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Us timely' of what might else have been our loss,
Unknown, which human knowledge could not reach: 75

For which to th' infinitely Good we owe
Immortal thanks, and his admonishment

Receive with solemn purpose to observe

Immutably his sovran will, the end

Of what we are. But since thou hast vouchsaf'd 80

Gently for our instruction to impart

Things above earthly thought, which yet concern'd
Our knowing, as to highest wisdom seem'd,

Deign to descend now lower, and relate
What may no less perhaps avail us known,
How first began this heav'n which we behold
Distant so high, with moving fires adorn'd
Innumerable, and this which yields or fills
All space, the ambient air wide interfus'd
Embracing round this florid earth, what cause
Mov'd the Creator in his holy rest
Through all eternity so late to build

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earth, but flowing into and spun out between all bodies; and is a fuller and finer notation of its liquid and spiritual texture, leaving no vacuum in nature, than that of Ovid,

Nec circumfuso pendebat in aëre tellus. Met. i. 12.

Hume.

92. so late to build] It is a question that has been often asked, Why God did not create the world sooner? but the same question might be asked, if the world had been created at any time, for still there were infinite

In Chaos, and the work begun, how soon
Absolv'd, if unforbid thou may'st unfold
What we, not to explore the secrets ask
Of his eternal empire, but the more
To magnify his works, the more we know.
And the great light of day yet wants to run
Much of his race though steep; suspense in heaven,

ages before that time. And that can never be a just exception against this time, which holds equally against all time. It must be resolved into the good will and pleasure of Almighty God; but there is a farther reason according to Milton's hypothesis, which is that God, after the expelling of Satan and his angels out of heaven, declared his pleasure to supply their place by creating another world, and other creatures to dwell therein. 94. Absolv'd,] Finished, completed, perfected, from Absolutus, (Latin.) Richardson.

98. And the great light of day yet wants to run &c.] Our author has improved upon Homer, Odyss. xi. 372. where Alcinous by the same sort of arguments endeavours to persuade Ulysses to continue his narration; only there it was night, and here the scene is by day.

Νυξ δ' ήδι μαλα μακρη, αθέσφατος «δι πω ώρη

Εύδειν εν μεγαρῳ· συ δε μοι λεγε θεσκιλα εργα.

Και κεν ες ηω διαν ανασχοιμην

And lo! a length of night behind remains,

The evening stars still mount th'

95

Thy tale with raptures I could hear thee tell,

Thy woes on earth, the wondrous scenes in hell,

Till in the vault of heav'n the stars decay, And the sky reddens with the rising day. Broome.

Mr. Thyer is of opinion, that there is not a greater instance of our author's exquisite skill in the art of poetry, than this and the following lines. There is nothing more, really to be expressed, than Adam's telling Raphael his desire to hear the continuance of his relation, and yet the poet by a series of strong and noble figures has worked it up into half a score of as fine lines as any in the whole poem. Lord Shaftesbury has observed, that Milton's beauties generally depend upon solid thought, strong reasoning, noble passion, and a continued thread of moral doctrine; but in this place he has shewn what an exalted fancy and mere force of poetry can do.

99. suspense in heaven, Held by thy voice, thy potent voice, he hears,] We have here altered the punctuation of the first editions,

Held by thy voice, thy potent voice, he hears,
And longer will delay to hear thee tell
His generation, and the rising birth
Of nature from the unapparent deep :
Or if the star of evening and the moon
Haste to thy audience, night with her will bring
Silence, and sleep list'ning to thee will watch,
Or we can bid his absence, till thy song
End, and dismiss thee ere the morning shine.
Thus Adam his illustrious guest besought:
And thus the Godlike Angel answer'd mild.
This also thy request with caution ask'd
Obtain: though to recount almighty works
What words or tongue of Seraph can suffice,
Or heart of man suffice to comprehend?

suspense in heaven

Held by thy voice, thy potent voice he hears,

for after it is said he is held suspense in heaven by thy voice, to say he hears thy voice is poor and low indeed. He must hear it before he can be held by it. We have therefore followed the punctuation of Dr. Pearce; and the sense seems plain, as he has pointed these verses, Held by thy potent voice, he hears suspense in heaven, that is, he stops and hearkens, he stays and is attentive. The poets often feign the rivers to stop their course, and other inanimate parts of nature to hear the songs of Orpheus and the like, Virg. Ecl. viii. 4.

Et mutata suos requierunt flumina

cursus.

Nay charms and verses can

100

105

110

bring the moon down from hea

ven,

Carmina vel cœlo possunt deducere lunam: ver. 69.

and well therefore may Milton suppose the sun to delay, suspended in heaven, to hear the angel tell his generation, and especially since we read that the sun did stand still at the voice of Joshua.

103. -unapparent deep:] Where nothing was to be seen according to Gen. i. 2. Darkness was upon the face of the deep. Hume.

110. And thus the Godlike angel answer'd mild.] The angel's encouraging our first parents in a modest pursuit after knowledge, with the causes which he assigns for the creation of the world, are very just and beantiful. Addison.

Yet what thou canst attain, which best may serve 115

To glorify the Maker, and infer

Thee also happier, shall not be withheld
Thy hearing, such commission from above
I have receiv'd, to answer thy desire
Of knowledge within bounds; beyond abstain
To ask, nor let thine own inventions hope
Things not reveal'd, which th' invisible King,
Only omniscient, hath suppress'd in night,
To none communicable in earth or heaven :
Enough is left besides to search and know.
But knowledge is as food, and needs no less
Her temp'rance over appetite, to know
In measure what the mind may well contain ;
Oppresses else with surfeit, and soon turns
Wisdom to folly', as nourishment to wind.

Know then, that after Lucifer from heaven (So call him, brighter once amidst the host Of angels, than that star the stars among)

116. - and infer

Thee happier,]

And by inference make thee happier.

121. -nor let thine own inventions hope] Milton seems here to allude to Eccles. vii. 20. they have sought out many inventions; which commentators explain by reasonings. Pearce.

Thus they provoked him to anger with their own inventions, Psalm cvi. 29. The two following lines are almost a literal translation of these two in Horace, Od. iii. xxix.

Prudens futuri temporis exitum
Caliginosa nocte premit Deus.

120

125

130

Thyer.

122.th invisible King,] As God is styled in Scripture the invisible King, 1 Tim. i. 17. so this is the properest epithet that could have been employed here, when he is speaking of things not revealed, suppressed in night, to none communicable in earth or heaven, neither to men nor angels, as it is said of the day of judgment, Matt. xxiv. 36. Of that day and hour knoweth no man, no not the angels of

Fell with his flaming legions through the deep
Into his place, and the great Son return'd
Victorious with his saints, th' omnipotent
Eternal Father from his throne beheld

Their multitude, and to his Son thus spake.

At least our envious foe hath fail'd, who thought

All like himself rebellious, by whose aid
This inaccessible high strength, the seat
Of deity supreme, us dispossess'd,
He trusted to have seiz'd, and into fraud

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140

Drew many, whom their place knows here no more;

Yet far the greater part have kept, I see,
Their station, heav'n yet populous retains
Number sufficient to possess her realms
Though wide, and this high temple to frequent
With ministeries due and solemn rites :
But lest his heart exalt him in the harm
Already done, to have dispeopled heaven,
My damage fondly deem'd, I can repair

135. Into his place,] As the traitor Judas is said likewise to go to his own place, Acts i.

25.

143. and into fraud Drew many,]

Fraud in common acceptation means no more than deceit, but often signifies misfortune. Milton, who so constantly makes Latin or Greek of English, does it here, and extends the idea to the misery, the punishment consequent upon the deceit, as well as the deceit itself. So that Satan is said here, not only to have drawn many into fraud, not only that he

145

150

-allur'd them, and with lies Drew after him the third part of heav'n's host,

as v. 709. but that he ruin'd as well as cheated them, i. 609.

Millions of spirits for his fault amerc'd

Of heav'n, and from eternal splendours flung

For his revolt.

Richardson.

144. whom their place knows here no more ;) A Scripture expression, Job vii. 10. neither shall his place know him any more. Psal. ciii. 16. and the place thereof shall know it no

more.

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