Their nature also to their nature join ;
And be thyself Man among men on earth, Made flesh, when time shall be, of virgin seed, By wondrous birth: Be thou in Adam's room The head of all mankind, though Adam's son. As in him perish all men, so in thee,
As from a second root, shall be restor❜d As many as are restor'd, without thee none. His crime makes guilty all his sons: thy merit, Imputed, shall absolve them who renounce Their own both righteous and unrighteous deeds, And live in thee transplanted, and from thee Receive new life. So Man, as is most just, Shall satisfy for Man, be judg'd and die, And dying rise, and rising with him raise His brethren, ransom'd with his own dear life, So heavenly love shall outdo hellish hate, Giving to death, and dying to redeem, So dearly to redeem what hellish hate
So easily destroy'd, and still destroys
In those who, when they may, accept not grace. Nor shalt thou, by descending to assume
Man's nature, lessen or degrade thine own. Because thou hast, though thron'd in highest bliss Equal to God, and equally enjoying
God-like fruition, quitted all, to save
A world from utter loss, and hast been found By merit more than birthright Son of God,
Found worthiest to be so by being good,
Far more than great or high; because in thee Love hath abounded more than glory abounds; Therefore thy humiliation shall exalt
With thee thy manhood also to this throne: Here shalt thou sit incarnate, here shalt reign Both God and Man, Son both of God and Man, Anointed universal King; all power
I give thee; reign for ever, and assume Thy merits; under thee, as head supreme,
Thrones, Princedoms, Powers, Dominions, I reduce: All knees to thee shall bow, of them that bide In Heaven, or Earth, or under Earth in Hell. When thou, attended gloriously from Heaven, Shalt in the sky appear, and from thee send The summoning Arch-Angels to proclaim Thy dread tribunal; forthwith from all winds, The living, and forthwith the cited dead Of all past ages, to the general doom
Shall hasten; such a peal shall rouse their sleep. Then, all thy saints assembled, thou shalt judge Bad men and Angels; they, arraign'd, shall sink Beneath thy sentence; Hell, her numbers full, Thenceforth shall be for ever shut. Meanwhile The world shall burn, and from her ashes spring New Heaven and Earth, wherein the just shall dwell, And, after all their tribulations long,
See golden days, fruitful of golden deeds,
With joy and love triumphing, and fair truth.
Then thou thy regal scepter shalt lay by,
For regal scepter then no more shall need, God shall be all in all. But, all ye gods, Adore him, who to compass all this dies; Adore the Son, and honour him as me.
No sooner had the Almighty ceas'd, but all The multitude of Angels, with a shout
Loud as from numbers without number, sweet As from blest voices, uttering joy, Heaven rung With jubilee, and loud Hosannas fill'd
The eternal regions: Lowly reverent
Towards either throne they bow, and to the ground
With solemn adoration down they cast
Their crowns inwove with amarant and gold;
Immortal amarant, a flower which once
In Paradise, fast by the tree of life,
Began to bloom; but soon for man's offence
To Heav'n remov'd, where first it grew, there grows, And flowers aloft shading the fount of life,
And where the river of bliss through midst of Heaven Rolls o'er Elysian flowers her amber stream;
With these that never fade the Spirits elect
Bind their resplendent locks inwreath'd with beams; Now in loose garlands thick thrown off, the bright Pavement, that like a sea of jasper shone, Impurpled with celestial roses smil❜d.
Then, crown'd again, their golden harps they took, Harps ever tun'd, that glittering by their side Like quivers hung, and with preamble sweet Of charming symphony they introduce
Be question'd and blasphem'd without defence. To whom the great Creator thus replied. O Son, in whom my soul hath chief delight, Son of my bosom, Son who art alone
My word, my wisdom, and effectual might, All hast thou spoken as my thoughts are, all As my eternal purpose hath decreed;
Man shall not quite be lost, but sav'd who will; Yet not of will in him, but grace in me Freely vouchsaf'd; once more I will renew His lapsed powers, though forfeit and enthrall'd By sin to foul exorbitant desires :
Upheld by me, yet once more he shall stand On even ground against his mortal foe; By me upheld, that he may know how frail His fallen condition is, and to me owe All his deliverance, and to none but me. Some I have chosen of peculiar grace, Elect above the rest; so is my will:
The rest shall hear me call, and oft be warn'd Their sinful state, and to appease betimes The incensed Deity, while offer'd grace Invites; for I will clear their senses dark, What may suffice, and soften stony hearts To pray, repent, and bring obedience due. To prayer, repentance, and obedience due, Though but endeavour'd with sincere intent, Mine ear shall not be slow, mine eye not shut. And I will place within them as a guide,
« AnteriorContinua » |