And here art likeliest by supreme decree Like honour to obtain, and as his eye To visit oft this new creation round; Unspeakable desire to see and know All these his wondrous works, but chiefly Man, His chief delight and favour, him for whom All these his works so wondrous he ordain'd, Hath brought me from the choirs of Cherubim Alone thus wandering. Brightest Seraph, tell In which of all these shining orbs hath Man
His fixed seat, or fixed seat hath none,
But all these shining orbs his choice to dwell; That Lmay find him, and with secret gaze
Or open admiration him behold,
On whom the great Creator hath bestowed Worlds, and on whom hath all these graces pour'd; That both in him and all things, as is meet,
The universal Maker we may praise; Who justly hath driven out his rebel focs To deepest Hell, and, to repair that loss, Created this new happy race of Men To serve him better: Wise are all his ways.
So spake the false dissembler unperceived;
For neither Man nor Angels can discern Hypocrisy, the only evil that walks
Invisible, except to God alone,
By his permissive will, through Heaven and Earth And oft, though Wisdom wake, Suspicion sleeps 686 At Wisdom's gate, and to Simplicity Resigns her charge, while Goodness thinks no ill Where no ill seems; which now for once beguiled Uriel, though regent of the sun, and held The sharpest sighted Spirit of all in Heaven; Who to the fraudulent impostor foul,
In his uprightness, answer thus return'd:
Fair Angel, thy desire, which tends to know
The works of God, thereby to glorify The great Workmaster, leads to no excess
That reaches blame, but rather merits praise The more it seems excess, that led thee hither From thy empyreal mansion thus alone, To witness with thine eyes what some perhaps, Contented with report, hear only in Heaven: For wonderful indeed are all his works, Pleasant to know, and worthiest to be all Had in remembrance always with delight; But what creative mind can comprehend Their number, or the wisdom infinite
That brought them forth, but hid their causes deep
I saw when at his word the formless mass, This world's material mould, came to a heap: Confusion heard his voice, and wild uproar Stood ruled, stood vast infinitude confined; Till at his second bidding darkness fled, Light shone, and order from disorder sprung: Swift to their several quarters hasted then The cumbrous elements, earth, flood, air, fire; And this etherial quintessence of Heaven Flew upward, spirited with various forms, That roll'd orbicular, and turn'd to stars Numberless, as thou seest, and how they move. Each had his place appointed, each his course ; The rest in circuit walls this universe. Look downward on that globe, whose hither side With light from hence, though but reflected, shines; That place is Earth, the seat of Man; that light His day, which else, as the other hemisphere, Night would invade; but there the neighbouring moon
(So call that opposite fair star) her aid Timely interposes, and her monthly round Still ending, still renewing, through mid Heaven, With borrow'd light her countenance triform Hence fills and empties to enlighten the Earth,
And in her pale dominion checks the night. That spot, to which I point, is Paradise,
Adam's abode; those lofty shades, his bower. Thy way thou canst not miss, me mine requires. 735 Thus said, he turn'd; and Satan, bowing low, As to Superior Spirits is wont in Heaven, Where honour due and reverence none neglects, Took leave, and toward the coast of earth beneath, Down from the ecliptic, sped with hoped success, 740 Throws his steep flight in many an aery wheel; Nor staid, till on Niphates' top he lights.
Satan, now in prospect of Eden, and nigh the place where he must now attempt the bold enterprise which he undertook alone against God and Man, falls into many doubts with himself, and many passions, fear, envy, and despair; but at length confirms himself in evil; journeys on to Paradise, whose outward prospert and situation are described; overleaps the bounds; sits in the shape of a cormorant on the tree of life, as highest in the garden, to look about him. The garden described; Satan's first sight of Adam and Eve; his wonder at their excellent form and happy state, but with resolution to work their fall; overhears their discourse: thence gathers that the tree of knowledge was forbidden them to eat of, under penalty of death; and thereon intends to found his temptation by seducing them to transgress: Then leaves them awhile to know further of their state by some other means. Meanwhile Uriel descending an a sunbeam warns Gabriel, who had in charge the gate of Paradise, that some evil Spirit had escaped the deep, and passed at noon by his sphere in the shape of a good Angel down to Paradise, discovered after by his furious gestares on the mount. Gabriel promises to find him ere morning. Night coming on, Adam and Eve discourse of going to their rest: Their bower described; their evening worship. Gabriel, drawing forth his bands of night-watch to walk the round of Paradise, appoints two strong Angels to Adam's bower, lest the evil Spirit should be there doing some harm to Adam or Eve sleeping: there they find him at the ear of Eve, tempting her in a dream, and bring him, though unwilling, to Gabriel: by whom questioned, he scornfully answers; preparos resistance; but, hindered by a sign from Heaven, flies out of Paradise
that warning voice, which he who saw (velots The Apocalypse heard cry in Heaven aloud, Then when the Dragon, put to second rout, Came furious down to be revenged on men, Woe to the inhabitants on earth! that now, While time was, our first parents had been warn'd The coming of their secret foe, and scaped- Haply so scaped his mortal snare: For now Satan, now first inflamed with rage, came down, The tempter ere the accuser of mankind, To wreak on innocent frail Man his loss Of that first battle, and his flight to Hell
Yet, not rejoicing in his speed, though bold Far off and fearless, nor with cause to boast, Begins his dire attempt; which nigh the birth Now rolling boils in his tumultuous breast, And like a devilish engine back recoils
Upon himself; horror and doubt distract His troubled thoughts, and from the bottom stir The Hell within him; for within him Hell He brings, and round about him, nor from Hell One step, no more than from himself, can fly
By change of place: Now conscience wakes despair
That slumber'd; wakes the bitter memory
Of what he was, what is, and what must be
Worse; of worse deeds worse sufferings must ensue. Sometimes towards Eden, which now in his view
Lay pleasant, his grieved look he fixed sad; Sometimes towards Heaven, and the full-blazing sun, Which now sat high in his meridian tower: Then, much revolving, thus in sighs began: O thou, that, with surpassing glory crown'd, Lock'st from thy sole dominion like the God Of this new world; at whose sight all the stars
Hide their diminish'd heads; to thee I call, But with no friendly voice, and add thy name, O Sun! to tell thee how I hate thy beams, That bring to my remembrance from what state I fell, how glorious once above thy sphere; Till pride and worse ambition threw me down Warring in Heaven against Heaven's matchless King: Ah, wherefore! he deserved no such return From me, whom he created what I was In that bright eminence, and with his good Upbraided none; nor was his service hard. What could be less than to afford him praise, The easiest recompense, and pay him thanks, How due! yet all his good proved ill in me, And wrought but malice; lifted up so high I 'sdain'd subjection, and thought one step higher 50
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