than to dwell here, driven out from Bliss, and condemn'd in this abhorr'd Prifon to utter Woe; where Pain of unquencheable Fire must torment us, without any Hope of End? We are the Objects of His eternal Wrath, whenever His unmerciful Scourge and the Hour of Torture calls us to Punishment: If we were to be more destroy'd than this, we fhould be quite annihilated and expire. What do we fear then? What Doubts do we raise, to inflame His utmost Rage? which rais'd to the Height, will either confume us quite, and reduce thefe Effences of ours to nothing; (which is happier far, than to be miserable and have eternal Being) or if our Natures be indeed immortal, and we cannot cease to be, then, at worst, we are on this Side nothing; and we feel by Proof, that our Power is fufficient to difturb His Heaven, and with continual Affaults to allarm His fatal Throne, altho' it may be inacceffible; which, if it is not Victory, it is nevertheless Revenge.

HE concluded frowning, and his Look threaten'd defperate Revenge and dangerous Battle, to any who were lefs than Gods. On the other Side BELIAL rofe up, more graceful and humane in his Carriage; a fairer Perfon did not lose Heaven; he feem'd compos'd for Dignity, and for high Exploits; but all was falfe and hollow; tho' his Tongue was eloquent, and could make the worse Reafon appear the better, to perplex and confound the wifeft Councils: For his Thoughts were low, induftrious to Vice, but timorous and flothful to nobler Deeds; yet he pleas'd the Ear, and with moving and perfuafive Oratory began thus:

I SHOULD, O Peers! be very much for open War, (as not the leaft behind in Hate) if what was the main Reafon infifted upon to perfwade me to it, did not diffwade me from it, and feem to caft an ill-boding Conjecture upon the Succefs of the whole; when he,

who

who excells moft in valiant Deeds, fufpicious of the Event, builds his Courage upon Defpair, and confiders utter Diffolution as the Scope of all his Aim, after fome fatal Revenge. First, what Revenge? The Towers of Heaven are always fill'd with armed Watch, which takes off the Poffibility of all Access: Nay, the Legions of the holy Angels do often encamp upon the bordering Deep, or with darken'd Wings fcout far and wide into the Regions of Night, and fcorn all Surprize. Or could we by Force break our Way, and all Hell fhould rife at our Heels with blackeft Rebellion, to confound Heaven's pure Light; yet our great Enemy would remain unpolluted and incorruptible on his Throne, and the heavenly Subftance not fubject to any Blot or Stain, would foon expel all Mischief, and victoriously purge off all our ineffectual Fires. Thus repuls'd, our final Hope would indeed be flat Defpair; we fhould thus exafperate the Almighty Conqueror to spend all his Rage upon us, and that muft end us; that at last must be our Cure, to be no more.-----A fad Cure! for who, tho' full of Pain, would lofe this wife and understan ding Nature of ours; thefe Thoughts, that can wander thro' Eternity; and rather chufe to perish, to be fwallow'd up, and loft in everlasting Darkness, without Senfe and Motion? And fuppofing this to be a Good, and to be chofe before our prefent Pain, who knows whether our angry Foe can give it, or ever will? How he can is quite doubtful, but that he never will is very fure. Will he, who is fo very wife, at once let loofe his Anger; belike through Want of Power to curb his Paffions, or at unawares, to give his Enemies their Wish, and put an End to them in his Anger, whom his Anger faves only to punish for ever?------ Wherefore then say they who counfel War, why do we ceafe? We are predeftinated, referv'd, and deftin'd to eternal Mifery; let us do what we will, what can we fuffer more, what can we fuffer

worfe? Is this then worst, thus in Arms, fitting and confulting? What! when we fled fwiftly, and the afflicting Thunder of Heaven purfu'd and ftruck us, and we befought the Deep to shelter us? This Hell, fcorching as it is, then feem'd a Refuge from thofe Wounds. Or when we lay chain'd upon the burning Lake? That furely was worse. What if the fame Breath that kindled thofe Fires, again provok'd, fhould blow them feven Times hotter, and plunge us in the Flames; or if from above the God of Vengeance, who has abated for a little Space, fhould arm again his incensed Right-Hand to plague us; what if all Heaven were open'd, and this Firmament of Hell fhould fpout out its Cataracts (c) of Fire ? Impending Horrors! threatning hideous Fall upon our Heads: While we, perhaps, defigning or confulting glorious War, fhall be caught in a fiery Tempeft, and each of us be transfix'd on fome Rock, the Sport and Prey of continual and racking Whirlwinds; to converse there with everlafting Groans, without any Intermiffion, unpitied and unrepriev'd, and this for Ages without End? This would be worfe, therefore I declare against War, either open or conceal'd: For what can Force or Fraud do against him? Or who can pretend to deceive his Mind, who views all Things at one View? HE from high Heaven fees and derides

(c) Cataracs; Ital. Span. Fr. Lat. from the Gr. i, e. Falling down with Force, rufhing violently downwards. Water-Falls in Rivers from high Rocks, as thofe of the Danube and Nile, which makes the Inhabitants deaf for three Leagues, through the hideous Noile of their Fall. Many fuch are in the great River Tornea in Lapland, and in moft Rivers that defcend from high rocky Mountains. But the

all

Cataract of Nigaria near NewYork in North America, is the greateft in the World, being heard above thirty Miles off; for the Fall of it is feveral hundred Feet deep. Mr. Cockburn faw one in South America 600 Feet high, and heard the Noife of it two Days before they came to it, Journey, P. 224. Here the Sluices of Hell Fire let out upon the Fallen Angels.

all these our vain Motions: Nor is he more almighty to refift us, than he is wife to fruftrate all our Plots and Stratagems. But it will be faid, fhall we then live here thus vile, who are the Race of Heaven, thus trampled on, thus expell'd, to fuffer Chains and thefe Torments? By my Advice, better thefe than worse, fince inevitable Fate fubdues us, and an omnipotent Decree; which is the Will of our Conqueror. Our Strength is equal to fuffer, or to act, nor is the Law unjust that ordains it fo; thus, if we were wife, we refolv'd at first, contending against fo great an Enemy, and being fo uncertain what might happen. I laugh, when thofe who are bold and adventerous at the Spear, if that fail them, fhrink, and are afraid of what they knew muft follow; that is, to undergo Banifhment, Ignominy, or Bonds, or Pain; if the Victor pass fuch Sentence upon them. This is now what we are doom'd to! which if we can fupport and fuftain, our fupreme Foe may in Time abate of his An ger; and perhaps now we are thus far remov'd, not mind us, if we offend no more, but be fatisfy'd with what is punish'd; and then these raging Fires will flacken, if his Breath does not blow up their Flames: Our pure Effence will at length overcome their noxious Vapour, or elfe being long inur'd to it, at laft we fhall not feel it; or chang'd and conform'd to the Place, in Temper and in Nature, we fhall receive the fierce Heat familiar, and without Pain: What feems horrid now will grow mild, and this Darknefs grow more like Light; befides what Hope the never-ending Course of future Time may bring, what Chance, what Change worth waiting for; fince our prefent Lot, thinking of Happinefs is but ill, yet though ill, not worst of all, except we become our own Enemies, and bring more Mifery upon ourselves.

- THUS BELIAL, in Words which appear'd to flow from Reafon, counfell'd difhonourable Eafe and

Sloth, not true Peace; and after him thus spoke ΜΑΜΜΟΝ.

IF War be beft, we war, either to difinthrone the King of Heaven, or to recover our own loft Right: We may hope to unthrone him, then, when everlafting Fate fhall yield to Chance, and Chaos judge the Strife between him and us; to hope the former is vain, and that argues as vain, the latter, for what Place can there be for us in Heaven, unless we overpower him, who is the fupreme Lord there? Suppose he should relent, extend his Mercy, and publish Grace and Pardon to us all, upon Promise made of new Subjection; with what Eyes could we ftand humble in his Prefence, and receive ftrict and severe Laws impos'd, to celebrate his Throne with Hymns, and fing to his Godhead forc'd Hallelujahs? (d) while he our envy'd Sovereign fits lordly, and his Altar breaths fweet Odours and ambrofial Flowers, which were our fervile Offerings: This must be our Task in Heaven, nay, this must be our Delight. How wearifome would be an Eternity fo fpent, in paying Worship to one we hate! Let us not then purfue that which to do by Force is impoffible, and if by Leave obtain'd, difpleafing; for though it were in Heaven it would be but a State of fplendid Vassalage: Let us feek our own Good from ourselves, and live to ourselves, though it be in this Distance from Blifs, yet we may be free, and accountable to none, preferring hard Liberty before the eafy Yoke of fer

(d) Hallelujabs, from Hallelujab, Heb. 1. e. Praise ye the Lord. Songs of Praise to God; rather an Invitation to do fo. This Word is much used in the Pfalms, and other Books of the Old and New Teftament, in the

vile

Fewth, Grecian, and other Liturgies. It is the inceffant Exercife of Angels of the Prefence, and will be that of all the Redeemed for ever and ever in Hea See Rev. 19. 1. The Greeks write it Allelujah.

ven.