The History of the Reformation of the Church of Scotland

My purpose is not to labour greatly to prove, That your whole study ought to be, To promote the glory of God; Neither yet will I study to allege all reasons that justly may be brought to prove, That ye are not exalted to reign above your brethren as men without care and solicitude; for these be principles so grafted in Nature, that very Ethnics have confessed the same: For seeing that God only hath placed you in his Chair, hath appointed you to be his Lieutenants,¹ and by his own Seal hath marked you to be Magistrates, and to rule above your brethren, to whom Nature nevertheless hath made you like in all points (for in conception, birth, life and death ye differ nothing from the common sort of men, but God only as said is, hath promoted you, and of his special favour hath given you this Prerogative, to be called Gods) How horrible ingratitude were it then, that you should be found unfaithful to him, that hath thus honoured you? And further, What a monster were it that you should be proved unmerciful to them, above whom ye are appointed to reign, as fathers above their children? Because, I say, that the very Ethnics have granted, That the chief and first care of Princes, and of such as be appointed to rule above others, ought to be, To promote the glory and honour of their Gods, and to maintain that Religion which they supposed to have been true; And that their second care was, To maintain and defend the subjects committed to their charge in all equity and justice: I will not labour to show unto you what ought to be your study in maintaining Gods true honour, left that in so doing I should seem to make you less careful to Gods true Religion, then were the Ethnics over their Idolatry.

My purpose is not to labour greatly to prove, That your whole studie ought to be, To promote the glory of God; Neither yet will I studie to alleadge all reasons that justly may be brought to prove, That ye are not exalted to raign above your brethren as men without care and solicitude; for these be principles so grafted in Nature, that very Ethnicks have confessed the same: For seeing that God onely hath placed you in his Chayr, hath appointed you to be his Lieutenants,¹ and by his own Seal hath marked you to be Magistrates, and to rule above your brethren, to whom Nature neverthelesse hath made you like in all points (for in conception, birth, life and death ye differ nothing from the common sort of men, but God onely as said is, hath promoted you, and of his speciall favour hath given you this Prerogative, to be called Gods) How horrible ingratitude were it then, that you should be found unfaithfull to him, that hath thus honoured you? And further, What a monster were it that you should be proved unmercifull to them, above whom ye are appointed to raigne, as fathers above their children? Because, I say, that the very Ethnicks have granted, That the chief and first care of Princes, and of such as be appointed to rule above others, ought to be, To promote the glory and honour of their Gods, and to maintain that Religion which they supposed to have been true; And that their second care was, To maintain and defend the subjects committed to their charge in all equity and justice: I will not labour to shew unto you what ought to be your studie in maintaining Gods true honour, left that in so doing I should seem to make you lesse carefull to Gods true Religion, then were the Ethnicks over their Idolatry.