A Looking Glass for Princes and Peoples Delivered, Book 1 · Part 3
The third part: Of the royall Gift, And first of Iustice. Thy Righteousnesse and Iudgements.
THe third thing in this Text is the Blessing that hee cra…es to Solomon, and that in three thinges: The Gift, the worke of the Gift, and the Fruite of that worke. The gift is Righteousnesse and Iudgement wherein wee shall consider the Nature, the Necessitie, and the Extent of it. I will not trouble you with Schoole distinctions of these words, because the excesse of Affection is impatient of Subtiltie. ForQuoniam Gaudium sem per properat. &c Cyp. Ep. 33. Ioy ever hasteneth, neither can Gladnesse suffer delayes. And I must say with one, that your Affection hath preveened my words, so that I cannot satisfie you: yet with another I promise to speake briefely least in such a solemnitie the length of Praevenit omnia verba mea vester affectus Aug. Psal. 147.speach burden your Devotion. In a word heere is meaned the gift of Kingly governement in the Spirit of righteousnes & prudence. So David exponeth it in his prayer to God for Solomon. O Lord, giuegive Solomon a perfect heart. And in hisDicemus bre… …iter. Bern. de resurrect. serm. 2. Blessing of him: The Lord giuegive thee Wisedome & Vnderstanding. And Solomon cleareth it by his desire, when God …ade him chuse what he would, he chused not Riches orSpiritu rectitudinis. &c. Calv. in hunc locum. honour, but a wise heart, even the heart of a good King: GiueGive thy Servant an vnderstanding heart to iudge thy people, that I may discerne betwixt good and bad: and this is iustice, an habite of the minde keeped for the good of the1 Chro 29. 19. ibid. 22 12. & 28. 9. common, giving everie man his due.
It looketh to Ius or Right as the obiect; to Iustice the1 The nature of Iustice. Habite or Vertue: and to iudgement the sentence or fact flowing from both, & containeth three things. The first is a discerning knowledge to vnderstand exactly, and judge betweene right & wrong, together with a conscience to temper the rigour of right with equity in some cōsiderable cases: This is as the Eye of the Iudge: The second is puritie of the Will and Affections flowing from that knowledge, that they louelove the knowne Right, though it were in cause of their enemie, and hate the knowne wrong, though in the cause of their Friends: This keepeth the Heart free from the base affections of feare or hope. The third is Courage cled with Authoritie, both to pronounce and execute according to that knowledge. A private man may hauehave exact knowledge of causes in his minde: with equitie and puritie in his affections: and yet wanting authoritie, his sentence hath no weight, nor his worke any efficacie. But God hath joyned all these three in this Kinglie gift, as their place is aboue privacie, so are their eyes to see, and their heartes aboue these base and perverting Passions, and they are cled with supreme authoritie, to giuegive life and power to their words: They hauehave both a Mouth to pronounce, and an Hand to doe,Eccles. 8. 4. for where the word of the King is, there is power.
Iethros counsell to Moses hath all these: Chuse (said he)Exod. 18. men of courage, and that because their administration will encounter many rubs of miscontent humours, which they cannot through, without Courage. Next, men that feare God, because that is a Bridle to keepe them from ill, and a Cordiall for faintnesse. Thirdlie, men that louelove the Truth, that is, hauehave Veritie in their minde, Veraoitie in their word, and Sinceritie in their actions, that Heart, Tongue and Hand goe all one way. And lastlie, men that are not greedie, because it is impossible for an avaricious man, either to bee iust in private Bargans or righteous in Iudgement.
God hath stablished that Soveraigne power amongst2. Necessitie of iustice. men for three speciall reasons. The first is the vniust and 1. It is the bridle of mans corruption.selfish disposition of man: Wee are all in societies, & ought to seeke the good of the common and of our Neighbours, but selfe-louelove turneth eueryevery man into himselfe: It killeth in vsus the louelove of the common and of our Neighbour, and suckes in our owne particular good with the hurt of them both: God hath written this law in our hearts, and in his word, Doe to other as thou would be done to, and hathLuk. 6. given vsus a Conscience to checke vsus for the breach of that law: But the violence of selfe-louelove caries vsus away against both Law and Conscience: Therefore there must be without vsus an Iustice clad with a coactiue power, to represse that corruption that Conscience cannot mend: This correcting Iustice God hath primelie seated in Princes. So there is a necessitie of a living Law, armed with authoritie, to vrge the Observation of the written Law: This is Gods arrest on mans corruption: For the power of Kings, and the force of the Sword and the instruments of the Burrio, & the Armes of Souldiers & all the Discipline of Rulers, are not appointed for nought: For when menNec sane frustra institutae sunt potestates. Aug Epist. 54 feare these thinges, both the wicked are dauntoned, and the Godlie liue more peaceablie among the wicked. Innocen cie is safe among the vnrighteous, that while their desires are bridled by the feare of punishment, their will may bee healed by calling vponupon God.
The second Reason is from our Lotte: God hath given2. It is the Guarde of our Lotte. everie man his Lotte, and fenced everie part of it from the Iniurie of his Neighbour with commands: Hee hath fenced our Honour with the fift Command, Thou shalt honour thy Father and Mother: Our life with the fixt, Thou Exod. 20.shalt not kill: Our Chastitie with the sevent, Thou shalt not commit adulterie: And our Goods by the eight, Thou shalt not steale, &c. These Commands are like Marches in a field divyded to a Commonalitie, whereof everie one hath his portion designed vntounto him: But man, who can never bee content with Gods appointment, is given to passe these Marches, and incroacheth vponupon his Neighbour, to hurt him in his goods, name, &c. Therefore God hath set Princes as Wardens of these Marches, to see that they bee keeped as his Providence hath fixed them; and everie mans Lotte secured by the ministration of iustice, which is nothing else, but a perambulation vponupon the Lottes and Marches of people. aRemotá iustitià quid sunt regna nis si magna la▪ trocinia. Aug. …ivit. lib. 4. cap. 4.What are Kingdomes without Iustice, but great robberies. bPer iura Regum possidentur possessiones Tract. 6. in Ioh. Noli dicere quid nihi & Regi?And by the iust governement of Kings wee possesse and brooke peaceablie our possession: This is Gods Guarde on everie mans Lotte.
The third Reason is for settling inumerable and 3 Decyding questions.endlesse questions, for everie calling hath the owne gift for it's worke, and righteousnesse is the gift and accomplishment of Kings, and God hath given them power as an Usher of that righteousnesse to make way for it through the bodie of their Kingdomes. Right and Equitie areSummum in Regibus bonum, &c. Greg. lib. 7. Epist. 120▪ a straight Line, and beeing rightlie applyed, make a cleare difference in mens causes, betweene Contentment and miscontentment, Peace and oppression, &c. But mans affaires furnish many questions to his contentious humour, and the least circumstance maketh a new case, and every case altereth the state of the Question. It is impossible to write such Lawes as can either meete with all cases, or decide all questions: That same question the day may bee diverse the morne, by the smallest change of place, Person or Time: For this cause, God hath setteRex est lex vi… va, & Lex est Rex iustissimus. Philo. de vita Mosis. lib. 2. Kings as living Lawes, in respect of the habite of Iustice in them; and speaking Lawes to expresse that Iustice by word & Edicts: And doing Lawes, to apply the generalitie of the Law to everie particular by execution. It was said of olde, That the Common-wealth could not bee governed without wrongs, so natiue to man is iniquitie: AndRempub. sine iniuria regi non posse. Au. Civ. 2 ca. 21. therefore the best Remeed is Iustice, without which (said an other Proverbe) Iupiter himselfe can not reigne.
Iudgement is justlie put in the hand of Princes because their place setteth them aboue outward things thatPrinces fittest for to Iudge. may corrupt, or passions within that may bee corrupted: They are aboue honour, riches, &c. And so neede not be ambitious of honour nor greedie of goods: And within foure things especiallie pervert Iudgement, feare of Hurt, hope of Gaine, hatred of Boes, louelove of Friends. Where these rule, the Ballance is deceitfull, & persons & causes are confounded together. They see the right of their Foe as a wrong, and the wrong of their Friende as a right▪ What ever Iudge puttethon the person of a …riend or F…e in Iudgement, hee layes aside both the person and Conscience of a Qui perso nam amici induit exuit personā & conscienti … iudicis▪ Aug.Iudge: But righteousnesse seated in the heart of Princes, purgeth them of these base affections within, and secureth them from these temptations without. There is no temper nor disposition of it selfe more capable of Equity, or more able to pronounce & execute Iudgement a…ight.