A treatise relating to the call, work & wages of the ministers of Christ as also to the call, work & wages of the ministers of antichrist : wherein a testimony is born ... / Thomas Lawson.

CAP. XIII. The Clergies Patriarchal Claim of Tythes considered.

NOw you that say, That the Divine Right of Tythes is derived from Melchizedec, and not from Levi.

To this I Answer; 'Tis then inquirable, whether or no Tythes were ever the due and property of Melchizedec, that which could make them his Property must be a Command; they were no more the property of the Levites, then of any other of the Tribes, till there was an Assignation of them to the Levites, after the command issued from the Court of Heaven, they became due, and while the command stood in force, and the Law was unrepealed, 'twas a trans∣gression of the divine Law, to be found in non-payment thereof. Now where is the Command that Tythes should be paid to Melchizedec? Where is the Law of the Assignation of them to him? 'Tis not groundless Conjectures and Suppositions will serve the turn; po∣sitive Precept is called for: No right could be derived from Melchi∣zedec to another, which was not first in Melchizedec himself; Ʋlpians Judgment is found: Nemo plus juris ad alium transferre potest, quam ipse haberet, that is, No man can make a better Title to ano∣ther, then he himself hath.

Obj. Tythes were paid to Melchizedec, after whose Order Christ was High Priest forever, therefore due unto the Evangelical Order.

Answ. 'Tis neither said by Moses, nor by the Author of the Epistle to the Hebrews, that Abram paid him Tythes, but that he gave him Tythes: and betwixt a Payment and a Gift there is a difference, the one imports a Due or Debt, the other a free and Voluntary Act. Now if Tythes had been properly due from A∣bram to Melchizedec, 'tis not probable that both these holy men, who were 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, divinely inspired, would have said, he gave,

but he paid Tythes: The Geneva notes on Heb. 7.5. say, The Le∣vites had Commandment to receive that which Abram gave free∣ly to Melchizedes. What Abram did it was Free and Voluntary, Melchizedec had no Law to require it, neither had Abram a Law enjoyning him to pay it; neither is it apparent that ever Abram gave the Tythe but this once, upon this accidential or provi∣dential occasion, which may be taken for a thankful acknow∣ledgement, and a return of kindness to Melchizedec, who had given him Bread and Wine for the Refreshment of him and his Souldiers after the Fight: A voluntary Promise only binds the pro∣miser; and the free Gift of one is not obligatory to others, no binding Example for future Generations, a feeble Ground for such as would be accounted Gospel-Ministers to claim Tythe; if Abram's free and voluntary Gift must be a binding Rule in Gospel-dayes, then may every man require Bread and Wine of their Priest, for the refreshment of themselves and Families, every Officer require the same for himself and Souldiers; the one Example is as obliga∣tory as the other in Gospel-Dayes, both being Voluntary.

Again, let us consider what Abram gave him the Tenth of: Che∣derlaomer, and the Kings with him, Conquered the King of Sodom, and took all the Goods of Sodom, and took Lot, Abram's Brother's Son Prisoner; upon this Abram armed his traned Servants, and pur∣sued them, rescued Lot and the Goods; in his return Melchize∣deck met him, gave him Bread and Wine, as before, and blessed God for his Success; then Abram gave him Tythes of all, Gen. 14. Of all what? Not of the Increase of his Lands and Flocks; Abram did not carry every Tenth Sheaf, Lambs, Piggs, Geese, Chickins with him, but rather Sword, Spear, Battle-Ax, Battle-Bow, or such like Weapons of War; he had other things to carry with him, than Tythe Corn, Hay, Lambs, Piggs, &c. Abram gave him Tythe of all: Of all what? The Apostle answers thee: Consi∣der how great this man was, unto whom even the Patriarch Abram gave the Tenth of the Spoils, Heb. 7.4. So that of the Goods be∣longing formerly to Sodom, plundered by Chederlaomer, rescued and recovered by Abram, Abram gave to Melchizedec the Tenth thereof; And what if he had given it all to him, seeing he was re∣solved not to keep the least of it for his own use? Gen. 14.

Now, besides the Apostle, Erasmus, Crysostom, Jerom, upon se∣veral

accounts, as also our Country-man Poole, say expresly, That Abram gave him Tythes, not of his own Lands and Flocks, but of the Spoils taken from the Enemy. Poole on Heb. 7.4. saith,

This place cannot be understood of all Abram's Possessions, but of all the Spoil taken in that Battle.

Abram was not then at Home, but in his Journey in his return from the pursuit of his Enemy. Now if you will have Tythe from this Example, you must go to the Souldiers, and make your claim after Victories obtained; for Abram gave not the Tythes of his own Lands and Flocks, nor ever, but this once, as far as appears. How then proves this a yearly payment of Tythes to Gospel-Ministers? And how can an annu∣al payment be justly derived to others from the free and voluntary Gift of one, and that but once?

Again, if from the Gift of Abram to Melchizedec, you will enforce any thing to that Order; it can but be free Gift, which we deny not, in the Wisdom of God, being ordained of Christ, pra∣ctised by the Apostles and Churches, while a pure Virgin to Christ; so that your Antiquity of Tythes to the Gospel-Ministry, is vanish∣ed into the free Gift of the People.

Obj. To give and to pay is all one in this Case: So the Apostle not only said, he gave the Tenth, Heb. 7.4. but also Levi paid Tythe in Abram, verse 9.

Answ. To give and to pay is not all one in this Case, the Apo∣stle in the Wisdom of God varied his Expression, according to the Persons he treated of, and the different Times and Seasons he related to, speaking of Abram in the Anti-Levitical dayes, before Tythes were commanded, in whom it was a free, voluntary, spontaneous Act, Gift to Melchizedec; he says, He gave (but speaking of Le∣vi) of the Levitical Priesthood, who lived after Tythes were as∣signed and commanded to be paid; he expresses himself by the word Paid, vers. 9. Abram Gave, Levi Paid: That Abram came thither with an intention to Pay, or Melchizedec with an expectation to receive Tythes, I cannot receive.

Now that Tythe was not Paid to Melchizedec, but Given, and that not Yearly, but once, and that not of the Increase of his Lands and Flocks, but of the Pillage of Sodom rescued and recovered from

the Plunderers, the Fruits of War-like performances, 'tis very evi∣dent, the Scripture is not dubious, but clear in this point; So they may be judged Irrational, who claim a property in, and plead for Tythes upon such crazy and feeble grounds.

Jacob's Vow considered, Gen 28.22. being stoutly alled∣ged for the continuance of Tythes in Gospel-dayes.

Jacob in his Journey from Beersheba to Haran, tarried all Night in a certain place, and laid down to sleep, with his Head upon a Pillow of Stones; and from the Lords glorious appearance unto him, and sweet & comfortable Promise of his presence with him, and preserva∣tion of him, and that in him and in his Seed, all the Families of the Earth should be blessed, he called the Name of that place Bethel, by Interpretation, The House of God; in the fence of these things, and in confidence of the Lord's Promise and faithful performance, he vowed, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me Bread to eat, and Rayment to put on, &c. And this Stone which I have set for a Pillar, shall be God's House, and of all that thou shalt give me, I will surely give the Tenth unto thee, Gen. 28. This Jacob performed after twenty Years; as Jo∣sephus saith in these Words, By Offering unto the Lord the Tenth of all his Substance which he got at Haran. After that he returned un∣to that place, where God's appearance unto him was.

This Vow of Jacob was Voluntary, in being unrequired: Let such as would squeeze a Divine right to the exaction of Tythes from this, or from any Ante-diluvian, or Post-diluvian Patriarch, shew a command for the same, before the Levitical Assignation; the known Maxime is, Affirmanti incumbit probatio; that is, He that affirms, must prove, being Voluntary: 'Tis no binding Exam∣ple to future Generations; though 'tis true, Jacob's Vow was obligatory to him, after he had vowed, but not to his Poste∣rity; the eleaven Tribes paid not Tythes to Levi, by reason of the Example of Abram and Jacobs voluntary Gifts, but by vertue of the Lord's command thereunto enjoyning: That the Patriarchal Age was without a Divine command for the payment of Tythes; Pareus on the aforesaid Scripture clearly demonstrates, shewing, and saying, Decimae ante legem liberae erant & arbitrariae, exemple A∣brami & Jacobi, licebat dare vovere, aut non; that is, Tythes be∣fore

the Law were free and arbitrary, by the example of Abram and Jacob; a man might give them, Vow them, or not, as he plea∣sed: Now if there had been a Command for the same, they ought to have been paid, because commanded; and they could not have been detained without breach of the Lord's command; Bernard touched this well, Non attendit vere pius, quale sit illud, quod prae∣cipitur, hoc Solo contentus quia praecipitur; that is, One truly Godly heeds not, or disputes not, what like the thing is which is commanded, acquiescing and contenting himself in that it is commanded.

Again, as Jacob's Vow was Voluntary, so it was conditional in depending on the performance of Gods promise to him, if Tythes had been a divine Tribute, commanded of God, there had been no necessity of Vowing to give them, he could not have detained them, without the soul spot and sordid blemish of Disobedience; neither could he have made his Obligation conditional; for Tythes must have been paid, because commanded. So this free, voluntary and spontaneous Vow conduces not to make up a Divine right to Tythes.

Now if you will claim property in, and right unto Tythes from the voluntary Act of Abram and Jacob, why do you not use Circum∣cision, erect Altars, offer Sacrifice? These things they did, and you have as much ground from their Example to perpetuate the rest, as Tythes in Gospel-dayes; and if the Smoke of 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, that is, Self-love, did not darken your understandings, you would see Christ Jesus, the sum and substance of all Shadows, to have ended and ful∣filled the one as well as the other.