At home, scarce view'd the Galilean towns, And once a year Jerusalem, few days Short sojourn; and what thence couldst thou observe? 235 In all things that to greatest actions lead. Those rudiments, and see before thine eyes 240 But I will bring thee where thou soon shalt quit 245 The monarchies of the earth, their pomp and state; Thee, of thyself so apt, in regal arts And regal mysteries; that thou mayst know How best their opposition to withstand. 250 With that, (such power was given him then) he took It was a mountain, at whose verdant feet A spacious plain, outstretch'd in circuit wide, Lay pleasant; from his side two rivers flow'd, 255 The one winding, the other straight, and left between Then meeting join'd their tribute to the sea: With herds the pastures throng'd, with flocks the hills; 260 Well have we speeded, and o'er hill and dale, 242. As he, &c. Saul. See 1 Sam. ix. 20, 21. 253. It was a mountain. As the Scriptures have not mentioned the particular mountain, the poet was at liberty to select such as answered his purpose best. He has therefore selected, probably, Mount Niphates, a high range of moun 265 270 275 tains in Armenia, and a part of the great chain of Mount Taurus, from the top of which the Caspian Sea, the ancient Assyrian empire, the sources of "two rivers," the Euphrates and Tigris, &c., could be seen. 257. Fuir champain. Mesopotamia. 277. Golden, alluding to its great riches. And seat of Salmanassar, whose success Of his great power; for now the Parthian king 280 285 290 295 300 He marches now in haste: see, though from far, They issue forth, steel bows and shafts their arms, 305 Of equal dread in flight or in pursuit; All horsemen, in which fight they most excel: In rhombs, and wedges, and half-moons, and wings. 310 The city gates out-pour'd, light-armed troops, In coats of mail and military pride; In mail their horses clad, yet fleet and strong, 284. Persepolis, the capital of the Persian empire. Bactra, the chief city of Bactriana. Echatana, the capital of Media. Hecatompylos, the capital of Par thia. 288. Susa, the Shushan of Daniel (viii. 2.) The Choaspes, the same as the Euleus, or Ulai. The kings of Persia, according to Herodotus (i. 188) drank no other water, and wherever they went they were attended by a number of four-wheeled carriages, drawn by mules, in which the water of this river, being first boiled, was deposited in vessels of silver. 290. Emathia was the ancient name 315 of Macedonia. Parthian hands, the suc cessors of Alexander. 291. Seleucia on the Tigris. Nisibis in Mesopotamia. Artazata on the Araxes. Teredon near the Persian Gulf. Cesiphon near Seleucia. 314. Arachosia, a province of the Persian empire, west of the Indus, and north of Gedrosia. Candaor, same as Candahar, a province of Affghanistan. Margiana, and Hyrcania were south of the river Oxus. Adiabene, east of the Tigris, and between the greater and lesser Zab. Balsara same as Bassorah, at the head of the Persian Gulf. Of Caucasus, and dark Iberian dales; From Atropatia and the neighbouring plains He saw them in their forms of battel ranged, How quick they wheel'd, and flying behind them shot His daughter, sought by many prowest knights, That thou mayst know I seek not to engage On no slight grounds thy safety; hear, and mark, 320 325 330 335 340 345 350 All this fair sight: thy kingdom, though foretold By prophet or by angel, unless thou Endeavour, as thy father David did, Thou never shalt obtain; prediction still In all things, and all men, supposes means; 355 Without means used, what it predicts revokes. But, say thou wert possess'd of David's throne, 360 329. Indorsed, from the Latin in and than two millions two hundred thousand. dorsum, on the back. 338. Agrican. What Milton here alludes to is related in Boiardo's Orlando Innamorato. The number of forces said to be there assembled is incredible, and extravagant even beyond the common extravagancy of romances. Agrican the Tartar king brings into the field no less Angelica is the same character that afterwards made her appearance in Ariosto's Orlando Furioso, which was intended as a continuation of the story which Boiardo had begun.-THYER. 342. Prowest, the superlative of prow, from the old French preuz, valiant. Rɔman and Parthian? Therefore one of these Thou must make sure thy own; the Parthian first Found able by invasion to annoy Thy country, and captive lead away her kings, Maugre the Roman: it shall be my task To render thee the Parthian at dispose; Choose which thou wilt, by conquest or by league: By him thou shalt regain, without him not, To whom our Saviour answer'd thus, unmoved: Much ostentation vain of fleshly arm And fragile arms, much instrument of war, Thy politick maxims, or that cumbersome Luggage of war there shown me, argument Of human weakness rather than of strength. 365 370 375 380 385 390 395 400 My brethren, as thou call'st them, those ten tribes, 374. Ten tribes. These were the ten of these were sons of Jacob; the two tribes whom Shalmaneser, king of Assy-others were sons of Joseph. I would ria, carried captive into Assyria, "and suppose, therefore, that the poet meant put them in Halah and in Habor by the to give it, river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes." 2 Kings xviii. 11; which cities were now under the dominion of the Parthians.-NEWTON. 377. Ten sons, &c. The ten captive tribes were Reuben, Simeon, Zebulon, Issachar, Dan, Gad, Asher, Naphtali, Ephraim, and Manasseh. Only eight Eight sons of Jacob, two of Joseph lost. Otherwise he must have included in the ten sons of Jacob both Levi and Joseph. It seems incorrect to refer to Joseph as the head of a tribe when he was really merged in the tribes of his two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. I must deliver, if I mean to reign David's true heir, and his full sceptre sway To just extent over all Israel's sons. 405 But whence to thee this zeal? where was it then For Israel, or for David, or his throne, When thou stood'st up his tempter to the pride Of Egypt, Baal next and Ashtaroth, And all the idolatries of heathen round, Besides their other worse than heathenish crimes; Humbled themselves, or penitent besought The God of their forefathers; but so died Impenitent, and left a race behind 410 415 420 Like to themselves, distinguishable scarce Who, freed, as to their ancient patrimony, Headlong would follow; and to their gods perhaps So spake Israel's true king, and to the fiend 425 430 435 440 ing is clear: headlong would follow on in their old ways, and return to their idol gods. Bethel, about twelve miles north of Jerusalem, and Dan the northernmost, city of Palestine, were desecrated by the idolatrous worship of two golden calves erected by Jeroboam. See 1 Kings xii. 28-33. 636. Assyrian flood, the Euphrates. |