The Complete Poetry of John Milton (94 page)

   740     
That from thy just obedience could revolt,

               
Whom to obey is happiness entire.

               
Then shall thy Saints unmixt, and from th’ impure

               
Farr separate, circling thy holy Mount

               
Unfained
Halleluiahs
to thee sing,

   745     
Hymns of high praise, and I among them chief.

               
So said, he o’re his Scepter bowing, rose

               
From the right hand of Glorie where he sate,

               
And the third sacred Morn began to shine

               
Dawning through Heav’n: forth rush’d with whirlwind sound

   750     
The Chariot
⁴⁹
of Paternal Deitie,

               
Flashing thick flames, Wheel within Wheel undrawn,

               
It self instinct
⁵⁰
with Spirit, but convoyd

               
By four Cherubic shapes, four Faces each

               
Had wondrous, as with Starrs thir bodies all

   755     
And Wings were set with Eyes, with Eyes the wheels

               
Of Beril, and careering
⁵¹
Fires between;

               
Over thir heads a chrystal Firmament,

               
Whereon a Saphir Throne, inlaid with pure

               
Amber, and colours of the showrie Arch.

   760     
Hee in Celestial Panoplie all armd

               
Of radiant
Urim
,
⁵²
work divinely wrought,

               
Ascended, at his right hand Victorie

               
Sate Eagle-wing’d, beside him hung his Bow

               
And Quiver with three-bolted Thunder stor’d,

   765     
And from about him fierce Effusion rowld

               
Of smoak and bickering
⁵³
flame, and sparkles dire;

               
Attended with ten thousand thousand Saints,

               
He onward came, farr off his coming shon,

               
And twentie thousand (I thir number heard)

   770     
Chariots of God, half on each hand were seen:

               
Hee on the wings of Cherub rode sublime

               
On the Chrystallin Skie, in Saphir Thron’d.

               
Illustrious farr and wide, but by his own

               
First seen, them unexpected joy surpriz’d,

   775     
When the great Ensign of
Messiah
blaz’d

               
Aloft by Angels born, his Sign in Heav’n:
⁵⁴

               
Under whose conduct
Michael
soon reduc’d
⁵⁵

               
His Armie, circumfus’d
⁵⁶
on either Wing,

               
Under thir Head imbodied all in one.

   780     
Before him Power Divine his way prepar’d;

               
At his command th’ uprooted Hills retir’d

               
Each to his place, they heard his voice and went

               
Obsequious, Heav’n his wonted face renewd,

               
And with fresh Flowrets Hill and Valley smil’d.

   785     
This saw his hapless Foes but stood obdur’d,
⁵⁷

               
And to rebellious fight rallied thir Powers

               
Insensate, hope conceiving from despair.

               
In heav’nly Spirits could such perverseness dwell?

               
But to convince the proud what Signs avail,

   790     
Or Wonders move th’ obdurate to relent?

               
They hard’n’d more by what might most reclame,

               
Grieving to see his Glorie, at the sight

               
Took envie, and aspiring to his highth,

               
Stood reimbattell’d fierce, by force or fraud

   795     
Weening to prosper, and at length prevail

               
Against God and
Messiah
, or to fall

               
In universal ruin last, and now

               
To final Battel drew, disdaining flight,

               
Or faint retreat; when the great Son of God

   800     
To all his Host on either hand thus spake.

           
      
       Stand still in bright array ye Saints, here stand

               
Ye Angels arm’d, this day from Battel rest;

               
Faithful hath been your warfare, and of God

               
Accepted, fearless in his righteous Cause,

   805     
And as ye have receiv’d, so have ye don

               
Invincibly; but of this cursed crew

               
The punishment to other hand belongs,

               
Vengeance is his, or whose he sole appoints;

               
Number to this dayes work is not ordain’d

   810     
Nor multitude, stand onely and behold

               
Gods indignation on these Godless pourd

               
By mee; not you but mee they have despis’d,

               
Yet envied; against mee is all thir rage,

               
Because the Father, t’ whom in Heav’n supream

   815     
Kingdom and Power and Glorie appertains,

               
Hath honourd me according to his will.

               
Therefore to mee thir doom he hath assign’d;

               
That they may have thir wish, to trie with mee

               
In Battel which the stronger proves, they all,

   820     
Or I alone against them, since by strength

               
They measure all, of other excellence

               
Not emulous, nor care who them excells;

               
Nor other strife with them do I voutsafe.

           
      
       So spake the Son, and into terrour chang’d

   825     
His count’nance too severe to be beheld

               
And full of wrauth bent on his Enemies.

               
At once the Four spred out thir Starrie wings

               
With dreadful shade contiguous, and the Orbs

               
Of his fierce Chariot rowl’d, as with the sound

   830     
Of torrent Floods, or of a numerous Host.

               
Hee on his impious Foes right onward drove,

               
Gloomie as Night; under his burning Wheels

               
The stedfast Empyrean shook throughout,

               
All but the Throne it self of God. Full soon

   835     
Among them he arriv’d; in his right hand

               
Grasping ten thousand Thunders, which he sent

               
Before him, such as in thir Souls infix’d

               
Plagues;
⁵⁸
they astonisht all resistance lost,

               
All courage; down thir idle weapons drop’d;

   840     
O’re Shields and Helmes, and helmed heads he rode

               
Of Thrones and mighty Seraphim prostrate,

               
That wisht the Mountains now might be again
⁵⁹

               
Thrown on them as a shelter from his ire.

               
Nor less on either side tempestuous fell

   845     
His arrows, from the fourfold-visag’d Four,

               
Distinct with eyes, and from the living Wheels,

               
Distinct alike with multitude of eyes,

               
One Spirit in them rul’d, and every eye

               
Glar’d lightning, and shot forth pernicious fire

   850     
Among th’ accurst, that witherd all thir strength,

               
And of thir wonted vigour left them draind,

               
Exhausted, spiritless, afflicted, fall’n.

               
Yet half his strength he put not forth, but check’d

               
His Thunder in mid Volie, for he meant

   855     
Not to destroy, but root them out of Heav’n:

               
The overthrown he rais’d, and as a Heard

               
Of Goats or timerous flock
⁶⁰
together throng’d

               
Drove them before him Thunder-struck, pursu’d

               
With terrors and with furies to the bounds

   860     
And Chrystal wall of Heav’n, which op’ning wide,

               
Rowl’d inward, and a spacious Gap disclos’d

               
Into the wastful Deep; the monstrous sight

               
Strook them with horror backward, but far worse

               
Urg’d them behind; headlong themselvs they threw

   865     
Down from the verge of Heav’n, Eternal wrauth

               
Burnt after them to the bottomless pit.

           
      
       Hell heard th’ unsufferable noise, Hell saw

               
Heav’n ruining
⁶¹
from Heav’n and would have fled

               
Affrighted; but strict Fate had cast too deep

   870     
Her dark foundations, and too fast had bound.

               
Nine dayes they fell; confounded
Chaos
roard,

               
And felt tenfold confusion in thir fall

               
Through his wild Anarchie, so huge a rout

               
Incumberd him with ruin; Hell at last

   875     
Yawning receav’d them whole, and on them clos’d,

               
Hell thir fit habitation fraught with fire

               
Unquenchable, the house of woe and pain.

               
Disburd’n’d Heav’n rejoic’d, and soon repaird

               
Her mural breach, returning whence it rowl’d.

   880     
Sole Victor from th’ expulsion of his Foes

               
Messiah
his triumphal Chariot turnd:

               
To meet him all his Saints, who silent stood

               
Eye witnesses of his Almightie Acts,

               
With Jubilie advanc’d; and as they went,

   885     
Shaded with branching Palm, each order bright,

               
Sung Triumph, and him sung Victorious King,

               
Son, Heir, and Lord, to him Dominion giv’n,

               
Worthiest to Reign: he celebrated rode

               
Triumphant through mid Heav’n, into the Courts

   890     
And Temple of his mightie Father Thron’d

               
On high: who into Glorie him receav’d,

               
Where now he sits at the right hand of bliss.

           
      
       Thus measuring things in Heav’n by things on Earth

               
At thy request, and that thou maist beware

   895     
By what is past, to thee I have reveal’d

               
What might have else to human Race bin hid;

               
The discord which befell, and Warr in Heav’n

               
Among th’ Angelic Powers, and the deep fall

               
Of those too high aspiring, who rebell’d