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SUSSEX SMUGGLERS. 219 |
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yourselves", says he, "to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether it be to the king as supreme, or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by Him for the punishment of evil doers, and for the praise of them that do well".
Now these scriptures, as they instruct us in our behaviour towards the persons of magistrates, so do they teach us likewise the great expediency and usefulness of magistracy itself, and shew us the grounds and reasons of its institution. They inform us that magistrates were appointed to be the guardians of the public quiet, and had the sword of justice put into their hands for this very purpose, " to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil". And it is a melancholy truth, which I can only publish and lament, that never was the vigilance and courage of the civil magistrate more necessary than in these evil days into which we are fallen; when to say nothing of the private vices that abound amongst us, an almost general licentiousness is practised throughout the kingdom, against both the common reason and the common interest of mankind, and in defiance of all authority, whether sacred or civil.
This is the unavoidable consequence of that contempt of religion which is so prevalent in this degenerate age. Men have been so accustoming themselves to look with scorn upon everything relating to it, that scarce any appearance of the reverence due to the Supreme Being is preserved amongst us. They deride the very notion of a wise and good God, that made and governs all things, and in consequence treat the duty of attending upon His worship as at best but a matter of great indifference whether it be observed or not. How much the influence and example of some of high rank and condition in the world have contributed to the |
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