Guide, and demanded a king. Was there ever a case of man's so directly casting away blessings, and throwing himself into miseries? Through the prophet Samuel, the Lord warned them of the danger they incurred, and foretold the hardships they would suffer, and the tyrannical treatment they would subject themselves to, if their desire was complied with. But all in vain:—they still demanded a king: they bound their necks to the yoke; they would be slaves. They were allowed their desire; for the very fact of their having such a desire, and insisting upon its being gratified, was proof that they were not in a fit state to be ruled in any better manner: they would submit to no other rule. Thus is it, that from the beginning man has brought evil on himself. His kind Creator intends and provides real good for him; but, led astray by the hope of some fancied good, he will not follow his all-wise Guide, nor yield to His gentle sway; but, breaking loose from the Divine government, subjects himself to the tyranny of his fellow-man, and thus brings upon himself a thousand ills.
We may see, from this instance, that the existence of arbitrary and despotic governments in the world, is not to be ascribed to the Divine will, but is one of the effects which man has brought upon himself, by falling into sin, and by an indulgence of his own evil inclinations, and thus rendering himself unfit for any better or freer government. In this instance, as in all others, man's physical evils are still the result of hie moral evils.
The reason, beyond doubt, why there are so few nations, at the present day, enjoying a state of civil and political freedom, is, that there are so few fit to be free.
