AR Chain & Tag

In 1564, Scottish reformer John Knox wrote, “that subjects not only may but also ought to withstand and resist their princes whensoever they do anything expressly repugnant to God, his law or holy ordinance.” Men accountable to God have an express moral duty to resist anyone who attempts to overstep the bounds of their God-given authority. Our culture ought to reflect that; our pendant reflects it as well.

Inscribed on the pendant is the message “Obey God - Resist Tyranny - Lex Rex.” “Lex Rex”, Latin for “Law is King”, is a book written by Scottish pastor Samuel Rutherford in response to King Charles I attempting to assert his divine right as king to overrule the English parliament. In essence, he argued: The king is not law. The king does not invent law. The law is the ultimate authority, and when a king tries to assert authority beyond that law, he oversteps the bounds God has set for him. 

Rutherford noted that because the king is not above the law, the people have the right to resist a king when he acts tyrannically, even to the point of war. It illustrates the principle that those under authority still must always obey God rather than man.

We have long championed the belief that resistance to tyranny is the hallmark of free men, and we included these phrases on the tag to remind us that no corner of the universe is independent of God’s authority and providence. He is the one ultimate sovereign.