may be rendered more easy, or more difficult, by the personal character of him who exacts it: but it is due, not to the man, but to the office ; and therefore it must be paid, even though the man who executes the office may be far from deserving the homage he requires. If only we recollect that Nero was the governor of the Roman empire at the time that the Apostle wrote his epistle to the Church at Rome; and that towards him, notwithstanding his great cruelty and his bitter persecu- tion of all who bore the Christian name, the Apostle required ad to shew the utmost reverence and submission; we shall see that there is no room for any person to withhold allegiance from the reigning monarch on account of any thing that there may be offensive in his personal character. The words of the Apostle are most decisive on this point : " Let every soul be subject to the higher powers; for there is no power, but of God: the powers that be, are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power," even though it be exercised by a very Nero, " resisteth the ordinance of God : and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation0." Nor does this observation extend to the supreme governor alone ; but to all, according to the measure of authority that is vested in them : and it is not only from fear of their displeasure that we are to render them this homage, but "for conscience' saked," or, as my text expresses it, " for the Lord's sake."]
How " the Lord" is interested in our performance of this duty, will appear, whilst we consider,
II. The grounds and reasons of it —
We are bound to yield submission to civil govern- ment because of,
1. Its being altogether of God's appointment —
[The institution of government is from him, as has already been shewn. Moreover, the power that is exercised by earthly governors is God's authority delegated to men, who are con- stituted his vicegerents upon earth. It is not man therefore, but God, whom we are called to obey : it is God, I say, in the person of the civil magistrate*. We are to " submit" our- selves to man ; " for so is the will of God .•" and, in rendering to man the service that is due, we are to consider ourselves, not as the servants of men, but " as the servants of God."
Wliat need we further than this, to evince the indispensable necessity of submitting to civil government, and of obeying implicitly the laws which are enacted by the constituted
c Itom. xiii. 1,2. d Rom. xiii. 5.
e Numb. xvi. 11 1 Sam. viii. 7. with Rom. xiii. 4.