Whether of open Warr or cuile,
We now debate; who advise, may speak.
He ceasd, a him Moloc, Scepterd King
Stood up, the stro and the fiercest Spirit
That fought in Heavn; now fiercer by despair: [ 45 ]
His trust was with th Eternal to be deemd
Equal in strength, and rather then be less
Cared not to be at all; with that care lost
Went all his fear: of God, or Hell, or worse
He reot, and these words thereafter spake. [ 50 ]
My sentence is for open Warr: Of Wiles,
More u, I boast not: them let those
trive who need, or when they need, not now.
For while they sit triving, shall the rest,
Millions that stand in Arms, and longing wait [ 55 ]
The Signal to asd, sit lingring here
Heavns fugitives, and for thir dwelling place
Accept this dark opprobrious Den of shame,
The Prison of his Tyranny whns
By our delay? no, let us rather choose [ 60 ]
Armd with Hell flames and fury all at once
Ore Heavns high Towrs to force resistless way,
Turning our Tortures into horrid Arms
Against the Torturer; when to meet the noise
Of his Almighty Engin he shall hear [ 65 ]
Infernal Thunder, and fhtning see
Black fire and horror shot with equal rage
Among his Angels; and his Thro self
Mixt with Tartarean Sulphur, and strange fire,
His own ied Torments. But perhaps [ 70 ]
The way seems difficult and steep to scale
With upright wing against a higher foe.
Let such bethink them, if the sleepy drench
Of that fetful Lake benumm not still,
That in our proper motion we asd [ 75 ]
Up to our native seat: dest and fall
To us is adverse. Who but felt of late
When the fierce Foe hung on our brokn Rear
Insulting, and pursud us through the Deep,
With what pulsion and laborious flight [ 80 ]
We sunk thus low? Th ast is easie then;
Th event is feard; should we again provoke
Our stronger, some worse way his wrath may find
To our destru: if there be in Hell
Fear to be worse destroyd: what be worse [ 85 ]
Then to dwell here, drivn out from bliss, nd
In this abhorred deep to utter woe;