Chap. 24. An Expofition upon the Book of JO B. Verf r4 569 Secondly, He that murthers another offers violence to him- felfe ; for though there be a fpeciall fin offelre-murther, yet the murther ofanother is felfe murther too, and that not only as it is an offering of violence to common nature,but alío as it layes the murtherers own perfon open and obnoxious unto violence, and that,both to the violenceof a private revenge,a idco the violence ofpublicke Juftice. Thirdly, Mather defiroyes fociety, men will never live toge; ther where they finde themfelves continually in danger of their lives:Man is a fociable creature bynature,how finful then is mur- ther, which breaks the very firft fundamental lawes of Nature ? F,ourthly,Murther clothnot onely defile the perfon that com- mits it,bue the landalto in which it is committed.(Numb.3 5. 3 5. 3 3.) 720211 take nofatiefattion for the life ofa murtherer; which itlitilty ifdeath, and heAtlifurely be put to death ; ía yelball not pollsate the land wherein ye are ; for blood it defiletio the land and the landcannot be cleanfed of the blood that if 'bed therein,but by the blood ofhint that jbed it. Murcher as atted defileth the perfon on- ly that as it,but murther (when known) defileth a whole land, if it goe unpunifbed. In which cafe there may be defilement upon a !and by many other fins, but this is efpecially expreff of 'murther,as if that amongand above all tins were the land. kfiling fin. Fifthly, Mather is not onely an injury to man, bot an impie- ty againtt God and that's the reafon given in the firft Law which God made againft it, (Gen. 9. 6.) Who ra lbeddeth *inns blood, by manfi.oall lot'a bloodbe Thed,for in the Image of god trade he man. For though the body ofa man fliin be not in the ImageofGad, yet the perfon thine is, even the perfon of a wicked man 'oath fumewhat of the ImageofGod remaining in him. And therefor e that law is to be expounded univerfally ; whofoever the man whether good or bad, righteous or wicked, whole blood is tin, righteoufly flied by man (that is, by Min who [lath a call to it as being a Magiftrate)jhait hie blood be flo.d, that is, heby his autho- rity (hill (upon proof) condemn him to dye, and 0-01 give him up to execution. A contempt of the Image of God in man, is a contempt of God. And he takes it as a high affront to.his Mi'e fty, that any fhould prefume to deface or fpoyl his image, Ar d, this Leh more aggravate their fin, who oppofe,vex, and defiroy Dddd godly
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