Darkness defends between till morning watch; And craze their chariot wheels: when by command 210 -no interdict Defends the touching of these viands pure. And so Spenser uses it, Faery Queen, b. iv. cant. iii. st. 32. Himself to save, and danger to defend. And so polite a writer as Sir William Temple, in the conclusion of his Essay upon the cure of the gout by Moxa, speaking of wine says, that the use of it pure was in some "places defended by customs or "laws." 210. And craze their chariot wheels:] Bruise or break them in pieces. Craze, from the French ecraser, to bruise or break. So i. 311. the chariot wheels are said to have been broken, though Exod. xiv. 25. it is only said they were taken off, so that the chariots were driven heavily. Milton, who perfectly understood the original, has therefore expounded this taking off to be breaking; though that may mean no more, than what we do when we say such a one 215 is crazy, broken with age and disabled. Richardson. The pot was crased is in Chaucer. See Lye's Junius upon the word crasie. 216. not the readiest way, &c.] It is remarkable, that here Milton omits the moral cause (though he gives the poetical) of the Israelites wandering forty years in the wilderness, and this was their poltron mutiny on the return of the spies. He omitted this with judgment, for this last speech of the angel was to give such a representation of things, as might convey comfort to Adam: otherwise the story of the brazen serpent would have afforded noble imagery. Warburton. 216. -not the readiest way,] For Exod. xiii. 17, 18. It came to pass when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them not through the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near. That was the nearest way from Egypt to Canaan, and was a journey of not above three days, as Philo says; others Lest ent'ring on the Canaanite alarm'd Return them back to Egypt, choosing rather To noble and ignoble is more sweet Untrain'd in arms, where rashness leads not on. In the wide wilderness, there they shall found 220 225 230 theocracy would have afforded some noble observations. Warburton. Milton speaks of the civil and the ritual, that is, the judicial and the ceremonial, precepts delivered to the Jews; but why did he omit the moral law contained in the Ten Commandments? Possibly his reason might be, because this was supposed to be written originally in the heart of man, and therefore Adam must have been perfectly acquainted with it: but, however, I think this should have been particularly mentioned, as it was published at this time in the most solemn manner by God from Mount Sinai; and as it was thought worthy to be written with his own finger upon two tables of stone, when the rest were conveyed to the people by the To civil justice, part religious rites Of sacrifice, informing them, by types And shadows, of that destin'd Seed to bruise 235 Without mediator, whose high office now Moses in figure bears, to introduce One greater, of whose day he shall foretel, And all the prophets in their age the times 240 Of great Messiah shall sing. Thus laws and rites writing and preaching of Moses, as a mediator between God and them. Greenwood. 237. That Moses might report] Dr. Bentley would read may report. 238. -he grants what they besought] In the first edition it was thus, he grants them their desire, but in the second it was altered to this, he grants what they besought: I suppose that the construction might be plainer in what follows, Instructed that to God &c. 245 250 242. —of whose day he shall foretel, And all the prophets &c.] Acts iii. 22, 24. For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me-yea, and all the prophets from Samuel, and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days. The records of his covenant, over these 255 255. Sev'n lamps as in a zodiac went onward in all their journeys. representing The heav'nly fires:] That the seven lamps signified the seven planets, and that therefore the lamps stood slopewise, as it were to express the obliquity of the zodiac, is the gloss of Josephus, from whom probably our author borrowed it. Joseph. Antiq. lib. iii. c. 6 and 7.Jand De Bell. Jud. lib. v. c. 5. See likewise Mede's Discourse 10, upon the seven archangels. Mr. Hume quotes like wise the Latin of Philo to the same purpose: Mysticè candelabrum hoc septifidum imago erat sphæræ septilustris, sive septem planetarum. Tabernaculum typus mundi. Sanctum sanctorum, typus cœli empyrei beatorum. See Cornelius a Lapide upon Exod. xxv. 31. 258. Save when they journey,] Then a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter into the tent of the congregation because the cloud abode thereon, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And when the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the children of Israel But if the cloud were not taken up, then they journeyed not, till the day that it was taken up. For the cloud of the Lord was upon the tabernacle by day, and fire was on it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys, Exod. xl. 34, &c. Thus it was in all places wherever they came: and this is what Milton says in short, the cloud was over the tent by day, and the fire (called here a fiery gleam) by night, when they journeyed not. He takes no notice how it was when they did, which this text (for the infinite beauty of it we have given it at length) explains: the cloud was then taken up; how then? the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud to lead them the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, to go by day and night, chap. xiii. 21. Other armies pitch their ensigns when they encamp, and lift them up when they march. So does the Lord of Hosts leading forth his people. But what ensigns! how sublime! Milton seems too concise here. Richardson. 260 265 Promis'd to Abraham and his seed: the rest His day, in whom all nations shall be blest, 270 276 280 Gen. iii. 5. Your eyes shall be opened, &c. 277. His day,] An allusion to that of our Saviour, John viii. 56. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day; and he saw it, and was glad. 283. So many laws argue so many sins] This scruple of our first |