Category: Religious Devotion

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Book 3 of Paradise Lost. It was interesting to read about the fall of man as an epic poem. I have read about this topic in my Bible; however, I found it fascinating to read it from Milton’s perspective. I found it intriguing to read about the original sin as seen through the eyes of God in Milton’s interpretation. I also found it interesting to get Milton’s perspective on why Jesus volunteered himself as a ransom for mankind.

A passage that stood out to me is where God speaks to Jesus about what he understands is going to happen on Earth. In lines ninety-eight through ninety-nine, God says, “I made him just and right, sufficient to have stood, though free to fall” (Milton 1989). Here, we can infer God blames himself for the corruption of mankind by his adversary, the Devil. God says he is to blame since he gave mankind the power of free will. He gave man the option to choose to stand with God, however, he does not force them. These lines stood out to me because I do not feel God is to blame. He gave his creation the gift of free will meaning he does not force people to obey him. If God had not given man freedom of choice, he would be forcing his creation to do behave like a programmed robot which is not what a loving God would do.

Another passage that stood out to me is where God answers Jesus’ plea to have mercy on mankind. Lines 191 through 193 say “To prayer, repentance, and obedience due, though but endeavored with sincere intent, mine ear shall not be slow, mine eye not shut” (Milton 1991). God is telling Jesus if man is sincere in his prayers for forgiveness, he will never ignore them. This spoke to me because I grew up believing this. I think Milton’s word choice is a beautiful way to express the love God has for his creation.

Finally, a section of Book 3 I found thought-provoking is when God asks for one of his angels to give himself as a ransom for the sins of man in order to receive salvation. (Milton 1991) Lines 217 and 218 state, “He asked, but all the heav’nly choir stood mute, and silence was in Heav’n; on man’s behalf” (Milton 1991). These lines caused me to pause and think about the scene in heaven when God made his request. I have grown up learning about the original sin of man. In my head, I pictured the angels fighting over who would save mankind willingly from death. In Milton’s interpretation, the angels were not eager to sacrifice themselves. Milton mentions the ransom had been set, yet without salvation mankind would be given over to death and lost forever. Finally, the Son of God speaks up in man’s behalf. (Milton 1991) Before Jesus speaks up, reading this made me anxious because if he had not volunteered, man would be unable to receive God’s forgiveness.

John Milton starts Paradise Lost: Book 3 with the quote, “Hail holy Light, offspring of Heav’n firstborn.” (1987) This is the foundation for the focus of the book. The use of light is a powerful tool in this piece, acting as imagery to describe the heavenly effect God desires to have on mankind, as well as illumination in Milton’s mind.

Milton writes that God is Heaven, watching everything that has been taking place on earth and in Hell. He knows what has happened, what is happening, and what will happen in the future, and begins to question His plan. He sees a fall in mankind, an evil from Satan that will become a cancer to man, causing them to lack love and mercy. The light in this case comes from the overall presence of God throughout man. The love He shows humanity will build faith and trust in Him, ultimately leading to a world where man can be capable of sincere love towards others. This is seen when Milton writes, “Man shall not quite be lost, but saved who will, yet not of will in him, but grace in me freely bestowed; once more I will renew his lapsed powers, though forfeit and enthralled by sin to foul exorbitant desires; upheld by me, yet once more he shall stand on even ground against his mortal foe.” (1990) God expects a downfall, but attacks this threat by pouring his light into the spiritual souls of mankind. This light symbolizes God’s grace and love, which can fight the temptations Satan brings to humanity.

God’s light and presence is also seen in the book when Milton asks that heavenly light illuminate his mind with divine knowledge. Milton desires to spread God’s word to others, and the only way he sees this possible is by being gifted with heavenly knowledge from God himself. For example, Milton writes, “So much the rather thou celestial Light, shine inward, and the mind through all her powers irradiate, there plant eyes, all mist from thence purge and disperse, that I may see and tell of things invisible to mortal light.” (1988) This inner light given from God would give Milton the ability to share incomprehensible and invisible things to others, such as Heaven, Hell, and the past. God’s light and presence has the power to connect with individuals in order to share and translate spiritual thoughts and beliefs.

Overall, I enjoyed reading Paradise Lost: Book 3. Although Milton is tricky to read and understand, the challenge makes the comprehension that much more meaningful. I was most interested in how light symbolized the positive and negative aspects of mankind, and the presence of evil in society, acting as darkness. God’s love and grace is shown through the light he gives off in Milton’s piece, and without it, the fall of mankind could have been much more severe.

I think it is interesting that Milton decided to start with Satan’s story. At least in Book 1, Satan seems to be portrayed like an anti-hero, rather than just an antagonist. If not for his explicitly stated desires to “ever do ill” and “out of good still to find means of evil,” Satan seems almost like a rebel fighting against tyranny (line 160, 165, 1950). Satan is also charismatic and emotional, which I suppose many antagonists share these qualities. However, these qualities also help with the image of someone fighting against the tyranny of another. He gives speeches to the other fallen angels who quickly rise to follow him. Also, three times, “tears such as angels, weep burst forth,” meaning he cried thrice before he was able to give his speech about wanting to corrupt the new world God was building (line 620, 1960). Despite knowing the evil that Satan wants to spread, he does not come off as a classical bad guy to me. I do, however, recognize that Satan is also bitter, petty, and power hungry, agreeing that it is “better to reign in Hell, than serve in Heaven” (line 263, 1952). This quote could be used to serve my argument that he is resisting tyranny because he does not want to be a servant anymore. It can also be used just to show his defiance of God and evil nature.

It is his goal to defy God and cause harm to all by leading people to damnation. Satan’s large appearance is compared to an island that a sailor might land on; this represents Satan’s ability to lead people astray. I  also find it interesting that the main way the fallen angels damn people is by posing as false Gods. They make council in a temple of riches they built named Pandemonium which literally means “all demons” as opposed to the opposite “all gods” (1963). This is a perfect name for their temple since they cause chaos (a synonym to pandemonium) by posing as gods to harm people.

I cannot wait to see how Satan’s character is portrayed in the rest of the epic and how he will play his part in Milton’s story of Adam and Eve.