Yet not till the Creator from his work Th' addition of his empire, how it show'd 555 In profpect from his throne, how good, how fair, Answering his great idea. Up he rode Follow'd with acclamation and the found thing that he had made, and bebold it was very good: And the evening and the morning were the fixth day. 551. Yet not till the Creator &c.] The poet represents the Meffiah returning into Heaven, and taking a furvey of his great work. There is fomething inexpreffibly fublime in this part of the poem, where the author describes that great period of time, filled with fo many glorious circumstances; when the Heavens and Earth were finish'd; when the Meffiah afcended up in triumph thro' the everlasting gates; when he looked down with pleasure upon his new creation; when every part of 560 Open, nature feem'd to rejoice in its exiftence; when the morning-ftars fang together, and all the fons of God fhouted for joy. Addifon. 563. The planets in their flation liftning food,] The word ftation is ufed in a more peculiar fenfe than ufual. The fiation of a planet is a term of art, when the planet appears neither to go backwards nor forwards, but to ftand ftill and keep the fame place in its orbit. And what is faid here of the ftars and planets is fomewhat in the fame noble ftrain, as the fong of Deborah, Judg. V. 20. the fears in their courfes fought against Sifera. 565. Open, Open, ye everlasting gates, they fung, On errands of fupernal grace. So fung 565 570 575 The glorious train afcending: He through Heaven, Which nightly as a circling zone thou seest 580 Powder'd with ftars. And now on earth the seventh 565.Open, ye everlafting gates,&c.] Pfal. XXIV. 7. Lift up your heads, Oye gates, and be ye lift up, ye everlafting doors; and the king of glory fhall come in. This hymn was fung when the ark of God was carried up into the fanctuary on mount Sion, and is understood as a prophecy of our Saviour's afcenfion into Heaven; and therefore is fitly ap Evening plied by our author to the fame divine Perfon's ascending thither after he had created the world. 578.-as ftars to thee appear, &c.] The pavement of Heaven was as thick fet with ftars, as ftars appear in the galaxy or milky way, which is an affemblage of an infinite number of little ftars, feen diftinctly Evening arose in Eden, for the fun Was fet, and twilight from the east came on, 590 Hath Omniprefence) and the work ordain'd, 595 Choral or unifon: of incenfe clouds Fuming from golden cenfers hid the mount. 600 Creation and the fix days acts they fung, Great are thy works, Jehovah, infinite Thy pow'r; what thought can measure thee or tongue Relate thee? greater now in thy return Than from the giant Angels; thee that day Thy thunders magnify'd; but to create Is greater than created to destroy. Who can impair thee, mighty King, or bound 599. of incenfe clouds Fuming from golden cenfers hid the mount.] The incenfe fuming from golden cenfers feems to be founded on Rev. VIII. 3, 4. And an Angel came and food at the altar, having a golden cenfer; and the fmake of the incenfe afcended up before God out of the Angel's band. Milton had feen too their manner of incenfing in the churches abroad, and he seems to have approved fomething of it by transferring it to Heaven. And I have known fome very good protestants wish that we had retain'd the moderate but not the fuperftitious ufe of incenfe in our churches, as thinking it might contribute to the fweetnefs and falubrity of thofe places. 602. Great are thy works, Jehovah, &c.] Milton is gene 605 610 Thou rally truly orthodox. In this hymn the Angels intimate the unity of the Son with the Father, finging to both as one God, Jehovah. 605. Than from the giant Angels;] Dr. Bentley reads the rebel Angels, thinking that the word giant infinuates as if this was as fabulous as that of Jove. But the word infinuates no fuch thing; it is used not to express the ftature and fize of the Angels, but that difpofition of mind, which is always afcribed to giants, viz. a proud, fierce, and afpiring temper. And this the Hebrew word Gibbor fignifies, which is render'd a Pearce. giant in Scripture. Dr. Pearce's conftruction of the word giant, as if it meant only fierce, proud, and afpiring, is in my opi Thou haft repell❜d, while impiously they thought Thou useft, and from thence creat'ft more good. nion a little forc'd; nor yet do I think, that there is any reafon to change it into rebel, as Dr. Bentley would have it. Milton, I doubt not, intended to allude to Hefiod's giant war, but I don't fee with Dr. Bentley, that therefore he must infinuate that this relation is as fabu. lous as that. He probably defign'd by this expreffion to hint his opinion, that the fictions of the Greek poets owed their rife to fome uncertain clouded tradition of this real event, and their giants were, if they had understood the story right, his fall'n Angels. Thyer. 619. On the clear hyaline,] This word is exprefs'd from the Greek van, and is immediately tranflated the glaffy fea. For Milton, 615 620 |