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Show hit '2, :76 OfCOMMoN-WEALTH. Chap.3. erme onel of the Law of Nature, that forbiddeth the mo. hidiftiltif Faith ; w)hich naturall obligation if men know nor, the cann0t know the Right of any Law the Soveraignmaketh. _And for the Punilhment, they take it but for an‘ aét of Holiday -, which when they think they have flrength enough, theytwdl endeavour by adsof ' I-Ioflility, to avOyd. 0572350" of As I have heard fome fay, that Jufiicc is but a word, without full- tlmfc 21m [A] fiance :, and that whatfoevera man can by force, or art, vauére to t/xrem‘em himfelfe, ( n0t onely in the condition of warre,but alfo in a 0m Principle: of mon-wealth,) is his own, which I have already {hewed to be fall'e: Redfm for So there be alfo that maintain; that there are no grounds, nor Printi. aéjelme Sn. -. ples of Reafon, to ful'tain thofe eflentiall Rights, which make Soverai nty abfo‘lute; For if there were, they would have been found out in lgome place, or other 5 whereas we fee, there has not hitherto. been "fix verm'gzt)'. any Common-Wealth, where thofe Rights have been acknowledged, ._<A ‘ V ,','0 ‘5. mm «HM». orchallenged. Wherein they argue as ill,- as if the Savage people of America, lhould deny there were any grounds, or Principles of ReafOn, fo to builda houfe, as to lafl as long as the materials, becaule they never yet faw any fo well built. Time, and Indultry, produce every day new knowledge. And as the art of well building, is derived from P'rineiples'ofReafon, obferved by indui'trious men, that had long ltudied the nature of materiaIS, and the divers effects or figure, and proportion, long after mankind began ( though poorly) to build : So,long time after men have begun to confhtute Commonwealths, imperfeét, and apt to relapfe' into diforder,_there_ may, a i-e ' -1‘": sn: "" : 5'35 . '.. grs'?‘ . ...:.y, w Principles ofReafon be found out,by induitrious meditation',to make their conflitution (excepting by externall Violence ) everlaliing. And fuch are thofe whichI have in this difcou-rfe fet forth : Which whethcrthe come not into the fi ht of thofe that have Power to make ufe ofi'hem, orbe negleéted ythem, or not, concerneth my particular interei't, at this day, very little. But fuppofing that theft ("7:07am of mine are not fuch Principles ofReafon ; yet I am fure they are Princi les from Authority of Scripture; as I'lhall make it app", when Ipfliallcome to fpeak of the Kingdom'e of God, (adminifitcd by Mofes,) over the Jewes, his peculiar people by Covenant. Butthey fay again, that though the Principles be right, yet Come from the In- mon peo it are not of capacity enough to be made to underfland Cdpvlflfl' (f them. I iiiould be glad,that :3: "tn/gar. the Rich,and Potent Subjeets 0f 1 ngf dome,or thofethat are accounted the molt Learned, were no lelle incapablethanthey, But all men know,that the obitruftionsto this kind of dofirine,proceed not fo much from'the difficulty of the matter, as from theinterelt of them that are to learn. Potent men; dl‘ gut hardly any thing that fetteth upaPower tobridle their alfet‘ii' ons -, and Learned men, any thing that difcovemh their "yours, and thereby lefleiietli their Author‘ity : whereasthe Comm0n~peoples minds, unlefle they be tainted with dependance on the Porent, Cf Icribb'led over with the opinions of their Doctors, are like clean P3P", fit to receive whatfoever by Publiqiie Authority {hall b6 imprinted in then . Shall whole Nations be brought to acquit/c; l rmz. ofCOMMON-WEALTH, Chef-30- I77 in the great Myfleries of Chriflian Religion , which are ab0ve Reafon; and millions of men be made believe, that the fame Bod may be in innumerable places, at one and the fame. time, which is againlt Reafon; and (ball not men be able, by their teachin , and preaching ,proteeted by the Law, to make that received, whic is fo confonant to Reafon, that any unprejudicated man,‘needs no more to learn it, than to hear it 6 I conclude therefore, that in the infiruétion of the people in the Effentiall Rights (which are the _Naturall, and Fundamentall Lawes) of Soveraignty, there is no difficulty, (whileft a Sovcraion has his Power entire, ) but what proceeds from his own fault, or the fault of thofe whom he trul‘teth in the adminifiration of the Common-wealth -, and confequently, it is his Duty, to caufe them fo to be inl‘true‘ted -, and not onely his Duty, but his Benefit alfo, and Security,againfi the danger that may arrive to himfelfe in his natural] Perfon, from Rebellion. And ( to de fcend to particulars ) the People are to be taught, Sufi/25!: an , that they ought not to be in love with any forme of GovernmentFirit, to be Mug/2t, they fee in their neighbour Nations,more than with their mt lo "firi-i‘ own, foever prefcnt profperity they behold in Nations that arenor (what- change of otherwifc government: governed than they, ) to defire change. l-‘or the profperity Peo 1e ruled by an Ariflocraticall, or Democraticall aifembly, of a commet i not from AriltocraCy, not from Democracy,but from the Obedience, and Concord of the Subjeéts : nor do the people Monarchy, beeaufe one man has the right to rule them, flourilh in a but becaufe they obey him. Take away in any kind of State , the Obedience, ( and confequently the Concord or the People, onely not flouriih, but in ihort time be diflolved.) and they fhall not And they that go about by difobedience, to doe no more than reforme the Common- wealth, lhall find they do thereby deftroy it 3 like the foolilli daugh- ters of Pele/M { inthe fable ; ) which deliring to renew the youth of their decrepit Father, did by the Counfell of Medea, cut him in pieces, and boyle him, together with firange herbs, but made me of him a new man. This delire of change, is like the breach of the iirll of Gods Commandements : For there God fayes, N072 Imma- Dear 4/1010! ; Thou ihalt not have the Gods of other Nations 5 and in another place concerning Kings, that they are God's. Secondly, they are to be taught,that they ought not to be led with Afar rid/m I admiration of the venue of any of their fellow Subjects, how high (arm/irks liiever he Rand, nor how con fpicu oufly foever he lhine in the com- 5W"‘~"'.&"'_} mon-wealth 3 nor of any Allembly ( except the Soveraion Alfem- m Papa/t; lilyvl fo as to deferre to them any obed , ience, or hon a men our, appr opriate to theNSoveraign onely, whom ( in thei r part icular llations ) they reprelent -, nor to receive any influen ce veighed by them from the Soveraign from them, but Iiich as is cori- Authority. For that Soveraign, Cannot be imagined to love his People as he ough t,that is not jealous of them, but infers them by the flat t ed tromtheir loyalty, as they hav tery of Popular men to be fedue often been, not ondly fecretlt ‘, b"! yptnly, fo as to proclaim e Marriage withthein in farie lz'r rlcfix byl teachers 5 and by publilhi ng the lame in the open filters: which "I 11 V |