Their nature, and revoke the high decree Unchangeable, eternal, which ordain'd
Their freedom; they themselves ordain'd their fall. The first sort by their own suggestion fell,
Self-tempted, self-deprav'd: man falls, deceiv'd, 130 By th' other first: man, therefore, shall find grace, The other none. In mercy, and justice both, Through heaven and earth, so shall my glory excel; But mercy, first and last, shall brightest shine."
Thus while God spake, ambrosial fragrance fill'd All heaven, and in the blessed spirits elect Sense of new joy ineffable diffus'd.
Beyond compare the Son of God was seen Most glorious; in him all his Father shone Substantially express'd; and in his face Divine compassion visibly appear'd,
Love without end, and without measure grace; Which uttering, thus he to his father spake :
"O Father! gracious was that word which clos'& Thy sovereign sentence, that man should find grace, For which both heaven and earth shall high extol Thy praises, with th' innumerable sound Of hymns and sacred songs, wherewith thy throne Encompass'd shall resound thee ever bless'd. For should man finally be lost, should man Thy creature late so lov'd, thy youngest son, Fall circumvented thus by fraud, though join'd With his own folly? That be from thee far, That far be from thee, Father, who art judge Of all things made, and judgest only right. Or shall the adversary thus obtain
His end, and frustrate thine? shall he fulfil His malice, and thy goodness bring to nought; Or proud return, though to his heavier doom, Yet, with revenge accomplish'd, and to hell Draw after him the whole race of mankind, By him corrupted? Or wilt thou thyself Abolish thy creation, and unmake,
For him, what for thy glory thou hast made? So should thy goodness and thy greatness, both 165 Be questioned, and blasphem'd without defence."
To whom the great Creator thus replied:
"O Son, in whom my soul hath chief delight, Son of my bosom, Son who art alone My word, my wisdom, and effectual might! All hast thou spoken as my thoughts are, all As my eternal purpose hath decreed.
Man shall not quite be lost, but sav'd who will Yet not of will in him, but grace in me Freely vouchsaf'd: once more I will renew His lapsed powers, though forfeit, and inthrall'd By sin to foul exorbitant desires: Upheld by me, yet once more he shall stand On even ground against his mortal foe: By me upheld, that he may know how frail His fallen condition is, and to me owe All his deliverance, and to none but me. Some I have chosen of peculiar grace
Elect above the rest: so is my will.
The rest shall hear me call, and oft be warn'd
Their sinful state, and to appease betimes Th' incensed Deity, while offer'd grace Invites: for I will clear their senses dark, What may suffice, and soften stony hearts To pray, repent, and bring obedience due. To prayer, repentance, and obedience due, Though but endeavour'd with sincere intent, Mine ear shall not be slow, mine eye not shut; And I will place within them as a guide
My umpire Conscience; whom if they will hear, 195 Light after light well us'd they shall attain, And to the end persisting, safe arrive.
This my long sufferance, and my day of grace, They who neglect and scorn shall never taste; But hard be harden'd, blind he blinded more, That they may stumble on, and deeper fall; And none but such from mercy I exclude. But yet all is not done: Man disobeying, Disloyal breaks his fealty, and sins Against the high supremacy of heaven, Affecting Godhead, and so losing all, To expiate his treason hath nought left, But to destruction, sacred and devote, He with his whole posterity must die; Die he or justice must; unless for him Some other able, and as willing, pay The rigid satisfaction, death for death
Say, heavenly powers, where shall we find such lov Which of ye will be mortal to redeem
Man's mortal crime, and just, th' unjust to save? Dwells in all heaven charity so dear?"
He ask'd, but all the heavenly choir stood mute And silence was in heaven: on man's behalf Patron or intercessor none appear'd;
Much less that durst upon his own head draw The deadly forfeiture, and ransom set. And now, without redemption, all mankind Must have been lost, adjudg'd to death and hell By doom severe, had not the Son of God, In whom the fulness dwells of love divine, His dearest mediation thus renew'd:
"Father, thy word is pass'd; man shall find grac And shall grace not find means, that finds her way The speediest of thy winged messengers,
To visit all thy creatures, and to all
Comes unprevented, unimplor'd, unsought? Happy for man, so coming! he her aid Can never seek, once dead in sins and lost; Atonement for himself, or offering meet, (Indebted, and undone !) hath none to bring. Behold me then! me for him, life for life ( offer; on me let thine anger fall; Account me man: I for his sake will leave Thy bosom, and this glory next to thee Freely put off, and for him lastly die
Well pleas'd: on me let death wreak all his rage Under his gloomy power I shall not long Lie vanquish'd; thou hast given me to possess Life in myself for ever; by thee I live,
Though now to death I yield, and am his due All that of me can die; yet that debt paid, Thou wilt not leave me in the loathsome grave His prey, nor suffer my unspotted soul For ever with corruption there to dwell; But I shall rise victorious, and subdue
My vanquisher, spoil'd of his vaunted spoil; Death his death's wound shall then receive, and st Inglorious, of his mortal sting disarm'd. I through the ample air in triumph high Shall lead hell captive maugre hell! and show
The powers of darkness bound. Thou at the sight Pleas'd, out of heaven shalt look down and smile; While by thee rais'd I rum all my foes,
Death last, and with his carcass glut the graves: Then, with the multitude of my redeem'd Shall enter heaven, long absen, and return, Father! to see thy face, wherein no cloud Of anger shall remain; but peace assur'd And reconcilement: wrath shall be no more Thenceforth, but in thy presence joy entire."
His words here ended, but his meek aspect Silent yet spake, and breath'd immortal love To mortal men, above which only shone Filial obedience as a sacrifice,
Glad to be offer'd, he attends the will
Of his great Father. Admiration seiz'd
All heaven, what this might mean, and whither tend Wond'ring; but soon th Almighty thus replied:
"O thou, in heaven and earth the only peace Found out for mankind under wrath! Ő thou, 275 My sole complacence! well thou know'st how dear To me are all my works, nor man the least, Though last created; that for him I spare Thee from my bosom and right hand, to save, By loosing thee a while, the whole race lost. Thou, therefore, whom thou only canst redeem, Their nature also to thy nature join, And be thyself man among men on earth, Made flesh, when time shall be, of virgin seed, By wondrous birth: be thou in Adam's room, The head of all mankind, though Adam's son. As in him perish all men, so in thee, As from a second root, shall be restor❜d As many as are restor'd, without thee none.
His crime makes guilty all his sons; thy merit 290 mputed shall absolve them who renounce
Their own both righteous and unrighteous deeds, And live in thee transplanted, and from thee Receive new life. So man, as is most just, Shall satisfy for man, be judg'd, and die, And dying rise, and rising with him raise His brethren, ransom'd with his own dear life. jo heavenly love shall outdo hellish hatc,
Giving to death, and dying to redeem, So dearly to redeem what hellish hate So easily destroy'd, and still destroys,
In those who, when they may accept not grace. Nor shalt thou, by descending to assume Man's nature, lessen or degrade thine own.
Because thou hast, though thron'd in highest bliss 305 Equal to God, and equally enjoying
Godlike fruition, quitted all to save
A world from utter loss, and hast been found By merit more than birthright Son of God, Found worthiest to be so by being good, Far more than great or high; because in thee Love hath abounded more than glory abounds; Therefore thy humiliation shall exalt
With thee thy manhood also to this throne: Here shalt thou sit incarnate, here shalt reign Both God and Man, Son both of God and Man, Anointed Universal King; all power
I give thee; reign for ever, and assume Thy merits under thee, as head supreme,
Thrones, princedoms, powers, dominions, I reduce; All knees to thee shall bow, of them that bide In heaven, or earth, or under earth in hell. When thou, attended gloriously from heaven, Shalt in the sky appear, and from thee send The summoning archangels to proclaim Thy dread tribunal: forthwith from all winds. The living, and forthwith the cited dead Of all past ages to the general doom
Shall hasten, such a peal shall rouse their sleep: Then, all thy saints assembled, thou shalt judge 330 Bad men and angels; they arraign'd shall sink Beneath thy sentence; hell (her numbers full) Thenceforth shall be for ever shut. Meanwhile The world shall burn, and from her ashes spring New heaven and earth, wherein the just shall dwell, And, after all their tribulations long, See golden days, fruitful of golden deeds, With joy and love triumphing, and fair truth: Then thou thy regal sceptre shalt lay by, For regal sceptre then no more shall need God shall be all in all. But all ye gods, Adore him, who to compass all this dies Adore the Son, and honour him as me!"
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