Annuls thy doom, the death thou shouldst have died, Than temporal death shall bruise the victor's heel, Nor after resurrection shall he stay Longer on earth, than certain times to appear Still followed him; to them shall leave in charge To teach all nations what of him they learn'd Of Abraham's faith wherever through the world; 430 435 440 445 450 455 His seat at God's right hand exalted high With glory and power to judge both quick and dead; 460 465 So spake the archangel Michael; then paused, By me done, and occasion'd; or rejoice Much more, that much more good thereof shall spring; From God, and over wrath grace shall abound. 470 475 But say, if our Deliverer up to heaven Worse with his followers than with him they dealt? The promise of the Father, who shall dwell 480 495 490 495 Baptized, shall them with wondrous gifts endue 500 To speak all tongues, and do all miracles, As did their Lord before them. Thus they win Great numbers of each nation to receive With joy the tidings brought from Heaven: at length, Their ministry perform'd, and race well run, 505 Their doctrine and their story written left, They die; but in their room, as they forewarn, Wolves shall succeed for teachers, grievous wolves, 510 Who all the sacred mysteries of Heaven Then shall they seek to avail themselves of names, y Though not but by the Spirit understood. 515 I do not think Milton, in all his writings, ever gave a stronger proof of his enthusiastical spirit than in this line.-WARBURTON. z Secular power. On this subject he had been particularly copious in the tract of 'Reformation in England,' Prose Works, i. p. 264, ed. 1698 :-" If the life of Christ be hid to this world, much more is his sceptre unoperative, but in spiritual things. And thus lived for two or three ages the successors of the apostles. But when, through Constantine's lavish superstition, they forsook their first love, and set themselves up too in God's stead, Mammon and their belly; then, taking advantage of the spiritual power, which they had on men's consciences, they began to cast a longing eye to get the body also, and bodily things, into their command; upon which, their carnal desires, the Spirit daily quenching and dying in them, knew no way to keep themselves up from falling to nothing, By spiritual, to themselves appropriating But force the Spirit of grace itself, and bind Of spirit and truth; the rest, far greater part, Bestuck with slanderous darts, and works of faith Under her own weight groaning; till the day Now amplier known thy Saviour and thy Lord: Satan with his perverted world; then raise New heavens, new earth, ages of endless date, 520 525 530 535 540 545 but by bolstering and supporting their inward rottenness by a carnal and outward strength."-TODD. a Laws which none shall find. Laws, as Hume and Dr. Newton observe, neither agreeable to revealed or natural religion; neither to be found in Holy Scripture, or written on their hearts by the Spirit of God; laws contrary to his promise, who has said, "I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it on their hearts," Jer. xxxi. 33.-TODD. b His consort liberty. "For where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty," 2 Cor. iii. 17.-NEWTON. e His living temples. Christians are called "the temples of God," 1 Cor. iii. 16, 17; and vi. 19.-NEWTON. See also Milton's Prose Works, vol. i. p. 231, ed. 1698:-"As if the touch of a lay Christian, who is nevertheless God's living temple, could profane dead Judaisms."Todd. d Last, in the clouds. "Coming in the clouds of Heaven," Matt. xxvi. 64.-"The Son of Man shall come in the glory of his Father," Matt. xvi. 27.-GILLIES. e New heavens, new earth. The very words of St. Peter, 2 Pet. iii. 13:-"Nevertheless, we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness." This notion of the heavens and earth being renewed after the conflagration, and made the Founded in righteousness, and peace, and love; He ended; and thus Adam last replied: 65C 555 560 His providence, and on him sole depend, 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 565 570 And, to the faithful, death the gate of life; To whom thus also the angel last replied: Thou knew'st by name, and all the ethereal powers. 575 580 habitation of angels and just men made perfect, was very pleasing to Milton, as it was to Dr. Burnet; and must be to every one of a fine and exalted imagination: and Milton has enlarged upon it in several parts of his works, and particularly in this poem, b. iii. 333, &c.; b. x. 638; b. xi. 65, 900: b. xii. 462.-NEWTON. Compare with this poetic passage Milton's animated description in prose of Christ's "universal and mild monarchy through heaven and earth; where they undoubtedly, that, by their labours, counsels, and prayers, have been earnest for the common good of religion and their country, shall receive, above the inferior orders of the blessed, the regal addition of principalities, legions, and thrones, into their glorious titles; and in supereminence of beatific vision progressing the dateless and irrevoluble circle of eternity, shall clasp inseparable hands with joy and bliss in over-measure for ever." See the end of his Reformation in England.'-TODD. 1 Subverting worldly strong. "God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty," 1 Cor. i. 27. And so in the rest there is the sense of Scripture if not the very words: as, to obey is best:-"Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice," 1 Sam. xv. 22. And, on him sole depend :-"Casting your care upon him, for he careth for you," 1 Pet. v. 7. And merciful over all his works :-" His mercies are over all his works," Psalm exlv. 9.— NEWTON. Though all the stars. The turn of the sentence resembles, as Mr. Stillingfleet observes, when St. Paul says, 1 Cor. xiii. 2:-" And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowlege, and have not charity, I am nothing."-TODD. And all the rule, one empire: only add Let us descend now therefore from this top Let her with thee partake what thou hast heard; With cause, for evils past; yet much more cheer'd He ended, and they both descend the hill: Descended, Adam, to the bower, where Eve 585 590 595 600 605 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; 610 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 Is to stay here; without thee here to stay, 615 Art all things under heaven, all places thou, Of speculation. h From this top 6:20 From this hill of prophecy and prediction. Speculation, a watching on a tower or high place; thence a discovery, and therefore applied to the prophets in the sacred page, who are called "seers" and "watchmen," speculators, of specula, Latin, a "watch tower." See Ezekiel, iii. 17; and also chap. xxxiii. 3-7.-HUME, i For God is also in sleep. See Numb. xii. 6:-"If there be a prophet among you, I the Lord will make myself known unto him in a vision, and I will speak unto him in a dream." And thus Homer, Π. 1. 63 :—Καὶ γάρ τ' ὄναρ ἐκ Διός ἐστιν. And the application is very elegant in this place, as Adam's was a vision, and Eve's a dream; and God was in the one as well as in the other.-NEWTON. |