There he fhall first lay down the rudiments
Of his great warfare, ere I fend him forth
To conquer
Sin and Death, the two grand foes,
By humiliation and strong sufferance :

His weakness shall o'ercome Satanic strength,
And all the world, and mafs of finful flesh;
That all the Angels and ethereal Powers,

They now, and men hereafter

may discern,

160

From what consummate virtue I have chose 165
This perfect man, by merit call'd my Son,
To earn falvation for the fons of men.

Again, the words confummate virtue are ambiguous, and may be referred to the divine nature of Chrift as well as the human. Their prefent connexion applies them directly to the human nature: but they had a fecret reference, I conceive, in the poet's meaning to the majefty of that heavenly part of him, which denominates Chrift in the holy Scriptures the wisdom of God and the power (or virtue) of God, O durau, Dei virtutem, Lat. Vulg. 1 Cor. I. 24. Hunc tamen folum primogenitum divini nominis appellatione dignatus eft, patria fcilicet uirtute, ac majeftate pollentem. Effe autem fummi Dei filium, qui fit poteftate maxima præditus, non tantùm voces prophetarum, fed etiam Sibylla um vaticinia deVOL. I.

170

So fpake th' eternal Father, and all Heaven Admiring stood a space, then into hymns Burft forth, and in celestial measures mov'd, Circling the throne and finging, while the hand Sung with the voice, and this the argument. Victory' and triumph to the Son of God Now entring his great duel, not of arms,

Admiring food a pace,] We cannot but take notice of the great art of the poet in fetting forth the dignity and importance of his fubject. He reprefents all beings as interested one way or other in the event. A council of Devils is fummon'd; an affembly of Angels is held upon the occafion. Satan is the fpeaker in the one, the Almighty in the other. Satan expreffes his diffidence, but ftill refolves to make trial of this Son of God; the Father declares his purpofe of proving and illuftrating his Son. The infernal crew are diftracted and furpris'd with deep difmay; all Heaven ftands a while in admiration. The fiends are filent thro' fear and grief; the Angels burft forth into finging with joy and the affured hopes of fuccefs. And their attention is thus engaged, the better to engage the attention of the reader. while the hand

171.

But

Sung with the voice,] We have pretty near the fame phrase in Tibullus. III. IV. 41.

Sed poftquam fuerant digiti cum voce locuti,

Edidit hæc dulci triftia verba modo.

And the word hand is used by Mil-
ton once again in this poem, and
alfo in the Arcades, to diftinguish
inftrumental harmony from vocal.
IV. 254.

There thou fhalt hear and learn
the fecret power
Of harmony in tones and num-
bers hit

By voice or hand.

Arcades, 77

If my inferior hand or voice could hit

Inimitable founds.

I have fometimes indulg'd a fufpicion, that the poet dictated,

-while

But to vanquish by wisdom hellish wiles.
The Father knows the Son; therefore fecure
Ventures his filial virtue, though untry'd,
Against whate'er may tempt, whate'er seduce,
Allure, or terrify, or undermine.

Be frustrate all ye ftratagems of Hell,
And devilish machinations come to nought.

-while the harp

Sung with the voice; but the few authorities alledged put the prefent reading out of question.

Calton.

174. Now entring his great duel, There is, I think a meannefs in the customary fenfe of this term that makes it unworthy of these Speakers and this occafion; and yet it is obfervable, that Milton in his Paradife Loft makes Michael use the very fame word where he is fpeaking to Adam of the fame thing, XII. 386.

To whom thus Michael. Dream

not of their fight, As of a duel, &c.

The Italian duello, if I am not mistaken, bears a ftronger fenfe, and this, I fuppofe Milton had in view.

Thyer.

If it be not a contradiction, it is inaccurate at leaft in Milton, to make an Angel fay in one place Dream not of their fight as of a duel; and afterwards to make theAngels

175

180

So

exprefs it by the metaphor of a duel, Now entring his great duel.

He lays the accent on the laft 175. But to vanquish by visdom] fyllable in vanquish, as elsewhere in triumph; and in many places, in my opinion, he imitates the Latin and Greek profody, and makes a vowel long before two confonants. Fortin.

176. The Father knows the Son; therefore fecure

Ventures his filial virtue, though faid by the Angels, if they also had untry'd,] Could this have been

known this Son to be the eternal Word, who created all things; and who had before driven this Tempter, and all his powers out of Heaven? The incarnation was generally believed by the Fathers to have been a fecret to Angels, till they learned it from the Church. See Huetii Origeniana. Lib. 2. Cap. 2. Quæft. 5. 18. As to the time and means of their information, Milton feems to be particular.

C 2

Calton. 182. Se

So they in Heav'n their odes and vigils tun'd: Mean while the Son of God, who yet fome days Lodg'd in Bethabara where John baptiz'd, Mufing and much revolving in his breast, How beft the mighty work he might begin

!

185

Of Saviour to mankind, and which way firft
Publifh his God-like office now mature,
One day forth walk'd alone, the Spirit leading,
And his deep thoughts, the better to converse 190
With folitude, till far from track of men,

Thought

182. So they in Heav'n their odes called mattins. Mr. Sympfon pro

and vigils tun'd: Mean while the Son of GodHow nearly does the poet here adhere to the fame way of fpeaking he had used in Paradife Loft on the fame occafion. III. 416.

Thus they in Heav'n above the

ftarry sphere Their happy hours in joy and hymning fpent. Mean while &c.

Thyer.

182.—their odes and vigils tun'd:] This is a very uncommon expreffion, and not eafy to be understood, unless we fuppofe that by vigils the poet meant thofe fongs which they fungwhile they kept their watches. Singing of hymns is their manner of keeping their wakes in Heaven. And I fee no reason why their evening service may not be called vigil, as the morning fervice is

poses a flight alteration,

-

their odes in vigils tun'd, that is, each watch when reliev'd fung fo and fo: but as we have explain'd the word, there feems to be no occafion for any alteration. 183. who yet fome days Lodg'd in Bethabara where John baptiz'd,]The poet, I prefume, faid this upon the authority of the first chapter of St. John's Gofpel, where feveral particulars, which happenedfeveral days together,are related concerning the Son of God, and it is faid ver. 28. Thefe things were aone in Bethabara beyond Fordan, where John was baptizing.

189. One day forth walk'd alone,

the Spirit leading,

And his deep thoughts,] This is wrong pointed in all the editions thus,

One

Thought following thought, and ftep by step led on, He enter'd now the bord'ring defert wild,

And with dark fhades and rocks environ'd round, His holy meditations thus purfu'd.

O what a multitude of thoughts at once Awaken'd in me fwarm, while I confider What from within I feel myself, and hear What from without comes often to my ears, Ill forting with my present state compar'd! When I was yet a child, no childish play

One day forth walk'd alone, the
Spirit leading;
And his deep thoughts, &c.

But at moft there fhould be only a
comma after leading, for the con-
ftruction is, bis deep thoughts leading
as well as the Spirit. And as
Mr. Thyer obferves, what a fine
light does Milton here place that
text of Scripture in, where it is faid,
that Jefus was led up of the Spirit
into the wilderness, and how excel-
lently adapted to embellifh his
poem! He adheres ftrictly to the
infpir'd hiftorian, and yet without
any fort of profanation gives it a
turn which is vastly poetical.

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