like, as well as for transgressions against the second Table. Now among many I shall lay down these following. 1. That Christ and his Apostles being accused before magistrates about matters of religion, as blasphemy, being against the Law of Moses, and such like, they never pleaded for themselves that it was not lawful to punish any man for matters of religion, but they defended their causes, that they had not taught any thing against the word of God and the Law of Moses, were not guilty of blasphemy or heresy, so that they granted the major proposition, namely that it was lawful for the magistrate to punish heretics who taught against the Word of God, but they denied the minor that they were heretics: for out of the word of God they showed they were not heretics, in that they taught nothing against the Word of God, yes nothing but what had a proof in the Word of God. But of this the reader may see more in Zanchit's Miscellanies De Magistratu, page 173. 2. Christ in (John 2:14, 15, 16) made a scourge, and drove out of the Temple those that made his Father's house a house of merchandise, which now false teachers are said to do (2 Peter 2:3), and it is the more observable that Christ who let the woman taken in adultery go away and did not punish her; that would not divide an inheritance because his Kingdom was not of this world; yet in the matter of his Father's house did exercise coercive power with a high hand, scourging and driving out of the Temple those that sold oxen, etc., and this he is said to do out of zeal, the zeal of your house has eaten me up: and though this be not recorded for ministers to use a material whip, yet certainly this was an act of righteousness that should have been done by the magistrates of that time, and it had been a glorious action if they had done it, and however there might be something heroical in it, yet doubtless it is an act of righteousness and zeal that ought to be done by some in their ordinary calling, namely by magistrates. 3. (Romans 13:4) Magistrates bear not the sword in vain for them that do evil, and they are revengers to execute wrath upon them that do evil: now blasphemers, heretics, false teachers do evil and are evil workers (Philippians 3:2; 2 John v. 11; Revelation 2:2), and non distinguendum est ubi Scriptura non distinguit: upon which place Master Bilson writes thus, Princes in the new Testament be God's ministers to revenge malefactors, as they were in the old, and the greater the wickedness, the rather to be punished, ergo, the greatest (as heresies, idolatries and blasphemies) are soonest of all other vices to be repressed by Christian magistrates, whose zeal for Christ's glory must not decrease, Christ's care for their scepters being increased. 4. (1 Corinthians 12:10, 29) the Apostle shows us that when Christian magistrates were wanting, besides miracles, gifts of healing, etc., Christ gave a special gift to the Church of restraining seducers and obstinate heretics by corporal punishment; there were some that had a special gift of coercing ungodly men; this Paul exercised upon Elymas the false prophet and seducer (Acts 13:11), upon which place Peter Martyr writes fully, The Church then had not the sword of the magistrate by which offences might be restrained, therefore a power was given of punishing them corporally. The best interpreters ancient and modern, as Chrysostom, Oecumenius, Calvin, Beza, Peter Martyr, Pareus, and divers others do understand by powers, those who had such a gift, upon which place I intended to have insisted largely by comparing other Scriptures with it, and to have demonstrated from it, the necessity and lawfulness of a power of punishing corporally obstinate heretics and seducers, but I must take off. 5. (Galatians 5:12) Paul wishes that false teachers and troublers of the Church were cut off: which place I intended to have enlarged upon to prove it meant of bodily cutting off, but cannot now. 6. (1 Timothy 2:2) Paul shows kings and those that are in authority are to be prayed for, that we may lead a quiet and a peaceable life in all godliness and honesty, in all godliness, as well as honesty: this is the end of prayers to be made for magistrates. Now that which is the end of prayers poured out for magistrates ought to be the end propounded by the magistrate in his duty, but the Apostle commands prayers to be made for magistrates for that end, ergo it lies upon the magistrate to see to it, of which the reader may see more in Meisner, Polit. de Magistratu; and it is confessed by Master Thomas Goodwin in his Return of Prayers, this was a command to pray, that God would give Christian magistrates to the Church, the answer of which was in giving Constantine a Christian Emperor, who as the ecclesiastical histories show, did by laws and edicts command the Christian religion, as also establish the Nicene Creed touching the faith of one substance, banishing by his edict Arius and his adherents. 7. (Revelation 17:16) John prophecies, and speaks of it as an acceptable work to God, for Christian kings and states by their civil temporal power to destroy the Romish religion: now if the Romish seducers and corrupters of religion (upon that ground called the Whore) may be punished by civil magistrates, and dealt with by other weapons than preaching, admonition, excommunication, then such as are certainly worse than they, as Anti-Trinitarians, Socinians, Libertines, may be also by magistrates restrained. Master Robinson writing against the Anabaptists, one Helwisse who interprets this place of spiritual weapons, answers him this is a prophecy of kings and magistrates whose weapons and power are other besides that of prayers which is common to all Christians, it is spoken what they shall do as kings: besides it is contrary to the clear meaning of the Holy Ghost, which is, that kings should first use their civil power for the Beast and Whore, and after against them to their destruction, they shall give their power to the Lamb, as they before gave it against the Lamb: now we know they used their civil power under Popery, as a means by which to suppress the true religion, and therefore princes and states shall establish the true by that means and destroy the false, of which I had thought to have enlarged further, as also upon the other New Testament quotations, to have answered the evasions brought against them, especially of Hagiomastix against (Romans 13:4), and to have proved it cannot be restrained only against evils of the second Table, but is to be understood of evil against the first, but I must reserve these things, and divers more to another opportunity, and for a second part. If God will. To God only wise, be glory through Jesus Christ. Amen.

FINIS.