which at first may appear a little extraordinary : Yea, all of you, faith he, be fubject one to another. For it fhould feem, that two perfons cannot pro perly be faid to be fubject to each other, and that fubjection is only due from inferiors to thofe above them: yet St. Paul hath feveral paffages to the fame purpose. For he exhorts the Romans, in honour to prefer one another*; and the Philippians, that in lowlinefs of mind they should let each efteem other better than themselves t; and the Ephefians, that they fhould fubmit themselves one to another in the fear of the Lord t. Here we find thefe two great apoftles recommending to all Chriftians this duty of mutual fubjection. For we may obferve by St. Peter, that having mentioned the feveral relations which men bear to each other, as governor and fubject, master and fervant, and the reft which I have already repeated, he makes no exception; but fums up the whole with commanding all to be fubje&t one to ano From whence we may conclude, that this fubjection due from all men to all men, is fomething more than the compliment of courfe, when our betters are pleafed to tell us, they are our humble fervants, but understand us to be their flaves. I know very well, that fome of thofe who explain this text, apply it to humility, to the duties of charity, to private exhortations, and to bearing with each other's infirmities; and it is probable the apoftle may have had a regard to all these. But, however, many learned men agree, that there is fomething more underftood; and fo the words in their plain natural meaning muft import; as you will obferve yourselves, if you read them with the beginning of the verfe, which is thus: likewife ye younger, fubmit your felves unto the elder: yea, all of you, be fubject one to another. So that, upon the whole, there must be fome kind of fubjection due ·Rom. xii. 10, + Philip. ii. 3. Eph, v. 21.. from from every man to every man, which cannot be made void by any power, pre-eminence, or authority whatfoever. Now, what fort of fubjection this is, and how it ought to be paid, fhall be the fubject of my prefent difcourfe. As God hath contrived all the works of nature to be useful, and in fome manner a fupport to each other, by which the whole frame of the world under his providence is preferved and kept up; fo, among mankind, our particular ftations are appointed to each of us by God almighty, wherein we are obliged to act as far as our power reacheth, towards the good of the whole community. And he who doth not perform that part affigned him, towards advancing the benefit of the whole, in proportion to his opportunities and abilities, is not only an ufelefs, but a very mifchievous member of the public; because he takes his fhare of the profit, and yet leaves his fhare of the burden to be borne by others, which is the true principal caufe of most miferies and misfortunes in life. For a wife man who does not affift with his counfels, a great man with his protection, a rich man with his bounty and charity, and a poor man with his labour, are perfect nuifances in a commonwealth. Neither is any condition of life more honourable in the fight of God than another; otherwise he would be a refpecter of perfons, which he affures us he is not: for he hath propofed the fame falvation to all men, and hath only placed them in different ways or ftations to work it out. Princes are born with no more advantages of ftrength or wifdom than other men; and, by an unhappy education, are ufually more defective in both, than thousands of their fubjects. They depend for every neceffary of life upon the meaneft of their people: befides, obedi ence and fubjection were never injoined by God to humour the paffions, lufts, and vanities of those who demand them from us; but we are command ed you. ed to obey our governors, becaufe difobedience would breed feditions in the ftate. Thus fervants are directed to obey their mafters, children their parents, and wives their hufbands; not from any refpect of perfons in God, but because otherwife there would be nothing but confufion in private families. This matter will be clearly explained, by confidering the comparifon which St. Paul makes between the church of Chrift and the body of man: for the fame resemblance will hold, not only to families and kingdoms, but to the whole corporation of mankind. "The eye," faith he, " cannot fay "unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor a"gain the head to the feet, I have no need of "Nay, much more, thofe members of the body "which feem to be more feeble, are neceffary. "And whether one member fuffer, all the mem. "bers fuffer with it; or one member be honour"ed, all the members rejoice with it *." The cafe is directly the fame among mankind. The prince cannot fay to the merchant, I have no need of thee; nor the merchant to the labourer, I have no need of thee. Nay, much more, thofe members which feem to be more feeble, are neceffary. For the poor are generally more neceffary members of the commonwealth than the rich which clearly fhews, that God never intended fuch poffeffions for the fake and fervice of thofe to whom he lends them; but because he hath affigned every man his particular station to be useful. in life, and this for the reafon given by the apoftle, that there may be no fchifm in the body. From hence may partly be gathered the nature of that fubjection which we all owe to one another. God almighty hath been pleafed to put us into an imperfect state, where we have perpetual occafion of each other's affiftance. There is none fo low, as 1 Cor. xii. 21. 22. 26. not to be in a capacity of affifting the higheft; nor fo high, as not to want the affiftance of the loweft. It plainly appears from what hath been faid, that no one human creature is more worthy than another in the fight of God, farther than according to the goodness or holiness of their lives; and that power, wealth, and the like outward advantages, are fo far from being the marks of God's approving or preferring those on whom they are beftowed, that, on the contrary, he is pleafed to fuffer them to be almost ingroffed by thofe who have leaft title to his favour. Now, according to this equality wherein God hath placed all mankind with relation to himfelf, you will obferve, that, in all the relations between man and man, there is a mutual depend ence, whereby the one cannot fubfift without the other. Thus, no man can be a prince without fubjects, nor a master without fervants, nor a father without children. And this both explains and confirms the doctrine of the text: for where there is a mutual dependence, there must be a mutual duty, and confequently a mutual fubjection. For inftance, the fubject must obey his prince, becaufe God commands it, human laws require it, and the fafety of the public makes it neceffary. For the fame reafons we must obey all that are in authority, and fubmit ourfelves not only to the good and gentle, but alfo to the froward, whether they rule according to our liking or no. On the other fide, in thofe countries that pretend to free. dom, princes are subject to thofe laws which their people have chofen; they are bound to protect their fubjects in liberty, property, and religion; to receive their petitions, and redrefs their grievances : fo that the best prince is, in the opinion of wise men, only the greateft fervant of the nation; not only a fervant to the public in general, but in fome fort to every man in it. In the like manner, a fer vant owes obedience, and diligence, and faithfulnefs, to his mafter; from whom, at the fame time, he hath a juft demand for protection, and maintenance, and gentle treatment. Nay, even the poor beggar hath a juft demand of an alms from the rich man; who is guilty of fraud, injustice, and oppreffion, if he does not afford relief according to his abilities. But this fubjection we all owe one another, is no where more neceffary, than in the common converfations of life; for without it there could be no fociety among men. If the learned would not fometimes fubmit to the ignorant, the wife to the fimple, the gentle to the froward, the old to the weakneffes of the young, there would be nothing but everlasting variance in the world. This our Saviour himfelf confirmed by his own example: for he appeared in the form of a fervant, and wafhed his difciples feet, adding those memorable words, "Ye call me Lord and Mafter: and ye fay well; for fo I am. If I then, your Lord "and Mafter, wafh your feet, how much more "ought ye to wash one another's feet?" Under which expreffion of washing the feet, is included all that fubjection, affiftance, love, and duty, which every good Chriftian ought to pay his brother, in whatever station God hath placed him. For the greatest prince and the meaneft flave are not by infinite degrees fo diftant, as our Saviour and thofe difciples whofe feet he vouchfafed to wash. And although this doctrine of fubjecting ourfelves to one another, may feem to grate upon the pride and vanity of mankind, and may therefore be hard to be digefted by those who value themfelves upon their greatnefs or their wealth; yet it is really no more than what moft men practise upon other occafions. For if our neighbour, who is our inferior, comes to fee us, we rife to receive him, we place him above us, and refpect him as if he |