Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free,[a] and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.
-Galatians 5.1
Rebellion to Tyrants is Obedience to God
You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men.
-1 Corinthians 7.23
it is better to trust in the Lord
Than to put confidence in princes
-Psalm 118.9
To Him who divided the Red Sea in two, For His mercy endures forever; 14 And made Israel pass through the midst of it, For His mercy endures forever; 15 But overthrew Pharaoh and his army in the Red Sea,For His mercy endures forever; 16 To Him who led His people through the wilderness,For His mercy endures forever;17 To Him who struck down great kings, For His mercy endures forever; 18 And slew famous kings,For His mercy endures forever—
-Psalm 136 13-18
The kings of the earth set themselves,And the rulers take counsel together, Against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying,3 “Let us break Their bonds in pieces And cast away Their cords from us.”
-Psalm 2 2-3
The original American motto was “rebellion to tyrants is obedience to god” with a picture of Moses drowning pharaohs army in the red sea. Israel could either follow Moses and God into the promise land under his authority and law, or they could return to Egypt under a tyrannical form of government under pharaoh. A biblical principle is to overcome evil with good Rom 12 17-21 1 Peter 2 21-24. God looks for people to oppose injustice Ezk 22 29-20 such as tyrants.
“As government actions become more and more evil, the cause of resistance towards government becomes more and more righteous .”
-Timothy and Chuck Baldwin Romans 13 the True Meaning of Submission
“The duty to resist unjust law is the product of christian thought.”
--Matthew J Trewhella The Doctrine of the Lesser Magistrates A Proper resistance to Tyranny and a Repudiation of Unlimited Obedience to Civil Government
You overcome tyrannical governments with Gods law of liberty James 1.5. God gave his preferred governmental system in the old Testament. The purpose of the law is to restrain evil men, not to give evil men Gods ordination. God himself overthrow many tyrannical governments and instituted those who would follow his whole law James 2.10. His laws and not mans should be followed
Then Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered and dispersed among the people in all the provinces of your kingdom; their laws are different from all other people’s, and they do not keep the king’s laws. Therefore it is not fitting for the king to let them remain.
-Ester 3.8
God gave rights and liberty to man being created in his image that are not to be violated by man. A violation of a God given unalienable right is a violation of man being created in the image of God. So man made government that has violated Gods laws for mankind is in rebellion towards the King of Kings. Any nation that follows Gods law will be blessed Deuteronomy 28.1-14 Psalm 33.12 and any nation that does not, will be cursed Deuteronomy 6 15-57.
They set up kings without my consent;
they choose princes without my approval.
-Hosea 8.4
It is an abomination to kings to do evil,
for the throne is established by righteousness.
-Proverbs 16.12
Like a roaring lion or a charging bear
is a wicked ruler over a poor people.
-Proverbs 28.15
There are reasons for just war Ecclesiastes 3.8 proverbs 20.18 24.6 Numbers 21 21-24 Luke 14.32 Exodus 22.2 and the conquest narratives for example. Jesus himself is often armed with a sword rev 19, 1 Chronicles 21:16, Joshua 5.13, Numbers 22.23 and others. In Judges 5.23 God condemns the Meroz who refused to fight his enemies. Jael was praised for killing the Canaanite general Sisera by driving a tent peg through his skull. God himself overthrow governments multiple times in the old Testament even by the use of warfare.
The LORD is a man of war
-Exodus 15.3
Cursed is he who does the work of the Lord deceitfully,
And cursed is he who keeps back his sword from blood.
-Jeremiah 48.10
Stephen and Paul affirmed and commended Israel for fighting in those OT wars in acts 7.46 13 19 and Heb 11 33-34. God raised up Moses, Gideon, Ehud, Jephthah, Sampson, Esther, and Deborah to trow off tyrannical governments and restore Israel to the king of kings, and they were all praised in Hebrews 11.
23 But Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, nor shall my son rule over you; the Lord shall rule over you.”
-Judges 8.23
When Jesus returns he will overthrow the governments of the world united against him.
Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him [Jesus] was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war.... out of His mouth goes a sharp[g] sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.... the rest were killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse. And all the birds were filled with their flesh.
-Revelations 19
Other forms of resistance in the bible took place such as In acts chapter 5 Peter replied to the officials “We must obey God rather than human beings!” and they put Gods word above mans Acts 4.19. 2 Kings 11 the tyrant queen Athaliah declared treason against those who followed God and Jehoiada the priest had her executed. In Daniel 6 the prophet hears of an unjust law, and deliberate and openly rebels against the law that contradicted gods law. Jeremiah was arrested for treason for preaching gods word calling on Israel to surrender instead of going to war as the king wanted. Rahab disobeyed her king and was praised in Hebrews 11 and James 2.25 as did the midwives Hebrews 11.23. Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-dgo disobeyed government authority. In 1 Kings 21 Elijah is “the enemy” of the king Ahab. In 2 Kings 1 the king sends captains to Elijah to come down from the hill to speak with the king [a very easy reasonable request]. Elijah and the angel of the lord [Jesus] by killing the kings men twice for a total of 100 men. Peter disobeyed authority in Acts 5.29. And the men of god withstood king Uzziah
18 And they withstood King Uzziah, and said to him, “It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord, but for the priests, the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Get out of the sanctuary, for you have trespassed! You shall have no honor from the Lord God.”
-2 chronicles 26.18
“When the state commands that which God forbids, or forbids that which god commands, we are to obey God rather than man.”
-Matthew J Trewhella The Doctrine of the Lesser Magistrates A Proper resistance to Tyranny and a Repudiation of Unlimited Obedience to Civil Government
God often sent prophets to Kings who stepped outside of gods law. Samuel was sent to confront Saul, Nathan and Gad to David, Isiah to Manasseh. The apostles were in and out of jail and killed for perching Jesus. In 2 Corinthians 11 32-33 Paul escaped government officials rather than submit. In Acts 16 Paul ans Silas refused orders and told the magistrates to see them face and admit their unjust imprisonment. Jesus resisted authorities when they often tried to kill him. Instead of submitting to Herod's massacre of the babies of Bethlehem, Joesph obeyed god and brought his family to Egypt. The early Christians fled instead of submitting to injustice Matt 10.23. Jesus was killed for treason and crucified “king of the Jews” as there was no king but Cesar. Paul preached Jesus as king and was accused of treason
and Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus.
-Acts 17.7
And they began to accuse Him, saying, “We found this fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar, saying that He Himself is Christ, a King.
-Luke 23.2
The Maccabees Revolt
Praise be to the LORD my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle.
-Psalm 144.1
Let the godly exult in glory;
let them sing for joy on their beds.
6 Let the high praises of God be in their throats
and two-edged swords in their hands,
7 to execute vengeance on the nations
and punishments on the peoples,
8 to bind their kings with chains
and their nobles with fetters of iron,
9 to execute on them the judgment written!
This is honor for all his godly ones.
Praise the Lord!
-Psalm 149 5-9
Jesus celebrated Hanukkah [festival of lights/ festival of dedication] in remembrance of the Maccabees refusal to confirm to the pagan government and society. The Maccabees are praised in the “hall of faith” in Hebrews 11 35-36 and v 38. In the books of Maccabees the Greek government over Israel sought to outlaw Judaism and assimilate Jews into the Greek culture so they would not be so rebellious. “Those who obey the Torah rather than the king were publicly put to death.” “Jerusalem was no longer free but became a slave.” The government authority wanted to recreate Jews in its own image as all centralized nations do 1 Macc 1.41. Those Jews that conformed with Greek culture and obeyed the government, were those who “hated their own nation.”
In this climate comes the celebrated Maccabees who fought a war of resistance against Greek rule who stayed separate as a people following the laws of Moses and would not conform to the governments demands. They fought battles and recaptured the temple. In 1 Macc 2 19-22 the Maccabees followed Moses laws and ordinances not the Kings. And in v 24 Mattathias driven by a righteous anger killed a assimilated Jew and one of the Kings officials and torn down government placed alters. In short
“They rescued the law out of the hands of the Gentiles and kings, and they never let the sinner gain the upper hand.”
-1 Macc 2.48
These were the actions of those praised in Hebrews 11 and that Jesus found cause to celebrate. And according to the Talmud, God did a miracle to keep the Menorah lit for eight days for those brave men who loved God more than Government.
Be strong, and let us fight bravely for our people and the cities of our God. The Lord will do what is good in his sight.”
-2 Samuel 10.12
The American Revolution and the The Black Robed Regiment
It is time for You to act, O Lord,
For they have regarded Your law as void.
-Psalm 119.126
“The American revolution occurred in a religious atmosphere...historical truth that religion was a fundamental cause of the American Revolution.”
-Carl Bridenbaugh historian
“The righteous rebellion began in the churches before the streets of Boston...in 1776 mixing religion and politics was a common as drinking smuggled tea. The colonial clergy created the religious climate that made it possible for an American revolution to take place.”
-James Adams author journalist
The Bible and minsters, more than anything else, inspired patriotism to the revolution. In the great book by James P Byrd Sacred Scripture Sacred war the bible and the American Revolution Oxford u Press 2013, the author looks at 17,000 biblical citations, and over 500 sources from the colonies to find what was the major motivator for patriots in the revolution, the Bible was hands down the top motivator. The clergy had the most impact on how Americans viewed the war.
“The bible was accepted as the ultimate authority on economics and politics no less than on religion and morals.”
-Historian Christopher hill
As Byrd said “preachers turned their pulpits into weapons” igniting rebellion in the colonies to British tyrannical governmental policies. Pastors most often sited examples such as David, Deborah and Jael and the curse of Meroz in Judges 4-5, Moses and Exodus 14-15, Dut 32, 1 kings 12, 2 Sam 10.12, Jer 48.10 and many others as justification for the revolution. Further
“Rehoboam justified rebellion against a king....if any government violated the precepts of god and liberty, the people were obliged to rebel.”
-James P Byrd Sacred Scripture Sacred war the bible and the American Revolution Oxford u Press 2013
God ordained government as the family and church, why than would he tell Christians to stay out of government? The pastors in America understood that tyranny at any level, left unchecked, would grow to tyranny against the church, and finally the gospel [we are seeing this in America today]. If the state is elevated above the family and church, it will in time wipe out those opposing god ordained institutions. That is why centralized government always attack the family and the church. It should not be allowed outside its biblical guidelines. If the state becomes the authority instead of the bible on what the state can do, than because there is no higher authority, than the government thinks itself god. There is nothing it cannot touch. It can take away any right from anyone. It thinks it must not just solve all the ills in the country, it must control all modes of behavior and set its own standards. It will regulate the lives to conform to its own image that is beneficial to itself, resulting in more power to itself. People became servants of the state rather than the government servants of its citizens.
“It was the clergy who made the revolution meaningful for most common people.”
-Gordon S Wood The Great Republic history of the American People
“Colonist revered the bible...not only as a moral and religious guide but also as an authority on warfare.”
-James P Byrd Sacred Scripture Sacred war the bible and the American Revolution Oxford u Press 2013
This is in drastic contrast to the founders who's view was Governments are instituted among men to protect those unalienable rights that come from a higher authority than man, that is god. The founders constantly acknowledged that biblical higher power that they were accountable to. Man was not the ultimate authority in fact all men were created equal. This philosophy that reorganizes a creator, produces a limited government. Government is not the ultimate authority but is to protect all citizens god given liberty as described in the bible. It also believes that man should alter and abolish a government that is destructive to those rights of the people.
“Pastors were the leaders of the revolution”
-David Barton The American Heritage Series
“Not only were minsters responsible for this kind of political speech, but they were leaders in it.”
-James P Byrd Sacred Scripture Sacred war the bible and the American Revolution Oxford u Press 2013
“England sent her armies to compel submission, and the colonists appealed to haven.”
-John Thornton historian 1860
The black robed regiment was what the British during the American revolution called pastors who would lead their congregations out on the field of battle in their black robes. The British blamed the revolution on the pastors in America and treated them worse when captured compared to a regular soldier. They were blamed for leading the recruiting, and igniting the war. Churches were targeted and burned across America or converted into horse stables. When the British landed in NY of the 19 churches 10 were burned and 9 were desecrated. King George said of the revolution “This is nothing more than a Presbyterian rebellion.” A British major said to colonial prisoners “It is your...damned religion of this country that ruined this country....damn your religion.”
3 when he sees the sword coming upon the land, if he blows the trumpet and warns the people, 4 then whoever hears the sound of the trumpet and does not take warning, if the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be on his own head. 5 He heard the sound of the trumpet, but did not take warning; his blood shall be upon himself. But he who takes warning will save his life. 6 But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, and the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at the watchman’s hand.’
-Ezekiel 33 3-6
The pastors of early America saw themselves as shepherds of gods people and the watchmen of their flock in Ezekiel 33. When they saw an evil coming contrary to the bible, no mater from what sector, they sounded the alarm. Everything in the declaration of Independence such as all men created equal, the consent of the governed etc was already preached widely by pastors before 1776 for proper biblical government. Likewise what the British were doing such as taxation without representation and the stamp act were shown to be forms of tyranny in the bible. These were the topics of many sermons in America that incited people towards the revolution. The reverend John Wise who preached these sermons was credited with the ideas that formed the declaration of independence. When John Adams was asked who was most responsible for the revolution he named the Rev Samuel Cooper, the rev John Mayhew, the Rev George Witfeild, and the Rev Charles Chauncy.
“The preachers of the revolution did not hesitate to attack the great political and social evils of their day.”
-Frank Moore historian 1862
In Paul Reverse famous ride he rode to the home of the rev Jonas Clark to warn the British were coming. The reason being Clark was the most important political figure in the area in Lexington and Sam Adams and John Hancock were at his house as they often were. Clark helped write the resolution for Massachusetts to separate from britian and also his state constitution. When word came that the British were coming Adams and Hancock asked Clark are your men ready? He answered “ I trained them for this very hour.” The alarm bells rang, the bells were from Clarks church where he was pastor to worn the people and to assembled outside the church. 150 people gathered at the church all men from his congregation and they go off to resits the British. Clark tells his men to let the British firs first because God would not bless an offensive war but you can defend yourself.
Other pastors like John Muhlenburg of Virginia helped raise units and eventually earned the rank of major general. While pasturing his church Muhlenburg gave his last sermon by reading from Ecclesiastes 3 declaring there is a time for peace, but that time is know gone, know is a time for war. He took off his robes and underneath he was wearing his military uniform with his pistols, he asked his congregation, who will come with me? 300 of his congregation joined him. His brother Frederick was also a pastor and while pastor served as Americas first speaker of the house of representatives. Pastor James Calwdell would fight during the week and than give sermons on sundays fully armed with two pistols daring anyone to take them from him while giving the sermon. Once a battle happened outside his church and him and his congregation were running out of wadding so he ran into the church grabbed the hymnals by Isaac Watts, and yelled “give them watts”.
“No class of men contributed more to carry forward the revolution and to achieve our independence than did the ministers.”
-B.F Morris historian 1864
“Preachers were the staunchest defenders of the cause of America.”
-James P Byrd Sacred Scripture Sacred war the bible and the American Revolution Oxford u Press 2013
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