Far off th' empyreal Heav'n, extended wide Of living sapphire, once his native seat; 1050 This pendent world, in bigness as a star Of smallest magnitude close by the moon. Thither, full fraught with mischievous revenge, 1055 END OF BOOK П. God, sitting on his throne, sees Satan flying toward this world, then newly created; shows him to the Son, who sat at his right hand; fortels the success of Satan in perverting mankind; clears his own justice and wisdom from all imputation, having created man free, and able enough to have withstood his tempter; yet declares his purpose of gra e towards him, in regard he fell not of his own malice, as did Satan, but by him seduced. The Son of God renders praises to his Father for the manifestation of his gracious purpose towards man; but God again declares, that grace cannot be extended towards man without the satisfaction of divine justice; man hath offended the majesty of God by aspiring to godhead, and, therefore, with all his progeny, devoted to death, must die, unless some one can be found sufficient to answer for his offence, and undergo his punishment. The Son of God freely offers himself a ransom for man: the Father accepts him, ordains his incarnation, pronounces his exaltation above all names in Heaven and Earth; commands all the Angels to adore him; they obey, and, hymning to their harps in full quire, celebrate the Father and the Son. Meanwhile Satan alights upon the bare convex of this world's outermost orb; where wandering, he first finds a place, since called the Limbo of Vanity: what persons and things fly up thither; thence comes to the gate of Heaven, described ascending by stairs, and the waters above the firmament that flow about it: his passage thence to the orb of the sun; he finds there Uriel, the regent of that orb, but first changes himself into the shape of a meaner angel; and, pretending a zealous desire to behold the new creation, and man whom God had placed here, inquires of him the place of his habitation, and is directed: alights first on mount Niphates. PARADISE LOST. BOOK III. HAIL, holy Light! offspring of Heav'n first born! May I express thee' unblam'd? since God is light Dwelt from eternity, dwelt then in thee, 10 Escap'd the Stygian pool, though long detain'd 15 Through utter and through middle darkness borne I sung of Chaos and eternal Night; Taught by the heav'nly Muse to venture down 20 To find thy piercing ray, and find no dawn; So thick a drop serene hath quench'd their orbs, 25 |