Quotes on the Biblical Basis of Law and Government
“The general principles on which the fathers achieved independence were … the general princilpes of Christianity … Now I will avow that I then, and now believe, that those principles of Christianity are as eternal and immutable as the existence and attributes of God.”
— John Adams (1797-
“For the LORD is our judge [Judicial], the LORD is our ruler [Legislative], the LORD is our king [Executive]; he will save us..”
— Isaiah 33:22 RSV
** The three branches of government, a reflection the divine words spoke by the Hebrew prophet Isaiah. “For the LORD is our judge [judicial]; the LORD is our lawgiver [legislative]; the LORD is our king [executive].”
“Moreover choose able men from all the people, such as fear God, men who are trustworthy and who hate a bribe; and place such men over the people as rulers of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens.”
— Exodus 18:21 RSV
** Representative government, reflective of the early Republic of Israel (united tribes of Israel)
“You may indeed set as king over you him whom the LORD your God will choose. One from among your brethren you shall set as king over you; you may not put a foreigner over you, who is not your brother.”
— Deuteronomy 17:15 RSV
“No person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of President; neither shall any person be eligible to that office who shall not have attained to the age of thirty-
— United States Constitution: Article II, Section 1:4.
“We also notify you that it shall not be lawful to impose tribute, custom, or toll upon any one of the priests, the Levites, the singers, the doorkeepers, the temple servants, or other servants of this house of God.”
— Ezra 7:24 RSV
“The stranger who sojourns with you shall be to you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.”
— Leviticus 19:34 RSV
“To establish an uniform rule of naturalization, and uniform laws on the subject of bankruptcies throughout the United States.”
— United States Constitution: Article I, Section 8:4.
“On the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses he that is to die shall be put to death; a person shall not be put to death on the evidence of one witness.”
— Deuteronomy 17:6 RSV
“Treason against the United States shall consist only in levying war against them, or in adhering to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort. No person shall be convicted of treason unless on the testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or on confession in open court.”
— United States Constitution: Article II!, Section 3:1.
“The soul that sins shall die. The son shall not suffer for the iniquity of the father, nor the father suffer for the iniquity of the son; the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.”
— Ezekiel 18 :20 RSV
“The Congress shall have power to declare the punishment of treason, but no attainder of treason shall work corruption of blood, or forfeiture, except during the life of the person attainted.”
— United States Constitution: Article III, Section 3:2.
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.”
— Proverbs 9:10 RSV
“Wisdom abides in the mind of a man of understanding, but it is not known in the heart of fools.”
— Proverbs 14:33 RSV
The purpose of government is bear the sword to execute wrath on the wrong doer.
“Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore he who resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of him who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain; he is the servant of God to execute his wrath on the wrongdoer. Therefore one must be subject, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience.”
— Romans 13:1-
The purpose of government is bear the sword to execute wrath on the wrong doer.
“Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore he who resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of him who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain; he is the servant of God to execute his wrath on the wrongdoer. Therefore one must be subject, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience.”
— Romans 13:1-
“The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds, there is none that does good.”
— Psalms 14:1 RSV
“Thus you will know them by their fruits.”
— Matthew 7:20 RSV
“But he who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer that forgets but a doer that acts, he shall be blessed in his doing. So speak and so act as those who are to be judged under the law of liberty.”
— James 1:25, 2:12 RSV
“Live as free men, yet without using your freedom as a pretext for evil; but live as servants of God.”
— 1 Peter 2:16 RSV
“Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people whom he has chosen as his heritage! The LORD looks down from heaven, he sees all the sons of men; from where he sits enthroned he looks forth on all the inhabitants of the earth, 15 he who fashions the hearts of them all, and observes all their deeds. A king is not saved by his great army; a warrior is not delivered by his great strength. The war horse is a vain hope for victory, and by its great might it cannot save. Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love, that he may deliver their soul from death, and keep them alive in famine. Our soul waits for the LORD; he is our help and shield. Yea, our heart is glad in him, because we trust in his holy name. Let thy steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us, even as we hope in thee.
— Psalms 33-
“He who states his case first seems right, until the other comes and examines him.”
— Proverbs 18:17 RSV
“No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the militia, when in actual service in time of war or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use without just compensation “
— United States Bill of Rights: Amendment V, Provisions concerning prosecution
“Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.”
— Proverbs 14:34 RSV
“Wisdom abides in the mind of a man of understanding, but it is not known in the heart of fools.”
— Proverbs 14:33 RSV
“‘Observe the sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the LORD your God commanded you. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work; 14 but the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God; in it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, or your manservant, or your maidservant, or your ox, or your ass, or any of your cattle, or the sojourner who is within your gates, that your manservant and your maidservant may rest as well as you
— Deuteronomy 5:12-
“Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor, and do all your work; but the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God; in it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your manservant, or your maidservant, or your cattle, or the sojourner who is within your gates; for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day; therefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day and hallowed it.”
— Exodus 20:8-
… If any bill shall not be returned by the president within ten days (Sundays excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, the same shall be a law, in like manner as if he had signed it, unless the Congress by their adjournment prevent its return, in which case it shall not be a law.
— United States Constitution: Article I, Section 7:2.
** Bible, the Sabbath day
“Equal laws, protecting equal rights … the best guarantee of loyalty and love of country as well as best calculated to cherish that mutual respect and good will among citizens of every religious denomination, which are necessary to social harmony and most favorable to the advancement of truth.”
— James Madison (1751-
** “That all men are created equal”…. Equal application of the law.
We hold these truths to be self-
“Woe to you lawyers! for you have taken away the key of knowledge; you did not enter yourselves, and you hindered those who were entering.”
— Luke 11:52 RSV
“He said to them, “But now, let him who has a purse take it, and likewise a bag. And let him who has no sword sell his mantle and buy one.”
— Luke 22:36 RSV
** Biblical right of self defense and defense of country.
“To keep Satan from gaining the advantage over us; for we are not ignorant of his designs.”
— 2 Corinthians 2:11 RSV
“Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is living in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us. For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us; we were not idle when we were with you, we did not eat any one’s bread without paying, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not burden any of you. It was not because we have not that right, but to give you in our conduct an example to imitate. For even when we were with you, we gave you this command: If any one will not work, let him not eat. For we hear that some of you are living in idleness, mere busybodies, not doing any work. Now such persons we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work in quietness and to earn their own living. Brethren, do not be weary in well-
— 2 Thessalonians 3: 6-
“If any one does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his own family, he has disowned the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”
— 1 Timothy 5:8 RSV
** Free enterprise, not communal or Communism
“What does it profit, my brethren, if a man says he has faith but has not works? Can his faith save him? If a brother or sister is ill-
— James 2:14-
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also“
— Matthew 6:19-
“’Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: ‘Do not kill, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’ And he said to him, ‘Teacher, all these I have observed from my youth.’ And Jesus looking upon him loved him, and said to him, ‘You lack one thing; go, sell what you have, and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.’ At that saying his countenance fell, and he went away sorrowful; for he had great possessions. And Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, ‘How hard it will be for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!’ And the disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said to them again, ‘Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.’ And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him, ‘Then who can be saved?’ Jesus looked at them and said, ‘With men it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God.’”
— Mark 10:17, 27 RSV
“Above all hold unfailing your love for one another, since love covers a multitude of sins. Practice hospitality ungrudgingly to one another. As each has received a gift, employ it for one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: whoever speaks.”
— 1 Peter 4:8-
** Charity by the people, not
“Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are competent of ourselves to claim anything as coming from us; our competence is from God, who has made us competent to be ministers of a new covenant, not in a written code but in the Spirit; for the written code kills, but the Spirit gives life.”
— 2 Corinthians 3:4-
“When Samuel became old, he made his sons judges over Israel. The name of his first-
— 1 Samuel 8:1-
** Biblical verse for support of representative government over divine right of Kings to rule.
“Take heed lest you forget the LORD your God, by not keeping his commandments and his ordinances and his statutes, which I command you this day: Beware lest you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.’ You shall remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth; that he may confirm his covenant which he swore to your fathers, as at this day. And if you forget the LORD your God and go after other gods and serve them and worship them, I solemnly warn you this day that you shall surely perish. Like the nations that the LORD makes to perish before you, so shall you perish, because you would not obey the voice of the LORD your God.
— Deuteronomy 8:11,17-
The Ten Commandments
1. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other gods before me.
2. You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.
3. Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
4. Honor your father and your mother.
5. You shall not kill.
6. You shall not commit adultery.
7. You shall not steal.
8. You shall you bear false witness against your neighbor.
9. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife.
10. You shall not covet your neighbor’s house, or his field, or his manservant, or his maidservant, or his ox, or his ass, or anything that is your neighbor’s.
“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself a graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them or serve them; for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments. You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain: for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain. Observe the sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the LORD your God commanded you. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work; but the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God; in it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, or your manservant, or your maidservant, or your ox, or your ass, or any of your cattle, or the sojourner who is within your gates, that your manservant and your maidservant may rest as well as you. You shall remember that you were a servant in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you out thence with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm; therefore the LORD your God commanded you to keep the sabbath day. Honor your father and your mother, as the LORD your God commanded you; that your days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with you, in the land which the LORD your God gives you. You shall not kill. Neither shall you commit adultery. Neither shall you steal. Neither shall you bear false witness against your neighbor. Neither shall you covet your neighbor’s wife; and you shall not desire your neighbor’s house, his field, or his manservant, or his maidservant, his ox, or his ass, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”
— Deuteronomy 5:6-
“And God spoke all these words, saying, I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself a graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them or serve them; for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments. You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain. Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work; but the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God; in it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your manservant, or your maidservant, or your cattle, or the sojourner who is within your gates; for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day; therefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day and hallowed it. Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land which the LORD your God gives you. You shall not kill. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant, or his maidservant, or his ox, or his ass, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”
— Exodus 20:2-
** Biblical basis of Law, the Ten Commandments
** Biblical basis of the Sunday “Blue Laws” or the Sabbath Day
“And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: ‘Do not kill, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.'”
— Mark 10:17-
** Biblical basis of Law, the Ten Commandments
“Now we know that the law is good, if any one uses it lawfully, understanding this, that the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, immoral persons, sodomites, kidnapers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine, in accordance with the glorious gospel of the blessed God with which I have been entrusted.”
— 1 Timothy 1:8-
** Biblical basis of Law, to restrain the wicked, not the good.
“For inquire, I pray you, of bygone ages, and consider what the fathers have found; for we are but of yesterday, and know nothing, for our days on earth are a shadow. Will they not teach you, and tell you, and utter words out of their understanding? “Can papyrus grow where there is no marsh? Can reeds flourish where there is no water? While yet in flower and not cut down, they wither before any other plant. Such are the paths of all who forget God; the hope of the godless man shall perish. His confidence breaks in sunder, and his trust is a spider’s web. He leans against his house, but it does not stand; he lays hold of it, but it does not endure. He thrives before the sun, and his shoots spread over his garden. His roots twine about the stoneheap; he lives among the rocks. 18 If he is destroyed from his place, then it will deny him, saying.”
— Job 8:8-
First, “The first fundamental, positive law of all commonwealths or states is the establishing the legislative power. As the first fundamental natural law, also, which is to govern even the legislative power itself, is the preservation of the society.” *
Secondly, The Legislative has no right to absolute, arbitrary power over the lives and fortunes of the people; nor can mortals assume a prerogative not only too high for men, but for angels, and therefore reserved for the exercise of the Deity alone.
“The Legislative cannot justly assume to itself a power to rule by extempore arbitrary decrees; but it is bound to see that justice is dispensed, and that the rights of the subjects be decided by promulgated, standing, and known laws, and authorized independent judges”; that is, independent, as far as possible, of Prince and people. “There should be one rule of justice for rich and poor, for the favorite at court, and the countryman at the plough (plow).”
Thirdly, The supreme power cannot justly take from any man any part of his property, without his consent in person or by his representative.
— Samuel Adams (1722–1803) Father of the American Revolution, Patriot and Statesman
“The law given from Sinai was a civil and municipal as well as a moral and religious code; it contained many statutes … of universal application,—laws essential to the existence of men in society, and most of which have been enacted by every nation which ever professed any code of laws. … Human legislators can undertake only to prescribe the actions of men; they acknowledge their inabihty to govern and direct the sentiments ot the heart; the very law itself is a rule of civil conduct, not of internal principles.”
— John Quincy Adams, (1767-
“A [the] law established by the Creator, which has existed from the beginning, extends over the whole globe, is everywhere and at all times binding upon mankind. . . .I hold that all laws and compacts imposing any such conditions [slavery] upon any human being absolutely void, because contrary to the law of nature, which is the law of God by which he makes his way known to man and is paramount to all human control.”
— Rufus King (1755-
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
— Constitution of the United States : Bill of Rights, Article 1.
“Now all acts of legislature apparently contrary to natural right and justice, are, in our laws, and must be in the nature of things, considered as void. The laws of nature are the laws of God; whose authority can be superseded by no power on earth. A legislature must not obstruct our obedience to him from whose punishments they cannot protect us. All human constitutions which contradict His [God’s] laws, we are in conscience bound to disobey.”
— George Mason (1725-
(James Wilson –
“Of law there are different kinds. All, however, may be arranged in two different classes. 1. Divine. 2. Human laws. The descriptive epithets employed denote, that the former have God, the latter, man, for their author.
I. That law, the book of which we be neither able nor worthy to open. Of this law, the author and observer is God. He is a law to himself, as well as to all created things. This law we may name the “law eternal.”
II. That law, which made for angels and the spirits of the just made perfect. This may be called the “law celestial.” This law, and the glorious state for which it is adapted, we see, at present, but darkly and as through a glass: but hereafter we shall see even as we are seen; and shall know even as we are know. For the wisdom and the goodness of the adorable Author and Preserver of the universe, we are justified in concluding, that the celestial and perfect state is governed, as all other things are, by his established laws. What those laws are, it is not yet given to us to know; but on one truth we may rely with sure and certain confidence—those laws are wise and good. For another truth we have infallible authority—those laws are strictly obeyed: “In heaven his will is done.”
III. That law, by which the irrational and inanimate parts of the creation are governed. The great Creator of all things has established general and fixed rules, according to which all the phenomena of the material universe are produced and regulated. These rules are usually denominated laws of nature. The science, which has those laws for its object, is distinguished by the name of natural philosophy. It is sometimes called, the philosophy of body. Of this science, there are numerous branches.
IV. That law, which God has made for man in his present state; that law, which is communicated to us by reason and conscience, the divine monitors within us, and by the sacred oracles, the divine monitors without us. This law has undergone several subdivision, and has been known by distinct appellations, according to the different ways in which it has been promulgated, and the different objects which it respects.
“As promulgated by reason and moral sense, it has been called natural; as promulgated by the holly scriptures, it has been called revealed law. As addressed to men, it has been denominated the law of nature; as addressed to political societies, it has been denominated the law of nations. But it should always be remembered, that this law, natural or revealed, made for men or for nations, flows from the same divine source: it is the law of God. Nature, or, so to speak more properly, the Author of nature, has done much for us; but it is his gracious appointment and will, that we should also do much for ourselves. What se do, indeed, must be founded on what he has done; and the deficiencies of our laws must be supplied by the perfection of his. Human law must rest its authority, upon the authority of that law, which is divine.”… “Far from being rivals or enemies, religion and law are twin sisters, friends, and mutual assistants. ….divine laws form an essential part of both.”
— James Wilson (1742-
“In the beginning of the Contest with Great Britain, when we were sensible of danger we had daily prayer in this room for the divine protection. Our prayers, Sir, were heard, & they were graciously answered. All of us who were engaged in the struggle must have observed frequent instances of a superintending providence in our favor. To that kind providence we owe this happy opportunity of consulting in peace on the means of establishing our future national felicity. And have we now forgotten that powerful friend? Or do we imagine that we no longer need his assistance?
I have lived, Sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proof I see of this truth that God Governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without his aid? We have been assured, Sir, in the sacred writings, that “except the Lord build the House they labour in vain that build it.” I firmly believe this; and I also believe that without his concurring aid we shall succeed in this political building no better, than the Builders of Babel: We shall be divided by our little partial local interests; our projects will be confounded, and we ourselves shall become a reproach and bye word down to future ages. And what is worse, mankind may hereafter from this unfortunate instance, despair of establishing Governments by Human wisdom and leave it to chance, war and conquest.”
— Benjamin Franklin (1706-
“Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.”
— Psalms 127:1-
“You have rights antecedent to all earthly governments; rights that cannot be repealed or restrained by human laws; right derived from the Great Legislator of the Universe.”
— John Adams (1797-
“From the day of the declaration … they (the American people) were bound by the laws of God, which they all, and by the laws of the gospel, which they nearly all, acknowledged as the rules of their conduct.”
— John Quincy Adams, (1767-
“Among the objects of the Constitution of this Commonwealth, Liberty & Equality stand in a conspicuous light—It is the first article in our declaration of rights, “all men are born free & equal, & have certain natural, essential & unalienable rights.”—In the supposed state of nature, all men are equally bound by the laws of nature, or to speak more properly, the laws of the Creator: They are imprinted by the finger of God on the heart of man. Thou shalt do no injury to thy neighbor, is the voice of nature & reason, & it is confirmed by written revelation. In the State of nature every man hath an equal right by honest means to acquire property & to enjoy it; in general, to pursue his own happiness & none can consistently control or interrupt him in the pursuit. But, so turbulent are the passions of some, & so selfish are the feelings of others, that in such a state, there being no social compact, the weak cannot always be protected from the violence of the strong, nor the honest and unsuspecting from the arts & intrigues of the selfish & cunning—Hence it is easy to conceive that men, naturally formed for society, were inclined to enter into mutual compact for the better security of their natural rights. In this state of Society, the unalienable rights of nature are held sacred: And each member is intitled to an equal share of all the social rights—No man can of right become possessed of a greater share: If any one usurps it, he so far becomes a tyrant; & when he can obtain sufficient strength, the people will feel the rod of a tyrant. Or, if this exclusive privilege can be supposed to be held in virtue of compact, it argues a very capital defect; & the people, when more enlightened will alter their compact, & extinguish the very idea….
Before the formation of this Constitution it had been affirmed as a self evident truth, in the Declaration of Independence, very deliberately made by the Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled that ‘all men are created equal, and are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights’ This declaration of Independence was received and ratified by all the States in the Union & has never been disannuled. May we not from hence conclude, that the doctrine of Liberty and Equality is an article in the political creed of the United States.”
— Samuel Adams (1722–1803) Father of the American Revolution, Patriot and Statesman
“I have read it through many times; I now make a practice of going through it once a year. It is a book of all others for lawyers, as well as divines; and I pity the man who cannot find in it a rich supply of thought and rule for conduct.”
— Daniel Webster (1782-
“This principle, that a whole nation has a right to do whatever it pleases, cannot in any sense whatever be admitted as true. The eternal and immutable laws of justice and morality are paramount to all human legislation. The violations of those laws is certainly within the power of a nation, but it is not among the rights of nations.”
— John Quincy Adams, (1767-
“If we abide by the principles taught in the Bible, our country will go on prospering and to prosper; but if we and our posterity neglect its instructions and authority, no man can tell how sudden a catastrophe may overwhelm us and bury all our glory in profound obscurity.”
— Daniel Webster (1782-
“A nation which does not remember what it was yesterday, does not know what it is today, nor what it is trying to do. We are trying to do a futile thing if we do not know where we came from or what we have been about…..The Bible is the one supreme source of revelation of the meaning of life, the nature of God, and spiritual nature and needs of men. It is the only guide of life which really leads the spirit in the way of peace and salvation. America was born a Christian nation. America was born to exemplify that devotion to the elements of righteousness which are derived from the revelations of Holy Scripture.”
— Woodrow Wilson (1856-
“The fundamental basis of this nation’s law was given to Moses on the Mount. The fundamental basis of our Bill of Rights comes from the teachings we get from Exodus and St. Matthew, from Isaiah and St. Paul. I don’t think we emphasize that enough these days. If we don’t have the proper fundamental moral background, we will finally wind up with a totalitarian government which does not believe in rights for anybody but the state.”
— Harry S. Truman (1884-
“History affords us many instances of the ruin of states, by the prosecution of measures ill suited to the temper and genius of their people. The ordaining of laws in favor of one part of the nation, to the prejudice and oppression of another, is certainly the most erroneous and mistaken policy. An equal dispensation of protection, rights, privileges, and advantages, is what every part is entitled to, and ought to enjoy.”
— Benjamin Franklin (1706-
“Where there is no law, there is no liberty; and nothing deserves the name of law but that which is certain and universal in its operation upon all the members of the community.”
— Benjamin Rush (1745-
“With consistency, beautiful and undeviating, human life from its commencement to its close, is protected by the common law. In the contemplation of law, life begins when the infant is first able to stir in the womb. By the law, life is protected not only from immediate destruction, but from every degree of actual violence, and in some cases, from every degree of danger.”
— James Wilson (1742-
“In short it is the greatest absurdity to suppose it in the power of one or any number of men at the entering into society, to renounce their essential natural rights, or the means of preserving those rights when the great end of civil government from the very nature of its institution is for the support, protection and defense of those very rights: the principal of which as is before observed, are life liberty and property. If men through fear, fraud or mistake, should in terms renounce & give up any essential natural right, the eternal law of reason and the great end of society, would absolutely vacate such renunciation; the right to freedom being the gift of God Almighty, it is not in the power of Man to alienate this gift, and voluntarily become a slave.”
— John Adams (1797-
“Another source of power in government is a military force. But this, to be efficient, must be superior to any force that exists among the people, or which they can command: for otherwise this force would be annihilated, on the first exercise of acts of oppression. Before a standing army can rule, the people must be disarmed ; as they are in almost every kingdom in Europe. The supreme power in America cannot enforce unjust laws by the sword; because the whole body of the people are armed, and constitute a force superior to any band of regular troops that can be, on any pretence, raised in the United States. A military force, at the command of Congress, can execute no laws, but such as the people perceive to be just and constitutional; for they will possess the power, and jealousy will instantly inspire the inclination, to resist the execution of a law which appears to them unjust and oppressive. ‘ In spite of all the nominal powers, vested in Congress by the constitution, were the system once adopted in its fullest latitude, still the actual exercise of them would be frequently interrupted by popular jealousy. I am bold to say, that ten just and constitutional measures would be resisted, where one unjust or oppressive law would be enforced. The powers vested in Congress are little more than nominal; nay real power cannot be vested in them, nor in any body, but in the people. The source of power is in the people of this country, and cannot for ages, and probably never will, be removed.”
— Noah Webster (1758-
“In short, it is the greatest absurdity to suppose it in the power of one, or any number of men, at the entering into society, to renounce their essential natural rights, or the means of preserving those rights; when the grand end of civil government, from the very nature of its institution, is for the support, protection, and defence of those very rights; the principal of which, as is before observed, are Life, Liberty, and Property. If men, through fear, fraud, or mistake, should in terms renounce or give up any essential natural right, the eternal law of reason and the grand end of society would absolutely vacate such renunciation. The right to freedom being the gift of God Almighty, it is not in the power of man to alienate this gift and voluntarily become a slave.
These may be best understood by reading and carefully studying the institutes of the great Law Giver and Head of the Christian Church, which are to be found clearly written and promulgated in the New Testament.”
— Samuel Adams (1722–1803) Father of the American Revolution, Patriot and Statesman
“Our ancestors established their system of government on morality and religious sentiment. Moral habits, they believed, cannot safely be trusted on any other foundation than religious principle, nor any government be secure which is not supported by moral truth. ‘Whatever makes men good Christians, makes them good citizens.’
Our fathers came here to enjoy their religion free and unmolested, and, at the end of two centuries, there is nothing upon which we can pronounce more confidently, nothing of which we can express a more deep and earnest conviction, than the inestimable importance of that religion to man, both in regard to this life and that which is to come.”
— Daniel Webster (1782-
“There never has been a period in which the common law did not recognize Christianity as lying at its foundation.
This common law, based on the established customs of England, has been ranked as the perfection of human wisdom, but is now superseded by American jurisprudence, — a code disregarding those ephemeral and often barbarous customs of antiquity, sweeping away the Divine rights of kings, — and the doctrines of non-
— Joseph Story (1779-
“Government can not long exist without an alliance with religion; and that Christianity is indispensable to the true interests and sold foundations of free government.”
— Joseph Story (1779-
“The future and success of America is not in this Constitution, but in the laws of God upon which this Constitution is founded.”
— James Madison (1751-
“By renouncing the Bible, philosophers swing from their moorings upon all moral subjects. …It is the only correct map of the human heart that ever has been published. …All systems of religion, morals, and government not founded upon it [the Bible] must perish, and how consoling the thought, it will not only survive the wreck of these systems but the world itself.”
— Benjamin Rush (1745-
“Charity is no part of the legislative duty of the government.”
— James Madison (1751-
** Example of christian charity by George Washington
Washington in a letter estate keeper Mr. Lund November, 26, 1775: “Let the hospitality of the house with respect to the poor be kept up. Let no one go hungry away. If any of this kind of people should be in want of corn, supply their necessities, provided it does not encourage them in idleness; and I have no objection to your giving my money in charity to the amount of forty or fifty pounds a year, when you think it is well bestowed. What I mean by having no objection is that it is my desire it should be done. You are to consider neither myself nor wife in the way to do these kind offices…..fill a corn-
Washington to Rev. James Muir, pastor of the Presbyterian Church at Alexandria, Virginia, in regard to his annual subscription to the Orphan School: “I have received your letter of the 12th instant, and will direct my manager, Mr. Pearce, to pay my annual donation for the education of orphan children, or the children of indigent parents, who are unable to be at the expense themselves. I had pleasure in appropriating this money to such uses, as I always shall in that of paying it. I confess, however, I should derive satisfaction from knowing what children have heretofore received the benefit of it, and who are now in the enjoyment thereof.”
— George Washington (1732-
Frame of Government of Pennsylvania
The Preface
“When the great and wise God had made the world, of all his creatures, it pleased him to chuse man his Deputy to rule it: and to fit him for so great a charge and trust, he did not only qualify him with skill and power, but with integrity to use them justly. This native goodness was equally his honour and his happiness, and whilst he stood here, all went well; there was no need of coercive or compulsive means; the precept of divine love and truth, in his bosom, was the guide and keeper of his innocency. But lust prevailing against duty, made a lamentable breach upon it; and the law, that before had no power over him, took place upon him, and his disobedient posterity, that such as would not live comformable to the holy law within, should fall under the reproof and correction of the just law without, in a Judicial administration.
This the Apostle teaches in divers of his epistles: ” The law (says he) was added because of transgression: ” In another place, ” Knowing that the law was not made for the righteous man; but for the disobedient and ungodly, for sinners, for unholy and prophane, for murderers, for wlloremongers, for them that defile themselves with mankind, and for man-
This settles the divine right of government beyond exception, and that for two ends: first, to terrify evil doers: secondly, to cherish those that do well; which gives government a life beyond corruption, and makes it as durable in the world, as good men shall be. So that government seems to me a part of religion itself, a filing sacred in its institution and end. For, if it does not directly remove the cause, it crushes the effects of evil, and is as such, (though a lower, yet) an emanation of the same Divine Power, that is both author and object of pure religion; the difference lying here, that the one is more free and mental, the other more corporal and compulsive in its operations: but that is only to evil doers; government itself being otherwise as capable of kindness, goodness and charity, as a more private society. They weakly err, that think there is no other use of government, than correction, which is the coarsest part of it: daily experience tells us, that the care and regulation of many other affairs, more soft, and daily necessary, make up much of the greatest part of government; and which must have followed the peopling of the world, had Adam never fell, and will continue among men, on earth, under the highest attainments they may arrive at, by the coming of the blessed Second Adam, the Lord from heaven. Thus much of government in general, as to its rise and end.”
— William Penn (1644-
“Wheras the glory of almighty God and the good of mankind is the reason and end of government and, therefore, government in itself is a venerable ordinance of God. And forasmuch as it is principally desired and intended by the Proprietary and Governor and the freemen of the province of Pennsylvania and territories thereunto belonging to make and establish such laws as shall best preserve true christian and civil liberty in opposition to all unchristian, licentious, and unjust practices, whereby God may have his due, Caesar his due, and the people their due, from tyranny and oppression on the one side and insolence and licentiousness on the other, so that the best and firmest foundation may be laid for the present and future happiness of both the Governor and people of the province and territories aforesaid and their posterity.”
— William Penn (1644-
“This is what is called the law of nature, ‘which, being coeval with mankind, and dictated by God himself, is, of course, superior in obligations to any other. It is binding over all the globe, in all countries, and at all times. No human laws are of any validity, if contrary to this; and such of them as are valid, derive all their authority, mediately, or immediately, from this original.-
— Alexander Hamilton (1755-
“The moral principles and precepts contained in the Scripture ought toform the basis of all our civil constitutions and laws. All the miseriesand evil men suffer from vice, crime, ambition, injustice, oppression,slavery, and war, proceed from their despising or neglecting the preceptscontained in the Bible.”
— Noah Webster (1758-
“It has been said with much vivacity, that the felicity of the American colonists consisted in their escape from the past. This is true so far as respects political establishments, but no further. They brought with them a full portion of all the riches of the past, in science, in art, in morals, religion, and literature. The Bible came with them. And it is not to be doubted, that to the free and universal reading of the Bible, in that age, men were much indebted for right views of civil liberty. The Bible is a book of faith, and a book of doctrine, and a book of morals, and a book of religion, of especial revelation from God ; but it is also a book which teaches man his own individual responsibility, his own dignity, and his equality with his fellow-
— Daniel Webster (1782-
“It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ! For this very reason peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here.”
— Patrick Henry (1736-
“Those things doth the Lord hate: A proud Look, a lying Tongue, and Hands that shed innocent Blood.”
— Jonas Clark (1730-
** Wealth, personal and wealth of a nation
“The Ten Commandments and the Sermon on the Mount contain my religion…”
— John Adams (1797-
“The duties of men are summarily comprised in the Ten Commandments, consisting of two tables; one comprehending the duties which we owe immediately to God-
— Noah Webster (1758-
“The Law given from Sinai [The Ten Commandments] was a civil and municipal as well as a moral and religious code.”
— John Quincy Adams, (1767-
“It is our duty to endeavor always to promote the general good; to do to all as we would be willing to be done by were we in their circumstances; to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly before God. These are some of the laws of nature which every man in the world is bound to observe, and which whoever violates exposes himself to the resentment of mankind, the lashes of his own conscience, and the judgment of Heaven. This plainly shows that the highest state of liberty subjects us to the law of nature and the government of God.”
— Samuel West (1730-
“Self-
— Eldridge Gerry (1744–1814) Statesman, Diplomat, 5th Vice President of the U.S.
“The immediate gift of the Creator obliges every one…to resist the first approaches of tyranny, which at this day threaten to sweep away the rights for which the brave Sons of America have fought ….”
— Eldridge Gerry (1744–1814) Statesman, Diplomat, 5th Vice President of the U.S.
“The origin of government has in all ages no less perplexed the heads of lawyers and politicians than the origin of evil has embarrassed divines and philosophers … To those who lay the foundation of government in force and mere brutal power it is objected that their system destroys all distinction between right and wrong; that it overturns all morality, and leaves it to every man to do what is right in his own eyes; that it leads directly to skepticism, and ends in atheism. When a man’s will and pleasure is his only rule and guide, what safety can there be either for him or against him, but in the point of a sword?
Has it [government] any solid foundation, any chief cornerstone but what accident, chance, or confusion may lay one moment and destroy the next? I think it has an everlasting foundation in the unchangeable will of GOD, the author of nature, whose laws never vary. … Government is therefore most evidently founded on the necessities of our nature. It is by no means an arbitrary
The end of government being the good of mankind points out its great duties: it is above all things to provide for the security, the quiet, and happy enjoyment of life, liberty, and property. …Government is founded immediately on the necessities of human nature and ultimately on the will of God, the author of nature … The sum of my argument is: that civil government is of God.”
— James Otis (1725-1783) Early American Patriot, and Lawyer
“This is what is called the law of nature, “which, being coeval with mankind, and dictated by God himself, is, of course, superior in obligation to any other. It is binding over all the globe, in all countries, and at all times. No human laws are of any validity, if contrary to this; and such of them as are valid, derive all their authority, mediately, or immediately, from this original.”
— Sir William Blackstone (1723-
“We Americans are so used to [brain washed] thinking that government authority should come from the people that we might see nothing wrong with the political ramifications of Liberalism. We need to be reminded that all authority comes from God, and if authority is not exercised in harmony with God’s law, then it is not legitimate the standard is not,”Is it the will of the people?” but, “Is it the will of God?”
— Anne W. Carroll –
“Upon these two foundations, the law of nature and the law of revelation [the Bible], depend all human laws; that is to say, no human laws should be suffered to contradict these.”
— Sir William Blackstone (1723-
“Politics are a part of a religion in such a country as this, and Christians [& citizens] must do their duty to the country as a part of their duty to God. It seems sometimes as if the foundations of the nation are becoming rotten, and Christians [& citizens] seem to act as if they think God does not see what they do in politics. But I tell you He does see it, and He will bless or curse this nation, according to the course they take.”
— Reverend Charles G. Finney (1792-
“Government exist not so much to create laws as to secure laws, to apply God’s laws to general and specific situations, and to act as an impartial enforcer of such laws.”
— David A. Noebel (1937 –
“Blasphemy against the Almighty is denying his being or providence, or uttering contumacious [rebellious] reproaches on our Savior Christ. It is punished, at common law by fine and imprisonment, for Christianity is part of the law of the land.”
— Sir William Blackstone (1723-
“An unjust law is no law at all..”
— Saint Augustine (354-
“For we must consider that we shall be as a City upon a Hill, the eyes of all people are upon us;… Beloved there is now set before us life, and good, death and evil in that we are commanded this day to love the Lord our God, and to love one another to walk in his ways and to keep his commandments and his ordinance, and his laws, and the Articles of our Covenant with him that we may live and be multiplied, and that the Lord our God may bless us in the land whether we go to possess it: But if our hearts shall turn away so that we will not obey, but shall be seduced and worship other gods, our pleasures, and profits, and serve them, it is propounded unto us this day, we shall surely perish out of the good Land whether we pass over this vast Sea to possess it.”
— John Winthrop (1588-
“Any single man must judge for himself whether circumstances warrant obedience or resistance to the commands of the civil magistrate; we are all qualified, entitled, and morally obliged to evaluate the conduct of our rulers. This political judgment, moreover, is not simply or primarily a right, but like self-
— John Locke (1632-
“To instance in the case of murder: this is expressly forbidden by the divine, and demonstrably by the natural law; and from these prohibitions arises the true unlawfulness of this crime. Those human laws that annex a punishment to it do not at all increase its moral guilt, or superadd any fresh obligation in foro conscientice (in the court of conscience) to abstain from its perpetration. Nay, if any human law should allow or enjoin us to commit it, we arc bound to transgress that human law, or else we must offend both the natural and the divine. But with regard to matters that are in themselves indifferent, and are not commanded or forbidden by those superior laws; such, for instance, as exporting of wool into foreign countries; here the inferior legislature has scope and opportunity to interpose.”
— Sir William Blackstone (1723-
“The Christian religion, which ordains that men should love each other, would without doubt have every nation blest with the best civil, the best political laws; because these, next to this religion, are the greatest good that men can give and receive.”
— Barron Charles de Montesquieu (1689-
“The Fate of good men who refuse to become involved in politics is to be ruled by evil men.”
— Edmund Burke (1729-
“No government can have a right to obedience from a people who have not freely consented to it …whenever the legislators endeavour to take away, and destroy the property of the people, or to reduce them to slavery, under arbitrary power, they put themselves into a state of war with the people, who are thereupon absolved from any farther obedience, and are left to the common refuge which God hath provided for all men, against force and violence. I Whenever, therefore the legislative shall transgress this fundamental rule of society, either by ambition, fear, folly, or corruption endeavour to grasp themselves, or put into the hands of any other, an absolute power, over the lives, liberties, and estates of the people; by this breach of trust they forfeit the power the people had put into their hands for quite contrary ends, and it devolves to the people, who had a right to resume their original liberty, and, by the establishment of a new legislative (such as they should think fit) provide for their own safety and security, which is the end for which they are in society.”
— John Locke (1632-
“Power and the law are not synonymous. In truth they are frequently in opposition and irreconcilable. There is God’s Law from which all equitable laws of man emerge and by which men must live if they are not to die in oppression, chaos and despair. Divorces from God’s eternal and immutable Law, established before the founding of the suns, man’s power is evil no matter the noble words with which it is employed or the motives urged when enforcing it. Men of good will, mindful therefore of the Law laid down by God, will oppose government whose rule is by men and, if they wish to survive as a nation, they will destroy that government which attempts to adjudicate by the whim or power of venal judges.”
— Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-
“[It is not for man] to search human polities and platforms of government, contrived by the wisdom of man; but as the Lord hath carried on their works for them, so they ought to go unto the Lord, and enquire at the Word of his mouth, what platform of government he hath therein commanded and prescribed ; and humble themselves to embrace that as the best, how mean so ever it may seem to humane wisdom. Faith can see beauty, power and glory in any Divine institution, when humane wisdom may think it weak and contemptible.
There is undoubtedly a form of civil government instituted by God himself in the Holy Scriptures; whereby any nation may enjoy all the ends and effects of government in the best manner, were they but persuaded to make trial of it. We should derogate from the sufficiency and perfection of the Scriptures, if we should deny it. The scripture is able thoroughly to furnish the man of God (whether Magistrate in the Commonwealth, or elder in the Church, or any other) unto every good work. …
And when a Christian people are to choose their Government, should they take their patern from the Nations of the World (a), we know what an offence that would be to Christ, who intends to Rule them himself, by his own Divine Patern and Direction. … The Promise also of Gods blessing and protection is unto all those, who walk in Scripture-
[The] written Word of God is the perfect system or frame of Laws, to guide all the moral actions of man, either towards God or man.”
— John Eliot (1604-
“What God requires of individuals among themselves, he also requires of nations. What ever the moral duties are of people they are extended to nations. Because nations are corporate individuals on the world stage like individuals act in a neighborhood. The extension of foreign policy is merely the extension of what happens in private affairs to what happens in public affairs, all still covered by God.”
— Paul Jehle –
“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
— George Santayana (1863-
“What has religion to do with the State?” you ask. In the form of ecclesiastical alliances, nothing; but in its operation as a controlling, purifying power in the consciences of the people, we answer, it has every thing to do, it is the last hope of republics; and let it be remembered, if ever our ruin shall come, that the questions which agitate, the factions which distract, the convulsions which dissolve, will be but secondary causes. The true evil will lie back of these, in the moral debasement of the people; and no excellence of political institutions, no sagacity of human wisdom, which did not, like that of our Puritan fathers, begin and end with religion, could have averted the calamity.”
— The Christian Spectator 1829
“I would be the first to advocate obeying just laws. One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey just laws. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws. I would agree with St. Augustine that ‘an unjust law is no law at all.’
Now, what is the difference between the two? How does one determine whether a law is just or unjust? A just law is a man made code that squares with the moral law or the law of God. An unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law. To put it in the terms of St. Thomas Aquinas: An unjust law is a human law that is not rooted in eternal law and natural law. ….”
— Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929–1968) African-
“I believe that it is absolutely clear, in everything the Founders did, that they intended the Declaration to be a bridge between the Bible and the Constitution, between the basis of our moral faith and the basis of our political life. If we allow the bridge to be torn down, then what we will have is a chasm between this nation’s life and its moral foundations. And into that chasm will fall every hope we have for the future.”
— Alan Lee Keyes (1950) Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs and Author
“Since there is one God, therefore there is one law. There is one source of that law. There is one source of truth. All truth, all law, emanates from the one and only true God. And that’s what is says, you shall have no other Gods besides me. You shall have no other source of truth besides me. You shall have no other source of authority besides me. …
Who is the source of the law of your society? It is fundamental because the source of that society is the God of that society. The source of law in America was the Bible. … Unfortunately we have been putting aside the Bible as the source of our law; I am talking about civil law as well as personal and moral law. And we’ve been adopting this concept of evolutionally law or man centered law. We have put aside God but we have taken up the idea that I will be the source of law, five men on a court, or a legislature or as an individual. I will decide what is right and wrong, good and evil we don’t want God to do that. Any time you change a law system you are changing God and that is what we have been doing on the Twentieth century in America. …
What is the first amendment to our Constitution, what does it secure? Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof. In a way that presents the same concept as the first amendment. Congress does not have any authority over God. Congress cannot legislate matters that invalidate God in what he says in his truth. In a way so it repeats the First Commandments that principle in the first amendment to our Constitution. …
This teaches us that government’s authority is limited. Because if it unlimited they it is claiming to be God itself. In fact Jesus taught this … when the scribes and Pharisees were trying to trick him. They asked him if it was lawful to pay taxes. … Jesus said show me a coin and he asked whose image is on the coin and they said Cesar’s. … Then render to Cesar that which is Cesar’s and to God that which is God.
What he was saying is that Cesar represents civil government. He is saying civil government is a divine institution that has a legitimate function. But Cesar’s authority and power is limited. Because he said yes, we give to Cesar what belongs to him so he can fulfill his mission to protect the righteous … and punish the evil doer. … But Cesar’s authority is limited, because he said we render to God what is God’s. There are areas of life that are completely outside the authorty of civil government.
And this is in accord with the First Commandment. So civil government’s authority has to be limited or it is claiming to be God. Of course we know the history of man is that he has always attempted to be the sovereign, the one that is the source of law, and right and wrong, and morality or not in conflict with this first Commandment God gave us.” –
— Stephen McDowell –