335
Such follow him as shall be registered6351
336
Part good, part bad—of bad the longer scroll,
337
Whose foul idolatries and other faults
338
Heaped to the popular sum,6352 will so incense
339
God, as to6353 leave them, and expose their land,
340
Their city, His temple, and His holy ark,
341
With all His sacred things, a6354 scorn and prey.
342
To that proud city, whose high walls thou saw’st
343
Left in confusion, Babylon thence called.
344
There in captivity He lets them dwell
345
The space of seventy years,6355 then brings them back,
346
Rememb’ring6356 mercy and His cov’nant sworn
347
To David, stablished 6357 as the days of Heav’n.
348
Returned from Babylon by leave of kings6358
349
Their lords, whom God disposed,6359 the house of God
350
They first re-edify,6360 and for a while
351
In mean6361 estate6362 live moderate. Till grown
352
In wealth and multitude, factious they grow.
353
But first among the priests dissention springs,
354
Men who attend 6363 the altar, and should most
355
Endeavor6364 peace. Their strife pollution brings
356
Upon the temple itself. At last they6365 seize
357
The scepter, and regard not David’s sons,
358
Then lose it to a stranger,6366 that the true
359
Anointed King Messiah might be born
360
Barred6367 of his right. Yet at his birth a star,
361
Unseen before in Heav’n, proclaims him come,
362
And guides the eastern sages, who inquire
363
His place, to offer incense, myrrh, and gold.
364
His place of birth a solemn6368 Angel tells
365
To simple shepherds, keeping watch by night.
366
They gladly thither 6369 haste, and by a choir
367
Of squadroned6370 Angels hear his carol sung.
368
A virgin is his mother, but his sire
369
The power of the Most High. He shall ascend
370
The throne hereditary, and bound his reign
371
With earth’s wide bounds, his glory with the Heav’ns.”
372
He ceased, discerning Adam with such joy
373
Surcharged6371 as had, like grief, been dewed in tears,
374
Without the vent 6372 of words, which these he breathed:
375
“O prophet of glad tidings, finisher6373
376
Of utmost hope! Now clear I understand
377
What oft my steadiest thoughts have searched in vain,
378
Why our great expectation should be called
379
The seed of woman. Virgin Mother, hail,
380
High in the love of Heav’n! Yet from my loins
381
Thou shalt proceed, and from thy womb the son
382
Of God Most High: so God with man unites!
383
Needs must the serpent now his capital bruise6374
384
Expect with mortal6375 pain. Say where and when
385
Their fight, what stroke shall bruise the victor’s heel.”
386
To whom thus Michael:
“Dream not of their fight
387
As of a duel,6376 or the local 6377 wounds
388
Of head or heel. Not therefore joins the Son
389
Manhood to Godhead, with more strength to foil 6378
390
Thy enemy, nor so is overcome
391
Satan, whose fall from Heav’n, a deadlier bruise,
392
Disabled not to give thee thy death’s wound,
393
Which he,6379 who comes thy Savior, shall recure,6380
394
Not by destroying Satan but his6381 works
395
In thee, and in thy seed. Nor can this be
396
But by fulfilling that which thou did’st want,6382
397
Obedience to the law of God, imposed
398
On penalty of death, and suffering death,
399
The penalty to thy transgression due,
400
And due to theirs which out of thine will grow.
401
So only can high Justice rest appaid.6383
402
The law of God exact he6384 shall fulfill
403
Both by obedience and by love, though love
404
Alone fulfill the law. Thy punishment
405
He shall endure, by coming in the flesh
406
To a reproachful 6385 life and cursèd death,
407
Proclaiming life to all who shall believe
408
In his redemption, and that his obedience,
409
Imputed,6386 becomes theirs by faith, his merits
410
To save them, not their own, though6387 legal 6388 works.6389
411
For this he shall live hated, be blasphemed,6390
412
Seized on by force, judged and to death condemned,
413
A shameful and accursed, nailed to the cross
414
By his own nation, slain for bringing life.
415
But to the cross he nails thy enemies,
416
The law that is against thee, and the sins
417
Of all mankind, with him there crucified,
418
Never to hurt them more who rightly trust
419
In this his satisfaction.6391 So he dies,
420
But soon revives: Death over him no power
421
Shall long usurp.6392 Ere the third dawning light
422
Return, the stars of morn shall see him rise
423
Out of his grave, fresh as the dawning light,
424
Thy ransom paid, which man from death redeems,
425
His death for man, as many as offered6393 life
426
Neglect not, and the benefit6394 embrace6395
427
By faith not void of works. This God-like act
428
Annuls thy doom, the death thou should’st have died,
429
In sin forever lost from life. This act
430
Shall bruise6396 the head of Satan, crush his strength,
431
Defeating Sin and Death, his two main arms,
432
And fix far deeper in his head their stings
433
Than temporal 6397 death shall bruise the victor’s heel,
434
Or theirs6398 whom he redeems—a death like sleep,
435
A gentle wafting 6399 to immortal life.
436
Nor after resurrection shall he stay
<
br /> 437
Longer on earth than certain6400 times to appear
438
To his disciples, men who in his life
439
Still 6401 followed him. To them shall leave in charge
440
To teach all nations what of him they learned
441
And his salvation,6402 them who shall believe
442
Baptizing in the profluent6403 stream, the sign
443
Of washing them from guilt of sin to life
444
Pure, and in mind prepared, if so befall,
445
For death, like that which the Redeemer died.
446
All nations they shall teach. For from that day,
447
Not only to the sons of Abraham’s loins
448
Salvation shall be preached, but to the sons
449
Of Abraham’s faith wherever through the world.
450
So in his seed all nations shall be blest.
451
Then to the Heav’n of Heav’ns he6404 shall ascend
452
With victory, triumphing 6405 through the air
453
Over his foes and thine. There shall surprise
454
The serpent, prince of air, and drag in chains
455
Through all his6406 realm, and there6407 confounded6408 leave,
456
Then enter into glory, and resume
457
His seat at God’s right hand, exalted high
458
Above all names6409 in Heav’n, and thence shall come,
459
When this world’s dissolution shall be ripe,
460
With glory and power to judge both quick6410 and dead—
461
To judge the unfaithful dead, but to reward
462
His faithful, and receive them into bliss,
463
Whether in Heav’n or earth, for then the earth
464
Shall all be Paradise, far happier place
465
Than this of Eden, and far happier days.”
466
So spoke the Arch-Angel Michael, then paused,
467
As at the world’s great period;6411 and our sire,
468
Replete6412 with joy and wonder, thus replied:
469
“O goodness infinite, goodness immense!
470
That all this good of 6413 evil shall produce,6414
471
And evil turn to good, more wonderful
472
Than that which by creation first brought forth
473
Light out of darkness! Full of doubt I stand,
474
Whether I should repent me now of sin
475
By me done and occasioned,6415 or rejoice
476
Much more, that much more good thereof shall spring,
477
To God more glory, more good-will to men
478
From God, and over wrath grace shall abound.6416
479
But say, if our Deliverer up to Heav’n
480
Must re-ascend, what will betide6417 the few
481
His faithful, left among the unfaithful herd,
482
The enemies of truth? Who then shall guide
483
His people, who defend? Will they not deal
484
Worse with his followers than with him they dealt?”
485
“Be sure they will,” said the Angel, “but from Heav’n
486
He to his own a comforter 6418 will send,
487
The promise of the Father, who shall dwell
488
His Spirit within them, and the law of faith,
489
Working through love, upon their hearts shall write,
490
To guide them in all truth, and also arm
491
With spiritual armor, able to resist
492
Satan’s assaults, and quench6419 his fiery darts—
493
What man can do against them, not afraid,
494
Though to the death, against such cruelties
495
With inward consolations recompensed,
496
And oft supported 6420 so as shall amaze
497
Their proudest persecutors. For the Spirit,
498
Poured first on his Apostles, whom he sends
499
T’ evangelize the nations, then on all
500
Baptized, shall them with wond’rous gifts endue6421
501
To speak all tongues,6422 and do all miracles,
502
As did their Lord before them. Thus they win
503
Great numbers of each nation to receive
504
With joy the tidings brought from Heav’n.
“At length
505
Their ministry performed, and race well run,
506
Their doctrine and their story written left,
507
They die, but in their room,6423 as they forewarn,
508
Wolves shall succeed for teachers, grievous wolves,
509
Who all the sacred mysteries of Heav’n
510
To their own vile advantages shall turn
511
Of lucre6424 and ambition, and the truth
512
With superstitions and traditions taint,
513
Left only in those written records pure,
514
Though not but 6425 by the Spirit understood.
515
Then shall they6426 seek to avail themselves of names,
516
Places, and titles, and with these to join
517
Secular power, though feigning still to act
518
By spiritual, to themselves appropriating
519
The Spirit of God, promised alike and giv’n
520
To all believers; and from that pretence,
521
Spiritual laws by carnal 6427 power shall force
522
On every conscience, laws which none shall find
523
Left them enrolled6428 or what the Spirit within
524
Shall on the heart engrave. What will they then
525
But force the spirit of grace itself, and bind
526
His consort liberty? What but unbuild
527
His living temples, built by faith to stand,
528
Their own faith, not another’s—for on earth
529
Who against faith and conscience can be heard
530
Infallible?
“Yet many will presume.6429
531
Whence heavy persecution shall arise
532
On all who in the worship persevere
533
Of spirit and truth. The rest, far greater part,
534
Will deem6430 in outward rites and specious6431 forms6432
535
Religion satisfied.6433 Truth shall retire,6434
536
Bestuck with sland’rous darts, and works of faith
537
Rarely be found.
“So shall the world go on,
538
To good malignant, to bad men
benign,
539
Under her own weight groaning, till the day
540
Appear of respiration6435 to the just
541
And vengeance to the wicked, at return
542
Of him so lately promised to thy aid,
543
The Annotated Milton: Complete English Poems Page 62
