LITMIR.BIZ

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blind be blinded more, That they may stumble on, and deeper fall; And none but such from mercy I exclude. But yet all is not don; Man disobeying, Disloyal breaks his fealtie, and sinns Against the high Supremacie of Heav’n, Affecting God-head, and so loosing all, To expiate his Treason hath naught left, But to destruction sacred and devote, He with his whole posteritie must die, Die hee or Justice must; unless for him Som other able, and as willing, pay The rigid satisfaction, death for death. Say Heav’nly Powers, where shall we find such love, Which of ye will be mortal to redeem Mans mortal crime, and just th’ unjust to save, Dwels in all Heaven charitie so deare?

      He ask’d, but all the Heav’nly Quire stood mute,

       And silence was in Heav’n: on mans behalf

       Patron or Intercessor none appeerd,

       Much less that durst upon his own head draw

       The deadly forfeiture, and ransom set.

       And now without redemption all mankind

       Must have bin lost, adjudg’d to Death and Hell

       By doom severe, had not the Son of God,

       In whom the fulness dwels of love divine,

       His dearest mediation thus renewd.

      Father, thy word is past, man shall find grace;

       And shall grace not find means, that finds her way,

       The speediest of thy winged messengers,

       To visit all thy creatures, and to all

       Comes unprevented, unimplor’d, unsought,

       Happie for man, so coming; he her aide

       Can never seek, once dead in sins and lost;

       Attonement for himself or offering meet,

       Indebted and undon, hath none to bring:

       Behold mee then, mee for him, life for life

       I offer, on mee let thine anger fall;

       Account mee man; I for his sake will leave

       Thy bosom, and this glorie next to thee

       Freely put off, and for him lastly die

       Well pleas’d, on me let Death wreck all his rage;

       Under his gloomie power I shall not long

       Lie vanquisht; thou hast givn me to possess

       Life in my self for ever, by thee I live,

       Though now to Death I yeild, and am his due

       All that of me can die, yet that debt paid,

       Thou wilt not leave me in the loathsom grave

       His prey, nor suffer my unspotted Soule

       For ever with corruption there to dwell;

       But I shall rise Victorious, and subdue

       My Vanquisher, spoild of his vanted spoile;

       Death his deaths wound shall then receive, & stoop

       Inglorious, of his mortall sting disarm’d.

       I through the ample Air in Triumph high

       Shall lead Hell Captive maugre Hell, and show

       The powers of darkness bound. Thou at the sight

       Pleas’d, out of Heaven shalt look down and smile,

       While by thee rais’d I ruin all my Foes,

       Death last, and with his Carcass glut the Grave:

       Then with the multitude of my redeemd

       Shall enter Heaven long absent, and returne,

       Father, to see thy face, wherein no cloud

       Of anger shall remain, but peace assur’d,

       And reconcilement; wrauth shall be no more

       Thenceforth, but in thy presence Joy entire.

      His words here ended, but his meek aspect

       Silent yet spake, and breath’d immortal love

       To mortal men, above which only shon

       Filial obedience: as a sacrifice

       Glad to be offer’d, he attends the will

       Of his great Father. Admiration seis’d

       All Heav’n, what this might mean, & whither tend

       Wondring; but soon th’ Almighty thus reply’d:

      O thou in Heav’n and Earth the only peace

       Found out for mankind under wrauth, O thou

       My sole complacence! well thou know’st how dear,

       To me are all my works, nor Man the least

       Though last created, that for him I spare

       Thee from my bosom and right hand, to save,

       By loosing thee a while, the whole Race lost.

       Thou therefore whom thou only canst redeeme,

       Thir Nature also to thy Nature joyne;

       And be thy self Man among men on Earth,

       Made flesh, when time shall be, of Virgin seed,

       By wondrous birth: Be thou in Adams room The Head of all mankind, though Adams 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 guiltie all his Sons, thy merit Imputed shall absolve them who renounce Thir own both righteous and unrighteous deeds, And live in thee transplanted, and from thee Receive new life. So Man, as is most just, Shall satisfie for Man, be judg’d and die, And dying rise, and rising with him raise His Brethren, ransomd with his own dear life. So Heav’nly love shal outdoo Hellish hate, Giving to death, and dying to redeeme, So dearly to redeem what Hellish hate So easily destroy’d, and still destroyes In those who, when they may, accept not grace. Nor shalt thou by descending to assume Mans Nature, less’n or degrade thine owne. 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 then Birthright Son of God, Found worthiest to be so by being Good, Farr more then Great or High; because in thee Love hath abounded more then Glory abounds, Therefore thy Humiliation shall exalt With thee thy Manhood also to this Throne; Here shalt thou sit incarnate, here shalt Reigne 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 Supream 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 Heav’n Shalt in the Skie appeer, and from thee send The summoning Arch-Angels to proclaime Thy dread Tribunal: forthwith from all Windes The living, and forthwith the cited dead Of all past Ages to the general Doom Shall hast’n, such a peal shall rouse thir sleep. Then all thy Saints assembl’d, thou shalt judge Bad men and Angels, they arraignd shall sink Beneath thy Sentence; Hell, her numbers full, Thenceforth shall be for ever shut. Mean while The World shall burn, and from her ashes spring New Heav’n and Earth, wherein the just shall dwell And after all thir 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 mee.

      No sooner had th’ Almighty ceas’t, but all

       The multitude of Angels with a shout

       Loud as from numbers without number, sweet

       As from blest voices, uttering joy, Heav’n rung

       With Jubilee, and loud Hosanna’s fill’d

       Th’ eternal Regions: lowly reverent

       Towards either Throne they bow, & to the ground

      

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