Their own faith, not another's? for on earth Who against faith and conscience can be heard Infallible? yet many will presume:
Whence heavy persecution shall arise On all who in the worship persevere
Of spirit and truth; the rest, far greater part, Will deem in outward rites and specious forms Religion satisfied; truth shall retire
Bestuck with slanderous darts, and works of faith Rarely be found: so shall the world go on, To good malignant, to bad men benign, Under her own weight groaning till the day Appear of respiration to the just, And vengeance to the wicked, at return Of Him so lately promised to thy aid, The woman's seed, obscurely then foretold, Now amplier known thy Saviour and thy Lord, Last in the clouds from heav'n to be reveal'd In glory of the Father, to dissolve
Satan with his perverted world, then raise From the conflagrant mass, purged and refined, New heav'ns, new earth, ages of endless date Founded in righteousness, and peace, and love, To bring forth fruits joy and eternal bliss. He ended; and thus Adam last replied. How soon hath thy prediction, Seer bless'd, Measured this transient world, the race of time, Till time stand fix'd! beyond is all abyss, Eternity, whose end no eye can reach: Greatly instructed I shall hence depart, Greatly in peace of thought, and have my fill Of knowledge, what this vessel can contain; Beyond which was my folly to aspire. Henceforth I learn that to obey is best, And love with fear the only Gon, to walk As in His presence, ever to observe His providence, and on Him sole depend, Merciful over all His works, with good Still overcoming evil; and by small
Accomplishing great things, by things deem'd weak
Subverting worldly strong, and worldly wise By simply meek; that suffering for truth's sake Is fortitude to highest victory,
And to the faithful death the gate of life; Taught this by His example, whom I now Acknowledge my Redeemer ever bless'd.
To whom thus also th' angel last replied. This having learn'd, thou hast attain'd the sum Of wisdom; hope no higher, though all the stars Thou knew'st by name, and all th' ethereal powers, All secrets of the deep, all nature's works, Or works of GOD in heav'n, air, earth, or sea, And all the riches of this world enjoy'dst, And all the rule, one empire; only add Deeds to thy knowledge answerable, add faith, Add virtue, patience, temperance, add love, By name to come call'd charity, the soul Of all the rest; then wilt thou not be loth To leave this paradise, but shalt possess A paradise within thee, happier far. Let us descend now, therefore, from this top Of speculation; for the hour precise Exacts our parting hence; and see the guards, By me encamp'd on yonder hill, expect Their motion, at whose front a flaming sword, In signal of remove, waves fiercely round; We may no longer stay: go, waken Eve; Her also I with gentle dreams have calm'd Portending good, and all her spirits composed To meek submission: thou at season fit
Let her with thee partake what thou hast heard. Chiefly what may concern her faith to know, The great deliverance by her seed to come, For by the woman's seed, on all mankind. That ye may live, which will be many days, Both in one faith unanimous, though sad With cause for evils past; yet much more cheer'd With meditation on the happy end.
He ended, and they both descend the hill: Descended, Adam to the bower, where Eve
Lay sleeping, ran before, but found her waked; And thus with words not sad she him received.
Whence thou return'st, and whither went'st, I know; For GOD is also in sleep, and dreams advise, Which He hath sent propitious, some great good Presaging, since with sorrow and heart's distress Wearied I fell asleep: but now lead on; In me is no delay; with thee to go
Is to stay here; without thee here to stay Is to go hence unwilling; thou to me Art all things under heav'n, all places thou, Who for my wilful crime art banish'd hence. This further consolation yet secure
I carry hence; though all by me is lost, Such favour I unworthy am vouchsafed, By me the Promised Seed shall all restore.
So spake our mother Eve, and Adam heard Well pleased, but answer'd not; for now too nigh Th' Archangel stood, and from the other hill To their fix'd station all in bright array The Cherubim descended; on the ground Gilding meteorous, as ev'ning mist
Ris'n from a river o'er the marish' glides, And gathers ground fast at the labourer's heel Homeward returning. High in front advanced The brandish'd sword of GOD before them blazed Fierce as a comet; which with torrid heat, And vapour as the Libyan air adust, Began to parch that temperate clime: whereat In either hand the hast'ning angel caught Our ling'ring parents, and to the eastern gate Led them direct, and down the cliff as fast To the subjected plain; then disappear'd. They looking back all the eastern side beheld Of Paradise, so late their happy seat, Waved over by that flaming brand; the gate With dreadful faces throng'd and fiery arms:
Some natural tears they dropp'd, but wiped them soon; The world was all before them, where to choose Their place of rest, and Providence their guide. They, hand in hand with wand'ring steps and slow, Through Eden took their solitary way.
I, WHO erewhile the happy garden sung, By one man's disobedience lost, now sing Recover'd Paradise to all mankind,
By one man's firm obedience fully tried Through all temptation, and the tempter foil'd In all his wiles, defeated, and repulsed, And Eden raised in the waste wilderness. Thou Spirit, who led'st this glorious Eremite Into the desert, His victorious field,
Against the spiritual foe, and brought'st Him thence By proof the undoubted Son of GOD, inspire, As thou art wont, my prompted song, else mute, And bear through highth or depth of nature's bounds With prosperous wing full summ'd' to tell of deeds Above heroic, though in secret done,
And unrecorded left through many an age, Worthy t' have not remain'd so long unsung.
Now had the great Proclaimer, with a voice More awful than the sound of trumpet, cried Repentance, and heaven's kingdom nigh at hand To all baptized: to his great baptism flock'd With awe the regións round, and with them came From Nazareth the Son of Joseph deem'd To the flood Jordan, came, as then obscure, Unmark'd, unknown; but Him the Baptist soon Descried, divinely warn'd, and witness bore As to his worthier, and would have resign'd
1 Full feathered, a term used in falconry.
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