_The Sufferings of some, upon the account of extraordinary executing of
Judgment upon notorious Incendiaries, and murdering public Enemies by
private Persons in the circumstances wherein they were stated
vindicated._
Surely (saith Solomon) oppression maketh a wise man mad, as on the other
hand, a gift destroyeth the heart. Which, whensoever there is a
concurrence and verification of both together, makes it very incident,
and noways to be admired, that either some actions of the oppressed be
censurable; or, that there be found many to censure them, either out of
ignorance or prejudice, at a far off glance, which a nearer or narrower
inspection of circumstances, through a prospect of charity, would not so
readily condemn. When the oppression of tyrants comes to such a height
and pinch of extremity, that it not only threatens a community with
desolation, but induces a necessity of unavoidable dissolution, and
reduces a people to such a paroxism of desperation and consternation (in
respect of human deliberation bringing them to their wits end) that
either they must succumb as slaves, and mancipate consciences, persons,
liberties, properties, and all they are or have, to the lust of raging
tyrants, and their revenging emissaries,; or surrender themselves, and
their posterity, and, which is dearer, the interest of religion, to be
destroyed: then it is no wonder, that they be sometimes necessitated in
such an extremity, to apply extreme remedies to extremity of evils, and
forced to fall upon such expedients to prevent their utter
extermination, as at other times common order, and ordinary justice
would make extravagant. Yea it is no marvel, though they fall into
several real extravagancies, which are not to be justified nor
extenuated; but rather it is to be acknowledged, as a miracle of the
Lord's mercy, that in such a case they are restrained from more
scandalous excesses of that nature. Yet even then, such as live at ease,
free of oppression who are blinded with prejudice at the oppressed, and
bribed with the indulgence and lenity of the oppressors towards
themselves, will look upon these actions as transports of madness, and
effects of extravagant zeal, while they weigh them only in the scales of
ordinary justice, and do not ponderate them in the ballance of
necessitated virtue; nor perpend the circumstances which made those
extraordinary acts of judgment, which materially are lawful at all times
to be executed by some, to be then necessary acts of justice to be
inflicted by them in such a case. But if either the oppressors
themselves, or such who are blinded and bribed with their gifts, and
killed with their kindness, not only into an omission of concurring, but
into a condemning of such extraordinary attempts of taking off those
destroyers; or, if onlookers at a distance, would seriously consider,
and ingeniously declare their opinion, in a particular application of
the case to themselves, what they would do in such circumstances: I
doubt not, but as charity should oblige them to be sparing of their
censure, in a case whereof they have no experience; so justice, in
resolving this point for themselves, would constrain them to justify
such extraordinary necessitated practices for self-preservation, in
preventing punishing, by destroying their destroyers, and move them
rather to admire their patience, who have suffered so much and so long
those beasts of prey to devour them, than to censure their
precipitancies, in being constrained to endeavour to deliver themselves
at last from, and put an end to their cruelty who did most annoy them.
'Yea, (as Naphtali says very well) it were impossible that rational men,
after the feeling of so sore grievances, and the teaching of so many and
sad experiences, should still couch under the burden, and submit
themselves to the yoke of such vile apostate upstarts and bloody
villains, and not rather acquit themselves like men, by pulling off
these vizards, under which they mask their villanies and clack their
violence; and plucking them out of that sanctuary of loyalty, and refuge
of authority, which they do not more pretend than profane by all their
horrid rebellions against God, and cruel murders executed upon the
Lord's people, to the effect that in the righteous and deserved
punishment of these wicked men, both the sin of the land might be
sisted, and the fierce anger of the Lord averted,' Naph. first edit.
pag. 134. Nevertheless such lawful, and, (as one would think) laudable
attempts, for cutting off such monsters of nature, beasts of prey,
burdens to the earth, as well as enemies to the commonwealth, are not
only condemned as murders and horrid assassinations, but criminally and
capitally punished as such. And upon this account, the sufferings of
such, as have left a conviction upon the consciences of all that knew
them, of their honesty, integrity, soundness in the principles, and
seriousness of the practice of religion, have been several singular, and
signally severe, and owned of the Lord, to the admiration of all
spectators; some being cruelly tortured and executed to the death, for
essaying such execution of judgment, as Mr. Mitchel; others for
accumplishing it, as Mr. Hackston of Rathillet, and others, who avowed
their accession to the cutting off that arch traitor Sharp, prelate of
St. Andrews; and others, for not condemning that and the like acts of
justice, though they were as innocent of the facts as the child unborn.
The foregoing historical representation of the matters of fact, doth
clear the circumstances of the actions: which if ever any of that nature
performed by private men without public authority, could be justified,
will at least demur the condemning of them. For, the men, or rather
monsters, thus removed, had not only been perjured apostates from, and
conjured enemies against God, in a conspiracy with the devil, to destroy
the reformation, and the remnant that professed it, affronted
blasphemers, perfidious betrayers of the country, and enemies to the
commonwealth, malignant incendiaries, and habitual murderers of many of
the Lord's people, who, for many notorious crimes, had forfeited their
lives to justice; but were insolently prosecuting their murdering
designs, informing the council, and instigating them against innocent
people to destroy them utterly, procuring from them bloody orders to
spare none, but cut off all who might fall into their hands, and
vigorously and vigilantly with all violence pursuing their murdering
mandates, both in their own persons, and by villains, whom they hounded
out as intelligencers to get, and to give notice where any of those
people might be detected, whom they avowed, and avowed a design to
destroy, when in the heat and height of their rage they were cut off.
The actors were noways subject to them, nor any other way related, than
declared and independent enemies are to one another, having renounced
all relation to them and their masters, as magistrates and their
superiors; and were in no terms of peace with them, but maintaining an
hostile opposition and carrying, without cessation, arms to resist them;
and when they got that advantage over them, that these enemies were
seeking against them, they declared solemnly to them, and died,
declaring it to the world, that they were not moved out of private
revenge for personal injuries they had done against themselves; but
being touched with the zeal of God, love to their country, respect to
justice trampled upon by tyrants, and for saving themselves, rescuing
their brethren, and preventing their murdering them, because there were
none that would or could execute justice upon them legally: therefore
they were forced to put forth their hands against them as enemies, with
whose preservation their own could not consist. Their circumstances were
such, that they were redacted to the greatest of extremities, precluding
all other human possibility of preserving themselves and their brethren
from the destruction intended, and declaredly resolved, and restlessly
sought and prosecuted, by these murderers, being persecuted to the death
by them, daily chased, hunted, way-laid, turned out of their own
habitations, intercommuned, discharged and denied all harbour in any
house, under the hazard of the same pains that themselves were liable
to, which was death by the present law and so forced to hide in caves
and dens; out of which they durst not come forth, if it were but to seek
bread for themselves, without iminent danger of their lives; the country
raising the hue and cry after them, whensover they were seen, whereby
many were killed as soon as they were apprehended: hence they could
neither escape in the land, nor by flight out of the land, passages by
sea and land being stopt, and none suffered to go any where, without
strict examination what they were, which was impossible for them to
elude: and many other specialties of misery and danger were ingredients
in their circumstances, that no words can represent to them that are
altogether strangers to them. Wherefore, in such a strait and pinch of
perplexity, when they could not other wise escape the fury of these
firebrands, nor demur and deter the rest of them from an uncontrouled
pursuit after the lives of innocents, nor otherwise avert the wrath of
God against the land for the impunity of such vermine; and seeing there
was no access to address themselves to magistrates, who by office are
obliged to bring such villains to condign punishment; and none were
found in public authority, but such as patronized and authorized them;
whom in conscience they could not acknowledge, and in prudence durst not
make application to them for fear of their lives; what could they do?
what was left them to deliberate, but to fall upon this extraordinary
course, wherein if they have stumbled into some extravagancies, as to
the manner, who can think it strange, considering the case? But as that
is not the debate; so as for such acts of vengeance as are peccant in
the matter, and were not circumstantiate, as above rehearsed, being
disowned in their public declarations, and the actors excluded from
their communion, for whom I plead; it were iniquous to impute the
scandal of them to that suffering people. It is only the so
circumstantiate, necessitated, extraordinary execution of judgment, upon
notoriously gross and grassant incendiaries, tyrants, and terrible
murdering enemies, where there is no living for them, that I vindicate.
And though the handling of this tender and quick-scented subject may
seem odious to some, and my discourse upon it is pregnant with an
oblique design to obviate such unmerited surmises, I must say, it is
only the wiping off of such reproaches as reflect on religion; the
vindication of preterite extraordinary practices of this nature; the
investigation of present duty with respect to future emergencies; and
the restraining all extravagancies incident on this Head, that I intend.
However this may be exploded by this generation, as odious and uncouth
doctrine; yet, in former periods of this church, it hath been maintained
with courage, and asserted with confidence. How the ancient Scots, even
after they received the Christian faith, served their tyrants and
oppressors, how in the beginning of the reformation, the killing of the
cardinal, and of David Rizio, were and are generally to this day
justified, and what was the judgment and pleading of our reformers for
practicing this principle against idolaters, &c. needs not be here
repeated? Mr. Knox's judgment in particular is before declared, and will
be further discovered, if we consider how he resented his slackness, in
putting people to execute judgment in these words, insert in second part
of the cloud of witnesses, p. 60. 'For God (said he) had not only given
me knowledge, and a tongue to make known the impiety of the idol, but
had given me credit with many, who would have put in execution God's
judgments, if I would only have consented thereto: but so careful was I
of the common tranquility, and loath was I to offend some, that in
secret conference with zealous men, I travelled rather to slacken that
fervency God had kindled in them, than to animate and encourage them to
put their hands to God's work; wherein I acknowledge myself to have done
most wickedly, and from the bottom of my heart I do ask God pardon, that
I did not what in me lay to have suppressed that idol from the
beginning.' But the preceeding historical representation doth abundantly
demonstrate this is no novelty, to assert, that when the ruin of the
country, suppression of religion, destruction of the remnant professing
and suffering for it, and the wrath of God is threatened in, and for the
impunity of idolaters and murderers, that by the law of God and man
should die the death; and supposing always such as are in public office
not only decline their duty, but encourage those destroyers, yea
authorize them themselves, we may not only maintain defensive resistance
according to our capacity, but endeavour also vindictive and, punitive
force in executing judgment upon them in cases of necessity, as before
circumstantiate. And I am the more confident to assert it, that what I
say cannot be condemned, till first what our reformers have proven be
confuted. However, to endeavour to make it somewhat clear, I shall
premit some assertions, to clear the state of the question; and then
give some reasons for it, when clearly stated.
First. It will be needful for clearing our way, to shew what length we
may warrantably go in this matter of executing judgment, in our private
capacity, in extraordinary cases of necessity, by setting down some
propositions negative and positive, signifying what we disown, and what
we own in this point.