office, but to the well-being
and usefulness thereof." How easy is it here to turn their own artillery
against themselves, and split their argument with a wedge of its own
timber? For if, as is granted, scriptural qualifications are essential
to the usefulness of the magistrate's office, they must also be
necessary to the being thereof, otherwise it is in itself quite useless.
And if in itself useless, with respect to the great ends thereof,
without the due measure of scriptural qualifications, it cannot then be
the ordinance of God, in regard it must not be supposed, that a God of
infinite wisdom and goodness, who does nothing in vain, has instituted
an ordinance for the good of his people, in subserviency to his glory,
which yet, in itself (as to its being and essence), is useless, and of
no profit nor advantage to them. And as for their comparison of the
magistrate's office to other common and ordinary places and relations
among men, the parallel will not hold, no not for illustration, far less
for a proof of their doctrine. Nor is there any comparison, unless they
can prove, that God in his word has as plainly and positively required
men to be so and so qualified, before it is lawful for them to enter
into, or for others to put them in such places and relations, as he has
done, with regard to magistracy. This is indeed the scope and end of
their whole scheme, to derogate from, degrade and lessen the dignity of
this great ordinance of magistracy, allowing it no more than what is
common to men in general, in other inferior states and ordinary business
of life, alleging, "That these qualifications (which they grant God has
prescribed in his word) are only advantageous to them that have them;"
and that at the hazard of evidently opposing and contradicting the
intention of the Spirit of God, in the above texts of scripture, which
imply a specialty, and particular appropriation to kings and rulers in
their office.

Again, this principle either, as above said, denies magistracy to be
God's ordinance instituted in his word; or then says, that he hath
instituted ordinances in his revealed will, without prescribing any
qualifications as essential to their being, but entirely left the
constitution of them to the will of man. But how absurd is this, and
derogatory to the glory of God, in all his perfections, who is a God of
order, once to imagine, that he hath set any of his ordinances, either
as to matter or manner, upon the