Justice, gratitude, and trust in Leviathan

Hobbes redefines both distributive justice and merit in Leviathan. Distributive justice is turned from a virtue of subjects into ‘the Justice of an Arbitrator’ by equating distributive justice with equity – the natural law duty that sovereign and subordinate judges administer rights and goods impartially, without regard of person or rank. Accompanying this shift, Leviathan changes the meaning and grounds of ‘merit’. Hobbes now claims, ‘merit … is rewarded of Grace onely’: distributive civil laws create rather than track merit. Leviathan’s novel accounts of distributive justice and merit have major implications for what the natural law of gratitude demands. Citizens are now in addition bound by gratitude to give the sovereign ‘no reasonable cause to repent’ his good will in freely according them legal rights. Leviathan’s bold redefinition of merit ensured that citizens cannot possibly receive less from the sovereign than they deserve; thus removing a major source of civic grievances. Second, by making honours, property, and other civil rights the free gift of sovereigns, Hobbes established that citizens are bound by natural law duties of gratitude to humour and please their sovereign benefactor – including by performing their duties of political obligation.