I just finished John Milton's "Paradise Lost." The first thing I want to say about it is that I'm certain it was the most epic epic poem I've ever read in my life. It retells the fall of Man as told in the book of Genesis and provides more detail and consideration to the overall story arc. Artistic liberties are present, but not awkwardly so.
I was struck by several things about this book. First, the overall tone of the work was both reverent and humble. I would never have the nerve to do a creative retelling of a Biblical tale. It's clear, though, that Milton did not take this task lightly.
A quick example of the language follows below. I have a couple more quotes I'll include later in this blog posting.
"....Heaven is for thee too high
To know what passes there. Be lowly wise;
Think only what concerns thee and they being;
Dream not of other worlds, what creatures there
Live, in what state, condition, or degree--
Contented that thus far hath been revealed
Not of Earth only, but of highest Heaven."
Second, it was interesting to me that, in Milton's account, God knew that people would choose sin and Jesus had freely offered his life for divine justice even before Satan's temptation of Eve. I had never thought about that before. I understand some Christians struggle to reconcile the omniscient foresight of God with the existence of free will in people, which is a central component of His creation. I think that knowing us as well as He does lends itself to His knowing how we would respond in any circumstance. Everyone has people in their life that they know well enough, albeit in a limited way, to be able to expect how they would react under different circumstances. God knows us far better, though. There's no walls or blind sites. Of course he would know that Adam and Eve would both choose sin. And of course Jesus would be ready to offer to bear the burden of all of our sins through grace, which we do not - not one of us - deserve.
Third, it was incredible to me the function that Eden had in the story - becoming as critical a place to the story as Heaven was. It's time for another quote, though - this time about how creation marvels at its creator:
"Now, when as sacred light began to dawn
In Eden on the humid flowers, that breathed
Their morning incense, when all things that breathe
From th' Earth's great altar send up silent praises
To the Creator...."
In "Paradise Lost," Paradise is the throne from which humankind was to exercise its dominion over God's creation. Not in an authoritarian way but, instead, as stewards of the beautiful and inherently good creation made by God Himself.
It is through this lens that Milton can emphasize both sides of the impact of the fall of humans to temptation and to sin. To put it another way: their fall away from God. That act of disobedience...that sin brought pain to God. It took several forms, from Milton's perspective, but it certainly shows a side of the event that was certainly there but not frequently talked about.
"...I now must change
Those notes to tragic--foul distrust, and breach
Disloyal on the part of man, revolt
And disobedience; on the part of Heaven,
Now alienated, distance and distaste,
Anger and just rebuke, and judgement given,
That brought into this World a world of woe
Sin and her shadow Death, and Misery,
Death's harbinger..."
I wanted to make one more point before I close this up. Before Adam and Eve's expulsion from Eden, Adam is taken aside by the angel Michael and shown, from the peak of a hill, visions of God's plan through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, His only son. This to prevent Adam and Eve from being too crushed by being removed from Eden. The vision was so awe-inspiring that Adam almost felt joy at his fall, which could be turned into something as remarkable as the salvation of the faithful through Jesus Christ. He still felt shame, but it dramatically heightened his view of the greatness of God. A God that could make something so perfect out of a situation that was, on the surface, an early victory for Satan. His creation and his salvation are both perfect, even though people choose sin over righteousness.
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