Tertullian, Antidote for the Scorpion's Sting 14

He bluntly warns the Romans to submit to every authority, because no authority exists except from God, because the ruler does not carry the sword for nothing, and because it is a ministry of God—but also an avenger, he says, bringing wrath on the one who does evil (Romans 13:1-7). Scripture had already laid the groundwork: rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to evil. You want to stop fearing authority? Do good, and you will win its praise. So it is God’s servant for your good. But if you do evil, be afraid. Therefore, the command to submit is not given to sabotage martyrdom, but to provoke good living even under their gaze, as if they were assistants of justice, ministers of divine judgment, here already passing preliminary sentence on wrongdoers. He then spells out what that submission looks like: pay what you owe—tribute to whom tribute is due, tax to whom tax is due; that is, render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s (Matthew 22:21); the human person belongs to God alone. Peter had agreed that a king deserves honor, yet a king is honored only when he stays in his lane, keeping his distance from divine honors; a father and mother are loved precisely because they are not equated with God. Beyond that, loving anything more than God is not permitted—not even your own soul.