Dave Chanski
Chapter 24: Of the Civil Magistrate
Paragraph 1
God, the supreme Lord and King of all the world, hath ordained civil magistrates to be under him, over the people, for his own glory and the public good; and to this end hath armed them with the power of the sword, for defence and encouragement of them that do good, and for the punishment of evil doers.
Civil Rulers Ordained by God
The first paragraph asserts that civil rulers have been ordained by God. The statement echoes Paul’s words in Romans 13:1, “There is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God.” The confession indicates that God has the authority to ordain rulers in the earth, because He is Himself the absolute and undisputed ruler over all creation. He is “the supreme Lord and King of all the world.” Therefore, the “power structure” of the universe has God at the top; under Him are civil rulers, or magistrates; these magistrates—whether kings, presidents, governors, etc.—are “over the people.” The idea that the power of governors is given to them through the people over whom they rule is not taught by Scripture, but is rather based on a political philosophy.
Purpose of Civil Government
The confession also explains the purpose of civil government. In general, government exists to glorify God and to benefit mankind. More specifically, governments benefit the people under them by providing for their defense and by maintaining civil order. They provide for defense by means of a military—army, navy, air force, etc. They maintain civil order by encouraging and commending those who do good, and by discouraging, restraining, and punishing those who do evil. Again, the confession echoes Romans 13:
For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil (verses 3-4).
Civil Rulers Given the Power of the Sword
In order to enable governments to fulfill these purposes, God “has armed them with the power of the sword.” That is, civil rulers have the right to threaten and inflict physical harm in carrying out their God-given responsibilities. When Paul said that the ruler “does not bear the sword in vain” (Romans 13:4), he meant that the use of physical force in defending and governing the nation is a legitimate tool made available to him by God Himself. As Jesus said to Pilate, when Pilate threatened that he had power to take Jesus’ life by crucifixion, “You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you from above” (John 19:10-11). Jesus did not challenge Pilate’s authority to take His life; He even affirmed that such authority was given to him by God in heaven.
The Bible’s teaching about civil government, as it is reflected in the confession, keeps us from several errors, errors that are sometimes even held by well-meaning Christians. First, government is not in itself evil. In fact, it is not even a “necessary evil.” It is a good institution. Certainly it is necessary because of sin and because we are in an evil, fallen world. But the institution itself is good. Paul says of the ruler that “he is God’s minister to you for good” (Romans 13:4).
Second, even those civil rulers that are themselves evil men or women are ordained by God. Scripture does not say that only the good, or righteous rulers are ordained by Him, but that all rulers are. Paul says that “the powers that exist are appointed by God” (Romans 13:1). The monstrous persecutor of the church, Nero, was Roman emperor when Paul penned his epistle to Rome. The Lord made a similar point through the prophet Jeremiah regarding the sacrilegious Nebuchadnezzar:
I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are on the ground, by My great power and by My outstretched arm, and have given it to whom it seemed proper to Me. And now I have given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, My servant; and the beasts of the field I have also given him to serve him (Jeremiah 27:5-6).
Third, the Bible does not teach that “democracy” is the best or most God-honoring form of government. We may acknowledge that God has greatly blessed democratic forms of government and has even used them for good. But when Paul said that “the authorities that exist are appointed by God,” his words applied to monarchies or aristocracies as much as to authorities elected by the people.
A fourth error that Scripture keeps us from is the notion that God has given the church the power of the sword. Paul said that “he—that is, the governing authority—does not bear the sword in vain” (Romans 13:4). Christ has given the church other, non-carnal weapons to advance His kingdom (2 Corinthians 10:4). This is in contrast to the views of the Roman Catholic church of the Middle Ages, militant Islam, or the Eastern Orthodox church, which, in many places, enlists the civil authorities to persecute Protestants.
Paragraph 2
It is lawful for Christians to accept and execute the office of a magistrate when called there unto; in the management whereof, as they ought especially to maintain justice and peace, according to the wholesome laws of each kingdom and commonwealth, so for that end they may lawfully now, under the New Testament wage war upon just and necessary occasions.
Christians Permitted to Serve in Civil Government
The first paragraph asserted that civil government is instituted by God and is therefore not only lawful but good. Paragraph two states that it is lawful for Christians to serve in government and even to take up arms in the government’s service. The confession makes the important point that just because government is a good institution, it does not obligate Christians to seek service in it. On the other hand, Christians are certainly permitted to take positions in government. As the confession says, “It is lawful for Christians to accept and execute the office of a magistrate when called thereunto.”
Conduct of Christians Serving in Civil Government
Furthermore, the confession addresses the conduct of Christians who serve in civil government. First, they should “especially maintain justice and peace.” That is, they should consciously labor to see that the government fulfills its God-given role as stated by Paul in Romans 13. The confession cites as Scripture proof 2 Samuel 23:3: “The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spoke to me: ‘He who rules over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God.’” Also Psalm 82:3-4: “Defend the poor and fatherless; do justice to the afflicted and needy. Deliver the poor and needy; free them from the hand of the wicked.”
We may add that the Christian serving in government should do so with the same attitude as the servant serving his earthly master. As Paul wrote in Ephesians 6:5-8:
Bondservants, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in sincerity of heart, as to Christ; not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, with goodwill doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free.
The paragraph says that the Christian should serve “according to the wholesome laws of each kingdom and commonwealth.” In other words, he should not take advantage of a corrupt system or corrupt laws for his own personal benefit or ease, but he should strive to be a light shining in a dark place (Matthew 5:16). He should be like Daniel, who served a corrupt king in a corrupt government, yet with honor and integrity. He should be like Obadiah, who served even wicked King Ahab in godly fear (1 Kings 18:3). There have been Christians throughout the centuries who have concluded that Christians cannot serve in government, because government is at best a necessary evil. The confession cuts a straight path for us, however. It reminds us that government is God’s institution, and therefore good. It also maintains that a Christian, like Daniel in the Old Testament, can worthily serve both the Lord and his fellow men, even in a government system that is laced with evil.
War Lawful for Christians
Finally, this paragraph rejects pacifism. Some Christians hold that all war is always evil. There is a sense in which this is true. If there were no sin, there would be no war. And every military conflict has its root in specific sinful ideas, attitudes, or actions. At some level, sin is always the cause of war. Furthermore, war is always a dreadful and horrendous tragedy from a human standpoint. Even a just war is regrettable and sad, and leaves in its wake a flood of sorrow, anguish, and pain. Christians should always detest war, especially since their calling is ultimately to be peacemakers (Matthew 5:9; Romans 12:18).
Nevertheless, the confession rightly affirms that it may be lawful for even Christians to engage in war. War will be distasteful to the Christian, and it will have an unwelcome effect on him to some degree (see 1 Chronicles 22:7-8). But war may be just and necessary. (Note that the confession does not answer the question, When is a war just or necessary?) And the waging of war is sometimes the duty of a nation, whose leaders “do not bear the sword in vain.” When this is the case, and a Christian is called to serve in such a war, he may do so with a clear conscience and to the glory of God, as well as for the good of his nation. It is noteworthy that John the Baptist rebuked the soldiers who came to him for the sins of extortion and coveting, but not for serving in the military (Luke 3:14).
Christians ought always to labor and pray for peace and to long for the day when “they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; [and] nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore” (Isaiah 2:4).
Paragraph 3
Civil magistrates being set up by God for the ends aforesaid; subjection, in all lawful things commanded by them, ought to be yielded by us in the Lord, not only for wrath, but for conscience sake; and we ought to make supplications and prayers for kings and all that are in authority, that under them we may live a quiet and peaceable life, in all godliness and honesty.
The final paragraph in this section on civil government instructs us how we, as Christians, should relate to our rulers. We should submit to them, and we should pray for them.
Christians Obligated to Submit to their Rulers
First, Christians should submit to their rulers. Submission to our human authorities is a fundamental duty of the Christian life. It is especially taught in the fifth commandment, “Honor your father and your mother” (Exodus 20:12). But the submission required by the fifth commandment extends beyond simply honor and obedience to our parents. Question 124 of the Westminster Larger Catechism reminds us that,
By father and mother, in the fifth commandment, are meant, not only natural parents, but all superiors in age, and gifts; and especially such as, by God’s ordinance, are over us in place of authority, whether in family, church, or commonwealth.
God requires us to obey those whom He has placed over us, not only in the family, but also in the church, in the workplace, and in the civil government. Moreover, we should submit to them as to the Lord, serving them from the heart, just as we should serve our other earthly masters (cf. Ephesians 6:5-8). The Confession teaches this when it says that we owe civil rulers subjection “not only for wrath, but for conscience sake,” borrowing the language of Romans 13:5. We should submit to them as a part of our devotion to God, not simply because we do not want to find ourselves in jail or prison.
Is there never a time, however, when the Christian should refuse to obey the civil ruler? There is such a time. It is when the ruler commands the Christian to do something that would be a violation of the law of God. Then the believer must disobey. This was the situation in Acts 5, when the Sanhedrin had commanded the apostles not to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ. Peter responded, “We ought to obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29).
Notice an important distinction between disobedience and rebellion, however. While Peter and the other apostles disobeyed the authorities, they did not rebel against them. They still submitted to their authority. They were willing to pay whatever price the Sanhedrin exacted for their disobedience. It is similar to a situation in which a father orders his son to steal money from their neighbor. The son refuses to steal the money, because it would be a sin against God. He nevertheless submits to whatever penalty the father metes out to him for his refusal to do what he was told.
Some Puritans taught that ungodly rulers, who made unwise laws forfeited their right to have their subjects submit to them. They taught that citizens in such situations could lawfully rebel against their rulers. The Bible, however, does not teach that rebellion is lawful in such cases. It teaches that we must submit even to wicked rulers. As noted above, Paul says that “the powers that exist are appointed by God” (Romans 13:1). That included Nero, the Roman emperor when Paul wrote.
Another important and related question has to do with persecution of Christians. First, what should Christians do when they are facing persecution, and the government is not protecting them? Following Paul’s example, we should appeal to the government and seek its assistance (see Acts 21:39-40; 22:25-29; 23:16-31; 25:10-12). More often than not, the government is indifferent to the church of Christ or even hostile to it. Nevertheless, governors are responsible before God to punish the evil and protect their citizens. Paul even reproved the magistrates in Philippi for their careless treatment of Silas and him (Acts 16:35-39).
But what should Christians do when the government itself persecutes them? There is not a simple clear-cut answer to this question. In some instances it may be best to remain where God has placed us. In others, it may be best to flee (Matthew 10:23). In the early days of the church in Jerusalem, when persecution arose, the apostles stayed and faced tribulation while the rest of the church fled (Acts 8:1; 12:1-2). Each situation must be faced in light of its own peculiar circumstances. We need wisdom from God to know just what to do (James 1:5; cf. Proverbs 26:4-5).
Christians Obligated to Pray for their Rulers
The second part of our duty is to pray for our rulers. The primary passage for this duty is 1 Timothy 2:1-4, which is incorporated in this paragraph of the confession. It is the obligation of Christians to pray for their leaders. Some believers may be ignorant of this clear duty. Why, they may think, should we pray for Caesar? Why should we pray for those who represent the evil world system? Why should we pray for those who are even opposed to God (Psalm 2:1-2)? First, and most obviously, Scripture commands us to pray for them. Also, Paul tells us that we must not forget our identification with our fellow citizens, including our rulers, that we were once what they are—foolish unbelievers (Titus 3:1-3). In addition, the Bible teaches that patriotism is a virtue. The Jews were to pray for and seek the well-being of even the city of their godless persecutors (Jeremiah 29:7).
But sometimes Christians are tempted to not pray for their rulers, not because of ignorance of their duty, but because of bitter resentment. Sometimes we are ruled by those whom we strongly oppose—and who may oppose us. They may even hate us for unrighteous reasons! Yet, even in such situations, God calls us to love and pray for our enemies (Matthew 5:44; cf. Lk 10.29-37).
I have occasionally heard that some Christians who undergo persecution pray for similar trials to come upon other fellow-believers, who have generally known only peace and prosperity. (For instance, eastern European Christians have prayed that way for believers in the west.) The reason they do this is that they know how dangerous peace and prosperity is to spiritual health, and how beneficial persecution has been to keep the church faithful to Christ constantly abiding in Him. This may seem to be a good and wise idea, and it is no doubt motivated by love. Nevertheless, it is not a prayer that is according to the will of God. For Paul instructs us to pray
for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:2-4).
Whether we have good rulers or bad; whether they defend us or do us harm; God calls us to pray for them. Ultimately, our aim is that His name will be hallowed in the earth, that His kingdom will come, and that His will will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
All rights reserved.