Angels, contented with their fame in Heaven, 375
Seek not the praise of men: the other fort,

In might though wondrous and, in acts of war,
Nor of renown lefs eager, yet by doom.
Cancel'd from Heav'n and facred memory,

Nameless in dark oblivion let them dwell.

For ftrength from truth divided and from juft,
Illaudable, nought merits but difpraise

And ignominy, yet to glory afpires

Vain glorious, and through infamy seeks fame:
Therefore eternal filence be their doom.

3.80

385

And now their mightiest quell'd, the battel swerv'd, With many an inroad gor'd; deformed rout

fhould appear to know more than he chofe to relate, or than the poet was able to make him relate.

382. Illaudable, ] Is ufed here much in the fame manner as illaudatus in Virgil,

-Quis aut Euryfthea durum, Aut illaudati nefcit Bufiridis aras ? Georg. III. 5.

And the learned reader may, if he pleafes, fee a differtation upon that verfe of Virgil in the second book of Aulus Gellius.

386. the battel fwerv'd,] Is not this the fame with Hefiod's exλion de paxn. Theog. v. 711? Thyer.

Enter'd,

Savero'd from the Saxon fwerven, to wander out of its place; here by analogy to bend, to ply; for in that cafe an army in battel properly fwerves. Richardfen. The word is used in the same sense by Spenfer, Fairy Queen, B. 5. Cant. 10. St. 35.

Who from his faddle fwerved nought afide.

391. what food, recoil'd &c.] The conftruction has occafion'd fome difficulty here, but it may be thus explicated. What food is the nominative cafe in the sentence, and the verbs are recoil'd and fed. It would indeed be a contradiction to

fay

Enter'd, and foul diforder; all the ground
With shiver'd armour ftrown, and on a heap
Chariot and charioteer lay overturn'd,

And fiery foaming fteeds; what stood, recoil'd
O'er-wearied, through the faint Satanic host
Defensive scarce, or with pale fear furpris'd,
Then first with fear furpris'd and fenfe of pain,
Fled ignominious, to fuch evil brought

By fin of disobedience, till that hour
Not liable to fear or flight or pain.

Far otherwise th' inviolable Saints
In cubic phalanx firm advanc'd entire,
Invulnerable, impenetrably arm'd;

390

395

400 Such

This was a very great advantage on the fide of the good Angels; but we muft fuppofe that the rebel Angels did not know their own weakness till this hour.

399. In cubic phalanx firm] In ftrictness of speech, to have been cubic, it must have been as high, as it is broad, as Dr. Bentley juftly obferves. But why must a poet's mind, fublim'd as Milton's was on this occafion, be expected to attend to every circumftance of an epithet made ufe of? He meant four Square only, having that property. of a cube to be equal in length on all fides. And fo he expresses himfelf in his tract called The reafon

PP 4

of

Such high advantages their innocence

Gave them above their foes, not to have finn'd,

Not to have difobey'd; in fight they stood
Unwearied, unobnoxious to be pain'd

404

By wound, though from their place by violence

mov'd.

Now night her courfe began, and over Heaven Inducing darkness, grateful truce impos'd,

And filence on the odious din of war:
Under her cloudy covert both retir'd,

Victor and vanquish'd: on the foughten field
Michaël and his Angels prevalent

of Church Government &c. p. 215. Edit. Toland. As thofe fmaller fquares in battel unite in one great cube, the main phalanx, an emblem of truth and ftedfafinefs. To be fure Milton's cubic, tho' not strictly proper, is better than the epithet martial (which the Doctor would give us in the room of it) becaufe a phalanx in battel could not be otherwife than martial; and fo closely united an idea could not have any beauty or force here. Pearce.

405.-though from their place by violence mov'd.] This circumftance is judiciously added to prepare the reader for what happens in the next fight.

410

In

Incamping, plac'd in guard their watches round,
Cherubic waving fires: on th' other part
Satan with his rebellious disappear'd,

Far in the dark diflodg'd; and void of rest,
His potentates to council call'd by night;
And in the midst thus undismay'd began.

415

O now in danger try'd, now known in arms
Not to be overpow'rd, Companions dear,
Found worthy not of liberty alone,

Too mean pretence, but what we more affect,
Honor, dominion, glory, and renown;
Who have sustain'd one day in doubtful fight

420

(And

(And if one day, why not eternal days?)

What Heaven's Lord had pow'rfulleft to fend 425

Against us from about his throne, and judg’d

Sufficient to fubdue us to his will,

But proves not fo: then fallible, it seems,

Of future we may deem him, though till now Omnifcient thought. True is, lefs firmly arm'd, 430 Some difadvantage we indur'd and pain,

Till now not known, but known as foon contemn'd; Since now we find this our empyreal form

Incapable of mortal injury,

Imperishable, and though pierc'd with wound,
Soon clofing, and by native vigor heal'd.

Of evil then fo fmall as easy think
The remedy; perhaps more valid arms,
Weapons more violent, when next we meet,
May serve to better us, and worse our foes,

434

440

Or

and pain,

Till now not known, but known as

foon contemn'd;

Since now we find &c] So Prometheus in like manner comforts and confirms himself against Jupiter's threats. fchyl. Prom. Vinct. 932.