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TOPIC: Luther, Martin - Table Talks (Other Topics in this Collection)
SUBJECT: 32. Of Princes and Potentates
Other Subjects in this Topic:
OF PRINCES AND POTENTATES.
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DCCXI.
Government is a sign of the divine grace, of the mercy of God, who has no
pleasure in murdering, killing, and strangling. If God left all things to go
which they would, as among the Turks and other nations, without good
government, we should quickly dispatch one another out of this world.
DCCXII.
Parents keep their children with greater diligence and care than rulers
and governors keep their subjects. Fathers and mothers are masters naturally
and willingly; it is a self-grown dominion; but rulers and magistrates have
a compulsory mastery; they act by force, with a prepared dominion; when
father and mother can rule no more, the public police must take the matter
in hand. Rulers and magistrates must watch over the sixth commandment.
DCCXIII.
The temporal magistrate is even like a fish net, set before the fish in
a pond or a lake, but God is the plunger, who drives the fish into it. For
when a thief, robber, adulterer, murderer, is ripe, he hunts him into the
net, that is, causes him to be taken by the magistrate, and punished; for it
is written: "God is judge upon earth." Therefore repent, or thou must be
punished.
DCCXIV.
Princes and rulers should maintain the laws and statutes, or they will
be condemned. They should, above all, hold the Gospel in honor, and bear it
ever in their hands, for it aids and preserves them, and ennobles the state
and office of magistracy, so that they know where their vocation and calling
is, and that with good and safe conscience they may execute the works of
their office. At Rome, the executioner always craved pardon of the condemned
malefactor, when he was to execute his office, as though he were doing
wrong, or sinning in executing the criminal; whereas `tis his proper office,
which God has set.
St Paul says: "He beareth not the sword in vain;" he is God's minister,
a revenger, to execute wrath upon him that does evil. When the magistrate
punishes, God himself punishes.
DCCXV.
It is impossible that where a prince or potentate is ungodly, his
counsellors should not be ungodly. As is the master, such are also his
servants. This follows necessarily and certainly. Solomon says: "A master
that hath pleasure in lying, his servants are ungodly;" it never fails.
DCCXVI.
The magistracy is a necessary state in the world, and to be held in
honor; therefore we ought to pray for magistrates, who may easily be
corrupted and spoiled. Honores mutant mores, numquam in meliores: Honors
alter a man's manners, and seldom for the better. The prince who governs
without laws, according to his own brain, is a monster, worse than a wild
beast; but he who governs according to the prescribed laws and rights, is
like unto God, who is an erector and founder of laws and rights.
DCCXVII.
Governors should be wise, of a courageous spirit, and should know how
to rule alone without their counsellors.
DCCXVIII.
Temporal government is preserved not only by laws and rights, but by
divine authority; `tis God maintains governments, otherwise the greatest
sins in the world would remain unpunished. Our Lord God, in the law, shows
what his will is, and how the evil should be punished. And forasmuch as the
law punishes not a potentate, prince, or ruler, therefore our Lord God, one
day, will call him to an account and punish him. In this life, governors and
rulers catch but only gnats and little flies with their laws, but the wasps
and great humble bees tear through, as through a cobweb; that is, the small
offences and offenders are punished, but the abominable extortioners and
oppressors who grind the faces of the poor, the fatherless and widows, go
scotfree, and are held in high honor.
DCCXIX.
To the business of government appertain, not common, illiterate people,
or servants, but champions; understanding, wise, and courageous men, who are
to be trusted, and who aim at the common good and prosperity, not seeking
their own gain and profit, or following their own desires, pleasures, and
delights; but how few governors and rulers think hereon? They make a trade
and traffic of government; they cannot govern themselves: how, then, should
they govern great territories and multitudes of people. Solomon says: "A man
that can rule and curb his mind, is better than he that assaulteth and
overcometh cities." etc..
I could well wish that Scipio, that much-honored champion, were in
heaven; he was able to govern and overcome himself, and to curb his mind,
the highest and most laudable victory. Frederick, prince elector of Saxony,
was another such prince; he could curb himself, though by nature of an angry
mood. In the song of Solomon, it is said: "My vineyard which is mine, is
before me;" that is, God has taken the government to himself, to the end no
man may brag and boast thereof. God will be the king and ruler; he will be
minister and pastor; he will be master in the house; he alone will be
governor; pastor, espiscopus, Caesar, rex, vir et uxor errant, sed non Deus.
DCCXX.
Potentates and princes, nowadays, when they take in hand an enterprise,
do not pray before they begin, but set to work calculating: three time three
makes nine, twice seven are fourteen - so and so will do so and so - in this
manner will the business surely take effect - but our Lord God says unto
them: For whom, then, do ye hold me? for a cypher? Do I sit here above in
vain, and to no purpose? You shall know, that I will twist your accounts
about finely, and make the mall false reckonings.
DCCXXI.
Pilate was a more honest and just man than any papist prince of the
empire. I could name many of these, who are in no degree comparable with
Pilate; for he kept strictly to the Roman laws. He would not that the
innocent should be executed and slain without hearing, and he availed
himself of all just means whereby to release Christ; but when they
threatened him with the emperor's disfavor, he was dazzled, and forsook the
imperial laws, thinking, it is but the loss of one man, who is both poor and
condemned; no man takes his part; what hurt can I receive by his death?
Better it is that one man die, than that the whole nation be against me.
Dr. Mathesius and Pomer debated this question, why Pilate scourged
Christ, and asked: What is truth? The former argued that Pilate did i out of
compassion; but the other, that it was done out of tyranny and contempt.
Whereupon Luther said: Pilate scourged Christ out of compassion, to the end
he might still thereby, the insatiable wrath and raging of the Jews. And in
that he said to Christ: What is truth: he meant: Why wilt thou dispute
concerning truth in these wicked times? Truth is here of no value. Thou must
think of some other plan; adopt some lawyer's quiddity, and then, perchance,
thou mayest be released.
DCCXXII.
Philip Melancthon and myself have justly deserved at God's hands, as
much riches in this world as any one cardinal possesses; for we have done
more in his business than a hundred cardinals. But God says unto us: Be
contented that ye have me. When we have him, then have we also the purse;
for although we had the purse and had not God, so had we nothing.
God said to Ezekiel: "Thou son of man, Nebuchadnezzar caused his army
to serve a great service against Tyre, yet he had no wages; what shall I
give him? I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar, that shall be his
wages." So plays God with great kingdoms, taking them from one, and giving
them to another.
DCCXXIII.
At the imperial diet, at Augsburg, certain princes there spoke in
praise of the riches and advantages of their respective principalities. The
prince elector of Saxony said: He had, in his country, store of silver
mines, which brought him great revenues. The prince elector palatine
extolled his vineyards on the Rhine. When it became the turn of Eberhard,
prince of Wirtemberg, he said: "I am, indeed, but a poor prince, and not to
be compared with either of you; yet, nevertheless, I have also in my country
a rich and precious jewel; namely, that if at any time I should ride astray
in my country, and were left all alone in the fields, yet I could safely and
securely sleep in the bosom of any one of my subjects, who all, for my
service, are ready to venture body, goods, and blood." And, indeed, his
people esteemed him as a pater patrice. When the other two princes heard
this, they confessed that, in truth, his was the most rich and precious
jewel.
DCCXXIV.
I invited to dinner, at my house at Wittenberg, prince Ernest of
Luneburg, and prince William of Mecklenburg, who much complained of the
immeasurable swilling and drinking kind of life at courts; and yet they will
all be good Christians. I said: The potentates and princes ought to look
into this. Then prince Ernest said: Ah! sir, we that are princes do even so
ourselves, otherwise `twould have gone down long since; confessing that the
intemperance of princes caused the intemperance of the people. And truly,
when the abbot throws the dice, the whole convent will play. The example of
governors greatly influences the subjects.
DCXXV.
Some one asked, whether Sir Thomas More was executed for the Gospel's
sake or no? I answered: No, in no wise; he was a cruel tyrant; he was the
king's chief counsellor; a very learned and wise man, doubtless, but he shed
the blood of many innocent Christians that confessed the Gospel; he
tormented them with strange instruments, like a hangman; first, he
personally examined them under a green tree, and then cruelly tortured them
in prison. At last, he opposed the edict of the king and kingdom. He was
disobedient, and was punished.
DCCXXVI.
We have this advantage; no council has condemned us for heretics; the
laws of the empire define a heretic to be one who obstinately maintains
errors, which we have never done, but have shown and produced witnesses out
of God's Word, and the Holy Scriptures; we willingly hear the opinions of
others, but we will not endure the pope to be judge; we make him a party.
DCCXXVII.
The emperor Maximilian in his campaigns was very superstitious. In
times of danger, he would make a vow to offer up as sacrifice what first met
him. One of his captains had taken captive a very fair virgin of an ancient
family in Germany, and of the protestant religion, whom he loved
exceedingly; but he was forced by the emperor to kill her with his own
hands. We Christians have a great advantage in war against our enemies, that
of faith in prayer, whereas the infidels know nothing of faith or prayer.
DCCXXVIII.
Not long since king Ferdinand came into a monastery where I was, and
going over it was attracted by these letters, written in large characters on
a wall: "M.N.M.G.M.M.M.M" After reflecting for some time on their meaning,
he turned to his secretary, and asked him what he thought they signified:
the secretary replied: "No, truly," said the king. "Well, then," returned
the secretary, I expound the letters thus: M.N. Mentitur Nausea (the
archbishop of Vienna); M.G. Mentitur Gallus (the court preacher); M.M.M.M.
Mentiuntur Majores (the Franciscans); Minores, (the Carmelites); Minotaurii
(monks of the Alps); all are liars." The king hit his lips, and passed on.
`Twas a very ingenious explanation of Mr. Secretary's.
DCCXXIX.
Princes, nowadays, have no order in the administration of their
household. Four imperial towns spend more in luxuries and junkettings in one
day, than Solomon spent, throughout all his kingdom, in a month. They are
poor creatures, these princes, well entitled to our compassion.
DCCXXX.
God deals with great potentates, kings, and princes, even as children
with playing cards. While they have good cards, they hold them in their
hands; when they had bad, they get weary of them, and throw them under the
chair; just so does God with great potentates; while they are governing
well, he holds them for good; but so soon as they exceed, and govern ill, he
throws them down from their seat, and there he lets them lie.