The English works of Thomas Hobbes of Malmesbury, Volume 04 · Thomas Hobbes
CHAPTER VII.
1. The question propounded, who are the magistrates in the kingdom of Christ. 2. The question exemplified, in the controversies between Moses and Aaron, and between Moses and Corah. 3. Amongst the Jews, the power temporal and spiritual in the same hand. 4. Parallel of the twelve princes of Israel, and the twelve apostles. 5. Parallel of seventy elders, and seventy disciples. 6. The hierarchy of the church in our Saviour’s time, consisted in the twelve, and in the seventy. 7. Why Christ ordained no priests for sacrifices, as Moses did. 8. The hierarchy of the church in the apostles' time, apostles, bishops, and priests. 9. The preaching of the gospel was not commanding, but persuading. 10. Excommunication. Sovereigns immediate rulers ecclesiastical under Christ. 11. That no man hath any just pretence of religion against obedience to commonwealth. God speaketh to man by his vicegerents. [Sidenote: The question propounded, who are the magistrates in the kingdom of Christ.] 1. In the former chapter have been removed those difficulties opposing our obedience to human authority, which arise from misunderstanding of our Saviour’s title and laws: in the former whereof, namely, his title, consisteth our faith; and in the latter, our justice. Now they who differ not amongst themselves concerning his title and laws, may nevertheless have different opinions concerning his magistrates, and the authority he hath given them. And this is the cause, why many Christians have denied obedience to their princes, pretending that our Saviour Christ hath not given this magistracy to them, but to others. As for example: some say, to the pope universally; some, to a synod aristocratical; some, to a synod democratical in every several commonwealth; and the magistrates of Christ being they by whom he speaketh, the question is, whether he speak unto us by the pope, or by convocations of bishops and ministers, or by them that have the sovereign power in every commonwealth.
8. After the ascension of our Saviour, the apostles dispersed themselves for the spreading of the Gospel, and continually as they converted any number of men, in any city or region, to the faith, they chose out such as they thought fittest, to direct them in matter of conversation and life, according to Christ’s law, and to explicate unto them, that mystery of Christ come in the flesh, that is to say, to unfold unto them at large the office of the Messiah. And of those elders, some were subordinate to others, according as the apostles, who ordained them, thought meet. So St. Paul gave power unto Titus, to ordain elders in Crete, and to redress things that were amiss. So that Titus was both an elder, and ordained elders (Tit. i. 5): _For this cause I left thee in Crete, that thou shouldest continue to redress the things that remain, and ordain elders in every city_; where the word is καταστήσρς, that is constitute; whereby it appeareth, that in the apostles' times, one elder had authority over another, to ordain and rule them. For 1 Tim. v. 19, Timothy an elder, is made judge of accusations against other elders. And Acts xiv.
23, the disciples are said to ordain elders, for all the congregations of the cities they had preached in. And though the word there be χειροτονήσαντες, yet it signifieth not election by holding up of hands, but simply and absolutely ordination. For the ordinary choosing of magistrates amongst the Grecians, which were all either popularly governed, or else by _oligarchy_, being performed by holding up of hands, made that word be taken simply, for an election or ordination, howsoever made. And thus in the primitive church, the hierarchy of the church, was apostles, elders that governed other elders, and elders that ruled not, but their office was to preach, to administer the sacraments, to offer up prayers and thanksgiving in the name of the people. But at that time there appeared no distinction between the names of bishop and elder. But immediately after the apostles' time, the word bishop was taken to signify such an elder as had the government of elders, and other elders were called by the name of priests, which signifieth the same that elder doth. And thus the government of bishops hath a divine pattern in the twelve rulers, and seventy elders of Israel, in the twelve apostles and seventy disciples of our Saviour, in the ruling elders, and not ruling elders, in the time of the apostles.
10, are dictated to the conscience only, which is not subject to compulsion and constraint, it was not congruent to the style of the King of Heaven to constrain men to submit their actions to him, but to advise them only; nor for him that professeth the sum of his law to be love, to extort any duty from us with fear of temporal punishment. And therefore as the mighty men in the world, that hold others in subjection by force, are called in Scripture by the name of hunters; so our Saviour calleth those whom he appointed to draw the world unto him, by subduing their affections, _fishers_. And therefore he saith to Peter and Andrew, (Matth. iv. 19): _Follow me, and I will make ye fishers of men_. And Luke x. 3: _Behold_, saith Christ, _I send ye forth as lambs amongst wolves_. And it were to no end to give them the right of compelling, without strengthening the same with greater power than of _lambs_ amongst _wolves_.
Moreover, Matth. x, where our Saviour giveth a commission to his apostles, to go forth and convert the nations to the faith, he giveth them no authority of _coercion_ and punishment, but only saith, (verse 14, 15) _Whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house, or that city, shake off the dust of your feet. It shall be easier for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment, than for that city._ Whereby it is manifest, that all that the apostles could do by their authority, was no more than to renounce communion with them, and leave their punishment to God Almighty, in the day of judgment. Likewise the comparisons of the kingdom of heaven to the seed, Matth. xiii. 3, and to the leaven, Matth. xiii. 33, doth intimate unto us that the increase thereof ought to proceed from internal operation of God’s word preached, and not from any law or compulsion of them that preach it. Moreover our Saviour himself saith (John xviii. 36), _That_ his _kingdom is not of this world_; and consequently his magistrates derive not from him any authority of punishing men in this world. And therefore also, Matth. xxvi. 52, after St. Peter had drawn his sword in his defence, our Saviour saith, _Put up thy sword into his place. For all that take the sword, shall perish by the sword._ And, verse 54, _How then shall the Scriptures be fulfilled, which say, that it must be so?_ showing out of the Scriptures, that the kingdom of Christ was not to be defended by the sword.
But our Saviour, as he imitated the commonwealth of the Jews in his magistrates, the twelve and the seventy; so did he also in the censure of the church, which was _excommunication_; but amongst the Jews, the church did put the excommunicated persons from the congregation, which they might do by their power temporal; but our Saviour and his apostles, who took upon them no such power, could not forbid the excommunicated person to enter into any place and congregation, into which he was permitted to enter, by the prince, or sovereign of the place. For that had been to deprive the sovereign of his authority. And therefore the excommunication of a person subject to an earthly power, was but a declaration of the church, which did excommunicate, that the person so excommunicated was to be reputed still as an infidel, but not to be driven by their authority, out of any company, he might otherwise lawfully come into. And this is it our Saviour saith (Matth. xviii. 17): _If he refuse to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican_. So that the whole effect of excommunicating a Christian prince, is no more than he or they that so excommunicate him depart and banish themselves out of his dominion.
Nor can they thereupon discharge any of his subjects of their obedience to him; for that were to deprive him of his dominion; which they may not do, for being out of the church. It is confessed by them that make this objection, and proved in the former section, that our Saviour gave no authority to his apostles to be judges over them. And therefore in no case can the sovereign power of a commonwealth be subject to any authority ecclesiastical, besides that of Christ himself. And though he be informed concerning the kingdom of heaven, and subject himself thereto at the persuasions of persons ecclesiastical, yet is he not thereby subject to their government and rule. For if it were by their authority he took that yoke upon him, and not by their persuasion, then by the same authority he might cast it off. But this is unlawful. For if all the churches in the world should renounce the Christian faith, yet is not this sufficient authority for any of the members to do the same. It is manifest therefore, that they who have sovereign power, are immediate rulers of the church under Christ, and all other but subordinate to them. If that were not, but kings should command one thing upon pain of death, and priests another, upon pain of damnation, it would be impossible that peace and religion should stand together.
Ideas discussed in this chapter
Text from Project Gutenberg, public domain in the United States.