In an interesting piece at the Washington Post, David Kopel argues that many of the key ideas expressed in the Declaration of Independence had their origin in an essay published in 1644 by Samuel Rutherford. The essay is called “Lex, Rex, or the Law and the Prince.” Kopel makes a strong case with regard to the Declaration, as this excerpt illustrates:
Every man by nature is a freeman born, that is, by nature no man cometh out of the womb under any civil subjugation to king, prince, or judge, to master, captain, conqueror, teacher, &c.
And, while Kopel doesn’t mention it, it appears that some of Rutherford’s ideas also made their way into the Bill of Rights, e.g.:
To denude the people of armour because they may abuse the prince, is to expose them to violence and oppression, unjustly; for one king may more easily abuse armour than all the people; one man may more easily fail than a community.
By “armour,” of course, Rutherford means “arms.” Read the whole thing!
