See, Father, what first-fruits on earth are sprung From thy implanted grace in man; these sighs
And prayers, which in this golden censer mix'd With incense, I thy priest before thee bring; Fruits of more pleasing savour from thy seed, Sown with contrition in his heart, than those Which, his own hand manuring, all the trees Of Paradise could have produced, ere fallen From innocence. Now therefore bend thine ear To supplication; hear his sighs, though mute; Unskilful with what words to pray, let me Interpret for him; me, his Advocate And Propitiation; all his works on me, Good or not good, ingraft; my merit those Shall perfect, and for these my death shall pay. Accept me; and, in me, from these receive The smell of peace toward mankind; let him live Before thee reconciled, at least his days
Number'd, though sad; till death his doom (which I To mitigate thus plead, not to reverse,)
To better life shall yield him; where with me All my redeem'd may dwell in joy and bliss, Made one with me, as I with thee am one.” To whom the Father, without cloud, serene: "All thy request for man, accepted Son, Obtain; all thy request was my decree; But longer in that Paradise to dwell The law I gave to nature him forbids: Those pure immortal elements, that know No gross, no inharmonious mixture foul, Eject him, tainted now, and purge him off,
As a distemper gross, to air as gross, And mortal food; as may dispose him best For dissolution wrought by sin, that first Distemper'd all things, and of incorrupt Corrupted. I, at first, with two fair gifts Created him endow'd; with happiness And immortality: that fondly lost, This other served but to eternize woe, Till I provided death: so death becomes His final remedy; and, after life, Tried in sharp tribulation, and refined By faith and faithful works, to second life, Waked in the renovation of the just,
Resigns him up, with heaven and earth renew'd. But let us call to synod all the bless'd, [not hide Through heaven's wide bounds; from them I will My judgments; how with mankind I proceed As how with peccant angels late they saw, [firm'd." And in their state, though firm, stood more con- He ended; and the Son gave signal high To the bright minister that watch'd: he blew His trumpet, heard in Oreb since perhaps, When God descended; and perhaps once more To sound, at general doom. The angelic blast Fill'd all the regions: from their blissful bowers Of amaranthine shade, fountain or spring, By the waters of life, where'er they sat In fellowships of joy, the sons of light Hasted, resorting to the summons high,
And took their seats: till from his throne supreme The Almighty thus pronounced his sovereign will:
"O sons, like one of us man is become, To know both good and evil, since his taste Of that defended fruit; but let him boast His knowledge of good lost, and evil got; Happier, had it sufficed him to have known Good by itself, and evil not at all. He sorrows now, repents, and prays contrite, My motions in him; longer than they move, His heart I know how variable and vain, Self-left. Lest therefore his now bolder hand Reach also of the tree of life, and eat, And live for ever, dream at least to live For ever, to remove him I decree, And send him from the garden forth to till The ground, whence he was taken, fitter soil. Michael, this my behest have thou in charge: Take to thee, from among the cherubim, Thy choice of flaming warriors, lest the Fiend, Or in behalf of man, or to invade
Vacant possession, some new trouble raise: Haste thee, and from the Paradise of God Without remorse drive out the sinful pair; From hallow'd ground the unholy; and denounce To them and to their progeny from thence Perpetual banishment. Yet, lest they faint At the sad sentence rigorously urged, (For I behold them soften'd, and with tears Bewailing their excess,) all terror hide. If patiently thy bidding they obey, Dismiss them not disconsolate; reveal To Adam what shall come in future days,
As I shall thee enlighten; intermix
My covenant in the woman's seed renew'd:
So send them forth, though sorrowing, yet in And on the east side of the garden place, [peace. Where entrance up from Eden easiest climbs, Cherubic watch; and of a sword the flame Wide-waving; all approach far off to fright, And guard all passage to the tree of life: Lest Paradise a receptacle prove
To spirits foul; and all my trees their prey, With whose stolen fruit man once more to delude." He ceased; and the archangelic power prepared For swift descent; with him the cohort bright Of watchful cherubim; four faces each Had, like a double Janus; all their shape Spangled with eyes, more numerous than those Of Argus, and more wakeful than to drowse, Charm'd with Arcadian pipe, the pastoral reed Of Hermes, or his opiate rod. Meanwhile, To re-salute the world with sacred light, Leucothea waked, and with fresh dews embalm'd The earth, when Adam and first matron Eve Had ended now their orisons, and found Strength added from above; new hope to spring Out of despair; joy, but with fear yet link'd; Which thus to Eve his welcome words renew'd:
"Eve, easily may faith admit, that all
The good which we enjoy from heaven descends; But that from us aught should ascend to heaven, So prevalent, as to concern the mind
Of God, high-bless'd, or to incline his will,
Hard to belief may seem; yet this will prayer, Or one short sigh of human breath, upborne Even to the seat of God. For since I sought By prayer the offended Deity to appease, Kneel'd, and before him humbled 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 breast, and to my memory His promise, that thy seed shall bruise our foe: Which, then not minded in dismay, yet now Assures me that the bitterness of death
Is past, and we shall live. Whence hail to thee, Eve rightly call'd, mother of all mankind, Mother of all things living, since by thee Man is to live; and all things live for man." To whom thus Eve, with sad demeanour, meek: "Ill-worthy I, such title should belong
To me, transgressor; who, for thee ordain'd A help, became thy snare; to me reproach Rather belongs, distrust, and all dispraise: But infinite in pardon was my Judge,
That I, who first brought death on all, am graced The source of life: next favourable thou, Who highly thus to entitle me vouchsafest, Far other name deserving. But the field To labour calls us, now with sweat imposed, Though after sleepless night; for see! the morn, All unconcern'd with our unrest, begins Her rosy progress smiling; let us forth; I never from thy side henceforth to stray,
« PředchozíPokračovat » |