hough he were none other than a civil magistrate, yet as
soon as he was chosen by God, and set as a ruler over the people, he
received commandments specially touching religion and the service of God.
King David, when the whole religion was altogether brought out of frame
by wicked king Saul, brought home again the Ark of God; that is to say,
he restored religion again; and was not only amongst them himself as a
counsellor and furtherer of the work, but he appointed also hymns and
psalms, put in order the companies, and was the only doer in setting
forth that whole solemn show, and in effect ruled the priests. King
Solomon built unto the Lord the Temple which his father David had but
purposed in his mind to do: and after the finishing thereof, he made a
goodly oration to the people concerning religion and the service of God:
he afterward displaced Abiathar the priest, and set Sadok in his place.
After this, when the Temple of God was in shameful wise polluted through
the naughtiness and negligence of the priests, King Hezekiah commanded
the same to be cleansed from the rubble and filth, the priests to light
up candles, to burn incense, and to do their Divine service according to
the old and allowed custom; the same king also commanded the brazen
serpent, which then the people wickedly worshipped, to be taken, down and
beaten to powder. King Jehoshaphat overthrew and utterly made away the
hill altars and groves; whereby he saw God's honour hindered and the
people holden back with a private superstition from the ordinary Temple,
which was at Jerusalem, whereto they should by order have resorted yearly
from every part of the realm. King Josiah with great diligence put the
priests and bishops in mind of their duties; King Joash bridled the riot
and arrogancy of the priests; Jehu put to death the wicked prophets.

And to rehearse no more examples out of the old law, let us rather
consider, since the birth of Christ, how the Church hath been governed in
the Gospel's time. The Christian emperors in the old time appointed the
councils of the bishops. Constantine called the council at Nice;
Theodosius the First called the council at Constantinople; Theodosius the
Second, the council at Ephesus; Martian, the council at Chalcedon; and
when Ruffine the heretic had alleged for authority a council which, as he
thought, should make for him, St. Hierom his adversary, to confute him,
"Tell us," quod he, "what emperor commanded that co