The gracious judge without revile reply'd. My voice thou oft haft heard, and haft not fear'd, So dreadful to thee? that thou' art naked, who My other felf, the partner of my life; Whofe failing, while her faith to me remains, By my complaint; but strict neceffity 120 1 125 Left on my head both fin and punishment, However infupportable, be all 134 Devolv'd; though should I hold my peace, yet thou Wouldst easily detect what I conceal, This Woman, whom thou mad'st to be my help, That from her hand I could suspect no ill, To whom the fovran Presence thus reply'd. Thou didst refign thy manhood, and the place Hers in all real dignity? Adorn'd 137. This Woman, whom thou did cat.] Gen. III. 12. And the Man faid, The Woman, whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. We fee that he still preferves all that is Scripture, though he intermixes other things which were likely enough to have been faid and done. Adam fpeaks of Eve much in the 140 145 150 She was indeed, and lovely to attract 155 Thy love, not thy fubjection; and her gifts 169 Which when the Lord God heard, without delay To judgment he proceeded on th' accus'd Serpent though brute, unable to transfer The guilt on him who made him inftrument 165 Of Thy cherishing, thy honoring, and ter, illam vero gravitatis, feveritatis thy love, perfonam non appetivi. Milton in his Hiftory of England, p. 37. Edit. Tol. ufes the word thus," If it were an honor to that perfon "which he fuftain'd. Richardfon. 158. Say Woman, what is this which thou haft done?] Gen. III. 13. And the Lord God faid unto the Woman, What is this that thou haft done? 162. The Serpent me beguil'd, and I did eat.] And the Woman P 4 Jaid Of mischief, and polluted from the end As vitiated in nature: more to know Concern'd not Man (fince he no further knew) To Satan first in fin his doom apply'd, Though in myfterious terms, judg'd as then beft: 170 175 Above faid, The Serpent beguiled me, and I above every beaft of the field: upon did eat. 169. more to know Concern'd not Man (fince he no further knew)] This is badly exprefs'd. The meaning is, As Man was not to be let into the mystery of the redemption at this time, it did not concern him to know that the ferpent was but the inftrument of the Devil. When Milton wrote this, I fancy he had it not then in his thoughts to make Michael reveal to Adam in the last book the doctrin of redemption; or if he did intend it, he forgot that a theological comment on thofe words in Genefis would ill agree with what was to follow. Warburton. 175. Because thou hast done this, &c.] As near as may be to the very words of Scripture, Gen. III. 14, 15. And the Lord God faid unto the Serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art curfed above all cattel, and thy belly fhalt thou go, and duft fhalt thou eat all the days of thy life: And I will put enmity between thee and the Woman, and between thy feed and her feed: it fall bruife thy head, and thou shalt bruife his heel. Our author was certainly here more in the right than ever in adhering religioufly to the words of Scripture, tho' he has thereby spoil'd the harmony of his verse. He thought without doubt that to mix any thing of his own would be a violation of decency, and a profanation, like that of Uzzah's putting forth his hand to the ark of God. And the fentence is very well explain'd by him, that it was pronounc'd immediately upon the Serpent as made the inftrument of mifchief and vitiated in nature, but is to be apply'd mediately to Satan, the old Serpent, though in myfterious terms: And as the author explains how the sentence was to be underitood before he re lates go, Above all cattel, each beast of the field; 180 Her feed fhall bruise thy head, thou bruise his heel. So fpake this oracle, then verify'd When Jefus fon of Mary, fecond Eve, Saw Satan fall like lightning down from Heaven, Prince lates it, fo he shows afterwards how cramp'd down by a wrong choice, without the expected applause. it was fulfill'd. 182. oracle, then verify'd When Jefus Son of Mary, &c] Here is a manifeft indication, That, when Milton wrote this paffage, he thought Paradife was chiefly regain'd at our Saviour's refurrection. This would have been a copious and fublime fubject for a fecond poem. The wonders then to be defcribed would have erected even an ordinary poet's genius; and in epifodes he might have introduc'd his conception, birth, miracles, and all the hiftory of his adminiftration, while on earth. And I much grieve, that inftead of this he hould choofe for the argument of his Paradife Regain'd the fourth chapter of Luke, the temptation in the wilderness; a dry, barren, and narrow ground, to build an epic poem on. In that work he has amplified his fcanty materials to a furprising dignity; but yet, being Bentley 184. Saw Satan fall like lightning And down from Heaven, &c.] Here are feveral allufions to Scripture; as particularly to Luke X. 18. I beheld Satan as lightning fall from Heaven. Prince of the air, lo he is call'd Eph. II. 2. the prince of the power of the air. Spoil'd Principalities and Pow'rs, triumph'd in open how, according to Col. II. 15. having spoiled Principalities and Powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it. And with afcenfion bright captivity led captive, led captive thofe who had led us captive. Pfal. LXVIII. 18. Thou hast afcended on high, thou haft led captivity captive, applied to our Saviour by St. Paul, Eph. IV. 8. The air the 'realm of Satan, who is therefore call'd the prince of the power of the air, as we quoted before. Whom he shall tread at laft under |