Paradise Lost

In 1668, John Milton published Paradise Lost, an epic about the beginning of time and the fall of Satan, the demons, and Adam and Eve. In the course of 12 ‘books’ Milton weaves a plot from the fabric of Scripture, while taking a bit of author’s liberty to name angels and demons and filling in the dialogue to lengthen the story. Although  Milton did not want to ‘create’ a Calvinistic God by how he wrote, he inadvertently did.

When the story begins, Satan has already fallen to hell. He and his demons discuss what to do, how to get revenge on God. They finally decide that one of them should go to earth, God’s newest creation and see if he can pervert the crown of the Lord’s work, man. Satan is elected as Hell’s spy and he leaves to accomplish his task. He arrives and whispers a dream into Eve’s ear as she sleeps, he is caught by a troop of angels patrolling Eden and is brought to Gabriel. Satan is then kicked out of Eden, only to return later. A seraph named Raphael arrives from Heaven and, upon Adam’s request, recounts the fall of Satan, the war in Heaven, and the Creation. In order to detain Raphael further, Adam tells him all that he remembers of his own creation and the creation of Eve and their marriage. Finally, after Raphael leaves, Satan strikes again with temptation and our first parents succumb to the temptation. The Son of God (Jesus) comes to Eden, searching for his creations. He is saddened by their betrayal and, because of their unwillingness to take responsibility for their actions, curses them, as well as Satan. The Father tells the Son that a rift has been made that separates man from God and the Son offers his life to pay for theirs. The Father accepts this offer, but even though the sin has been forgiven in light of the Cross, he requires the humans to leave Eden. As they obey and retreat to the world outside, Michael appears and gives them a glimpse into the future, of Jesus’ coming and the Atonement that he will bring.

Because this book was written in the 17^th Century, it is extremely hard to read. I would recommend it to lovers of the classics and those who can concentrate and decipher Old English.  And anyone looking for a challenge... just sayin'.