The glimpses of his Father's glory shine.
Ye see our danger on the utmost edge
Of hazard, which admits no long debate,
But must with something sudden be opposed
(Not force, but well-couched 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
The dismal expedition to find out
And ruin Adam; and the exploit performed Successfully: a calmer voyage now
Will waft me; and the way, found prosperous once, Induces best to hope of like success."
He ended, and his words impression left Of much amazement to the infernal crew Distracted, and surprised 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 enterprise To him, their great dictator, whose attempt At first against mankind so well had thrived 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 coast of Jordan he directs His easy steps, girded with snaky wiles, Where he might likeliest find this new-declared, This man of men, attested Son of God, Temptation and all guile on him to try; So to subvert whom he suspected raised To end his reign on earth, so long enjoyed: But, contrary, unweeting he fulfilled The purposed counsel, pre-ordained and fixed, Of the Most High; who, in full frequence bright Of angels, thus to Gabriel smiling spake : "Gabriel, this day by proof thou shalt behold, Thou and all angels conversant on earth With man or men's affairs, how I begin To verify that solemn message, late On which I sent thee to the virgin pure
In Galilee, that she should bear a son
Great in renown, and called the Son of God;
Then toldest her, doubting how these things could be
To her a virgin, that on her should come
The Holy Ghost, and the power of the Highest O'ershadow her. This man, born and now upgrown To show him worthy of his birth divine
And high prediction, henceforth I expose To Satan; let him tempt, and now assay His utmost subtlety, because he boasts And vaunts of his great cunning to the throng Of his apostasy; he might have learnt Less overweening, since he failed in Job, Whose constant perseverance overcame Whate'er his cruel malice could invent. He now shall know I can produce a man, Of female seed, far abler to resist
All his solicitations, and at length,
All his vast force, and drive him back to hell; Winning, by conquest, what the first man lost, By fallacy surprised. But first I mean To exercise him in the wilderness;
There he shall first lay down the rudiments Of his great warfare, ere I send him forth To conquer sin and death, the two grand foes, By humiliation and strong suffrance: His weakness shall o'ercome Satanic strength, And all the world, and mass of sinful flesh; That all the angels and ethereal powers, They now, and men hereafter, may discern, From what consummate virtue I have chose This perfect man, by merit called my Son, To earn salvation for the sons of men."
So spake the Eternal Father, and all heaven Admiring stood a space, then into hymns Burst forth, and in celestial measures moved, Circling the throne and singing, while the hand Sung with the voice, and this the argument:
Victory and triumph to the Son of God, Now entering his great duel, not of arms, But to vanquish by wisdom hellish wiles! The Father knows the Son: therefore secure Ventures his filial virtue, though untried, Against whate'er may tempt, whate'er seduce, Allure, or terrify, or undermine.
Be frustrate, all ye stratagems of hell, And, devilish machinations, come to nought!”
So they in heaven their odes and vigils tuned:
Meanwhile the Son of God, who yet some days Lodged in Bethabara, where John baptized. Musing, and much revolving in his breast, How best the mighty work he might begin Of Saviour to mankind, and which way first Publish his godlike office now mature,
One day walked forth alone, the Spirit leading And his deep thoughts, the better to converse With solitude, till, far from track of men,
Thought following thought, and step by step led on, He entered now the bordering desert wild, And, with dark shades and rocks environed round, His holy meditations thus pursued:
"O, what a multitude of thoughts at once Awakened in me swarm, while I consider What from within I feel myself, and hear What from without comes often to my ears, Ill sorting with my present state compared! When I was yet a child, no childish play To me was pleasing; all my mind was set Serious to learn and know, and thence to do What might be public good; myself I thought Born to that end, born to promote all truth, All righteous things: therefore, above my years, The law of God I read, and found it sweet, Made it my whole delight, and in it grew To such perfection, that, ere yet my age Had measured twice six years, at our great feast I went into the temple, there to hear The teachers of our law, and to propose What might improve my knowledge or their own; And was admired by all: yet this not all To which my spirit aspired; victorious deeds Flamed in my heart, heroic acts; one while To rescue Israel from the Roman yoke; Then to subdue and quell, o'er all the earth, Brute violence and proud tyrannic power, Till truth were freed, and equity restored: Yet held it more humane, more heavenly first By willing words to conquer willing hearts, And make persuasion do the work of fear; At least to try, and teach the erring soul, Not wilfully misdoing, but unaware Misled; the stubborn only to subdue.
These growing thoughts my mother soon perceiving,
By words at times cast forth, inly rejoiced, And said to me apart, 'High are thy thoughts, O son, but nourish them, and let them soar To what height sacred virtue and true worth Can raise them, though above example high; By matchless deeds express thy matchless Sire, For know thou art no son of mortal man; Though men esteem thee low of parentage, Thy Father is the Eternal King who rules All heaven and earth, angels and sons of men; A messenger from God foretold thy birth Conceived in me a virgin; he foretold
Thou shouldst be great, and sit on David's throne, And of thy kingdom there should be no end.
At thy nativity, a glorious choir
Of angels, in the fields of Bethlehem, sung
To shepherds, watching at their folds by night, And told them the Messiah now was born, Where they might see him; and to thee they came, Directed to the manger where thou layest, For in the inn was left no better room:
A star, not seen before, in heaven appearing, Guided the wise men thither from the East, To honour thee with incense, myrrh, and gold; By whose bright course led on they found the place, Affirming it thy star, new-graven in heaven, By which they knew the King of Israel born. Just Simeon and prophetic Anna, warned By vision, found thee in the temple, and spake, Before the altar and the vested priest,
Like things of thee to all that present stood.' "This having heard, straight I again revolved The law and prophets, searching what was writ Concerning the Messiah, to our scribes
Known partly, and soon found, of whom they spake I am this chiefly, that my way must lie Through many a hard assay, even to the death, Ere I the promised kingdom can attain, Or work redemption for mankind, whose sins' Full weight must be transferred upon my head. Yet, neither thus disheartened, nor dismayed, The time prefixed I waited; when behold The Baptist (of whose birth I oft had heard, Not knew by sight) now come, who was to come Before Messiah, and his way prepare!
I, as all others, to his baptism came,
Which I believed was from above; but he
Straight knew me, and with loudest voice proclaimed Me him (for it was shown him so from heaven), Me him, whose harbinger he was; and first Refused on me his baptism to confer,
As much his greater, and was hardly won: But, as I rose out of the laving stream, Heaven opened her eternal doors, from whence The Spirit descended on me like a dove; And last, the sum of all, my Father's voice, Audibly heard from heaven, pronounced me his, Me his beloved Son, in whom alone
He was well pleased; by which I knew the time Now full, that I no more should live obscure, But openly begin, as best becomes
The authority which I derived from heaven. And now by some strong motion I am led Into this wilderness, to what intent
I learn not yet; perhaps I need not know, For what concerns my knowledge God reveals." So spake our Morning-star, then in his rise, And, looking round, on every side beheld A pathless desert, dusk with horrid shades; The way he came not having marked, return Was difficult, by human steps untrod;
And he still on was led, but with such thoughts Accompanied of things past and to come Lodged in his breast, as well might recommend Such solitude before choicest society.
Full forty days he passed, whether on hill Sometimes, anon on shady vale, each night Under the covert of some ancient oak, Or cedar, to defend him from the dew, Or harboured in one cave, is not revealed; Nor tasted human food, nor hunger felt Till those days ended; hungered then at last Among wild beasts: they at his sight grew mild. Nor sleeping him nor waking harmed; his walk The fiery serpent fled and noxious worm, The lion and fierce tiger glared aloof. But now an aged man in rural weeds,
Following, as seemed, the quest of some stray ewe, Or withered sticks to gather, which might serve Against a winter's day, when winds blow keen,
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