So prevalent as to concern the mind
Of God high-bleft, or to incline his will,
Hard to belief may feem; yet this will Prayer,
Or one short figh of human breath, up-born
Ev'n to the feat of God. For fince I faught
By pray'rth' offended Deity to appease,
Kneel'd and before him humbl'd all my heart.
Methought I saw him placable and mild,
Bending his ear; persuasion in me grew
That I was heard with favour; peace return'd
Home to my Breaft, and to my memory
His promise, that thy Seed shall bruise our Foe;
Which then not minded in difmay, yet now
Affures me that the bitterness of death
Is paft, and we shall live. Whence Hail to thee,
Eve rightly call'd, Mother of all Mankind,
Mother of all things living, fince by thee
Man is to live, and all things live for Man.
To whom thus Eve with fad demeanour meek.
Ill worthy I fuch title should belong
To me tranfgreffor, who forthee ordain'd
A Help, became thy Snare; to me reproach
Rather belongs, diftruft and all difpraise;
But infinite in pardon was my Judge,
That I who first brought Death on all, am grac'd
Though after fleepless Night: for fee the Morn,
All unconcern'd with our unreft, begins
Her rofie progrefs fmiling; let us forth,
I never from thy fide henceforth to ftray,
Where-e'er our days-work lyes, though now enjoin'd
Laborious, till day droop; while here we dwell,
What can be toilfom in thefe pleasant Walks?
Here let us live, though in fall'n ftate, content.
So spoke, fo wish'd much-humbl'd Eve, but Fate
Subscrib'd not; Nature first gave Signs, imprest
On Bird, Beaft, Air; Airfuddenly eclips'd'
After fhort blush of Morn; nigh in her fight
The Bird of fove, ftoop'd from his aery tour,no 185
Two Birds of gayeft plume before him drove t
Down from a Hill the Beast that reigns in Woods,
First Hunter then, purfu'd a gentle brace,
Goodlieft of all the Foreft, Hart and Hinde;
Direct to th' Eaftern Gate was bent their flight.
Adam obferv'd, and with his Eyethe chase
Pursuing, not unmov'd to Evethus fpake.
O Eve, fome further change awaits us nigh,
Which Heav'n by these mute figns in Nature shews
Forerunners of his purpofe, or to warn
Us haply too fecure of our discharge
From penalty, because from death releas'd
Some days; how long, and what till then our life,
Who knows, or more than this, that we are Dust,
And thither must return, and be no more.
Why else this double object in our fight
Of flight purfu'd in th' Air and 'er the ground
One way the self-fame hour? why in the Eaft
Darkness e're Day's mid-course, and Morning light
More orient in yon Weftern Cloud that draws
O'er the blue Firmament a radiant white,
And flow defcends, with fomething heav'nly fraught.
He err'd not, for by this the heav'nly Bands
Down from a Sky of Jafper lighted now
In Paradife, and on a Hill made halt,
A glorious Apparition, had not doubt
And carnal fear that day dim'd Adam's eye,
Not that more glorious, when the Angels met
Jacob in Mahanaim, where he faw
The field Pavilion'd with his Guardians bright;
Nor that which on the flaming Mount appear'd,
In Dothan, cover'd with a Camp of Fire,
Against the Syrian King, who to furprize
One Man, Affaffine like, had levied War,
War unproclaim'd. The Princely Hierarch
In their bright stand, there left his Pow'rs to feife
Poffeffion of the Garden; he alone,
To find where Adam fhelter'd, took his way,
Not unperceiv'd of Adam, who to Eve,
While the great Vifitant approach'd, thus fpake.
Eve, now expect great tidings, which perhaps
Of us will foon determine, or impofe
New Laws to be observ'd; for I descry
From yonder Blazing Cloud that veils the Hill
One of the heav'nly Hoft, and by his Gait
None of the meaneft, fome great Potentate
Or of the Thrones above, fuch Majefty
Invefts him coming; yet not Terrible,
That I fhould fear, nor fociably Mild,
As Raphael, that I should as much confidé,
But folemn and fublime, whom not t' offend,
With reverence I must meet, and thou retire.
He ended; and th' Arch-Angel foon drew nigh,
Not in his shape Celestial, but as Man
Clad to meet Man; over his lucid Arms
A military Veft of purple flow'd
Livelier than Melibaan, or the grain
Of Serra, worn by Kings and Heroes old
In time of truce; Iris had dipt the wooff;
His ftarry Helm unbuckl'd shew'd him prime
In Manhood where Youth ended; by his fide
As in a gliftering Zodiac hung the Sword,
Satan's dire dread, and in his hand the Spear.
Adam bow'd low, he Kingly from his State
Inclin'd not, but his coming thus declar'd.
Adam, Heav'ns high beheft no Preface needs:
Sufficient that thy Prayers are heard, and Death,
Then due by fentence when thou didst tranfgrefs,
Defeated of his feisure many days
Giv'n thee of Grace, wherein thou may'st repent,
And one bad act with many Deeds well done
May'ft cover: well may then thy Lord appeas'd
Redeem thee quite from Death's rapacious claim;
But longer in this Paradise to dwell
Permits not; to Remove theel am come,
And fend thee from the Garden forth, to till
The ground whence thou waft taken, fitter Soil.
He added not; for Adam at the news
Heart-ftruct with chilling gripe of forrow stood,
That all his fenfes bound; Eve, who unfeen
Yet all had heard, with audiblelament
Discover'd foon the place of her retire.
O unexpected stroke, worse than of Death! Muft I thus leave thee, Paradife? thus leave
Thee, Native Soil, these happy Walks and Shades,
Fit haunt of Gods? where I had hope to spend,
Quiet, though fad, the refpit of that day
That must be Mortal to us both. O Flow'rs,
That never will in other Climate grow,
My early vifitation, and my last
At Ev'n, which I bred up with tender hand
From the firft op'ning bud, and gave ye Names;
Who now fhall rear ye to the Sun, or rank
Your Tribes, and water from th' ambrofial Fount?
Thee laftly, nuptial Bowre, by me adorn'd
With what to fight or smell was sweet; from thee
How shall I part, and whither wander down
Into a lower World, to this obfcure
And wild, how fhall we breathe in other Air
Lefs pure, accuftom'd to immortal Fruits?
Whom thus the Angel interrupted mild, Lament not, Eve, but patiently resign
What juftly thou haft loft; nor fet thy heart,
Thus over-fond, on that which is not thine;
Thy going is not Lonely, with thee goes
Thy Husband, him to follow thou art bound:
Where he abides, think there thy native foil.
Adam by this from the cold fudden damp
Recovering, and his scatter'd spirits return'd,
To Michael thus his humble words addrefs'd.
Celestial, whether among the Thrones, or nam'd Of them the Higheft, for fuch of shape may seem Prince above Princes, gently haft thou told
Thy Meffage, which might elfe in telling wound,
And in performing end us; what besides
Of forrow and dejection and despair
Our frailty can sustain, thy tidings bring;
Departure from this happy place, our sweet
Recefs, and only confolation left
Familiar to our eyes, all places else
Inhospitable appear and defolate,
Nor knowing us, nor known: and if by prayer
Inceffant I could hope to change the will
Of him who all things can, I would not cease
To weary him with my affiduous cries:
But prayer against his abfolute Decree
No more avails than breath against the wind,
Blown ftifling back on him that breaths it forth :
Therefore to his great bidding I fubmit.
This most afflicts me, that departing hence,
As from his face I fhall be hid, depriv'd
His bleffed count'nance; here I could frequent,
With worship, place by place where he voutfaf't
Prefence Divine, and to my Sons relate;
On this Mount he appear'd, under this Tree
Stood visible, among these Pines his voice
I heard, here with him at this Fountain talk'd : So many grateful Altars I would rear
|