— Written by Dr. Marcus J. Serven
“Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way.” Psalm 2:12a
One of the practical applications that John Knox (c.1514-1572), the famous Scottish Reformer, developed in his theology was the Bible’s teaching on the lesser magistrate. Knox believed that all magistrates serve at God’s good pleasure and therefore are responsible to God for upholding and enforcing his holy law (Rom. 13:1-4; 1 Pet. 2:13-14). Moreover, the subjects of magistrates are obligated to honor and support them as they engage in their duties. Knox understood that all magistrates, however, would be held accountable by God when they disobey His holy Law (Ps. 2:10-12; Jer. 37:1-21). He argues,
“…for it is a thing more than certain, that whatsoever God required of the civil magistrate in Israel or Judah, concerning the observation of true religion during the time of the law, the same does he require of lawful magistrates professing Christ Jesus in the time of the gospel, as the Holy Ghost has taught us by the mouth of David, saying, Psalm 2, ‘Be learned you that judge the earth. Kiss the Son, lest that the Lord wax angry, and that ye perish from the way.’ This admonition did not extend to the judges under the law only, but also does include all such as be promoted to honours in the time of the gospel, when Christ Jesus does reign and fight in his spiritual kingdom, whose enemies in the Psalm are first most sharply taxed, their fury expressed, and vanity mocked; and then are the kings and judges, who think themselves free from all law and obedience, commanded to serve the Eternal in fear, to rejoice before him in trembling, to kiss the Son (that is, to give unto him most humble obedience): whereof it is evident that the rulers, magistrates, and judges, now in Christ’s kingdom, are no less bound to obedience unto God, than were those under the law.”
Knox, “The Appellation” in Selected Writings of John Knox, 499-500
Thus, all magistrates are not to govern arbitrarily, nor are they free to establish their own laws according to their own pleasure. They must uphold the righteous standard that has been instituted by God himself, or suffer His judgements. In essence, the Bible teaches that there is a “higher law” (i.e. God’s Law) that is above any of the laws of men which may have been legislated under the magistrate’s authority (Exod. 20:1-17 ; Deut. 5:6-21; Matt. 22:34-40). This “higher law” regulates the activities of the magistrate as well as the activities of the people. All are responsible to God; both the magistrates and the people. But the magistrate bears a special responsibility before God to uphold a righteous standard. With this concept in mind, Knox addresses the magistrates with these persuasive words,
Consider, my lords, that you are powers ordained by God (as before is declared), and therefore does the reformation of religion, and the defense of such as unjustly are oppressed, appertain to your charge and care, which thing shall the law of God, universally given to be kept of all men, most evidently declare; which is my last and most assured reason, why, I say, you ought to remove from honours and punish with death such as God has condemned by his own mouth.”
Knox, “The Appellation” in Selected Writings of John Knox, 508
Therefore, Knox argues that evil and tyrannical magistrates—whether they are kings, queens, princes, nobles, or judges—in certain select circumstances, can be resisted by the citizenry. The people are not free to wantonly rebel against unrighteous magistrates. They can, however, after a lengthy season of prayer and exemplary patience remove unrighteous magistrates from their office as long as they are led by duly established “lesser magistrates” (i.e. Knox calls this the doctrine of “interposition”). In brief, only these “lesser magistrates” can lead the people in removing the “greater magistrates.” In the face of persistent evil activity, Knox insisted that it actually was the duty of godly citizens to remove evil and tyrannical leaders. As well, the lesser magistrates had the responsibility (or duty) of leading the people in removing unrighteous greater magistrates. Under these parameters the action of removing an unrighteous magistrate is not wanton rebellion, but it is a godly response to wickedness and tyranny. Dr. Joseph Morecraft summarizes this position,
Knox’s major contribution to the Reformation and to Western Civilization was his teaching on the legitimacy of resistance against tyranny, including the use of armed force by the citizenry, led by a lesser magistrate, against a tyrannical or idolatrous head of state, after all others efforts have failed. Christian citizens and lesser magistrates have the duty to remove tyrants from office. Moreover, armed resistance is justifiable, according to Knox, only if two preconditions have been met: “the first of which was the trying of other means, including prayer and patience. The second condition was that armed resistance must be led by legitimate lesser magistrates…” Knox cited Jeremiah 37 as the scriptural basis for ministers advocating resistance against tyrannical authorities. Knox was not a revolutionary, however, as his life and sermons prove. Although he believed that resistance to tyranny was every Christian’s duty, he could also say, “We mean neyther seditions, neyther yit rebellion against any just and lauchfull authorities, but onlie the advancement of Christes religion, and the liberties of this poore Realme.”
Morecraft, “Calvin’s Influence on Scotland” in John Calvin: Man of the Millennium, 270-271
It was this kind of practical application of the Bible’s teaching on resisting tyrannical rulers that resulted in the rapid progress of liberty throughout the Western world. Evil and tyrannical governments were resisted and thrown off in Scotland, England, France, Germany, Holland, and at a later time in the American Colonies during the Revolutionary War. Other theologians who followed after John Knox would further develop the details of his political theology, but the original seed came from Knox as he struggled with how to bring religious liberty to Scotland, his own beloved country.
One example of Knox’s theology of resistance to tyrants can be found in his personal relationship with Mary, Queen of Scots. Prior to Mary’s arrival in Scotland as the new regent, the Scottish Parliament in 1560 determined to adopt the Scots Confession which rejected Roman Catholicism and replaced it with the Reformed faith. As a result, the observance of the Roman Catholic Mass was condemned throughout the country. Those who led the Mass were placed under the penalty of death, and those who participated in it were liable to imprisonment. Queen Mary had been raised in France as a dedicated Roman Catholic. When she returned to Scotland in 1561, some in the Scottish Parliament granted her the concession to hold a private Mass led by her own personal Chaplain in Holyrood Palace, Edinburgh. Others in the Scottish Parliament strongly disapproved of this concession and threatened Queen Mary with arrest. In the midst of this turmoil, since John Knox had preached against her holding a private Mass, Queen Mary invited Knox to give an answer for his perceived rebellious attitude. These proved to be stormy sessions, but they served to clarify Knox’s theology and they forced Mary to come to grips with the reality that many of her subjects had an extreme distaste toward her practice of observing Mass in her own private quarters. Many Scots agreed with Knox’s view that the Mass was idolatrous, and they were offended that their sovereign—Mary, Queen of Scots—would participate in such a practice. They also worried that Mary would seek to reimpose Roman Catholicism upon Scotland, and that they would be forced to worship as she did. Many of the Scots had at that time resolved to worship God only according to the teachings of the Bible, and not by the traditions of men. Dr. Richard Greaves explains,
In September 1561 Mary inquired of him if subjects could resist their sovereigns. Knox’s reply implied the existence of a covenant between God and temporal princes. If the latter exceeded the bounds imposed on them by God, subjects had to disobey because of their duty to obey God. Princes who persecuted Protestants were, in their blind zeal, subject to a mad frenzy, and had to be restrained by their subjects until their minds became sober…He repeated his beliefs to Mary again in 1563, but explicitly warned her that idolaters could be lawfully executed by believers…Knox also called attention to the mutual covenant between sovereigns and subjects, and clearly affirmed the right of subjects to disobey if sovereigns did not fulfill their obligations, which he summarized as protection and defense against evil doers. “Consider…what it is that ye aught to do unto them by mutual contract. They are bound to obey you, and that not but in God. Ye are bound to keep laws unto them. Ye crave of them service: they crave of you protection and defense against wicked doers.” If Mary failed to fulfill her duty to her subjects, she would not receive their full obedience. On that note the interview concluded.
Greaves, Theology & Revolution in the Scottish Reformation, 141-142
Hence, we can see how the theology of John Knox had a demonstrative impact in his relations with Mary, Queen of Scots. He urged her to repent of her idolatry. She urged him to not rebel against her authority. In their clash, we witness an example of the progress of liberty in Scotland: the Parliament resolved (1) that the regent could no longer determine the religion of the subjects, and (2) that the religious convictions of the populace over-ruled the religious practices of the regent. At that time, it must be acknowledged, that many Scots desired to live as free men and women when it came to the practice of their religion. The Scottish Reformation was built upon such a strong desire.
In subsequent years the rallying cry of the Scottish Covenanters would express these same sentiments: the motto “For Christ’s Crown and Covenant” affirmed that only Jesus Christ was the head of the church (or Kirk). It was due to the efforts of John Knox that liberty in Scotland came about. His emphasis on the responsibilities of the “lesser magistrates” to overthrow tyrannical “greater magistrates” furthered the cause of religious freedom in Scotland. Beyond that, the lawful resistance of tyrants became a foundational concept that was applied in many nations over the next century in the progress of liberty.
An Addendum:
I am indebted to Dr. Joseph Morecraft, III, for his fine summary of John Knox’s view of the covenantal nature of civil government. Here it is…
“The Covenantal Basis of Civil Government”
by Dr. Joseph Morecraft, III
“Knox taught that a just civil government is covenantal, or federal, i.e. based on a series of covenants that define its authority, limitations, functions, powers, and responsibilities. According to Knox:
— The civil magistrate is in covenant with God, promising to rule according to His revealed Law and to oppose idolatry, (2 Kings 23:1-3).
— The civil magistrate is in covenant with the people, promising to rule over them righteously and for their protection, (2 Chronicles 15).
— The people are in covenant with the civil magistrate, promising to submit to his righteous government, as long as he is faithful to his covenants, (2 Chronicles 15).
— The people are in covenant with God, promising to be His faithful people, Exodus 34. This federal approach to civil government is the legal basis for our Declaration of Independence of 1776.”
Source: Dr. Joseph Morecraft III, “Calvin’s Influence on Scotland” in John Calvin: Man of the Millennium (San Antonio, TX: The Vision Forum, Inc., 2008), 269-271.
Select Biography:
Bond, Douglas. The Mighty Weakness of John Knox. Orlando, FL: Reformation Trust Publishing, 2011.
Dawson, Jane. “Right of Resistance” in Encyclopedia of the Reformed Faith. Donald K. McKim, ed. Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1992.
Greaves, Richard L. Theology & Revolution in the Scottish Reformation: Studies in the Thought of John Knox. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1980.
Kelly, Douglas F. The Emergence of Liberty in the Modern World. Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 1992.
Kirk, James. “Scottish Reformation” in Encyclopedia of the Reformed Faith. Donald K. McKim, ed. Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1992.
Knox, John. “The Appellation Addressed to the Nobility and Estates of Scotland” in Selected Writings of John Knox. Kevin Reed, ed. Dallas, TX: Presbyterian Heritage Publications, 1995.
Kyle, Richard J. “John Knox” in Encyclopedia of the Reformed Faith. Donald K. McKim, ed. Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1992.
McCrie, Thomas. The Life of John Knox. Glasgow, Scotland: Free Presbyterian Publications, 1811; Reprint 1991.
McCrie, Thomas. The Story of the Scottish Church. London, Great Britain: Blackie and Son, 1875; Glasgow, Scotland: Free Presbyterian Publications, Reprint 1988.
Morecraft, III, Joseph. “Calvin’s Influence on Scotland” in John Calvin: Man of the Millennium. San Antonio, TX: The Vision Forum Inc., 2008.
Reid, W. Stanford. Trumpeter of God: A Biography of John Knox. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1974.
Trewella, Matthew J. The Doctrine of the Lesser Magistrates: A Proper Resistance to Tyranny and a Repudiation of the Unlimited Obedience to Civil Government. North Charleston, SC: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2013.
Rev. Dr. Marcus J. Serven, ThM and DMin
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John Calvin (1509-1564)
