“The offices of princes and officials are divine and right, but those who are in them and use them are usually of the devil. And if a prince is a rare dish in heaven, this is even more true of the officials and the court personnel. This is caused by the devil, depraved nature, which cannot stand success; that is, it cannot use honor, power, and authority in a divine way. No matter how insignificant the little office may be, they take a foot though they do not have an inch, and always want to be God themselves when they ought to be God’s maid.”*
*Martin Luther, Commentary on Psalm 101:5b, Luther’s Works vol. 13, p. 212