308 



Albert S. Cook, 



8. light unsufferable. A favorite thought of Mihon's with respect 

 to God ; cf P.L. 3. 3-5 (' unapproached hght '), 375-382. Keightley 

 says : ' An aUusion to Phil. 2. 7, a favorite text with him at all times. 



unsufferable. So P.L. 6. 867; but insufferably, P.L. 9. 1084. 



9. far-beaming. Cf P.L. 6. 768: 'Far oif his coming shone.' 



10. wont. This verl3 has the same form, wont, as present [S.A. 

 1487), preterit, and past participle ; but the past participle as ad- 

 jective is generally wonted (so 79, 196). It takes the prepositional 

 infinitive, or, exceptionally, the simple infinitive [P.L. 1. 764). An- 

 other instance of the preterit is P.L. 6. 93. 



council-table. The notion of a heavenl}- council is expressed or 

 implied in Gen. 1. 26; 8. 22, 24; 6. 1; 11. 1, 6, 7; Job 1. 6 ft". ; 2. 

 2; 5. 1; 15. 8, 15; 28. 7; Ps. 11. 4; 18. 6; 29. 1, 6; 89.6, 8; 111. 

 1 ; Jer. 23. 18; Micah 1. 2. Cf. Gordon, Early Traditions of Genesis, 

 p. 287. 



Other Biblical verses, several from the New Testament, are to a 

 somewhat similar effect: Dan. 7, 9, 22; 8. 26; Matt. 19. 28; Luke 

 22. 30 ; 1 Cor. 6. 3 ; Rev. 20. 4 ; and the Apocryphal Wisdom 3. 8. 

 See Salmond, Christian Doctrine of Immortality, p. 435, and Swete 

 on Rev. 20. 4. 



The Jewish commentators favor this conception of a heavenly 

 council ; Taylor, on Pirke Aboth 2. 2, quotes Sanhed. 38 b : ' The 

 Holy One, blessed is He, does nothing without consulting the 

 familia superna, for it is said (Dan. 4. 17), "This matter is by the 

 decree of the watchers, and the demand b}' the word of the holy 

 ones." ' Cf. Sanday, in Hastings, Diet. Bible 2. 206. 



Of course the Bible gives no warrant for the conception of a 

 cowxicA-table . The word itself was not known in English till 1621, 

 though cowrvcA-board occurs as early as 1591. 



Milton exemplifies the thought at much greater length in P.L. 

 3. 80-343 (see esp. 212 ff., 341). He will hardly have been much 

 indebted to the epic poets: for example. Homer, //. 1. 533; 20. 4 ft.; 

 cf 4. 1; 6. 2. 



See note on Trinal Unity, below. 



11. midst. Between God the Father and the Holy Spirit. Cf 

 P.L. 5. 892; 7. 587-8. Midst here means 'midmost' Cf P.L. 10. 

 528—9 : ' still greatest he the midst. Now Dragon grown.' 



At this time Milton seems to have been an unquestioning Trinitarian. 

 Cf El. 6. 84, quoted in note on 19. 



Trinal Unity. Milton is probal^ly indebted to Phineas Fletcher, 

 Purple Island 1. 302 : 



That Trine-one with Himself in councell sits. 



