IGH on a throne of royal ftate, which far
Outshone the wealth of ORMUs, and of IND;
Or where the gorgeous eaft with richest hand
Showrs on her Kings BARBARIC pearl, and gold, SATAN exalted fat, by merit rais'd
To that bad eminence: and from despair Thus high uplifted beyond hope, afpires Beyond thus high; infatiate to pursue
Vain war with heaven; and, by fuccefs untaught, His proud imaginations thus difplay'd.
Pow'rs, and Dominions, Deities of heav'n! (For fince no Deep within her gulph can hold Immortal vigor, though opprefs'd and fall'n, I give not heav'n for loft: from this descent Cœleftial virtues rifing, will appear
More glorious and more dread than from no fall, And trust themselves to fear no fecond fate.) Me though just right, and the fix'd laws of heav'n Did first create your Leader; next, free choice: With what befides, in council or in fight, Hath been atchiev'd of merit, yet this lofs Thus far at leaft recover'd, hath much more Establish'd in a safe unenvied throne, Yielded with full confent. The happier state In heav'n, which follows dignity, might draw Envy from each inferior: but who here Will envy whom the highest place expofes Foremost to stand against the Thund'rer's aim, Your bulwark; and condemns to greatest share Of endless pain? Where there is then no good For which to ftrive, no ftrife can grow up there From faction: for none fure will claim in hell Precedence; none whofe portion is so small Of prefent pain, that with ambitious mind Will covet more! With this advantage then
To union, and firm faith, and firm accord,
More than can be in heav'n, we now return To claim our juft inheritance of old, Surer to profper than profperity
Could have affur'd us: and by what best Whether of open war, or covert guile,
We now debate: who can advise, may speak.
He ceas'd; and next him MoLoc, fceptred King, Stood up, the strongest and the fiercest spirit
That fought in heav'n, now fiercer by defpair: His trust was with th' Eternal to be deem'd Equal in ftrength; and rather than be less, Car'd not to be at all; with that care loft Went all his fear: of God, or hell, or worse,
He reck'd not; and these words thereafter spake :
My fentence is for open war: of wiles, More inexpert, I boaft not them let those Contrive who need; or when they need, not now: For while they fit contriving, shall the rest, Millions that stand in arms, and longing wait The fignal to afcend, fit ling'ring here Heav'n's fugitives, and for their dwelling-place Accept this dark opprobrious den of fhame, The prifon of his tyranny who reigns
By our delay? No! let us rather chufe,
Arm'd with hell flames and fury, all at once
Black fire, and horror, fhot with equal rage
Among His Angels: and His throne itself
Mix'd with TARTAREAN fulphur, and ftrange fire, His own invented torments.—But perhaps The way feems difficult, and fteep, to scale With upright wing against a bigher foe.- Let fuch bethink them, (if the fleepy drench E
Of that forgetful lake benumb not fill) "That in our proper motion we afcend Up to our native feat: defcent and fall "To us is adverfe. Who but felt of late, When the fierce foe hung on our broken Rere Infulting, and purfu'd us thro' the Deep, With what compulfion, and laborious flight, We funk thus low? Th' afcent is eafie then; Th' event is fear'd; fhould we again provoke Our stronger, fome worfe way His wrath may find "To our deftruction: (if there be in hell
Fear to be worse destroy'd) What can be worse
Than to dwell here, driv'n out from blifs, condemn'd In this abhorred deep to utter woe!
Where pain of inextinguifhable fire
Muft exercife us, without hope of end,
The vaffals of His anger, when the scourge Inexorable, and the torturing hour,
Calls us to penance? more defroy'd than thus, We fhould be quite abolish'd, and expire.
What fear we then? what doubt we to incenfe His utmost ire? which to the height enrag'd, Will either quite confume us, and reduce To nothing this effential; happier far, Than miferable to have eternal Being. Or if our fubftance be indeed divine, And cannot ceafe to be, we are at worst On this fide nothing: and by proof we feel Our pow'r fufficient to difturb His heav'n, And with perpetual inroads to alarm, Though inacceffible, His fatal throne: Which, if not victory, is yet revenge.
He ended frowning, and his look denounc'd Defperate revenge, and battel dangerous To lefs than Gods. On th' other fide uprofe BELIAL, in act more graceful and humane; A fairer perfon loft not heav'n; he feem'd For dignity compos'd, and high exploit: But all was falfe and hollow: though his tongue
Drop'd Manna, and could make the worfe appear The better reafon, to perplex and dash Matureft counfels: for his thoughts were low: To vice industrious, but to nobler deeds Timorous, and flothful: yet he pleas'd the ear, And with perfuafive accent thus began.
I should be much for open war, O Peers, As not behind in hate, if what was urg'd Main reafon to perfuade immediate war, Did not diffuade me moft; and feem to caft Ominous conjecture on the whole fuccefs; When he who moft excels in fact of arms, In what he counfels, and in what excels, Mistrustful, grounds his courage on defpair, And utter diffolution, as the fcope Of all his aim, after fome dire revenge.
First, what revenge? The tow'rs of heav'n are fill'd With armed watch, that render all accefs
Impregnable; oft on the bordering Deep
Encamp their legions; or with obfcure wing Scout far and wide into the realm of night, Scorning furprize. Or could we break our way By force, and at our heels all hell fhould rife With blackest infurrection, to confound Heav'n's pureft light; yet our great enemy, All incorruptible, would on His throne Sit unpolluted; and th' ethereal mold Incapable of ftain, would foon expel Her mifchief, and purge off the bafer fire,. Victorious. Thus repuls'd, our final hope: Is flat defpair; we must exafperate
Th' Almighty victor to fpend all His rage, And that must end us; that must be our cure, To be no more.-Sad cure! for who would lofe, Though full of pain, this intellectual Being; 'Thofe thoughts, that wander through eternity; To perish rather, fwallow'd up and loft In the wide womb of uncreated night, Devoid of fenfe and motion? And who knows,
(Let this be good) whether our angry foe Can give it, or will ever: How He can, Is doubtful, that He never will, is fure. Will He, fo wife, let loose at once His ire, Belike thro' impotence, or unaware, To give His enemies their wish, and end Them in His anger, whom His anger faves To punish endless ?- -Wherefore ceafe we then,
Say they who counfel war; We are decreed, Referv'd, and deftin'd to eternal woe: Whatever doing, what can we fuffer more; What can we fuffer worfe?.
Thus fitting, thus confulting, thus in arms? What! when we fled amain, purfu'd, and struck With heav'n's afflicting thunder, and befought The Deep to fhelter us? This hell then feem'd A refuge from thofe wounds. Or, when we lay Chain'd on the burning lake? That fure was worse. What if the breath that kindled thofe grim fires, Awak'd, fhould blow them into fevenfold rage, And plunge us in the flames? Or, from above, Should intermitted vengeance arm again His red right hand to plague us? What if all Her ftores were open'd, and this firmament Of hell fhould fpout her cataracts of fire? Impendent horrors! threatning hideous fall One day upon our heads: while we perhaps Defigning or exhorting glorious war, Caught in a fiery tempeft fhall be hurl'd Each on his rock transfix'd, the fport and prey Of racking whirlwinds: or for ever funk Under yon boiling ocean, wrapt in chains: There to converfe with everlasting groans, Unrefpited, unpitied, unrepriev'd,
Ages of hopeless end? This would be worse. War therefore, open or conceal'd, alike
My voice diffuades: for what can force or guile
With Him, or who deceive His mind, whofe eye
Views all things at one view? He from heav'n's height All these our motions vain fees, and derides;
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