s. As I had caution'd you against running
to Scripture for shelter in cases of difficulty, Scripture weighing very
little among the people I am directing my Speech to; so indeed Scripture
gives but very little light into any thing of the _Devil_'s Story before
his Fall, and but _to very little_ of it for some time after.

Nor has Mr. _Milton_ said one word to solve the main difficulty (_viz._)
How the _Devil_ came to fall, and how Sin came into Heaven; how the
spotless Seraphic Nature could receive infection, whence the contagion
proceeded, what noxious matter could emit corruption there, how and
whence any vapour to poison the Angelick Frame could rise up, or how it
increas'd and grew up to crime. But all this he passes over, and
hurrying up that part in two or three words, only tells us,

------ his Pride,
Had cast him out of Heaven with all his Host
Of rebel Angels, by whose aid aspiring
He trusted to have equal'd the most High.

_lib._ i. _fo._ 3.

_His pride!_ but how came _Satan_ while an Arch-angel to be proud? How
did it consist, that Pride and perfect Holiness should meet in the same
Person? Here we must bid Mr. _Milton_ good night; for, in plain terms,
he is in the dark about it, and so we are all; and the most that can be
said, is, that we know the fact is so, but nothing of the nature or
reason of it.

But to come to the History: The Angels fell, they sinn'd (wonderful!) in
Heaven, and God cast them out; what their sin was is not explicit, but
in general 'tis call'd a Rebellion against GOD; all sin must be so.

Mr. _Milton_ here takes upon him to give the History of it, as
particularly as if he had been born there, and came down hither on
purpose to give us an account of it; (I hope he is better inform'd by
this time;) but this he does in such a manner, as jostles with Religion,
and shocks our Faith in so many points necessary to be believ'd, that we
must forbear to give up to Mr. _Milton_, or must set aside part of the
sacred Text, in such a manner, as will assist some people to set it all
aside.

I mean by this, his invented Scheme of the Son's being declared in
Heaven to be begotten then, and then to be declar'd Generalissimo of all
the Armies of Heaven; and of the Father's Summoning all the Angels of
the heavenly Host to submit to him, and pay him homage. The words are
quoted already, page 32.

I must own the Invention, indeed, is very fine; the Images exceeding
magnif