An Election Sermon

p. 1An Election SERMON.

And it shall be when he sitteth upon the Throne of his Kingdom, he shall write him a Copy of this Law in a Book, out of that which is before the Priests, the Levites.

And it shall be with him, and be shall Read therein all the Days of his Life: that he may Learn to Fear the Lord his God, to keep all the Words of this Law, and all these Statutes, to do them.

WHEN God chose Israel to be His peculiar People before all the Nations of the Earth, He gave them Laws, Statutes, & Ordinances of several sorts : He gave them not only the Moral Law written on the Tables of Stone, at Mount Sinai; which was a Rule to direct them in the performance of those Duties which the Light of Nature had more imperfectly inculcated upon them : but He gave them also the Ceremonial Law, consisting in sundry Rites and Ceremonies, to be used in their Religious Worship; most of p. 2which had a Typical reference unto the Messiah to come, & the Righteousness that He was to bring in, and so ceased with the coming of the Messiah. And moreover, besides these, God gave them also their Judicial or CommonWealth Law, which consisted in sundry Statutes, and Political Orders; directing how the Civil Affairs of their Common Wealth, as they were a Civil State, should be managed. Our Text and Context is a Branch of their Civil Law, and is God's Statute to Israel, declaring how their King, their Chief Civil Ruler, should bear & behave himself in that high & dignify'd Station, and how he should Qualify himself for that Post in the Government of God's People, so as to attain the right Ends of Civil Government, and be God's Minister, for good to His People.

In the words of the Text we may observe two things more generally;

(1.) God declares what the Chief Civil Ruler of His People shall do, or what he ought to do.

(2) He renders a Reason why he shall thus do.

1. As to what God requires the King the Chief Civil Magistrate to do; its in these words, When he sitteth on the Throne of his Kingdom, he shall write him a Copy of this Law in a Book, out of that which is before the Priests, the p. 3Levites; And it shall be with him, and he shall Read therein all the Days of his Life. And here by a parity of Reason, this Command seems to be binding to all Inferiour Magistrates, tho' none but the Chief is expressed; for their Office is of the same kind, tho' their Power may be less in degree: And then the reason rendred to Enforce the Command, shews it to be as needful for all Inferiour Civil Rulers, to comply with this Command, as the Chief, for they have all need to fear the Lord their God, and to keep all His Statutes, to do them; and particularly that of Executing Judgment among His People, so as to be God's Minister for good to them; the great End of the Office of Civil Rulers, whether of higher or lower Degree. And in this Command of God, respecting Civil Rulers, there are two Branches.

p. 3(1.) That the King, the Chief Ruler should Write out a Copy of this Law in a Book, out of that which is before the Priests, the Levites. Here we may do well to observe, that this Original Law, out of which the Ruler was to take a Copy, was not only the Moral & Ceremonial Law, but also the Civil or Judicial Law, which was to be the Rule of his Government; and according to which he was to Execute Justice & Judgment in Israel. This is plain, if we consider that the Civil Law, p. 4as well as the Ceremonial, was laid up before the Priests, in the sides of the Ark of the Covenant, there to be kept from one Geneneration to another; as its written, Deut. 31.24, 25, 26. And it came to pass when Moses had made an end of writing all the Words of this Law in a Book, until they were finished; that Moses Commanded the Levites that bear the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord, saying, Take this Book of the Law, and put it in the sides of the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord your God, that it may be there for a Witness against thee. And this was more than the Moral Law, for that was reposited in the Ark, and not in the sides; as may be seen at large, in Deut. 10.2, & 5.

(2.) The second Branch of the Command unto the Civil Ruler is, That he should keep this Copy he had taken by him, and should Read therein all the Days of his Life. The meaning seems to be, that he should often Read and Study this Law; and thereby get the Letter of this Law well fixed in his Memory, and his Understanding well inlightned as to the meaning and true intent of the Law; (both which frequent Reading and Study hath a tendency to promote.)

2. More generally; In the Words we may take notice of the Reason rendred, to Enforce this Command, and that is this; That he may learn to Fear the Lord his God, and to p. 5keep all the Words of this Law, and all these Statutes, to do them. The general Nature of the Reason seems to be this; That he might by his own Practise, according to the Moral and Ceremonial Law, and by exercising his Power over the People, according to the Limitation of the Civil Law, shew himself to be one that fears God, and will be God's Minister for good to His People; (as Rom. 13.4.) One that will take care that the Laws of God, and the good and wholesome Laws of the Common Wealth are kept: Which is the great End of the Office of all Civil Rulers, whether Supreme or Subordinate; for they are all to be God's Ministers for good, such as bear not the Sword in vain, Revengers to Execute Wrath on them that do Evil.