by Lisa Rosenkranz

Created on: December 15, 2010   Last Updated: December 20, 2010

In the opening of Book III in Paradise Lost, we find God sitting with his only Son, on his throne in heaven where they watch the devil emerge from hell and approach the newly created world.  God speaks of Satan’s strong desire for revenge and the fact that Hell, “all the chains heaped on him there” could hold him. 

God tells his Son that mankind will surely fall to the devil’s lies.   Since mankind was created with a free will, they could not blame God or fate on their transgressions.    He then says that he cannot  revoke Freewill, but since the “first sort by their own suggestion fell” and man was deceived, man would be able to find grace, while the “other” would find none.   God is referring to the fallen angles.  Since they knew of God’s power and love, and deliberately disobeyed him , they would never again know grace.  Man has been deceived by Satan, therefore would be spared if they could find grace in God. 

From a Christian point of view, God’s speech is very convincing.  It convicts the words of God from the Bible, and Milton does it with great eloquence.    In his statements about Freewill, God gives an explanation why he is sparing man, and not the fallen angels.  It reinforces biblical stories and places them into genre of the epic poem.  

The reader is able feel as if God and his only Son are engaging in a conversation.  The dialog of God is very commanding and confident.    “In mercy and justice both, through heaven and earth, so shall my glory excel,” is both poetic and powerful.  In lines 135 and 136, Milton says that an “ambrosial fragrance filled all heaven,” a description that has been found in hymns and prayers. 

Milton also portrays Jesus as a loving soul: and in his face Divine compassion visibly appeared, Love without end, and without measure grace.  This is beautifully put, and the reader is allowed to be in heaven, feeling the love of Christ flow from his being.   

All of this Milton does with a command of word that is more than convincing.  His verses literally take you into the world he has created, whether it is heaven or hell.  It is quite understandable why Paradise Lost is considered the most prolific piece of literature in the English language.

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