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Charlie Lehardy's avatar

Book 2 is full of wonders and horrors. The great debate between war vs. peaceful coexistence is fascinating. I saw a very small and (to me) interesting thing. A consensus has been reached to seek out this other world God has created, and the assembly says (lines 403 and following):

"But first whom shall we send

In search of this new world, whom shall we find

Sufficient? Who shall tempt with wand'ring feet

The dark unbottomed infinite abyss

And through the palpable obscure find out

His uncouth way..."

And after a very long and self-aggrandizing speech, Satan, desiring to escape the fires and bring vengeance on God says that if he is to reign as Lord of Hell, it is only fitting that he should be the one to undertake this mission.

In the 6th chapter of Isaiah, he has a vision of being brought into heaven. He is surrounded by hosts of angels and in the very presence of God. He exclaims in horror that he is an unclean sinner in the presence of the holy God. An angel touches a burning coal to Isaiah's mouth and says: "Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.” 

Then God says: “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” And Isaiah replies, "Here I am! Send me." Whereupon God gives him a message of repentance to bring to Israel.

I thought the parallels and contrasts were interesting.

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Karen Swallow Prior's avatar

Friends, check out this series by fellow reader Andrew Roycroft on reading Lewis’s Preface to Paradise Lost: https://open.substack.com/pub/andrewroycroft/p/lost-with-lewis-pt1?r=90e4e&utm_medium=ios

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