And he himself among them was baptiz'd,
Not thence to be more pure, but to receive
The teftimony' of Heav'n, that who he is
Thenceforth the nations may not doubt; I faw
The prophet do him reverence, on him rifing
Out of the water, Heav'n above the clouds
Unfold her crystal doors, thence on his head
la A perfect dove descend, whate'er it meant,
And out of Heav'n the fovran voice I heard,
This is my Son belov'd, in him am pleas'd.
His mother then is mortal, but his fire
He who obtains the monarchy of Heaven,
And what will he not do to' advance his Son?
His first-begot we know, and fore have felt,
When his fierce thunder drove us to the deep;
Who this is we must learn, for man he feems

clamed him to be the Son of God, but they might not know him to be fo at this time, before this temptation, or before he had enter'd upon his public miniftry, and manifefted himself by his miracles. And our author, who makes the Devil to hear the voice from Heaven This is my beloved Son, ftill makes him doubt in what fenfe Jefus was fo called. See IV. 514.

thence.

In all his lineaments, though in his face
The glimpses of his father's glory shine.
Ye fee our danger on the utmost edge

Of hazard, which admits no long debate,

But must with something fudden be oppos'd,

95

Not force, but well couch'd fraud, well woven fnares, Ere in the head of nations he

appear

Their king, their leader, and fupreme on earth.

I, when no other durft, fole undertook

100

The difmal expedition to find out

And ruin Adam, and th' exploit perform'd

Successfully; a calmer voyage now

Will waft me; and the way found profp'rous once

Induces beft to hope of like fuccess.

105

He

We'll strive to bear it for your worthy fake,

To th' extreme edge of hazard.

Milton applies this title very pro113. To him their great dictator,] tion, as the authority he is now perly to Satan in his prefent fituavefted with is quite dictatorial, and the expedition on which he is going of the utmost consequence to the fall'n Angels. Thyer.

119. So to the coaft of Jordan he directs

His eafy steps, girded with fnaky wiles,] For as Lightfoot observes Vol. II. p. 299. the wildernefs,

He ended, and his words impreffion left
Of much amazement to th' infernal crew,
Diftracted and furpris'd with deep dismay
At these fad tidings; but no time was then
For long indulgence to their fears or grief:
Unanimous they all commit the care
And management of this main enterprize
To him their great dictator, whose attempt
At first against mankind fo well had thriv'd
In Adam's overthrow, and led their march
From Hell's deep-vaulted den to dwell in light,
Regents and potentates, and kings, yea Gods
Of many a pleasant realm and province wide.
So to the coaft of Jordan he directs

nefs, where our Saviour underwent his forty days temptation, was on the fame bank of Jordan where the baptifm of John was, St. Luke witneffing it, that Jefus being now baptized esperter anо T8 Topdαve, returned from Jordan, namely from the fame tract, whereby he came thither. His eafy fteps, for here was not that danger and difficulty as in his first expedition to ruin mankind. It is faid in reference to what he had spoken before,

I, when no other durft, fole undertook

The difmal expedition to find out

And ruin Adam

110

115

His

a calmer voyage now Will waft me &c.

Girded with fnaky wiles, alluding to the habit of forcerers and necromancers, who are reprefented in fome prints as girded about the middle with the skins of fnakes and ferpents; a cincture totally oppofit to that recommended by the Apoftle Eph. VI. 14. having your loins girt about with truth; and worn by our Saviour Ifa. XI. 5. And righteousness fhall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins.

120.-girded

His easy steps, girded with snaky wiles,
Where he might likelieft find this new-declar'd,
This man of men, attested Son of God,
Temptation and all guile on him to try;

So to fubvert whom he suspected rais’d
To end his reign on earth fo long enjoy'd:
But, contrary unweeting he fulfill'd

The purpos'd counsel pre-ordain'd and fix'd
Of the most High, who in full frequence bright
Of Angels, thus to Gabriel fmiling spake.

120

125

Gabriel, this day by proof thou shalt behold, 130 Thou and all Angels converfant on earth With man or mens affairs, how I begin

120.

- girded with fnaky wiles,] The imagery very fine, and the circumftance extremely proper. Satan is here figured engaging on a great expedition, fuccinct, and his habit girt about him with a girdle of fnakes; which puts us in mind of the inftrument of the fall.

Warburton.

122. This man of men, attefted Son of God,] The phrafe is low and idiotic; and I wish the poet had rather written

To

and Heaven of Heavens are truly grand expreffions: but then there is an idea of greatness in the words themselves to fupport the dignity of the phrafe; which is wanting in Milton's man of men. Calton.

129. thus to Gabriel Smiling

Spake.] This fpeech is properly addrefs'd to Gabriel particularly among the Angels, as he seems to have been the Angel particularly employed in the embaffies and tranfactions relating to the Gofpel. Gabriel was fent to inform Daniel of the famous prophecy of the feventy weeks; Gabriel notified the In the holy Scriptures God of Gods, conception of John the Baptift to

This man, of Heav'n attested
Son of God.

To verify that folemn meffage late,

On which I fent thee to the Virgin pure

In Galilee, that she should bear a fon

Great in renown, and call'd the Son of God;

135

Then toldst her doubting how these things could be To her a virgin, that on her fhould come

141

The Holy Ghoft, and the pow'r of the Highest
O'er-shadow her: this man born and now up-grown,
To show him worthy of his birth divine
And high prediction, henceforth I expose
To Satan; let him tempt and now affay
His utmost subtlety, because he boasts
And vaunts of his great cunning to the throng 145

his father Zacharias, and of our
bleffed Saviour to his virgin mo-
ther. And the Jewish Rabbi's fay,
that Michael was the minifter of
feverity, but Gabriel of mercy:
and accordingly our poet makes
Gabriel the guardian Angel of Pa-
radife, and employs Michael to
expel our first parents out of Para-
dife and for the fame reason this
fpeech is directed to Gabriel in
particular. And God's being re-
prefented as fmiling may be juftified
not only by the Heathen poets, as
Virg. Æn. I. 254-

Olli fubridens hominum fator at-
que deorum: