THE Consultation begun, Satan debates whether another battle be to be hazarded for the recovery of Heaven: Some advise it, others dissuade: A third proposal is preferred, mentioned before by Satan, to search the truth of that prophecy or tradition in Heaven concerning another world, and another kind of creature, equal, or not much inferior to themselves, about this time to be created: Their doubt who shall be sent on this difficult search; Satan, their chief, undertakes alone the voyage, is honoured and applauded. The council thus ended, the rest betake them several ways, and to several employments, as their inclinations lead them, to entertain the time till Satan return. He passes on his journey to Hell gates, finds them shut, and who sat there to guard them, by whom at length they are opened, and discover to him the great gulf between Hell and Heaven; with what difficulty he passes through, directed by Chaos, the Power of that place, to the sight of the new world which he sought.
HIGH on a throne of royal state, which far Outshone the wealth of Ormus, and of Ind, Or where the gorgeous east with richest hand Show'rs on her kings barbaric pearl and gold, Satan exalted sat, by merit rais'd
To that bad eminence; and from despair Thus high uplifted beyond hope, aspires Beyond thus high, insatiate to pursue Vain war with heav'n, and by success untaught, His proud imaginations thus display d.
Pow'rs and Dominions, Deities of heav'n, For since no deep within her gulf can hold Immortal vigour, though oppress'd and fallen, I give not heav'n for lost. From this descent Celestial virtues rising, will appear
More glorious and more dread than from no fall; And trust themselves to fear no second fate. Me, though just right, and the fix'd laws of heav'n, Did first create your leader, next free choice, With what besides, in council or in fight, Hath been achiev'd of merit, yet this loss Thus far at least recover'd hath much more Establish'd in a safe unenvied throne, Yielded with full consent. The happier state In heav'n, which follows dignity, might draw Envy from each inferior; but who here
Will envy whom the highest place, exposes Foremost to stand against the Thund'rer's aim, Your bulwark, and condemns to greater share Of endless pain? where there is then no good For which to strive, no strife can grow up there From faction; for none sure will claim in hell Precedence, none whose portion is so small Of present pain, that with ambitious mind Will covet more. With this advantage then To union and firm faith, and firm accord, More than can be in heav'n, we now return To claim our just inheritance of old, Surer to prosper than prosperity
Could have assur'd us; and by what best way, Whether of open war or covert guile,
We now debate; who can advise, may speak, He ceas'd, and next him Moloch, scepter'd king, Stood up, the strongest and the fiercest Spirit That fought in heav'n, now fiercer by despair; His trust was with th' Eternal to be deem'd Equal in strength, and rather than be less, Car'd not to be at all; with that care lost. Went all his fear: of God, or hell, or worse He reck'd not, and these words thereafter spake : My sentence is for open war; of wiles, More unexpert, I boast not; them let those Contrive who need, or when they need, not now; For while they sit contriving, shall the rest, Millions that stand in arms and longing wait The signal to ascend, sit ling'ring here, Heav'n's fugitives, and for their dwelling place Accept this dark opprobrious den of shame, The prison of his tyranny who reigns By our delay? No, let us rather choose, Arm'd with hell flames and fury, all at once O'er heav'n's high tow'rs to force resistless way, Turning our Tort'rer into horrid arms Against the torturer: when to meet the noise Of his almighty engine, he shall hear
Infernal thunder, and for lightning see Black fire and horror shot with equal rage Among his Angels, and his throne itself Mix'd with Tartarean sulphur, and strange fire, His own invented torments. But perhaps The way seems difficult and steep to scale With upright wing, against a higher foe. Let such bethink them, if the sleepy drench Of that forgetful lake benumb not still, That in our proper motion we ascend Up to our native seat: descent and fall To us is adverse. Who but felt of late, When the fierce foe hung o'er our broken rear Insulting, and pursu'd us through the deep, With what compulsion and laborious flight We sunk thus low? Th' ascent is easy then; Th' event is fear'd: should we again provoke Our stronger, some worse way his wrath may find To our destruction; if there be in hell
Fear to be worse destroy'd; what can be worse Than to dwell here, driv'n out from bliss, condemn'd In this abhorred deep to utter wo;
Where pain of unextinguishable fire
Must exercise us without hope of end
The vassals of his anger, when the scourge Inexorably, and the tort'ring hour
Calls us to penance? More destroy'd than thus We should be quite abolish'd and expire. What fear we then? what doubt we to incense His utmost ire? which to the height enrag'd, Will either quite consume us, and reduce To nothing this essential, happier far Than miserable to have eternal being: Or if our substance be indeed divine, And cannot cease to be, we are at worst On this side nothing: and by proof, we feel Our pow'r sufficient to disturb his heav'n, And with perpetual inroads to aların,
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