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Both her first-born and all her bleating Gods.
Belial came laft, than whom a Spi'rit more lewd
Fell not from Heaven, or more grofs to love
Vice for itself to him no temple food
Or altar finok'd; yet who more oft than he
In temples and at altars, when the priest
Turns atheist, as did Eli's fons, who fill'd
With luft and violence the houfe of God?

ram, hence corniger Ammon? Clemens Alexandrinus tells us that the people of Sais and Thebes worshipped fheep; and R. Jarchi upon Gen. XLVI. 34. fays that a hepherd was therefore an abomination to the Egyptians, becaufe the Egyptians worshipped fheep as Gods. We may farther add, that Onkelos, Jonathan, and feveral others are of the fame opinion, and fay that shepherds were an abomination to the Egyptians, becaufe they had no greater regard to those creatures which the Egyptians worshipped, than to breed them up to be eaten. Thefe authorities are fufficient to juftify our poet for calling them bleating Gods; he might make ufe of that epithet as one of the moft infignificant and contemptible, with the fame air of disdain as Virgil fays An. VIII. 698.

Omnigenûmque deûm monftra & latrator Anubis ;

495

In

ends the paffage as he began it, with the Gods of Egypt.

490. Belial came laft, &c.] The characters of Voloch and Belial prepare the reader's mind for their refpective peeches and behavior in the fecond and fixth book.

Addifon.

And they are very properly made,
one the first, and the other the laft,
in this catalogue, as they both
make fo great a figure afterwards
in the poem. Moloch the first, as he
was the fierceft Spirit that fought in
Heaven, II. 44. and Belial the laft,
as he is reprefented as the moft ti-
morous and flothful, II. 117. It doth
not appear that he was ever wor-
fhipped; but lewd profligate fel-
lows, fuch as regard neither God
nor man, are called in Scripture
the children of Belial, Deut. XIII;
13. So the fons of Eli are call'd,
1 Sam. II. 12. Now the Sons of Eli
were fons of Belial, they knew not
the Lord. So the men of Gibeah,

and fo returns to his fubject, and who abus'd the Levite's wife, Judg.

In courts and palaces he also reigns

And in luxurious cities, where the noise
Of ri'ot afcends above their loftieft towers,
And injury and outrage: and when night
Darkens the streets, then wander forth the fons
Of Belial, flown with infolence and wine.
Witness the streets of Sodom, and that night
In Gibeah, when the hofpitable door

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500

Expos'd

504.when the bofpitable dogr Expos'd a matron to avoid worfe

rape.] So Milton caus'd it to be printed in the fecond edition; the firit ran thus,

-when hofpitable doors Yielded their matrons to prevent worse rape.

And Milton did well in altering the

Inflatum hefterno venas, ut femper, paffage: for it was not true of So

Laccho.

But flown I conceive is a participle from the verb fly, and the meaning is that they were raifed and highten'd with infolence and wine, infolence and wine made them fly out into thefe extravagances. Or as others think, it may be a participle from the verb flow, as overflon is fometimes used for overflow'd. And the meaning is the fame as fub'd with infolence and wine. An expreffion very common from the verb fuo. In the fame fenfe we ufe fluid with fuccefs, as Mr. Thyer obferves.

dom, that any matron was yielded there; the women had not known man, Gen. XIX. 8. and as they were only offer'd not accepted, it is not proper to fay that they were yielded. But observe that Milton in the fecond edition changed yielded into expos'd, because in what was done at Gibeah, Judg. XIX. 25. the Levite's wife was not only yielded, but put out of doors and expos'd to the mens lewdness. Why then does Dr. Bentley prefer Milton's firft reading to his fecond, when he alter'd the paffage to make it more agreeable to the Scriptural story?

Pearce. 506. These

Expos'd a matron to avoid worfe rape.

These were the prime in order and in might;
The rest were long to tell, though far renown'd,
Th' Ionian Gods, of Javan's iffue held

505

Gods, yet confefs'd later than Heav'n and Earth,
Their boasted parents: Titan Heav'n's first-born,
With his enormous brood, and birthright feis'd 511
By younger Saturn; he from mightier Jove
His own and Rhea's fon like measure found;
So Jove ufurping reign'd: these first in Crete
And Ida known, thence on the fnowy top

506. These were the prime] It is obferved by Macrobius and others, in commendation of Homer's catalogue of fhips and warriors, that he hath therein mention'd every body who doth, and no body who doth not afterwards make his appearance in the poem; whereas it is otherwife in Virgil; fome have a place in the lift, who are never heard of in the battels, and others make a figure in the battels, who are not taken notice of in the lift, Neither hath Milton in this refpe&t attain'd Homer's excellence and beauty; but then it should be confider'd what was his intent and purpose in this catalogue. It was not poffible for him to exhibit as complete a catalogue of the fallen Angels, as Homer hath given us

515

Of

manders; and as it was not poffible
or indeed proper, fo neither was it
at all his intention. He propos'd
only to mention the chief, and
fuch who were known in Palestine
and the neighbouring countries,
and had encroach'd upon the wor-
fhip of the God of Ifrael: and
what he prop s'd he hath executed
with wonderful learning and judg-
ment. He hath inlarg d very much
upon each of thefe idols, as he
drew most of his materials from
Scripture: The rest were long to tell,
the rest he flightly paffes over, as
our knowledge of them is deriv'd
only from fabulous antiquity.

508. Th' Ionian Gods, of Javan's
ijue beld
Gods, &c.] Javan, the fourth

of the Grecian and Trojan com- fon of Japhet, and grandfon of

Noah,

Of cold Olympus rul'd the middle air,

Their highest Heav'n; or on the Delphian cliff,
Or in Dodona, and through all the bounds

Of Doric land; or who with Saturn old
Fled over Adria to th' Hefperian fields,
And o'er the Celtic roam'd the utmoft iles.

520

All these and more came flocking; but with looks. Down caft and damp, yet fuch wherein appear'd Obfcure fome glimpse of joy, to' have found their chief Not in despair, to' have found themselves not lost In lofs itfelf; which on his count'nance caft

Noah, is fuppofed to have fettled in the fouth-west part of Afia Minor, about Ionia, which contains the radical letters of his name. His defcendents were the Ionians and Grecians; and the principal of their Gods were Heaven and Earth; Titan was their eldest fon, he was father of the giants, and his empire was feifed by his younger brother Saturn, as Saturn's was by Jupiter fon of Saturn and Rhea. Thefe first were known in the iland Crete, now Candia, in which is mount Ida, where Jupiter is faid to have been born; thence paffed over into Greece, and refided on mount Olympus in Theffaly; the Snowy top of cold Olympus, as Homer calls it Oror ayamor, Iliad. I. 420. and XVIII. 615. OvPolos, which mountain af

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526

Like

terwards became the name of Heaven among their worshippers; or on the Delphian cliff, Parnaffus, whereon was feated the city Delphi famous for the temple and oracle of Apollo; or in Dodona, a city and wood adjoining facred to Jupiter; and through all the bounds of Doric land, that is of Greece, Doris being a part of Greece; or fled over Adria, the Adriatic, to th' Hefperian fields, to Italy; and o'er the Celtic, France and the other countries overrun by the Celtes, roam'd the utmost iles, Great Britain, Ireland, the Orkneys, Thule or Iceland ultima Thule, as it is call'd, the utmoft boundary of the world. Such explications are needlefs to thofe who are converfant with the claffic authors; they are written for those who are not.

529. Sem

Like doubtful hue: but he his wonted pride
Soon recollecting, with high words, that bore
Semblance of worth not substance, gently rais'd
Their fainting courage, and dispell'd their fears. 530
Then ftrait commands that at the warlike found
Of trumpets loud and clarions be uprear'd
His mighty standard: that proud honor clam'd
Azazel as his right, a Cherub tall;

Who forthwith from the glittering staff unfurl'd
Th' imperial enfign, which full high advanc'd

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Shone

He

Azazel is not the fcape-goat, as it is commonly call'd, but fignifies fome Demon, as the learned Dr. Spenfer hath abundantly proved in his differtation De hirco emiffario. fhows that this name is ufed for fome Demon or Devil by feveral ancient authors Jewish and Chriftian, and derives it from two Hebrew words, Az and Azel fignifying brave in retreating, a proper appellation for the ftandard-bearer to the fall'n Angels. We fee Milton gives Azazel a right to be ftandard-bearer on account of his ftature; he had no notion of a dapper enfign who can hardly carry his

colors.

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