The Annotated Milton: Complete English Poems (148 page)

Willingly I could fly, and hope thy reign,

From that placid
⁶⁹⁵³
aspect and meek regard,

Rather than aggravate my evil state

Would stand between me and thy Father’s ire

(Whose ire I dread more than the fire of Hell),

A shelter and a kind of shading cool

Interposition,
⁶⁹⁵⁴
as a summer’s cloud.

“If I, then, to the worst that can be haste,

Why move thy feet so slow to what is best?

Happiest, both to thyself and all the world

That thou, who worthiest art, should’st be their king!

Perhaps thou linger’st in deep thoughts detained

Of the enterprise so hazardous and high!

No wonder, for though in thee be united

What of perfection can in man be found,

Or human nature can receive, consider

Thy life hath yet been private, most part spent

At home, scarce viewed the Galilean towns,

And once a year Jerusalem, few days’

Short sojourn—and what thence could’st thou observe?

The world thou hast not seen, much less her glory,

Empires, and monarchs, and their radiant courts,

Best school of best experience, quickest in sight

In all things that to greatest actions lead.

The wisest, unexperienced, will be ever

Timorous, and loath, with novice modesty

(As he who, seeking asses, found a kingdom),
⁶⁹⁵⁵

Irresolute, unhardy, unadvent’rous.

But I will bring thee where thou soon shalt quit
⁶⁹⁵⁶

Those rudiments,
⁶⁹⁵⁷
and see before thine eyes

The monarchies of th’ earth, their pomp and state,

Sufficient introduction to inform

Thee, of thyself so apt, in regal arts

And regal mysteries, that thou may’st know

How best their opposition to withstand.”

With that (such power was giv’n him then), he took

The Son of God up to a mountain high.

It was a mountain at whose verdant feet

A spacious plain, outstretched in circuit wide,

Lay pleasant. From his
⁶⁹⁵⁸
side two rivers
⁶⁹⁵⁹
flowed,

The one winding, th’ other straight, and left between

Fair champaign,
⁶⁹⁶⁰
with less
⁶⁹⁶¹
rivers interveined,

Then meeting joined their tribute to the sea.

Fertile of corn
⁶⁹⁶²
the glebe,
⁶⁹⁶³
of oil, and wine;

With herds the pasture thronged, with flocks the hills;

Huge cities and high-tower’d, that well might seem

The seats of mightiest monarchs; and so large

The prospect
⁶⁹⁶⁴
was that here and there was room

For barren desert, fountainless
⁶⁹⁶⁵
and dry.

To this high mountain-top the Tempter brought

Our Savior, and new train of words began:

“Well have we speeded,
⁶⁹⁶⁶
and o’er hill and dale,

Forest, and field and flood, temples and towers,

Cut shorter many a league. Here thou behold’st

Assyria, and her empire’s ancient bounds,

Araxes
⁶⁹⁶⁷
and the Caspian lake. Thence on

As far as Indus east, Euphrates west,

And oft beyond. To south the Persian Bay,

And, inaccessible,
⁶⁹⁶⁸
th’ Arabian drought.
⁶⁹⁶⁹

Here Nineveh,
⁶⁹⁷⁰
of length within her walls

Several days’ journey, built by Ninus
⁶⁹⁷¹
old,

Of that first golden monarchy the seat,

And seat of Salmanassar,
⁶⁹⁷²
whose success
⁶⁹⁷³

Israel in long captivity still mourns.

There Babylon,
⁶⁹⁷⁴
the wonder of all tongues,

As
⁶⁹⁷⁵
ancient, but rebuilt by him
⁶⁹⁷⁶
who twice

Judah and all thy father David’s house

Led captive, and Jerusalem laid waste,

Till Cyrus
⁶⁹⁷⁷
set them free. Persepolis,
⁶⁹⁷⁸

His city, there thou see’st, and Bactra
⁶⁹⁷⁹
there.

Ecbatana
⁶⁹⁸⁰
her structure vast there shows,

And Hecatompylos
⁶⁹⁸¹
her hundred gates.

There Susa
⁶⁹⁸²
by Choaspes,
⁶⁹⁸³
amber stream,

The drink of none but kings. Of later fame,

Built by Emathian
⁶⁹⁸⁴
or by Parthian
⁶⁹⁸⁵
hands,

The great Seleucia,
⁶⁹⁸⁶
Nisibis,
⁶⁹⁸⁷
and there

Artaxata,
⁶⁹⁸⁸
Teredon,
⁶⁹⁸⁹
Ctesiphon,
⁶⁹⁹⁰

Turning with easy eye, thou may’st behold.

“All these the Parthian (now some ages past

By great Arsaces
⁶⁹⁹¹
led, who founded first

That empire) under his dominion holds,

From the luxurious
⁶⁹⁹²
kings of Antioch
⁶⁹⁹³
won.

And just in time thou com’st to have a view

Of his great power, for now the Parthian king

In Ctesiphon hath gathered all his host

Against the Scythian,
⁶⁹⁹⁴
whose incursions wild

Have wasted Sogdiana.
⁶⁹⁹⁵
To her aid

He marches now in haste. See, though from far,

His thousands, in what martial equipage

They issue forth, steel bows and shafts their arms,

Of equal dread
⁶⁹⁹⁶
in flight or in pursuit—

All horsemen, in which fight they most excel.

See how in warlike muster they appear,

In rhombs,
⁶⁹⁹⁷
and wedges,
⁶⁹⁹⁸
and half-moons
⁶⁹⁹⁹
and wings.”

He
⁷⁰⁰⁰
looked, and saw what numbers numberless

The city gates outpoured, light-armèd troops

In coats of mail and military pride.
⁷⁰⁰¹

In mail their horses clad, yet fleet
⁷⁰⁰²
and strong,

Prancing their riders bore, the flower and choice

Of many provinces from bound
⁷⁰⁰³
to bound,

From Arachosia,
⁷⁰⁰⁴
from Candaor
⁷⁰⁰⁵
east,

And Margiana,
⁷⁰⁰⁶
to the Hyrcanian
⁷⁰⁰⁷
cliffs

Of Caucasus, and dark Iberian
⁷⁰⁰⁸
dales—

From Atropatia,
⁷⁰⁰⁹
and the neighboring plains

Of Adiabeen,
⁷⁰¹⁰
Media,
⁷⁰¹¹
and the south

Of Susiana
⁷⁰¹²
to Balsara’s
⁷⁰¹³
hav’n.
⁷⁰¹⁴

He saw them in their forms of battle ranged,

How quick they wheeled, and flying behind them shot

Sharp sleet of arrowy showers against the face

Of their pursuers, and overcame by flight.

The field all iron cast a gleaming brown,

Nor wanted
⁷⁰¹⁵
clouds of foot,
⁷⁰¹⁶
nor on each horn
⁷⁰¹⁷

Cuirassiers
⁷⁰¹⁸
all in steel for standing fight,

Chariots, or elephants endorsed
⁷⁰¹⁹
with towers

Of archers, nor of laboring pioneers
⁷⁰²⁰

A multitude, with spades and axes armed,

To lay hills plain,
⁷⁰²¹
fell woods, or valleys fill,

Or where plain was, raise hill, or overlay

With bridges rivers proud, as with a yoke.

Mules after these, camels and dromedaries,
⁷⁰²²

And wagons fraught
⁷⁰²³
with utensils of war.

Such forces met not, nor so wide a camp,

When Agrican
⁷⁰²⁴
with all his northern powers

Besieged Albracca,
⁷⁰²⁵
as romances tell,

The city of Gallaphrone, from thence to win

The fairest of her sex, Angelica,

His daughter, sought by many prowest
⁷⁰²⁶
knights,

Both paynim
⁷⁰²⁷
and the peers
⁷⁰²⁸
of Charlemagne.

Such and so numerous was their chivalry,

At sight whereof the fiend yet more presumed,
⁷⁰²⁹

And to our Savior thus his words renewed:

“That thou may’st know I seek not to engage
⁷⁰³⁰

Thy virtue, and not every way secure
⁷⁰³¹

On no slight
⁷⁰³²
grounds thy safety, hear and mark
⁷⁰³³

To what end I have brought thee hither, and show

All this fair sight. Thy kingdom, though foretold

By prophet or by Angel, unless thou

Endeavor, as thy father
⁷⁰³⁴
David did,

Thou never shalt obtain. Prediction still

In all things, and all men, supposes means;

Without means used, what it predicts revokes.

But say thou wert possessed of David’s throne

By free consent of all, none opposite,

Samaritan
⁷⁰³⁵
or Jew, how could’st thou hope

Long to enjoy it quiet and secure

Between two such enclosing enemies,

Roman and Parthian? Therefore one of these

Thou must make sure thy own. The Parthian first,

By my advice, as nearer, and of late

Found able by invasion to annoy
⁷⁰³⁶

Thy country, and captive lead away her kings,

Antigonus,
⁷⁰³⁷
and old Hyracanus—bound,

Maugre
⁷⁰³⁸
the Roman. It shall be my task

To render thee the Parthian at dispose,