His mighty Angels gave them feveral charge, As forted beft with prefent things. The Sun Had firft his precept fo to move, fo shine, As might affect the Earth with cold and heat Scarce tolerable, and from the North to call Decrepit Winter, from the South to bring Solftitial fummers heat. To the blanc Moon Her Office they prefcrib'd; to th' other Five Their planetary motions and aspects. In Sextile, Square, and Trine, and Opposite Of noxious efficacy, and when to join In Synod unbenign, and taught the fixt Their influence malignant when to showre, Which of them rifing with the Sun, or falling, Should prove Tempestuous: To the Winds they set Their corners, when with bluftre to confound Sea, Air, and Shore, the Thunder when to roll With terror thro' the dark Aerial Hall. Some fay he bid his Angels turn ascanse The Poles of Earth twice ten degrees and more From the Sun's Axle ; they with labour push'd Oblique the Centric Globe: Some say the Sun Was bid turn Reins from th' Equinoctial Rode Like diftant breadth to Taurus with the Seven Atlantick Sifters, and the Spartan Twins Up to the Tropic Crab; thence down amain By Leo and the Virgin and the Scales, As deep as Capricorne, to bring in change Of Seasons to each Clime; elfe had the Spring Perpetual fmil'd on Earth with vernant Flours, Equal in Days and Nights, except to those Beyond the Polar Circles; to them Day Had unbenighted fhon, while the low Sun To recompence his distance, in their fight Had rounded ftill the Horizon, and not known Or Eaft or Weft, which had forbid the Snow From cold Eftotiland, and South as far Beneath Magellan. At that tafted Fruit
The Sun, as from Thyeftean Banquet, turn'd
His course intended; elfe how had the World Inhabited, though finless, more than now, Avoided pinching cold and fcorching heat? These changes in the Heav'ns, though flow, produc'd Like change on Sea and Land, fideral blaft, / Vapour, and Mift, and Exhalation hot, Corrupt and Peftilent: Now from the North Of Norumbega, and the Samoed fhore
Burfting their brazen Dungeon, arm'd with ice And fnow and hail and ftormy guft and flaw, Boreas and Cacias and Argeftes loud
And Thracias rend the Woods and Seas up-turn;
With adverse blaft up-turns them from the South
Notus and Afer black with thundrous Clouds
From Serraliona; thwart of these as fierce
Forth rufh the Levant and the Ponent Winds
Eurus and Zephyr with their lateral noife.
Sirocco, and Libecchio. Thus began
Outrage from lifeless things; but Discord first, Daughter of Sin among th' irrational,
Death introduc'd through fierce antipathy:
Beast now with Beast gan war, and Fowl With Fowl, And Fish with Fish; to graze the Herb all leaving, Devour'd each other; nor ftood much in awe Of Man, but fled him, or with count'nance grim Glar'd on him paffing: these were from without The growing Miseries, which Adam faw Already in part, though hid in gloomiest shade To forrow abandon'd, but worse felt within, And in a troubl'd Sea of paffion toft, Thus to disburden fought with fad complaint.
O miferable of happy! is this the end Of this new glorious World, and Me fo late The Glory of that Glory, who now become Accurft of bleffed, hide me from the face Of God, whom to behold was then my heighth
Of happiness; yet well, if here would end The mifery; I deferv'd it, and would bear My own defervings; but this will not ferve; All that I eat or drink, or fhall beget,
Is propagated curse. O voice once heard. Delightfully, Encreafe and Multiply,
Now Death to hear! for what can I encrease
Or multiply, but curfes on my head?
Who of all Ages to fucceed, but feeling
The evil on him brought by me, will curfe
My Head? Ill fare our Anceftor impure,
"For this we may thank Adam; ' - but his thanks
Shall be the execration; fo befides
Mine own that bide upon me, all from me
Shall with a fierce reflux on me redound,
On me as on their natural center light
Heavy, though in their place. Oh fleeting joyes
Of Paradife, dear bought with lafting woes! Did I request thee, Maker, from my Clay To mould me Man, did I follicit thee From darkness to promote me, or here place In this delicious Garden? as my Will Gancurr'd not to my being, it were but right And equal to reduce me to my duft, Defirous to refign, and render back All I receiv'd, unable to perform
Thy terms too hard, by which I was to hold The good I fought not. To the lofs of that, Sufficient penalty, why haft thou added The fenfe of endless woes? inexplicable Thy juftice feems; yet to fay truth, too late, I thus conteft; then should have been refus'd These terms whatever, when they were propos'd: Thou didst accept them; wilt thou enjoy the Good, Then cavil the Conditions? and though God Made thee without thy leave, what if thy Son Prove disobedient, and reprov'd, retort, Wherefore didst thou beget me? I fought it not:
Wouldst thou admit for his contempt of thee
That proud excuse? yet him not thy Election,
But naural Neceffity begot.
God made thee of choice his own, and of his own
To ferve him, thy reward was of his Grace,
Thy punishment then justly is at his Will. Be it fo, for I fubmit, his doom is fair,
That duft I am, and fhall to duft return:
O welcome hour whenever! why delays
His hand to execute what his Decree
Fixt on this day? why do I overlive,
Why am I mockt with death, and lengthen❜d out To deathless pain? how gladly would I meet
Mortality my fentence, and be Earth Infenfible, how glad would lay me down As in my Mother's lap? there I should reft And fleep fecure; his dreadful voice no more Would Thunder in my ears, no fear of worfe To me and to my off-spring would torment me With cruel expectation. Yet one doubt Purfues me ftill, left All I cannot die, Left that pure Breath of Life, the Spirit of Man Which God infpir'd, cannot together perish With this corporeal Clod; then in the Grave, Or in fome other difmal place who knows But I fhall die a living death? O thought Horrid, if true! yet why? it was but breath
Of Life that fin'd; what dies but what had life
And fin? the Body properly hath neither.
All of me then shall die; let this appease
The doubt, fince human reach no further knows.
For though the Lord of all be infinite,
Is his wrath alfo be it, man is not fo,
But mortal doom'd. How can he exercise
Wrath without end on Man whom Death must end?
Can he make deathlefs Death? that were to make Strange contradiction, which to God himself Impoffible is held, as Argument
Of Weakness, not of Power. Will he draw out, For anger's fake, finite to infinite
In punish'd man, to fatisfic his rigour,
Satisfy'd never; that were to extend
His Sentence beyond duft and Nature's Law, By which all Caufes elfe according ftill
To the reception of their matter act,
Not to th' extent of their own Sphere. But fay That Death be not one stroke, as I fuppos'd, Bereaving sense, but Endless mifery From this day onward, which I feel begun Both in me, and without me, and fo laft
To perpetuity; Ay me! that fear
Comes thundring back with dreadful revolution
On my defenceless head; both Death and I Am found Eternal, and incorporate both. Nor I on my part fingle, in me all Pofterity ftands curft! Fair Patrimony That I muft leave ye, Sons; Owere I able To wafte it all my felf, and leave ye none ! So difinherited how would ye bless
Me now your curfe! Ah, why fhould all mankind For One man's fault thus guiltless be condemn'd, If guiltless? But from me what can proceed, But all corrupt, both Mind and Will deprav'd,
Not to Do only, but to Will the fame
With me? how can they then acquitted stand
In fight of God? Him after all Disputes
Forc'd I abfolve: all my evafions vain
And reasonings, tho' thro' Mazes, lead me still
But to my own conviction: first and last
On me, me only, as the fource and spring
Of all corruption, all the Blame lights due;
So might the Wrath. Fond wish! couldft thou fupport That Burden heavier than the Earth to bear
Than all the World much heavier, though divided With that bad Woman? Thus what thou defir'ft And what thou fear'ft, alike destroys all hope
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