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

Of hazard, which admits no long debate,

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But muft with fomething fudden be oppos'd,

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

Their king, their leader, and supreme on earth. .

I, when no other durft, fole undertook

The dismal 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 success.

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He ended, and his words impreffion left
Of much amazement to th' infernal crew,
Distracted 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, whofe 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, 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 witnefling it, that Jefus being now baptized ὑπεσρεψεν απο To lopdave, returned from Jordan, namely from the fame tract, whereby he came thither. His eafy steps, 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 un

dertook

The difmal expedition to find out

And ruin Adam

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-a calmer voyage now Will waft me &c.

His

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His easy steps, girded with fnaky wiles,

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Where he might likelieft find this new-declar'd,
This man of men, attefted Son of God,
Temptation and all guile on him to try;
So to fubvert whom he fufpected rais'd
To end his reign on earth fo long enjoy'd ;
But contrary unweeting he fulfill'd

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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.
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 Inakes; 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

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

To

and Heaven of Heavens are truly grand expreffions: but then there is an idea of greatnefs 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 Gospel. 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

To verify that folemn meffage late,

On which I sent thee to the Virgin pure

In Galilee, that she should bear a fon

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

Then toldft her doubting how these things could be To her a virgin, that on her should come

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

his father Zacharias, and of our bleffed Saviour to his virgin mother. And the Jewish Rabbi's fay, that Michael was the minister of feverity, but Gabriel of mercy : and accordingly our poet makes Gabriel the guardian angel of Paradife, and employs Michael to expel our first parents out of Paradife and for the fame reason this Speech is directed tó Gabriel in particular. And God's being reprefented as fmiling may be juftified not only by the Heathen poets, as Virg. Æn. I. 254•

Olli fubridens hominum fator atque deorum ;

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Of his apoftafy; he might have learnt
Lefs overweening, fince he fail'd in Job,
Whose constant perfeverance overcame
Whate'er his cruel malice could invent.
He now shall know I can produce a man

Of female feed, far abler to refift
All his folicitations, and at length

All his vaft force, and drive him back to Hell,
Winning by conqueft what the first man loft
By fallacy furpris'd. But first I mean
To exercise him in the wilderness,

163. That all the Angels and ethereal Powers, &c.] Not a word is faid here of the Son of God, but what a Socinian would allow. His divine nature, is artfully concealed under a partial and ambiguous reprefentation; and the Angels are firft to learn the mystery of the incarnation from that important conflict, which is the fubject of this poem. They are feemingly invited to behold the triumphs of the man Chrift Jefus over the enemy of mankind; and thefe furprise them with the glorious difcovery of the God.

infhrin'd

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There

ture, for the prefent, out of fight, without denying or excluding it. It is likewife very truly faid of this perfect man, that he is by merit call'd the Son of God. Juftin Martyr obferves in his fecond Apology [p. 67. Ed. Col.] that Chrift, confidered only as man, deserved for his superior wisdom to be called the Son of God. Y de Deu i Inous deγομενΘ, ει και κοινως μόνον άνθρωπος, δια σοφίαν αξίω τίω Θες λεγεσθαι. In either capacity of God or Man he had a clame of merit to the title. The Father, fpeaking to his eternal Word in Paradife Loft, III.

In fleshly tabernacle, and human 308. on his generous undertakings

form.

That Chrift was perfect man is a partial truth, and ferves to keep the higher perfection of his divine na

for mankind, faith

and haft been found By merit more than birthright Son of God.

Again,

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