Woman’s domestic honor and chief praise,
618
Bred only and completed6072 to the taste
619
Of lustful appetence, to sing, to dance,
620
To dress, and troll 6073 the tongue, and roll the eye.
621
To these that sober race of men, whose lives
622
Religious titled them the sons of God,
623
Shall yield up all their virtue, all their fame
624
Ignobly, to the trains,6074 and to the smiles
625
Of these fair atheists, and now swim in joy
626
(Erelong to swim at large),6075 and laugh, for which
627
The world erelong a world of tears must weep.”
628
To whom thus Adam, of short joy bereft:6076
629
“O pity and shame, that they who to live well
630
Entered6077 so fair, should turn aside to tread
631
Paths indirect,6078 or in the mid way faint!6079
632
But still I see the tenor 6080 of man’s woe
633
Holds on the same, from woman6081 to begin.”
634
“From man’s effeminate slackness it begins,”
635
Said th’ Angel, “who should better hold his place
636
By wisdom, and superior gifts received.
637
But now prepare thee for another scene.”
638
He looked, and saw wide territory spread
639
Before him, towns, and rural6082 works between,
640
Cities of men with lofty gates and tow’rs,
641
Concourse6083 in arms, fierce faces threat’ning war,
642
Giants of mighty bone and bold emprise.6084
643
Part wield their arms, part curb the foaming steed,
644
Single or in array of battle ranged
645
Both horse and foot, nor idly must’ring6085 stood.
646
One way a band select 6086 from forage drives
647
A herd of beeves,6087 fair oxen and fair kine,6088
648
From a fat meadow ground, or fleecy flock,
649
Ewes and their bleating lambs over the plain,
650
Their booty. Scarce with life6089 the shepherds fly,
651
But call in aid, which makes a bloody fray;
652
With cruel6090 tournament6091 the squadrons join.
653
Where cattle pastured late,6092 now scattered lies
654
With carcasses and arms th’ ensanguined6093 field,
655
Deserted. Others to a city strong
656
Lay siege, encamped, by battery,6094 scale,6095 and mine,6096
657
Assaulting; others from the wall defend
658
With dart6097 and javelin,6098 stones, and sulphurous fire;
659
On each hand slaughter, and gigantic deeds.
660
In other part the sceptered heralds call
661
To council, in the city-gates. Anon6099
662
Gray-headed men and grave, with warriors mixed,
663
Assemble, and harangues6100 are heard, but soon
664
In factious 6101 opposition, till at last
665
Of middle age one6102 rising, eminent
666
In wise deport,6103 spoke much of right and wrong,
667
Of justice, or religion, truth, and peace,
668
And judgment from above. Him old and young
669
Exploded,6104 and had seized with violent hands,
670
Had not a cloud descending snatched him thence
671
Unseen amid the throng. So violence
672
Proceeded, and oppression, and sword-law,
673
Through all the plain, and refuge none was found.
674
Adam was all in tears, and to his guide
675
Lamenting turned full sad:
“O what are these,
676
Death’s ministers, not men, who thus deal death
677
Inhumanly to men, and multiply
678
Ten thousandfold the sin of him who slew
679
His brother, for of whom such massacre
680
Make they, but of their brethren, men of men?
681
But who was that just man, whom had not Heav’n
682
Rescued, had in his righteousness been lost?”6105
683
To whom thus Michael:6106
“These are the product
684
Of those ill-mated marriages thou saw’st,
685
Where good with bad were matched, who of themselves
686
Abhor6107 to join6108 and, by imprudence mixed,6109
687
Produce prodigious births of body or mind.
688
Such were these giants, men of high renown,
689
For in those days might6110 only shall be admired,
690
And valor and heroic virtue called.6111
691
To overcome in battle, and subdue
692
Nations, and bring home spoils with infinite
693
Man-slaughter, shall be held the highest pitch
694
Of human glory, and for glory done
695
Of triumph, to be styled great conquerors,
696
Patrons of mankind, gods, and sons of gods—
697
Destroyers rightlier called, and plagues of men.
698
Thus fame shall be achieved, renown on earth,
699
And what most merits fame, in silence hid.
700
But he6112 the seventh from thee, whom thou beheld’st
701
The only righteous in a world perverse,
702
And therefore hated,6113 therefore so beset6114
703
With foes, for daring single6115 to be just
704
And utter odious truth: that God would come
705
To judge them with His Saints. Him the Most High,
706
Rapt6116 in a balmy6117 cloud with wingèd steeds
707
Did, as thou saw’st, receive6118 to walk with God,
708
High in salvation6119 and the climes of bliss,
709
Exempt from death. To show thee what reward
710
Awaits the good, the rest what punishment,
711
Which now direct thine eyes and soon behold.”
712
He looked, and saw the face of things quite changed.
713
The brazen throat of war had ceased to roar,
714
All now was turned to jollity and game,
715
To luxury and riot, feast and dance,
716
Marrying or prostituting, as befel,6120
717
Rape or adultery, where passing6121 fair
718
Allured them, thence from cups to civil broils.6122
71
9
At length a reverend sire6123 among them came,
720
And of their doings great dislike declared,
721
And testified against their ways. He oft
722
Frequented their assemblies, whereso6124 met,
723
Triumphs or festivals, and to them preached
724
Conversion and repentance, as to souls
725
In prison, under judgments imminent.
726
But all in vain. Which when he saw, he ceased
727
Contending,6125 and removed his tents far off.
728
Then from the mountain hewing timber tall,
729
Began to build a vessel of huge bulk,
730
Measured by cubit, length, and breadth, and height,
731
Smeared round with pitch, and in the side a door
732
Contrived, and of provisions laid in large6126
733
For man and beast, when lo, a wonder strange!
734
Of every beast, and bird, and insect small,
735
Came sevens, and pairs, and entered in as6127 taught
736
Their order. Last the sire and his three sons,
737
With their four wives. And God made fast the door.
738
Meanwhile the south-wind rose, and with black wings
739
Wide-hovering all the clouds together drove
740
From under Heav’n. The hills, to their 6128 supply,
741
Vapor and exhalation, dusk and moist,
742
Sent up amain,6129 and now the thickened sky
743
Like a dark ceiling stood, down rushed the rain
744
Impetuous,6130 and continued till the earth
745
No more was seen. The floating vessel swum
746
Uplifted, and secure with beakèd prow
747
Rode tilting o’er the waves. All dwellings else
748
Flood overwhelmed, and them with all their pomp
749
Deep under water rolled. Sea covered sea,
750
Sea without shore, and in their palaces,
751
Where luxury late reigned, sea-monsters whelped6131
752
And stabled.6132 Of mankind, so numerous late,6133
753
All left, in one small bottom6134 swum embarked.
754
How didst thou grieve then, Adam, to behold
755
The end of all thy offspring, end so sad,
756
Depopulation? Thee another flood,
757
Of tears and sorrow a flood, thee also drowned,
758
And sunk thee as thy sons, till gently reared
759
By th’ Angel, on thy feet thou stood’st at last,
760
Though comfortless, as when a father mourns
761
His children, all in view destroyed at once,
762
And scarce6135 to th’ Angel utter’dst thus thy plaint:
763
“O visions ill foreseen! Better had I
764
Lived ignorant of future, so had borne
765
My part of evil only, each day’s lot
766
Enough to bear. Those now, that were dispensed6136
767
The burden of many ages, on me light 6137
768
At once, by my foreknowledge gaining birth
769
Abortive, to torment me ere their being,
770
With thought that they must be. Let no man seek
771
Henceforth to be foretold what shall befall
772
Him or his children—evil, he may be sure,
773
Which neither his foreknowing can prevent,
774
And he the future evil shall no less
775
In apprehension than in substance feel,
776
Grievous to bear. But that care now is past:
777
Man is not whom to warn.6138 Those few escaped
778
Famine and anguish will at last consume,6139
779
Wand’ring that wat’ry desert. I had hope,
780
When violence was ceased, and war on earth,
781
All would have then gone well, peace would have crowned
782
With length of happy days the race of man.
783
But I was far deceived, for now I see
784
Peace to corrupt no less than war to waste.
785
How comes it thus? Unfold, celestial guide,
786
And whether here the race of man will end.”
787
To whom thus Michael:
“Those, whom last thou saw’st
788
In triumph and luxurious wealth, are they
789
First seen in acts of prowess eminent
790
And great exploits, but of true virtue void,
791
Who having spilled much blood, and done much waste,
792
Subduing nations, and achieved thereby
793
Fame in the world, high titles, and rich prey,6140
794
Shall change their course to pleasure, ease, and sloth,
795
Surfeit,6141 and lust, till wantonness6142 and pride
796
Raise out of friendship hostile deeds in peace.
797
The conquered also, and enslaved by war,
798
Shall with their freedom lost all virtue lose
799
And fear of God, from whom their piety feigned
800
In sharp contest6143 of battle found no aid
801
Against invaders. Therefore cooled in zeal,
802
Thenceforth shall practice how to live secure,6144
803
Worldly or dissolute, on what their lords
804
Shall leave them to enjoy, for th’ earth shall bear
805
More than enough that temperance6145 may be tried.6146
806
So all shall turn degenerate,6147 all depraved,6148
807
Justice and temperance, truth and faith, forgot—
808
One man6149 except, the only son of light
809
In a dark age, against example good,6150
810
Against allurement,6151 custom,6152 and a world
811
Offended.6153 Fearless of reproach and scorn,
812
Or violence, he of their wicked ways
813
Shall them admonish, and before them set
814
The paths of righteousness, how much more safe
815
And full of peace, denouncing6154 wrath to come
816
Of their impenitence,6155 and shall return
817
Of them derided, but of God observed
818
The one just man alive. By His command
819
Shall build a wondrous ark, as thou beheld’st,
820
To save himself, and household, from amidst
821
A world devote to universal wrack.6156
/>
822
No sooner he, with them of man and beast
823
Select 6157 for life shall in the ark be lodged,
824
And sheltered round, but all the cataracts6158
825
Of Heav’n set open on the earth shall pour
The Annotated Milton: Complete English Poems Page 59
