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النشر الإلكتروني

I

REGA I N'D.

BOOK I.

Who ere while the happy garden sung,
By one man's disobedience loft, now fing
Recover'd Paradise to all mankind,
By one man's firm obedience fully try'd
Through all temptation, and the tempter foil'd

In all his wiles, defeated and repuls'd,
And Eden rais'd in the waste wilderness.

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Thou Spirit who ledst this glorious eremite Into the defert, his victorious field, Against the spiritual foe, and brought'st him thence 10 By proof th' undoubted Son of God, inspire, As thou art wont, my prompted fong else mute, And bear through highth or depth of nature's bounds With profp'rous wing full fumm'd, to tell of deeds Above heroic, though in fecret done, And unrecorded left through many an age, Worthy t' have not remain'd so long unfung. Now had the great Proclamer, with a voice

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More

More awful than the found of trumpet, cry'd
Repentance, and Heav'n's kingdom nigh at hand 20
To all baptiz'd: to his great baptifm flock'd
With awe the regions round, and with them came
From Nazareth the fon of Joseph deem'd
To the flood Jordan, came as then obfcure,
Unmark'd, unknown; but him the Baptist soon 25
Descry'd, divinely warn'd, and witness bore
As to his worthier, and would have resign'd,
To him his heav'nly office, nor was long
His witness unconfirm'd: on him baptiz'd
Heav'n open'd, and in likeness of a dove
The Spirit defcended, while the Father's voice
From Heav'n pronounc'd him his beloved Son.
That heard the Adversary, who roving still

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About the world, at that assembly fam'd
Would not be last, and with the voice divine
Nigh thunder-ftruck, th' exalted man, to whom
Such high attest was giv'n, a while survey'd
With wonder, then with envy fraught and rage
Flies to his place, nor rests, but in mid air
To council fummons all his mighty peers,
Within thick clouds and dark ten-fold involv'd,
A gloomy consistory; and them amidst
With looks aghaft and fad he thus bespake.

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O ancient Pow'rs of air and this wide world,
For much more willingly I mention air,
This our old conquest, than remember Hell,

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Our

Our hated habitation; well ye know

How many ages, as the years of men,
This universe we have possess'd, and rul'd

In manner at our will th' affairs of earth,
Since Adam and his facil confort Eve

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Loft Paradise deceiv'd by me, though since
With dread attending when that fatal wound
Shall be inflicted by the feed of Eve
Upon my head: long the decrees of Heav'n

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Delay, for longest time to him is short;

And now too foon for us the circling hours

This dreaded time have compass'd, wherein we Must bide the stroke of that long threaten'd wound,

At least if fo we can, and by the head

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Broken be not intended all our power
To be infring'd, our freedom and our being,

In this fair empire won of earth and air;
For this ill news I bring, the woman's feed

Destin'd to this, is late of woman born:
His birth to our just fear gave no small cause,
But his growth now to youth's full flow'r, displaying

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All virtue, grace, and wisdom to achieve

Things highest, greatest, multiplies my fear.

Before him a great prophet, to proclame

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His coming, is sent harbinger, who all
Invites, and in the confecrated stream
Pretends to wash off fin, and fit them fo

Purified to receive him pure, or rather

To do him honor as their king; all come,
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 rising
Out of the water, Heav'n above the clouds
Unfold her crystal doors, thence on his head
A perfect dove descend, what-e'er it meant,
And out of Heav'n the sovran voice I heard,
This is my Son belov'd, in him am pleas'd.
His mother then is mortal, but his fire

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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 seems
In all his lineaments, though in his face

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The glimpses of his Father's glory shine.
Ye fee our danger on the utmost edge

Of hazard, which admits no long debate,

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But must with something fudden be oppos'd,

Not force, but well couch'd fraud, well woven snares,

Ere in the head of nations he appear

Their king, their leader, and supreme on earth.

I, when no other durst, sole undertook

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The dismal expedition to find out

And ruin Adam, and th' exploit perform'd

Suc

Successfully; a calmer voyage now
Will waft me; and the way found prosp'rous once
Induces best to hope of like fuccess.

He ended, and his words impreffion left
Of much amazement to th' infernal crew,
Distracted and furpris'd with deep dismay
At these sad 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 so 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, ye Gods
Of many a pleasant realm and province wide.
So to the coast of Jordan he directs
His easy steps, girded with snaky wiles,
Where he might likeliest 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 so 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 smiling spake.

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Gabriel, this day by proof thou shalt behold, 130

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