To whom the Angel. Son of Heavn and Earth,
Attend: That thou art happie, owe to God; [ 520 ]
That thou continust such, owe to thy self,
That is, to thy obedience; therein stand.
This was that caution givn thee; be advisd.
God made thee perfet, not immutable;
And good he made thee, but to persevere [ 525 ]
He left it in thy power, ordaind thy will
By nature free, not over-ruld by Fate
Inextricable, or strict necessity;
Our voluntarie service he requires,
Not our necessitated, such with him [ 530 ]
Finds no acceptance, nor can find, for how
Can hearts, not free, be trid whether they serve
Willing or no, who will but what they must
By Destinie, and can no other choose?
Myself and all th Angelic Host that stand [ 535 ]
In sight of God enthrond, our happie state
Hold, as you yours, while our obedience holds;
On other surety none; freely we serve
Because we freely love, as in our will
To love or not; in this we stand or fall: [ 540 ]
And Som are falln, to disobedience falln,
And so from Heavn to deepest Hell; O fall
From what high state of bliss into what woe!
To whom our great Progenitor. Thy words
Attentive, and with more delighted eare [ 545 ]
Divine instructer, I have heard, then when
Cherubic Songs by night from neighbouring Hills
Aereal Music send: nor knew I not
To be both will and deed created free;
Yet that we never shall forget to love [ 550 ]
Our maker, and obey him whose command
Single, is yet so just, my constant thoughts
Assurd me and still assure: though what thou tellst
Hath past in Heavn, Som doubt within me move,
But more desire to hear, if thou consent, [ 555 ]
The full relation, which must needs be strange,
Worthy of Sacred silence to be heard;
And we have yet large day, for scarce the Sun
Hath finisht half his journey, and scarce begins
His other half in the great Zone of Heavn. [ 560 ]
Thus Adam made request, and Raphael
After short pause assenting, thus began.
High matter thou injoinst me, O prime of men,
Sad task and hard, for how shall I relate
To human sense th invisible exploits [ 565 ]
Of warring Spirits; how without remorse
The ruin of so many glorious once
And perfet while they stood; how last unfould
The secrets of another World, perhaps
Not lawful to reveal? yet for thy good [ 570 ]
This is dispenct, and what surmounts the reach
Of human sense, I shall delineate so,
By likning spiritual to corporal forms,
As may express them best, though what if Earth
Be but the shaddow of Heavn, and things therein [ 575 ]
Each to other like, more then on earth is thought?