Page:The Works of the Rev. Jonathan Swift, Volume 10.djvu/100

92 2dly, Be ready at all times, in your words and actions, to show your loyalty to the king that reigns over you. This is the plain manifest doctrine of holy scripture: "Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether it be to the king as supreme, &c." And another apostle telleth us, "The powers that be are ordained of God." Kings are the ordinances of man by the permission of God, and they are ordained of God by his instrument man. The powers that be, the present powers, which are ordained by God, and yet in some sense are the ordinances of man, are what you must obey, without presuming to examine into rights and titles; neither can it be reasonably expected, that the powers in being, or in possession, should suffer their title to be publickly disputed by subjects without severe punishment. And to say the truth, there is no duty in religion more easy to the generality of mankind, than obedience to government: I say, to the generality of mankind: because while their law, and property, and religion are preserved, it is of no great consequence to them by whom they are governed, and therefore they are under no temptation to desire a change.

3dly, In order to prevent any change from the malice of false witnesses, be sure to avoid intemperance. If it be often so hard for men to govern their tongues when they are in their right senses, how can they hope to do it when they are heated with drink? In those cases most men regard not what they say, and too many not what they swear; neither will a man's memory disordered with drunkenness serve to defend himself, or satisfy him whether he were guilty or not. 4thly,