Whatsoever is done to a man,conformable to his own will signified to the doer,is not injury to him.For if he that doeth it hath not passed away his original right to do what he please by some antecedent covenant,there is no breach of covenant,and therefore no injury done him.And if he have,then his will to have it done,being signified,is a release of that covenant,and so again there is no injury done him.
Justice of actions is by writers divided into commutative and distributive:and the former they say consisteth in proportion arithmetical;the latter in proportion geometrical.Commutative,therefore,they place in the equality of value of the things contracted for;and distributive,in the distribution of equal benefit to men of equal merit.As if it were injustice to sell dearer than we buy,or to give more to a man than he merits.The value of all things contracted for is measured by the appetite of the contractors,and therefore the just value is that which they be contented to give.And merit (besides that which is by covenant,where the performance on one part meriteth the performance of the other part,and falls under justice commutative,not distributive)is not due by justice,but is rewarded of grace only.And therefore this distinction,in the sense wherein it useth to be expounded,is not right.To speak properly,commutative justice is the justice of a contractor;that is,a performance of covenant in buying and selling,hiring and letting to hire,lending and borrowing,exchanging,bartering,and other acts of contract.
And distributive justice,the justice of an arbitrator;that is to say,the act of defining what is just.Wherein,being trusted by them that make him arbitrator,if he perform his trust,he is said to distribute to every man his own:and this is indeed just distribution,and may be called,though improperly,distributive justice,but more properly equity,which also is a law of nature,as shall be shown in due place.
As justice dependeth on antecedent covenant;so does gratitude depend on antecedent grace;that is to say,antecedent free gift;and is the fourth law of nature,which may be conceived in this form:that a man which receiveth benefit from another of mere grace endeavour that he which giveth it have no reasonable cause to repent him of his good will.For no man giveth but with intention of good to himself,because gift is voluntary;and of all voluntary acts,the object is to every man his own good;of which if men see they shall be frustrated,there will be no beginning of benevolence or trust,nor consequently of mutual help,nor of reconciliation of one man to another;and therefore they are to remain still in the condition of war,which is contrary to the first and fundamental law of nature which commandeth men to seek peace.The breach of this law is called ingratitude,and hath the same relation to grace that injustice hath to obligation by covenant.
A fifth law of nature is complaisance;that is to say,that every man strive to accommodate himself to the rest.For the understanding whereof we may consider that there is in men's aptness to society a diversity of nature,rising from their diversity of affections,not unlike to that we see in stones brought together for building of an edifice.For as that stone which by the asperity and irregularity of figure takes more room from others than itself fills,and for hardness cannot be easily made plain,and thereby hindereth the building,is by the builders cast away as unprofitable and troublesome:so also,a man that by asperity of nature will strive to retain those things which to himself are superfluous,and to others necessary,and for the stubbornness of his passions cannot be corrected,is to be left or cast out of society as cumbersome thereunto.For seeing every man,not only by right,but also by necessity of nature,is supposed to endeavour all he can to obtain that which is necessary for his conservation,he that shall oppose himself against it for things superfluous is guilty of the war that thereupon is to follow,and therefore doth that which is contrary to the fundamental law of nature,which commandeth to seek peace.The observers of this law may be called sociable,(the Latins call them commodi);the contrary,stubborn,insociable,forward,intractable.
A sixth law of nature is this:that upon caution of the future time,a man ought to pardon the offences past of them that,repenting,desire it.For pardon is nothing but granting of peace;which though granted to them that persevere in their hostility,be not peace,but fear;yet not granted to them that give caution of the future time is sign of an aversion to peace,and therefore contrary to the law of nature.
A seventh is:that in revenges (that is,retribution of evil for evil),men look not at the greatness of the evil past,but the greatness of the good to follow.Whereby we are forbidden to inflict punishment with any other design than for correction of the offender,or direction of others.For this law is consequent to the next before it,that commandeth pardon upon security of the future time.Besides,revenge without respect to the example and profit to come is a triumph,or glorying in the hurt of another,tending to no end (for the end is always somewhat to come);and glorying to no end is vain-glory,and contrary to reason;and to hurt without reason tendeth to the introduction of war,which is against the law of nature,and is commonly styled by the name of cruelty.
And because all signs of hatred,or contempt,provoke to fight;insomuch as most men choose rather to hazard their life than not to be revenged,we may in the eighth place,for a law of nature,set down this precept:that no man by deed,word,countenance,or gesture,declare hatred or contempt of another.The breach of which law is commonly called contumely.
The question who is the better man has no place in the condition of mere nature,where (as has been shown before)all men are equal.