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Adorns him, colour'd with the florid hue

Of rainbows and ftarry' eyes. The waters thus
With fish replenish'd, and the air with fowl,
Ev'ning and morn folemniz'd the fifth day.
The fixth, and of creation last, arose

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With ev'ning harps and matin; when God faid, 450
Let th' earth bring forth foul living in her kind,
Cattle, and creeping things, and beaft of th' earth,
Each in their kind. The earth obey'd, and ftrait
Op'ning her fertile womb, teem'd at a birth
Innumerous living creatures, perfect forms,
Limb'd and full grown out of the ground up rofe,
As from his lair, the wild beaft where he wons
In foreft wild, in thicket, brake, or den;-

Among the trees in pairs they rofe, they walk'd;
The cattle in the fields and meadows green:

Those rare and folitary, thefe in flocks

Pafturing at once, and in broad herds upfprung..
The graffy clods now calv'd, now half appear'd
The tawny lion, pawing to get free

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His hinder parts, then fprings as broke from bonds,.
And rampant shakes his brinded mane; the ounce,›
The libbard, and the tyger, as the mole
Rifing, the crumbled earth above them threw
In hillocks: the fwift ftag from under ground
Bore up his branching head: fcarce from his mould
Behemoth, biggest born of earth, upheav'd.
His vaftnefs: flèec'd the flocks and bleating rofe,
As plants: ambiguous between fea and land

The river-horfe and fcally crocodile.

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At once came forth whatever creeps the ground, 475
Infect or worm: those wav'd their limber fans
For wings, and fsmallest lineaments exact

In all the liveries deck'd of fummer's pride,
With fpots of gold and purple', azure and green:

These as a line their long dimenfion drew,
Streaking the ground with finuous trace; not all
Minims of nature; fome of ferpent-kind,
Wondrous in length and corpulence, involv'd'·
Their fnaky folds, and added wings. First crept
The parfimonious emmet, provident

Of future, in fmall room large heart inclos'd,
Pattern of juft equality perhaps.

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And thou their natures know'ft, and gav'ft them names,

Needless to thee repeated; nor unknown

The ferpent, fubtlest beast of all the field,

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Of huge extent fometimes, with brazen eyes

And hairy mane terrific, though to thee

Not noxious, but obedient at thy call.

Now heaven in all her glory fhone, and roll'd

Nor motions, as the great first Mover's hand

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First wheel'd their courfe; earth in her rich attire

Confummate lovely fmil'd; air, water, earth,

By fowl, fish, beaft, was flown, was fwum, was walk'd Frequent; and of the fixth day yet remain'd:

There wanted yet the mafter-work, the end

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Of all yet done; a creature, who not prone
And brute as other creatures, but endu'd
With fanctity of reafon, might erect

His ftature, and upright with front ferene

Govern the reft, felf-knowing, and from thence

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Magnanimous to correfpond with heaven,
But grateful to acknowledge whence his good
Defcends, thither with heart, and voice, and eyes.
Directed in devotion, to adore

And worship God fupreme, who made him chief 515 Of all his works: therefore th' Omnipotent

Eternal Father (for where is not he

Prefent) thus to his Son audibly fpake.

Let us make now man in our image, man In our fimilitude, and let them rule

Over the fish and fowl of fea and air,

Beaft of the field, and over all the earth,

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And every creeping thing that creeps the ground,
This faid, he form'd thee, Adam, thee, O Man!
Duft of the ground, and in thy noftrils breath'd 525
The breath of life; in his own image he
Created thee, in the image of God
Exprefs, and thou becam'ft a living foul.
Male he created thee, but thy confort

Female for race; then blefs'd mankind, and said, 530
Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth,
Subdue it, and throughout dominion hold
Over fifh of the fea, and fowl of th' air,

And every living thing that moves on th' earth,
Wherever thus created, for no place

Is

yet diftinct by name, thence, as thou know'it, He brought thee into this delicious grove,

This garden, planted with the trees of God,
Delectable both to behold and taste;

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And freely all their pleasant fruit for food

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Gave thee; all forts are here that all th' earth yields,

Variety without end; but of the tree,

Which tafted works knowledge of good and evil,

Thou may'st not; in the day thou eat'ft, thou dy't; Death is the penalty impos'd; beware,

And govern well thy appetite, lest Sin

Surprise thee, and her black attendant Death.
Here finish'd he, and all that he had made
View'd, and behold all was entirely good

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So ev❜n and morn accomplish'd the fixth dạy:
Yet not till the Creator from his work
Defifting, though unwearied, up return'd,
Up to the heaven of heavens, his high abode,
Thence to behold this new-created world,
Th' addition of his empire, how it show'd

In profpect from his throne, how good, how fair,
Answering his great idea. Up he rode,

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Follow'd with acclamation, and the found

Symphonious of ten thoufand harps that tun'd

Angelic harmonies: the earth, the air

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Refounded, (thou remember'st, for thou heard'st),

The heavens and all the constellations rung,
The planets in their station list'ning stood,
While the bright pomp ascended jubilant.
Open ye everlasting gates! they fung;
Open, ye heav'ns, your living doors! let in
The great Creator. from his work return'd
Magnificent, his fix days work, a world!
Open, and henceforth oft; for God will deign
To vifit oft the dwellings, of juft men,
Delighted, and with frequent intercourse
Thither will fend his winged meffengers

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On errands of fupernal grace! So fung

The glorious train afcending. He thro' heaven,
That open'd wide her blazing portals, led

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To God's eternal house direct the way;

A broad and ample road, whofe duft is gold,

And pavement stars, as stars to thee appear,

Seen in the galaxy, that milky way,

Which nightly, as a circling zone, thou feeft

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Powder'd with stars. And now on earth the feventh

Ev'ning arofe in Eden; for the fun

Was fet, and twilight from the east came on,

Forerunning night; when at the holy mount

With his

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Of Heaven's high feated top, th' imperial throne
Of Godhead, fix'd for ever firm and fure,
The Filial Power arriv'd, and fat him down
great Father; for he alfo went
Invisible, yet ftay'd, (fuch privilege
Hath Omniprefence), and the work, ordain'd,
Author and end of all things; and from work
Now refting, blefs'd and hallow'd the feventh day,
As refting on that day from all his work :
But not in filence holy kept; the harp
Had work, and refted not; the folemn pipe,
And dulcimer, all organs of fweet stop,
All founds on fret by ftring or golden wire
Temper'd foft tunings, intermix'd with voice
Choral or unifon of incenfe clouds,

:

Fuming from golden cenfers, hid the mount.
Creation and the fix days acts they fung,

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Great are thy works, Jehovah! infinite

Thy power! what thought can measure thee, or tongue Relate thee greater now in thy return

Than from the giant-angels: thee that day

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Thy thunders magnify'd; but to create

Is greater than created to destroy.

Who can impair thee, mighty King, or bound
Thy empire! Easily the proud attempt

Of fpi'rits apoftate, and their counfels vain,
Thou haft repell'd, while impioufly they thought
Thee to diminish, and from thee withdraw

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The number of thy worfhippers. Who feeks
To leffen thee, against his purpose ferves
To manifest the more thy might: his evil
Thou ufeft, and from thence creat'ft more good.
Witness this new-made world, another heaven,
From heaven-gate not far, founded in view
On the clear hyaline, the glaffy fea ;

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