But that from us ought should afcend to Heaven
So prevalent as to concern the mind
Of God high-bleft, or to incline his will,
Hard to belief may feem; yet this will prayer
Or one short figh of human breath, upborne
Ev'n to the feat of God. For fince I fought
By pray'r th' offended Deity to' appease,
'Kneel'd and before him humbled all my heart,
Methought I saw him placable and mild,
Bending his ear; perfuafion in me grew
That I was heard with favor; peace return'd
Home to my breast, and to my memory
His promife, that thy feed shall bruise our foe;
Which then not minded in difmay, yet now
Affures me that the bitterness of death
Is past, and we shall live. Whence hail to thee,
Eve rightly call'd, mother of all mankind,
Mother of all things living, fince by thee
Man is to live, and all things live for Man.
To whom thus Eve with fad demeanour meek.
Ill worthy I fuch title should belong
To me tranfgreffor, who for thee ordain'd
A help, became thy fnare; to me reproach
Rather belongs, diftruft, and all difpraise :
But infinite in pardon was my judge,
That I, who firft brought death on all, am graç'd
The fource of life; next favourable thou,
Who highly thus to' intitle me vouchsaf'st,
Far other name deferving. But the field
To labor calls us now with fweat impos'd,
Though after fleepless night; for fee the morn,
All unconcern'd with our unreft, begins
Her rofy progrefs fmiling; let us forth,
I never from thy fide henceforth to stray,
Where'er our day's work lies, though now injoin'd
Laborious, till day droop; while here we dwell,
What can be toilfome in these pleasant walks ?
Here let us live, though in fall'n state, content.
So fpake, fo wifh'd much-humbled Eve, but fate
Subfcrib'd not; Nature firft gave figns, imprefs'd
On bird, beast, air, fuddenly eclips'd
After short blush of morn; nigh in her fight
The bird of Jove, stoop'd from his aery tour,
Two birds of gayeft plume before him drove ;
Down from a hill the beaft that reigns in woods,
First hunter then, purfu'd a gentle brace,
Goodlieft of all the foreft, hart and hind;
Direct to th' eastern gate was bent their flight.
Adam obferv'd, and with his eye the chase
Pursuing, not unmov'd to Eve thus fpake.
O Eve, fome further change awaits us nigh,
Which Heav'n by these mute figns in nature shows, Forerunners of his purpose, or to warn
Us haply too fecure of our discharge
From penalty, because from death releas'd
Some days; how long, and what till then our life,
Who knows, or more than this, that we are duft,
And thither muft return and be no more?
Why elfe this double object in our fight
Of flight purfu'd in th' air, and o'er the ground,
One way the self-fame hour? why in the east
Darkness ere day's mid-course, and morning light
More orient in yon western cloud, that draws
O'er the blue firmament a radiant white,
And flow defcends, with fomething heav'nly fraught?
He err'd not, for by this the heav'nly bands
Down from a sky of jafper lighted now
In Paradife, and on a hill made halt,
A glorious apparition, had not doubt
And carnal fear that day dimm'd Adam's eye.
Not that more glorious, when the Angels met
Jacob in Mahanaim, where he faw
The field pavilion'd with his guardians bright; 215 Nor that which on the flaming mount appear'd
In Dothan, cover'd with a camp of fire,
Against the Syrian king, who to surprise
One man, affaflin like, had levied war,
War unproclam'd. The princely Hierarch
In their bright stand there left his Pow'rs to seise
Poffeffion of the garden; he alone,
To find where Adam fhelter'd, took his way,
Not unperceiv'd of Adam, who to Eve,
While the great vifitant approach'd, thus fpake. 225 Eve, now expect great tidings, which perhaps
Of us will foon determin, or impose
New laws to be observ'd; for I descry
From yonder blazing cloud that veils the hill
One of the heav'nly hoft, and by his gait
None of the meaneft, fome great Potentate
Or of the Thrones above, fuch majefty
Invests him coming; yet not terrible
That I fhould fear, nor fociably mild,
As Raphael, that I should much confide,
But folemn and fublime, whom not to' offend,
With reverence I muft meet, and thou retire.
He ended; and th' Arch-Angel foon drew nigh,
Not in his shape celestial, but as man
Clad to meet man; over his lucid arms
A military veft of purple flow'd,
Livelier than Melibœan, or the grain
Of Sarra, worn by kings and heroes old
In time of truce; Iris had dipt the woof;
His ftarry helm unbuckled fhow'd him prime
In manhood where youth ended; by his fide
As in a glist'ring zodiac hung the sword,
Satan's dire dread, and in his hand the spear.
Adam bow'd low; he kingly from his state
Inclin❜d not, but his coming thus declar'd.
Adam, Heav'n's high beheft no preface needs:
Sufficient that thy pray'rs are heard, and Death,
Then due by fentence when thou didst tranfgrefs,
Defeated of his seisure many days
Giv'n thee of grace, wherein thou may'ft repent, 255
And one bad act with many deeds well done
Mayst cover: well may then thy Lord appeas'd
Redeem thee quite from Death's rapacious clame;
But longer in this Paradise to dwell
Permits not; to remove thee I am come,
And send thee from the garden forth to till
The ground whence thou waft taken, fitter soil.
He added not, for Adam at the news
Heart-ftruck with chilling gripe of forrow stood,
That all his fenfes bound; Eve, who unfeen
Yet all had heard, with audible lament
Discover'd foon the place of her retire.
O unexpected stroke, worse than of Death! Muft I thus leave thee, Paradife? thus leave Thee, native foil, thefe happy walks and fhades, 270 Fit haunt of Gods? where I had hope to spend,
Quiet though fad, the refpit of that day
That must be mortal to us both.
That never will in other climate grow,
My early visitation, and my last
At even, which I bred up with tender hand
From the first opening bud, and gave you names,
Who now shall rear you to the fun, or rank
Your tribes, and water from th' ambrofial fount ?
Thee laftly, nuptial bow'r, by me adorn'd
With what to fight or smell was fweet, from thee
How fhall I part, and whither wander down
Into a lower world, to this obfcure
And wild? how shall we breathe in other air
Lefs pure, accuftom'd to immortal fruits?
Whom thus the Angel interrupted mild.
Lament not, Eve, but patiently refign
What juftly thou haft loft; nor fet thy heart,
Thus over-fond, on that which is not thine.
Thy going is not lonely; with thee goes
Thy husband; him to follow thou art bound;
Where he abides, think there thy native foil.
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