第 18 页

If I conjecture aught, no drizzling shower,

But rattling storm of arrows barbed with fire.

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So warned he them, aware themselves, and soon

In order, quit of all impediment;

Instant without disturb they took alarm,

And onward moved embattled: When behold!

Not distant far with heavy pace the foe

Approaching gross and huge, in hollow cube

Training his devilish enginery, impaled

On every side with shadowing squadrons deep,

To hide the fraud. At interview both stood

A while; but suddenly at head appeared

Satan, and thus was heard commanding loud.

Vanguard, to right and left the front unfold;

That all may see who hate us, how we seek

Peace and composure, and with open breast

Stand ready to receive them, if they like

Our overture; and turn not back perverse:

But that I doubt; however witness, Heaven!

Heaven, witness thou anon! while we discharge

Freely our part: ye, who appointed stand

Do as you have in charge, and briefly touch

What we propound, and loud that all may hear!

So scoffing in ambiguous words, he scarce

Had ended; when to right and left the front

Divided, and to either flank retired:

Which to our eyes discovered, new and strange,

A triple mounted row of pillars laid

On wheels (for like to pillars most they seemed,

Or hollowed bodies made of oak or fir,

With branches lopt, in wood or mountain felled,)

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Brass, iron, stony mould, had not their mouths

With hideous orifice gaped on us wide,

Portending hollow truce: At each behind

A Seraph stood, and in his hand a reed

Stood waving tipt with fire; while we, suspense,

Collected stood within our thoughts amused,

Not long; for sudden all at once their reeds

Put forth, and to a narrow vent applied

With nicest touch. Immediate in a flame,

But soon obscured with smoke, all Heaven appeared,

From those deep-throated engines belched, whose roar

Embowelled with outrageous noise the air,

And all her entrails tore, disgorging foul

Their devilish glut, chained thunderbolts and hail

Of iron globes; which, on the victor host

Levelled, with such impetuous fury smote,

That, whom they hit, none on their feet might stand,

Though standing else as rocks, but down they fell

By thousands, Angel on Arch-Angel rolled;

The sooner for their arms; unarmed, they might

Have easily, as Spirits, evaded swift

By quick contraction or remove; but now

Foul dissipation followed, and forced rout;

Nor served it to relax their serried files.

What should they do? if on they rushed, repulse

Repeated, and indecent overthrow

Doubled, would render them yet more despised,

And to their foes a laughter; for in view

Stood ranked of Seraphim another row,

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In posture to displode their second tire

Of thunder: Back defeated to return

They worse abhorred. Satan beheld their plight,

And to his mates thus in derision called.

O Friends! why come not on these victors proud

Ere while they fierce were coming; and when we,

To entertain them fair with open front

And breast, (what could we more?) propounded terms

Of composition, straight they changed their minds,

Flew off, and into strange vagaries fell,

As they would dance; yet for a dance they seemed

Somewhat extravagant and wild; perhaps

For joy of offered peace: But I suppose,

If our proposals once again were heard,

We should compel them to a quick result.

To whom thus Belial, in like gamesome mood.

Leader! the terms we sent were terms of weight,

Of hard contents, and full of force urged home;

Such as we might perceive amused them all,

And stumbled many: Who receives them right,

Had need from head to foot well understand;

Not understood, this gift they have besides,

They show us when our foes walk not upright.

So they among themselves in pleasant vein

Stood scoffing, hightened in their thoughts beyond

All doubt of victory: Eternal Might

To match with their inventions they presumed

So easy, and of his thunder made a scorn,

And all his host derided, while they stood

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A while in trouble: But they stood not long;

Rage prompted them at length, and found them arms

Against such hellish mischief fit to oppose.

Forthwith (behold the excellence, the power,

Which God hath in his mighty Angels placed!)

Their arms away they threw, and to the hills

(For Earth hath this variety from Heaven

Of pleasure situate in hill and dale,)

Light as the lightning glimpse they ran, they flew;

From their foundations loosening to and fro,

They plucked the seated hills, with all their load,

Rocks, waters, woods, and by the shaggy tops

Up-lifting bore them in their hands: Amaze,

Be sure, and terrour, seized the rebel host,

When coming towards them so dread they saw

The bottom of the mountains upward turned;

Till on those cursed engines’ triple-row

They saw them whelmed, and all their confidence

Under the weight of mountains buried deep;

Themselves invaded next, and on their heads

Main promontories flung, which in the air

Came shadowing, and oppressed whole legions armed;

Their armour helped their harm, crushed in and bruised

Into their substance pent, which wrought them pain

Implacable, and many a dolorous groan;

Long struggling underneath, ere they could wind

Out of such prison, though Spirits of purest light,

Purest at first, now gross by sinning grown.

The rest, in imitation, to like arms

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Betook them, and the neighbouring hills uptore:

So hills amid the air encountered hills,

Hurled to and fro with jaculation dire;

That under ground they fought in dismal shade;

Infernal noise! war seemed a civil game

To this uproar; horrid confusion heaped

Upon confusion rose: And now all Heaven

Had gone to wrack, with ruin overspread;

Had not the Almighty Father, where he sits

Shrined in his sanctuary of Heaven secure,

Consulting on the sum of things, foreseen

This tumult, and permitted all, advised:

That his great purpose he might so fulfil,

To honour his anointed Son avenged

Upon his enemies, and to declare

All power on him transferred: Whence to his Son,

The Assessour of his throne, he thus began.

Effulgence of my glory, Son beloved,

Son, in whose face invisible is beheld

Visibly, what by Deity I am;

And in whose hand what by decree I do,

Second Omnipotence! two days are past,

Two days, as we compute the days of Heaven,

Since Michael and his Powers went forth to tame

These disobedient: Sore hath been their fight,

As likeliest was, when two such foes met armed;

For to themselves I left them; and thou knowest,

Equal in their creation they were formed,

Save what sin hath impaired; which yet hath wrought

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Insensibly, for I suspend their doom;

Whence in perpetual fight they needs must last

Endless, and no solution will be found:

War wearied hath performed what war can do,

And to disordered rage let loose the reins

With mountains, as with weapons, armed; which makes

Wild work in Heaven, and dangerous to the main.

Two days are therefore past, the third is thine;

For thee I have ordained it; and thus far

Have suffered, that the glory may be thine

Of ending this great war, since none but Thou

Can end it. Into thee such virtue and grace

Immense I have transfused, that all may know

In Heaven and Hell thy power above compare;

And, this perverse commotion governed thus,

To manifest thee worthiest to be Heir

Of all things; to be Heir, and to be King

By sacred unction, thy deserved right.

Go then, Thou Mightiest, in thy Father’s might;

Ascend my chariot, guide the rapid wheels

That shake Heaven’s basis, bring forth all my war,

My bow and thunder, my almighty arms

Gird on, and sword upon thy puissant thigh;

Pursue these sons of darkness, drive them out

From all Heaven’s bounds into the utter deep:

There let them learn, as likes them, to despise

God, and Messiah his anointed King.

He said, and on his Son with rays direct

Shone full; he all his Father full expressed

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Ineffably into his face received;

And thus the Filial Godhead answering spake.

O Father, O Supreme of heavenly Thrones,

First, Highest, Holiest, Best; thou always seek’st

To glorify thy Son, I always thee,

As is most just: This I my glory account,

My exaltation, and my whole delight,

That thou, in me well pleased, declarest thy will

Fulfilled, which to fulfil is all my bliss.

Scepter and power, thy giving, I assume,

And gladlier shall resign, when in the end

Thou shalt be all in all, and I in thee

For ever; and in me all whom thou lovest:

But whom thou hatest, I hate, and can put on

Thy terrours, as I put thy mildness on,

Image of thee in all things; and shall soon,

Armed with thy might, rid Heaven of these rebelled;

To their prepared ill mansion driven down,

To chains of darkness, and the undying worm;

That from thy just obedience could revolt,

Whom to obey is happiness entire.

Then shall thy Saints unmixed, and from the impure

Far separate, circling thy holy mount,

Unfeigned Halleluiahs to thee sing,

Hymns of high praise, and I among them Chief.

So said, he, o’er his scepter bowing, rose

From the right hand of Glory where he sat;

And the third sacred morn began to shine,

Dawning through Heaven. Forth rushed with whirlwind

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sound

The chariot of Paternal Deity,

Flashing thick flames, wheel within wheel undrawn,

Itself instinct with Spirit, but convoyed

By four Cherubick shapes; four faces each

Had wonderous; as with stars, their bodies all

And wings were set with eyes; with eyes the wheels

Of beryl, and careering fires between;

Over their heads a crystal firmament,

Whereon a sapphire throne, inlaid with pure

Amber, and colours of the showery arch.

He, in celestial panoply all armed

Of radiant Urim, work divinely wrought,

Ascended; at his right hand Victory

Sat eagle-winged; beside him hung his bow

And quiver with three-bolted thunder stored;

And from about him fierce effusion rolled

Of smoke, and bickering flame, and sparkles dire:

Attended with ten thousand thousand Saints,

He onward came; far off his coming shone;

And twenty thousand (I their number heard)

Chariots of God, half on each hand, were seen;

He on the wings of Cherub rode sublime

On the crystalline sky, in sapphire throned,

Illustrious far and wide; but by his own

First seen: Them unexpected joy surprised,

When the great ensign of Messiah blazed

Aloft by Angels borne, his sign in Heaven;

Under whose conduct Michael soon reduced

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His army, circumfused on either wing,

Under their Head imbodied all in one.

Before him Power Divine his way prepared;

At his command the uprooted hills retired

Each to his place; they heard his voice, and went

Obsequious; Heaven his wonted face renewed,

And with fresh flowerets hill and valley smiled.

This saw his hapless foes, but stood obdured,

And to rebellious fight rallied their Powers,

Insensate, hope conceiving from despair.

In heavenly Spirits could such perverseness dwell?

But to convince the proud what signs avail,

Or wonders move the obdurate to relent?

They, hardened more by what might most reclaim,

Grieving to see his glory, at the sight

Took envy; and, aspiring to his highth,

Stood re-embattled fierce, by force or fraud

Weening to prosper, and at length prevail

Against God and Messiah, or to fall

In universal ruin last; and now

To final battle drew, disdaining flight,

Or faint retreat; when the great Son of God

To all his host on either hand thus spake.

Stand still in bright array, ye Saints; here stand,

Ye Angels armed; this day from battle rest:

Faithful hath been your warfare, and of God

Accepted, fearless in his righteous cause;

And as ye have received, so have ye done,

Invincibly: But of this cursed crew

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The punishment to other hand belongs;

Vengeance is his, or whose he sole appoints:

Number to this day’s work is not ordained,

Nor multitude; stand only, and behold

God’s indignation on these godless poured

By me; not you, but me, they have despised,

Yet envied; against me is all their rage,

Because the Father, to whom in Heaven s’preme

Kingdom, and power, and glory appertains,

Hath honoured me, according to his will.

Therefore to me their doom he hath assigned;

That they may have their wish, to try with me

In battle which the stronger proves; they all,

Or I alone against them; since by strength

They measure all, of other excellence

Not emulous, nor care who them excels;

Nor other strife with them do I vouchsafe.

So spake the Son, and into terrour changed

His countenance too severe to be beheld,

And full of wrath bent on his enemies.

At once the Four spread out their starry wings

With dreadful shade contiguous, and the orbs

Of his fierce chariot rolled, as with the sound

Of torrent floods, or of a numerous host.

He on his impious foes right onward drove,

Gloomy as night; under his burning wheels

The stedfast empyrean shook throughout,

All but the throne itself of God. Full soon

Among them he arrived; in his right hand

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Grasping ten thousand thunders, which he sent

Before him, such as in their souls infixed

Plagues: They, astonished, all resistance lost,

All courage; down their idle weapons dropt:

O’er shields, and helms, and helmed heads he rode

Of Thrones and mighty Seraphim prostrate,