CHAPTER XV.
OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD BY NATURE.
[1.] The proposition of the following contents. [2.] Over whom God is said to rule by nature. [3.] The word of God threefold; reason, revelation, prophecy. [4.] The kingdom of God twofold; natural, and prophetic. [5.] The right whereby God reigns, is seated in his omnipotence. [6.] The same proved from Scripture. [7.] The obligation of yielding obedience to God, proceeds from human infirmity. [8.] The laws of God in his natural kingdom, are those which are recited above in chapters II. III. [9.] What honour and worship is. [10.] Worship consists either in attributes or in actions. [11.] And there is one sort natural, another arbitrary. [12.] One commanded, another voluntary. [13.] What the end or scope of worship is. [14.] What the natural laws are concerning God’s attributes. [15.] What the actions are whereby naturally we do give worship. [16.] In God’s natural kingdom, the city may appoint what worship of God it pleaseth. [17.] God ruling by nature only, the city, that is to say, that man or court who under God hath the sovereign authority of the city, is the interpreter of all the laws. [18.] Certain doubts removed. [19.] What sin is in the natural kingdom of God; and what treason against the Divine Majesty.
The proposition of the following contents.
1. We have already in the foregoing chapters, proved both by reason and testimonies of holy writ, that the estate of nature, that is to say, of absolute liberty, such as is theirs who neither govern nor are governed, is an anarchy or hostile state; that the precepts whereby to avoid this state, are the laws of nature; that there can be no civil government without a sovereign; and that they who have gotten this sovereign command, must be obeyed simply, that is to say, in all things which repugn not the commandments of God. There is this one thing only wanting to the complete understanding of all civil duty, and that is, to know which are the laws and commandments of God. For else we cannot tell whether that which the civil power commands us, be against the laws of God, or not; whence it must necessarily happen, that either by too much obedience to the civil authority we become stubborn against the divine Majesty; or for fear of sinning against God we run into disobedience against the civil power. To avoid both these rocks, it is necessary to know the divine laws. Now because the knowledge of the laws depends on the knowledge of the kingdom, we must in what follows speak somewhat concerning the kingdom of God.
Over whom God is said to reign:
2. The Lord is king, the earth may be glad thereof; saith the psalmist, (Psalm xcvii. 1). And again the same psalmist, (Psalm xcix. 1): The Lord is king, be the people never so impatient; he sitteth between the cherubims, be the earth never so unquiet; to wit, whether men will or not, God is the king over all the earth; nor is he moved from his throne, if there be any who deny either his existence or his providence. Now although God govern all men so by his power, that none can do anything which he would not have done: yet this, to speak properly and accurately, is not to reign. For he is said to reign, who rules not by acting, but speaking, that is to say, by precepts and threatenings. And therefore we count not inanimate nor irrational bodies for subjects in the kingdom of God, although they be subordinate to the divine power; because they understand not the commands and threats of God: nor yet the atheists, because they believe not that there is a God; nor yet those who believing there is a God, do not yet believe that he rules these inferior things: for even these, although they be governed by the power of God, yet do they not acknowledge any of his commands, nor stand in awe of his threats. Those only therefore are supposed to belong to God’s kingdom, who acknowledge him to be the governor of all things, and that he hath given his commands to men, and appointed punishments for the transgressors. The rest we must not call subjects, but enemies of God.
The word of God threefold; reason, revelation, prophesy.
3. But none are said to govern by commands, but they who openly declare them to those who are governed by them. For the commands of the rulers, are the laws of the ruled; but laws they are not, if not perspicuously published, insomuch as all excuse of ignorance may be taken away. Men indeed publish their laws by word or voice; neither can they make their will universally known any other way. But God’s laws are declared after a threefold manner: first, by the tacit dictates of right reason; next, by immediate revelation, which is supposed to be done either by a supernatural voice, or by a vision or dream, or divine inspiration; thirdly, by the voice of one man, whom God recommends to the rest, as worthy of belief, by the working of true miracles. Now he whose voice God thus makes use of to signify his will unto others, is called a prophet. These three manners may be termed the threefold word of God, to wit, the rational word, the sensible word, and the word of prophecy. To which answer the three manners whereby we are said to hear God; right reasoning, sense, and faith. God’s sensible word hath come but to few; neither hath God spoken to men by revelation, except particularly to some, and to diverse diversely; neither have any laws of his kingdom been published on this manner unto any people.
The kingdom of God two-fold: natural, and prophetic.
4. And according to the difference which is between the rational word and the word of prophecy, we attribute a two-fold kingdom unto God: natural, in which he reigns by the dictates of right reason; and which is universal over all who acknowledge the divine power, by reason of that rational nature which is common to all: and prophetical, in which he rules also by the word of prophecy; which is peculiar, because he hath not given positive laws to all men, but to his peculiar people and some certain men elected by him.