distinction of those words, "Under Christ,
and for Christ." I said the Christian magistrate is under Christ, and for
Christ, that is, he is serviceable to Christ, but he is not under Christ
nor for Christ as Christ's vicegerent, _vice Christi_, in Christ's stead,
as Christ is Mediator. The reverend brother saith, He foresaw that this
would be said (the greater fault it was to make his argument so unclear
and undistinct), but he rejecteth the distinction as being _distinctio
sine differentia_. "If a magistrate (saith he) be thus far a servant of
Christ, as Mediator, that he is to do his work, to take part with him, to
be for his glory, then he doth it _vice Christi_." He adds the simile of a
servant. Hence it follows, by the reverend brother's principles, that the
king's cook, because he doth work and service for the king, therefore he
doth it _vice regis_, and as the king's vicegerent. Likewise, that a
servant who obeyeth his master's wife, and executeth her commands, because
it is his master's will, and for his master's honour, doth therefore obey
his master's wife _vice domini_, as his master's vicegerent; and, by
consequence, that the duty of obedience to the wife doth originally belong
to the husband; for the capacity of a vicegerent, which he hath by his
vicegerentship, is primarily the capacity of him whose vicegerent he is.
These, and the like absurd consequences, will unavoidably follow upon the
reverend brother's argumentation, that he who doth Christ service doth it
_vice Christi_, as Christ's vicegerent; and that to be a man's vicegerent,
and to do a man's work or service, which I made two different things, are
all one. But, further, observe his tergiversation. I had, p. 13, proved my
distinction out of these words of his own: "The Commissioner saith,
Magistracy is not derived from Christ. I say, magistracy is given to
Christ to be serviceable in his kingdom; so that, though the
Commissioner's assertion be sound (which in due place will be discussed),
yet it infringeth nothing that I said." I asked, therefore, _qua fide_ he
could confound in his argument brought against me those two things which
himself had so carefully distinguished. There is no reply to this in _Male
Dicis_. When the brother thought it for his advantage, he denied that the
magistrate's being serviceable to Christ doth enter the derivation of his
power by a commission of vicegerentship from Christ (for that was the
derivation spoken of), and yi