So fpake the Son of God, and Satan flood
A while as mute confounded what to say, What to reply, confuted and convinc'd Of his weak arguing, and fallacious drift; At length collecting all his ferpent wiles, With foothing words renew'd, him thus accofts. I fee thou know't what is of ufe to know, What beft to fay canft say, to do canft do; Thy actions to thy words accord, thy words To thy large heart give utterance due, thy heart Contains of good, wife, juft, the perfect shape. II Should kings and nations from thy mouth confult, Thy counfel would be as the oracle
Urim and Thummim, thofe oraculous gems On Aaron's breaft; or tongue of feers old Infallible or wert thou fought to deeds That might require th' array of war, thy skill Of conduct would be fuch, that all the world Could not fuftain thy prowess, or fubfift In battel, though against thy few in arms. Thefe God-like virtues wherefore doft thou hide, Affecting private life, or more obfcure In favage wildernefs? wherefore deprive All earth her wonder at thy acts, thyself The fame and glory, glory the reward That fole excites to high attempts, the flame Of moft erected fpirits, moft temper'd pure Ethereal, who all pleafures elfe defpife, All treafures and all gain efteem as drofs, And dignities and pow'rs all but the higheft? Thy years are ripe, and over-ripe; the fon Of Macedonian Philip had ere thefe Won Afia, and the throne of Cyrus held At his difpofe; young Scipio had brought down The Carthaginian pride; young Pompey quell'a The Pontic king, and in triúmph had rode. Yet years, and to ripe years judgment mature, Quench not the thirit of glory, but augment. Great Julius, whom now all the world admires, The more he grew in years, the more inflam'd 40 With glory, wept that he had liv'd fo long Inglorious: but thou yet art not too late. To whom our Saviour calmly thus reply'd.
They praife and they admire they know not what, And know not whom, but as one leads the other; And what delight to be by fuch extoll'd, To live upen their tongues and be their talk, Of whom to be difprais'd were no fmall praife? His lot who dares be fingularly good
intelligent among them and the wife Are few, and glory fcarce of few is rais'd. This is true glory and renown, when God,
Looking on th' earth, with approbation marks The juft man, and divulges him through Heaven To all his Angels, who with true applaufe Recount his praifes: thus he did to Job, When, to extend his fame through Heav'n and
As thou to thy reproach may'st well remember, He afk'd thee, Haft thou feen my fervant Job? Famous he was in Heav'n, on Earth lefs known; Where glory is falfe glory, attributed
To things not glorious, men not worthy' of fame.
30 They err who count it glorious to fubdue
By conquelt far and wide, to over-run Large countries, and in field great battels win, Great cities by affault: what do thefe worthies, But rob and spoil, burn, flaughter, and inflave 75 Peaceable nations, neighb'ring, or remote, Made captive, yet deferving freedom more Than thofe their conquerors, who leave behind Nothing but ruin wherefoe'er they rove,
And all the florishing works of peace deftroy, o Then fwell with pride, and must be titled Goda, Great Benefactors of mankind, Deliverers, Worshipt with ten ple, prieft, and facrifice; One is the fon of Jove, of Mars the other;
Made famous in a land and times obfcure: Who names not now with honor patient Job? 95 Poor Socrates (who next more memorable?) By what he taught and suffer'd for fo doing, For truth's fake fuffering death unjuft, lives now Equal in fame to proudeft conquerors. Yet if for fame and glory ought be done, Ought suffer'd; if young African for fame His wafted country freed from Punic rage, The deed becomes unprais'd, the man at least, And lofes, though but verbal, his reward. Shall I feek glory then, as vain men feek, Oft not deferv'd? I feek not mine, but his Who fent me', and thereby witnefs whence I am. To whom the Tempter murm'ring thus reply'd. Think not fo flight of glory; there in least Refembling thy great Father: he feeks glory, 110 And for his glory all things made, all things Orders and governs; nor content in Heaven By all his Angels glorify'd, requires Glory from men, from all men good or bad, Wife or unwife, no difference, no exemption; 'Above all facrifice, or hallow'd gift Glory' he requires, and glory he receives Promifcuous from all nations, Jew, or Greek, Or barbarous, nor exception hath declar'd; From us his foes pronounc'd glory' he exacts. 120 To whom our Saviour fervently reply'd. And reafon; fince his word all things produc'd, Though chiefly not for glory as prime end, But to fhow forth his gooducfs, and impart His good communicable to every foul Freely; of whom what could he lefs expect Than glory' and benediction, that is thanks, The flighteft, eafieft, readieft recompenfe From them who could return him nothing elfe, And not returning what would like lieft render 130 Contempt inftead, difhonor, obloquy? Hard recompenfe, unfuitable return For fo much good, fo much beneficence. But why fhould man feck glory, who' of his own Hath nothing, and to whom nothing belongs 135 But condemnation, ignominy', and fhame? Who for fo many benefits receiv'd Turn'd recreant to God, ingrate and falfe, And fo of all true good himself defpoil'd, Yet, facrilegious, to himself would take That which to God alone of right belongs; Yet fo much bounty is in God, fuch grace, That who advance his glory, not their own, Them he himself to glory will advance.
So fpake the Son of God; and here again Satan had not to anfwer, but food ftruck With guilt of his own fin, for he himself Infatiable of glory had loft all,
Yet of another plea bethought him foon.
Of glory, as thou wilt, faid he, so deem th Worth or not worth the feeking, let it paf But to a kingdom thou art born, ordain'd To fit upon thy father David's throne; By mother's fide thy father; though thy m Be now in pow'rful hands, that will not pa Eafily from poffeffion won with arms: Judea now and all the promis'd land, Reduc'd a province under Roman yoke, Obeys Tiberius; nor is always rul'd With temperate fway; oft have they violat The temple, oft the law with foul affront Abominations rather, as did once Antiochus and think'st thou to regain Thy right by fitting ftill or thus retiring? So did not Maccabeus: he indeed Retir'd unto the defert, but with arms; And o'er a mighty king fo oft prevail'd, That by strong hand his family obtain'd, Though priefts, the crown, and David's ufurp'd,
With Modin and her fuburbs once content. If kingdom move thee not, let move the And duty; zeal and duty are not flow; But on occafion's forelock watchful wait. They themselves rather are occafion beft, Zeal of thy father's houfe, duty to free Thy country from her Heathen fervitude; So fhalt thou beft fulfil, beft verify The prophets old, who fung thy endless reig The happier reign the fooner it begins; Reign then; what canft thou better do the
To whom our Saviour answer thus retur All things are best fulfill'd in their due time And time there is for all things, Truth hath If of my reign propheticrit hath told, That it fhall never end, fo when begin The Father in his purpose hath decreed, He in whofe hand all times and feafons roll. I What if he hath decreed that I fhall first Be try'd in humble state, and things adverfe By tribulations, injuries, infults, Contempts, and fcorns, and fnares, and viol Suffering, abftaining, quietly expecting, Without distrust or doubt, that he may know What I can fuffer, how obey? who beft Can fuffer, beft can do; beft reign, who firft Well hath obey'd; juft trial ere I merit My exaltation without change or end. But what concerns it thee when I begin My everlafting kingdom, why art thou Solicitous, what moves thy inquifition? Know'ft thou not that my rifing is thy fall, And my promotion will be thy deftruction?
To whom the Tempter inly rack'd reply'd. Let that come when it comes; all hope is loft Of my reception into grace; what worse? For where no hepe is left, is left no fear: If there be worfe, the expectation more Of worse torments me than the feeling can. I would be at the worst; worst is my port, My harbour, and my ultimate repofe, The end I would attain, my final good. My error was my error, and my crime
My crime; whatever for itself condemn'd, And will alike be punish'd, whether thou Reign or reign not; though to that gentle brow Willingly I could fly, and hope thy reign, From that placid afpéct and meek regard, Bather than aggravate my evil ftate, Would stand between me and thy Father's ire (Whofe ire I dread more than the fire of Hell) Ahelter and a kind of fhading cool Interpofition, as a fummer's cloud.
If I then to the worst that can be hafte,
Why move thy feet fo flow to what is beft, Happieft both to thyfelf and all the world,
That thou who worthicft art fhould'ft be their king?
Perhaps thou linger'ft in deep thoughts detain'd Of th' enterprise fo hazardous and high; No wonder, for though in thee be united What of perfection can in man be found, Or human nature can receive, confider Thy life hath yet been private, moft part spent At home, fcarce view'd the Galilean towns, And once a year Jerufalem, few days
Stort fojourn; and what thence couldft thou ob- ferve?
The world thou haft not feen, much lefs her glory,
Empires, and monarchs, and their radiant courts, Beft fchool of beft experience, quickest infight In all things that to greatest actions lead. The wifeft, unexperienc'd, will be ever Tumorous and loath, with novi e modefty, (As he who fecking affes found a kingdom) Irefolute, unhardy, unadventrous:
Araxes and the Cafpian lake, thence on As far as Indus eaft, Euphrates weft, And oft beyond; to fouth the Perfian bay, And inacceffible th' Arabian drouth: Here Nineveh, of length within her wall Several days journey, built by Ninus old, Of that firft golden monarchy the feat, And feat of Salmanaffar, whofe fuccefs Ifrael in long captivity still mourns; There Babylon, the wonder of all tongues, As ancient, but rebuilt by him who twice Judah and all thy father David's houfe Led captive, and Jerufalem laid waste, Till Cyrus fet them free: Perfepolis His city there thou feeft, and Bactra there; Ecbatana her fstructure vaft there fhows,. And Hecatompylos her hundred gates; There Sufa by Choafpes, amber stream, The drink of none but kings; of later fame Built by Emathian, or by Parthian hands, The great Seleucia, Nifibis, and there Artaxata, Teredon, Ctesiphon, Turning with eafy eye thou may'ft behold. All these the Parthian, now fome ages paft, By great Arfaces led, who founded first That empire, under his dominion holds, From the luxurious kings of Antioch won, And juft in time thou com'ft to have a view Of his great pow'r; for now the Parthian king In Ctesiphon hath gather'd all his hoft
240Against the Scythian, whofe incurfions wild Have wafted Sogdiana; to her aid
But I will bring thee where thou foon fhalt quit Thofe rudiments, and fee before thine eyes
The monarchies of th' earth, their pomp and state,
Sufficient introduction to inform Thee, of thyfelf fo apt, in regal arts,
And regal myfteries, that thou may'st know How beft their oppofition to withstand.
With that (fuch pow'r was giv'n him then) he
His daughter, fought by many proweft knights, Both Paynim, and the peers of Charlemain. Such and fo numerous was their chivalry; At fight whereof the Fiend yet more prefum'd, And to our Saviour thus his words renew'd. 346 That thou may'st know I feek not to engage Thy virtue, and not every way fecure
On no flight grounds thy fafety; hear, and mark To what end I have brought thee hither and fhown All this fair fight: thy kingdom though foretold By prophet or by Angel, unlefs thou Endevor, as thy father David did, Thou never fhalt obtain; prediction still In all things, and all men, fuppofes means Without means us'd, what it predicts revokes. But fay thou wert poffefs'd of David's throne By free confent of ail, none oppofit, Samaritan or Jew; how could't thou hope Long to enjoy it quiet and fecure, Petween two fuch inclosing enemies Roman and Parthian? therefore one of these Thou must make fure thy own, the Parthian firft By my advice, as nearer, and of late Found able by invafion to annoy
Vented much policy, and projects deep Of enemies, of aids, battels and leagues, Plaufible to the world, to me worth nought. Means I muft ufe, thou fay'ft, prediction elle Will unpredict and fail me of the throne: 395 My time I told thee (and that time for thee Were better fartheft off) is not yet come: When that comes, think not thou to find me flack On my part ought endevoring, or to need Thy politic maxims, or that cumbersome Luggage of war there fhown me, argument Of human weaknefs rather than of ftrength. My brethren, as thou call'st them, thofe ten tribes I must deliver, if I mean to reign David's true heir, and his full fcepter fway 405 To juft extent over all Ifrael's fons;
But whence to thee this zeal, where was it then For Ifrael, or for David, or his throne, When thou stood'it up his tempter to the pride Of numb'ring Ifrael, which coft the lives Of threefcore and ten thoufand Ifraelites By three days peililence? fuch was thy zeal To Ifrael then, the fame that now to me. As for thofe captive tribes, themselves were they Who wrought their own captivity, fell off 41 From God to worship calves, the deities
360 Of Egypt, Baal next and Afhtaroth,
Thy country', and captive lead away her kings Antigonus and old Hyrcanus bound, Maugre the Roman: it fhall be my task To render thee the Parthian at difpofe; Choose which thou wilt, by conqueft or by league. By him thou fhalt regain, without him not, That which alone can truly reinftall thee Ini avid's royal feat, his true fucceffor, Deliverance of thy brethren, thofe ten tribes Whofe offspring in his territory yet ferve, In Habor, and among the Medes difpers'd; Ten Sons of Jacob, two of Jofeph loft Thus long from Ifracl, ferving as of old Their fathers in the land of Egypt ferv'd, This offer fets before thee to deliver. Thefe if from fervitude thou shalt restore To their inheritance, then, nor till then, Thou on the throne of David in full glory, From Egypt to Euphrates and beyond Shalt reign, and Rome or Cæfar not need fear. To whom our Saviour anfwer'd thus unmov’d. Much oftentation vain of fleshly arm, And fragil arms, much inftrument of war 1.ong in preparing, foon to nothing brought, Before mine eyes thou' haft fet; and in my ear
And all th' idolatries of Heathen round, Befides their other worfe than heath'nish crimes Nor in the land of their captivity Humbled themselves, or penitent befought The God of their forefathers; but fo dy'd Impenitent, and left a race behind
Like to themselves, diftinguishable scarce From Gentiles, but by circumcifion vain, And God with idols in their worship join'd. Should I of these the liberty regard, Who freed as to their ancient patrimony, Unhumbled, unrepentant, unreform'd, Headlong would follow'; and to their Gods per
Of Bethel and of Dan? no, let them serve Their enemies, who ferve idols with God. Yet he at length, time to himself best known, Remembring Abraham, by fome wondrous call May bring them back repentant and fincere, 433 And at their paffing cleave th' Affyrian flood, While to their native land with joy they hafte, As the Red Sea and Jordan once he cleft, When to the promis'd land their fathers pafs'd; To his due time and providence I leave them. 440
So fpake Ifrael's true king, and to the Fiend Made answer meet, that made void all his wiles. So fares it when with truth falfhood contends.
THE END OF THE THIRD BOOK.
Perplex'd and troubled at his bad fuccefs
The Tempter flood, nor had what to reply, Difcover'd in his fraud, thrown from his hope So oft, and the perfuafive rhetoric
That fleek'd his tongue, and won fo much on Eve, So little here, nay loft; but Eve was Eve, This far his over-match, who felf-deceiv'd And rafh, before-hand had no better weigh'd The ftrength he was to cope with, or his own: But as a man who had been matchlefs held In cunning, over-reach'd where leaft he thought, To falve his credit, and for very spite, Still will be tempting him who foils him still. And never ceafe, though to his fhame the more; Or as a fwarm of flies in vintage-time, About the wine-prefs where fweet must is pour'd, Beat off, returns as oft with humming found; Or furging waves against a folid rock,
Though all to fhivers dafh'd, th' affault renew, Vain batt'ry, and in froth or bubbles end;
So Satan, whom repulfe upon repulfe
Met ever, and to fhameful filence brought, Yet gives not o'er though defp'rate of fuccefs, And his vain importunity purfues.
He brought our Saviour to the western fide Of that high mountain, whence he might behold Another plain, long but in breadth not wide, Wafh'd by the fouthern fea, and on the north To equal length back'd with a ridge of hills, That fcreen'd the fruits of th' earth and feats of
From cold Septentrion blafts, thence in the midst Divided by a river, of whofe banks On each fide an imperial city food, With tow'rs and temples proudly elevate On fev'n fmall hills, with palaces adorn'd, Porches and theatres, baths, aqueducts, Statues and trophies, and triumphal arcs, Gardens and groves prefented to his eyes, Above the highth of mountains interpos'd: By what strange parallax or optic skill
Of vifion multiply'd through air, or glass Of telescope, were curious to inquire: And now the Tempter thus his filence broke. The city which thou seest no other deem Than great and glorious Rome, queen of the earth So far renown'd, and with the fpoils enrich'd 46 Of nations; there the capitol thou feest
Above the reft lifting his stately head
On the Tarpeian rock, her citadel Impregnable, and there Mount Palatine, Th' imperial palace, compafs huge, and high The ftructure, skill of nobleft architects, With gilded battlements, confpicuous far, Turrets and terraces, and glitt'ring fpires. Many a fair edifice befides, more like Houfes of God, (fo well I have difpos'd My acry mierofcope) thou may'ft behold Outfide and infide both, pillars and roofs, Carv'd work, the hand of fam'd artificers In cedar, marble, ivory, or gold.
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