The Annotated Milton: Complete English Poems (29 page)

440

      

To whose bright image nightly by the moon

441

      

Sidonian
¹⁶⁴²
virgins paid their vows and songs

442

      

In Sion
¹⁶⁴³
also not unsung, where stood

443

      

Her temple on th’ offensive
¹⁶⁴⁴
mountain, built

444

      

By that uxorious
¹⁶⁴⁵
king
¹⁶⁴⁶
whose heart, though large

445

      

Beguiled by fair idolatresses, fell

446

      

To idols foul.

Thammuz
¹⁶⁴⁷
came next behind

447

      

Whose annual wound in Lebanon allured

448

      

The Syrian damsels to lament his fate

449

      

In amorous ditties all a summer’s day

450

      

While smooth Adonis
¹⁶⁴⁸
from his native rock

451

      

Ran purple to the sea, supposed with blood

452

      

Of Thammuz yearly wounded. The love-tale

453

      

Infected Sion’s daughters with like heat

454

      

Whose wanton passions in the sacred porch
¹⁶⁴⁹

455

      

Ezekiel
¹⁶⁵⁰
saw, when by the vision led

456

      

His eye surveyed the dark idolatries

457

      

Of alienated Judah.
¹⁶⁵¹

Next came one

458

      

Who mourned in earnest, when the captive ark
¹⁶⁵²

459

      

Maimed his brute image, head and hands lopped off

460

      

In his own temple,
¹⁶⁵³
on the grunsel-edge,
¹⁶⁵⁴

461

      

Where he fell flat and shamed his worshippers

462

      

Dagon his name, sea-monster, upward man

463

      

And downward fish, yet
¹⁶⁵⁵
had his temple high

464

      

Reared in Azotus,
¹⁶⁵⁶
dreaded through the coast

465

      

Of Palestine, in Gath
¹⁶⁵⁷
and Ascalon,
¹⁶⁵⁸

466

      

And Accaron
¹⁶⁵⁹
and Gaza’s
¹⁶⁶⁰
frontier bounds

467

      

   
Him followed Rimmon,
¹⁶⁶¹
whose delightful seat

468

      

Was fair Damascus, on the fertile banks

469

      

Of Abbana
¹⁶⁶²
,
¹⁶⁶³
lucid
¹⁶⁶⁴
streams.
¹⁶⁶⁵

470

      

He also against the house of God was bold

471

      

A leper
¹⁶⁶⁶
once he lost, and gained a king

472

      

Ahaz,
¹⁶⁶⁷
his
¹⁶⁶⁸
sottish
¹⁶⁶⁹
conqueror, whom he drew
¹⁶⁷⁰

473

      

God’s altar to disparage and displace

474

      

For one of Syrian mode, whereon to burn

475

      

His odious offerings, and adore the gods

476

      

Whom he
¹⁶⁷¹
had vanquished.

After these appeared

477

      

A crew who, under names of old renown

478

      

Osiris, Isis, Orus, and their train—
¹⁶⁷²

479

      

With monstrous shapes and sorceries abused
¹⁶⁷³

480

      

Fanatic Egypt and her priests to seek

481

      

Their wand’ring gods disguised in brutish forms

482

      

Rather than human. Nor did Israel scape

483

      

Th’ infection, when their borrowed gold composed
¹⁶⁷⁴

484

      

The calf
¹⁶⁷⁵
in Oreb,
¹⁶⁷⁶
and the rebel king
¹⁶⁷⁷

485

      

Doubled that sin in Bethel
¹⁶⁷⁸
and in Dan,
¹⁶⁷⁹

486

      

Lik’ning his Maker to the grazèd ox—
¹⁶⁸⁰

487

      

Jehovah, who in one night, when he
¹⁶⁸¹
passed

488

      

From Egypt marching, equalled
¹⁶⁸²
with one stroke
¹⁶⁸³

489

      

Both her first-born and all her bleating gods

490

      

   
Belial
¹⁶⁸⁴
came last, than whom a Spirit more lewd

491

      

Fell not from Heaven, or more gross
¹⁶⁸⁵
to love

492

      

Vice for itself. To him no temple stood

493

      

Or altar smoked, yet who more oft than he

494

      

In temples and at altars, when the priest

495

      

Turns atheist, as did Eli’s sons, who filled

496

      

With lust and violence the house of God?
¹⁶⁸⁶

497

      

In courts and palaces he also reigns

498

      

And in luxurious
¹⁶⁸⁷
cities, where the noise

499

      

Of riot
¹⁶⁸⁸
ascends above their loftiest tow’rs,

500

      

And injury
¹⁶⁸⁹
and outrage.
¹⁶⁹⁰
And when night

501

      

Darkens the streets, then wander forth the sons

502

      

Of Belial,
¹⁶⁹¹
flown
¹⁶⁹²
with insolence and wine

503

      

Witness the streets of Sodom,
¹⁶⁹³
and that night

504

      

In Gibeah,
¹⁶⁹⁴
when the hospitable door

505

      

Exposed
¹⁶⁹⁵
a matron,
¹⁶⁹⁶
to avoid worse rape.
¹⁶⁹⁷

506

      

   
These were the prime
¹⁶⁹⁸
in order and in might.

507

      

The rest were long to tell, though far
¹⁶⁹⁹
renowned,
¹⁷⁰⁰

508

      

Th’ Ionian gods—of Javan’s issue
¹⁷⁰¹
held

509

      

Gods, yet confessed
¹⁷⁰²
later than Heav’n and Earth,

510

      

Their boasted parents; Titan,
¹⁷⁰³
Heav’n’s first-born,

511

      

With his enormous brood, and birthright seized

512

      

By younger Saturn. He
¹⁷⁰⁴
from mightier Jove,

513

      

His own and Rhea’s
¹⁷⁰⁵
son, like measure
¹⁷⁰⁶
found:

514

      

So Jove usurping reigned. These first in Crete

515

      

And Ida
¹⁷⁰⁷
known, thence on the snowy top

516

      

Of cold Olympus
¹⁷⁰⁸
ruled the middle air,
¹⁷⁰⁹

517

      

Their highest heav’n, or
¹⁷¹⁰
on the Delphian cliff,
¹⁷¹¹

518

      

Or in Dodona,
¹⁷¹²
and through all the bounds
¹⁷¹³

519

      

Of Doric land,
¹⁷¹⁴
or who with Saturn old

520

      

Fled over Adria
¹⁷¹⁵
to th’ Hesperian
¹⁷¹⁶
fields

521

      

And o’er the Celtic roamed the utmost isles.
¹⁷¹⁷