Chapter I: Front Matter

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Transcriber’s Note:

This version of the text cannot represent certain typographical effects. Italics are delimited with the ‘_’ character as _italic_.

Footnotes have been moved to follow the paragraphs in which they are referenced.

Marginal sidenotes which span multiple pages were often repeated on each page. These have been removed.

Minor errors, attributable to the printer, have been corrected. Please see the transcriber’s note at the end of this text for details regarding the handling of any textual issues encountered during its preparation.

LEVIATHAN,

OR

THE MATTER, FORM, AND POWER

OF A

COMMONWEALTH

ECCLESIASTICAL AND CIVIL.

THE
ENGLISH WORKS
OF
THOMAS HOBBES

OF MALMESBURY;

NOW FIRST COLLECTED AND EDITED

BY

SIR WILLIAM MOLESWORTH, BART.

---

VOL III.

---

LONDON:
JOHN BOHN,
HENRIETTA STREET, COVENT GARDEN.

---

MDCCCXXXIX.

LONDON:
C. RICHARDS, PRINTER, ST. MARTIN’S LANE.

TO MY MOST HONOR’D FRIEND

MR. FRANCIS GODOLPHIN,

OF GODOLPHIN.

-------

HONOR’D SIR,

Your most worthy brother, Mr. SIDNEY GODOLPHIN, when he lived, was pleased to think my studies something, and otherwise to oblige me, as you know, with real testimonies of his good opinion, great in themselves, and the greater for the worthiness of his person. For there is not any virtue that disposeth a man, either to the service of God, or to the service of his country, to civil society, or private friendship, that did not manifestly appear in his conversation, not as acquired by necessity, or affected upon occasion, but inherent, and shining in a generous constitution of his nature. Therefore, in honour and gratitude to him, and with devotion to yourself, I humbly dedicate unto you this my discourse of Commonwealth. I know not how the world will receive it, nor how it may reflect on those that shall seem to favour it. For in a way beset with those that contend, on one side for too great liberty, and on the other side for too much authority, ’tis hard to pass between the points of both unwounded. But yet, methinks, the endeavour to advance the civil power, should not be by the civil power condemned; nor private men, by reprehending it, declare they think that power too great. Besides, I speak not of the men, but, in the abstract, of the seat of power, (like to those simple and unpartial creatures in the Roman Capitol, that with their noise defended those within it, not because they were they, but there), offending none, I think, but those without, or such within, if there be any such, as favour them. That which perhaps may most offend, are certain texts of Holy Scripture, alleged by me to other purpose than ordinarily they use to be by others. But I have done it with due submission, and also, in order to my subject, necessarily; for they are the outworks of the enemy, from whence they impugn the civil power. If notwithstanding this, you find my labour generally decried, you may be pleased to excuse yourself, and say, I am a man that love my own opinions, and think all true I say, that I honoured your brother, and honour you, and have presumed on that, to assume the title, without your knowledge, of being, as I am,

SIR,
Your most humble,
and most obedient Servant,
THOMAS HOBBES.

_Paris, April 15/25, 1651._

THE CONTENTS OF THE CHAPTERS.

-------

THE FIRST PART.--OF MAN.

CHAP. PAGE.

Introduction ix

1. Of Sense 1

2. Of Imagination 3

3. Of the Consequence or Train of Imaginations 11

4. Of Speech 18

5. Of Reason and Science 29

6. Of the Interior Beginnings of Voluntary Motions,
commonly called the Passions; and the Speeches
by which they are expressed 38

7. Of the Ends or Resolutions of Discourse 51

8. Of the Virtues, commonly called Intellectual; and
their contrary Defects 56

9. Of the Several Subjects of Knowledge 71

10. Of Power, Worth, Dignity, Honour, and Worthiness 74

11. Of the Difference of Manners 85

12. Of Religion 94

13. Of the Natural Condition of Mankind as concerning
their Felicity and Misery 110

14. Of the First and Second Natural Laws, and of
Contract 116

15. Of other Laws of Nature 130

16. Of Persons, Authors, and Things Personated 147

THE SECOND PART.--OF COMMONWEALTH.

17. Of the Causes, Generation, and Definition of a
Commonwealth 153

18. Of the Rights of Sovereigns by Institution 159

19. Of the several kinds of Commonwealth by
Institution; and of Succession to the Sovereign
Power 171

20. Of Dominion Paternal, and Despotical 185

21. Of the Liberty of Subjects 196

22. Of Systems Subject, Political, and Private 210

23. Of the Public Ministers of Sovereign Power 226

24. Of the Nutrition, and Procreation of a
Commonwealth 232

25. Of Counsel 240

26. Of Civil Laws 250

27. Of Crimes, Excuses, and Extenuations 277

28. Of Punishments, and Rewards 297

29. Of those things that weaken, or tend to the
Dissolution of a Commonwealth 308

30. Of the Office of the Sovereign Representative 322

31. Of the Kingdom of God by Nature 343

THE THIRD PART.--OF A CHRISTIAN COMMONWEALTH.

32. Of the Principles of Christian Politics 359

33. Of the Number, Antiquity, Scope, Authority, and
Interpreters of the Books of Holy Scripture 366

34. Of the Signification of Spirit, Angel, and
Inspiration, in the Books of Holy Scripture 380

35. Of the Signification in Scripture of the Kingdom
of God, of Holy, Sacred, and Sacrament 396

36. Of the Word of God, and of Prophets 407

37. Of Miracles, and their Use 427

38. Of the Signification in Scripture of Eternal Life,
Hell, Salvation, the World to Come, and
Redemption 437

39. Of the Signification in Scripture of the word
Church 458

40. Of the Rights of the Kingdom of God, in Abraham,
Moses, the High-Priests, and the Kings of Judah 461

41. Of the Office of Our Blessed Saviour 475

42. Of Power Ecclesiastical 485

43. Of what is Necessary for a Man’s Reception into
the Kingdom of Heaven 584

THE FOURTH PART.--OF THE KINGDOM OF DARKNESS.

44. Of Spiritual Darkness, from Misinterpretation of
Scripture 603

45. Of Demonology, and other Relics of the Religion of
the Gentiles 637

46. Of Darkness from Vain Philosophy, and Fabulous
Traditions 664

47. Of the Benefit proceeding from such Darkness; and
to whom it accrueth 688

A Review and Conclusion 701

THE
INTRODUCTION.

-------

Nature, the art whereby God hath made and governs the world, is by the _art_ of man, as in many other things, so in this also imitated, that it can make an artificial animal. For seeing life is but a motion of limbs, the beginning whereof is in some principal part within; why may we not say, that all _automata_ (engines that move themselves by springs and wheels as doth a watch) have an artificial life? For what is the _heart_, but a _spring_; and the _nerves_, but so many _strings_; and the _joints_, but so many _wheels_, giving motion to the whole body, such as was intended by the artificer? _Art_ goes yet further, imitating that rational and most excellent work of nature, _man_. For by art is created that great LEVIATHAN called a COMMONWEALTH, or STATE, in Latin CIVITAS, which is but an artificial man; though of greater stature and strength than the natural, for whose protection and defence it was intended; and in which the _sovereignty_ is an artificial _soul_, as giving life and motion to the whole body; the _magistrates_, and other _officers_ of judicature and execution, artificial _joints_; _reward_ and _punishment_, by which fastened to the seat of the sovereignty every joint and member is moved to perform his duty, are the _nerves_, that do the same in the body natural; the _wealth_ and _riches_ of all the particular members, are the _strength_; _salus populi_, the _people’s safety_, its _business_; _counsellors_, by whom all things needful for it to know are suggested unto it, are the _memory_; _equity_, and _laws_, an artificial _reason_ and _will_; _concord_, _health_; _sedition_, _sickness_; and _civil war_, _death_. Lastly, the _pacts_ and _covenants_, by which the parts of this body politic were at first made, set together, and united, resemble that _fiat_, or the _let us make man_, pronounced by God in the creation.

To describe the nature of this artificial man, I will consider

First, the _matter_ thereof, and the _artificer_; both which is _man_.

Secondly, _how_, and by what _covenants_ it is made; what are the _rights_ and just _power_ or _authority_ of a _sovereign_; and what it is that _preserveth_ or _dissolveth_ it.

Thirdly, what is a _Christian commonwealth_.

Lastly, what is the _kingdom of darkness_.

Concerning the first, there is a saying much usurped of late, that _wisdom_ is acquired, not by reading of _books_, but of _men_. Consequently whereunto, those persons, that for the most part can give no other proof of being wise, take great delight to show what they think they have read in men, by uncharitable censures of one another behind their backs. But there is another saying not of late understood, by which they might learn truly to read one another, if they would take the pains; that is, _nosce teipsum_, _read thyself_: which was not meant, as it is now used, to countenance, either the barbarous state of men in power, towards their inferiors; or to encourage men of low degree, to a saucy behaviour towards their betters; but to teach us, that for the similitude of the thoughts and passions of one man, to the thoughts and passions of another, whosoever looketh into himself, and considereth what he doth, when he does _think_, _opine_, _reason_, _hope_, _fear_, &c. and upon what grounds; he shall thereby read and know, what are the thoughts and passions of all other men upon the like occasions. I say the similitude of _passions_, which are the same in all men, _desire_, _fear_, _hope_, &c.; not the similitude of the _objects_ of the passions, which are the things _desired_, _feared_, _hoped_, &c.: for these the constitution individual, and particular education, do so vary, and they are so easy to be kept from our knowledge, that the characters of man’s heart, blotted and confounded as they are with dissembling, lying, counterfeiting, and erroneous doctrines, are legible only to him that searcheth hearts. And though by men’s actions we do discover their design sometimes; yet to do it without comparing them with our own, and distinguishing all circumstances, by which the case may come to be altered, is to decypher without a key, and be for the most part deceived, by too much trust, or by too much diffidence; as he that reads, is himself a good or evil man.

But let one man read another by his actions never so perfectly, it serves him only with his acquaintance, which are but few. He that is to govern a whole nation, must read in himself, not this or that particular man; but mankind: which though it be hard to do, harder than to learn any language or science; yet when I shall have set down my own reading orderly, and perspicuously, the pains left another, will be only to consider, if he also find not the same in himself. For this kind of doctrine admitteth no other demonstration.