In the twelve books of John Milton’s Paradise Lost, the poet not only weaves an elegant story depicting the Biblical story of the fall from Eden and the nature of hell but presents his readers with a concept of God that remains somewhat ambiguous. Depending upon the way in which the reader approaches the story, God is presented as an anti-hero, a loving and forgiving deity, or an overly demanding spirit, among several other interpretations. This ambiguity is somewhat surprising given that Milton himself set out his goal as being to “justify the ways of God to men” (Book I). However, Milton understood that the ways of God were manifold and not necessarily understandable to his creations. Therefore, it should not be surprising that while his concept of God as expressed in this epic demonstrates a god who is both reasonable and just, He is also seen as paradoxical, often expecting what should not reasonably be expected. In addition to presenting his readers with his image of a good yet contradictory God, Milton carefully outlines his concept of the importance of Free Will as opposed to the concept of predetermination.
Milton begins painting his image of God as all-powerful and all reasonable with the first book, as Satan talks with his companion about the fall they have experienced together. Satan reveals that God has only ever used as much power as was absolutely necessary to get the job done, a significant attribute that does not escape the comprehension of the fallen ones. “From what height fan, so much the stronger proved / He with his Thunder: and till then who knew / The force of those dire Arms?” (Book 1). When the hosts of hell gather to discuss what they will do to fight again against God, Belial stands to council patience, if not contrition, “which if we can sustain and bear, / Our Supreme Foe in time may much remit / His anger, and perhaps thus far remov’d / Not mind us not offending, satisfi’d / With what is punish’t; whence these raging fires / Will slack’n, if his breath stir not thir flames” (Book 2), demonstrating even in this speech the benevolent nature of God. In this passage, Belial expresses the hope that if the demons condemned to hell only submit to their fate rather than fight against it or God further, perhaps God will relent or at the least not punish them further.
Unknown to the evil hosts, the angel in the garden in Book 6 explains to Adam that it was the strength of belief in God that enabled the angels of heaven to defeat Satan and his minions: “Such high advantages thir innocence / Gave them above thir foes, not to have sinnd, / Not to have disobei’d; in a fight they stood / Unwearied, unobnoxious to be pain’d / By wound, though from thir place by violence mov’d.” This is a hint to Adam of how he, too, can defeat the evil one, but it is also a declaration of the strength of God and how distance from God weakens the distanced individual. This same expression of might and power can be seen when Jesus enters the battle against Satan in the angel’s story: “At his command the uprooted Hills retir’d / Each to his place, they heard his voice and went Obsequious, Heav’n his wonted face renewd, / And with fresh Flourets Hill and Valley smil’d” (Book 6). Despite the tremendous strength that holds the power to move mountains at command and defeat the entire evil army with a glare, Jesus, acting as God, continued to show mercy even to those of the angelic host who opposed him: “Yet half his strength he put not forth, but check’d / His Thunder in mid Volie, for he meant / Not to destroy, but root them out of Heav’n” (Book 6).
Although God is shown to be very reasonable, just, and all-knowing, it is through some of the contradictions, such as allowing Satan entry to the garden necessitating the sacrifice of his Son in order to save mankind, that Milton attempts to support his view of God as orchestrating a very complex yet precise Divine Plan. One of the greatest contradictions of the garden, namely the presence of the Tree of Knowledge as the one thing that could bring about the fall of mankind, is shown to be a Supreme test of the lowest possible order in the heart of Book 4. Explaining to Eve why they must not eat of this tree, Adam explains that they have the entire garden to roam, complete happiness in each other as well as inheriting all the earth except for this one little tree. Thanks to the insight into God’s character earlier in the poem, the audience understands that this tree is the one test of free will God has provided to Adam and Eve to prove their faith and devotion to Him, thereby explaining the apparent contradiction.
It is a little more difficult to determine whether a contradiction exists when one takes up the question of predetermination versus free will. A case in point exists in His creation of Satan as a naturally rebellious angel, yet punishes him for acting upon those impulses. Satan discusses this in the first book, telling his companion “Though chang’d in outward luster; that fixt mind / And high disdain, from sence of injur’d merit, / That with the mightiest rais’d me contend, / And to the fierce contention brought along / … the unconquerable Will, / And study of revenge, immortal hate, / And courage never to submit or yield” (Book 1). Since God created Satan in such a way as to have this archangel oppose Him, Satan indicates that he has no other choice but to oppose God, pointing out an irrational, unreasonable aspect to God as early as the first book and at the beginning of time. Although God sees and knows all things, as is brought forward by Belial: “for what can force or guile / With him, or who deceive his mind, whose eye / Views all things at one view? he from heav’ns highth / All these our motions vain, sees and derides” (Book 2), he does not seem able or willing to save man from the evils lurking in the form of Satan, but is quite willing to punish man for the weaknesses he was both created to have and to which he has innocently succumbed.
Through the different treatments of Satan and his followers and the fall of mankind, Milton attempts to demonstrate proof of free will as opposed to predestination. Although Satan accuses God over and over again for his damnation as if it were predestined that he be forever punished for simply being what he was created to be, he also provides several clues that indicate he recognizes the power of Free Will. As early as the first book, he says, “The mind is its own place, and in it, self / Can make a Heav’n of Hell, a Hell of Heav’n./ What matter where, if I am still the same, / And what I should be, all but less then hee / Whom Thunder hath made greater? Here at least / We shall be free; … / Here we may reign secure, and in my choice / To reign is worth ambition though in Hell: / Better to reign in Hell, then serve in Heav’n.” In this statement, Satan is both accepting his own free will (the mind is its own place), and insisting upon predestination (what matter where, if I still be the same). However, he finishes by focusing on the power of free choice to determine his perception of existence (make a Heav’n of Hell, a Hell of Heav’n).
That free will also applies to man, Milton writes in Book 3 that God made man “just and right / Sufficient to have stood, though free to fall. / … Freely they stood who stood, and feel who fell. / Not free, what proof could they have givn sincere / Of true allegiance, constant Faith or Love, / Where onely what they needs must do, appeard.” In this passage, Milton is suggesting that the reason God gave man free will was so that he would be able to freely choose whether to worship God or not, the sincere gift given rather than the homage duly paid as a necessary condition of existence. Without free will, in other words, God has no way of knowing whether His creations truly appreciate Him or are simply acting out the motions of their strings. The angel, warning Adam about Satan’s presence in the garden, communicates this idea in Book 5 when he says “but to persevere / He left it thy power, ordaind thy will / By nature free, not over-rul’d by Fate / Inextrcable, or strict necessity; / Our voluntarie service he requires.” This conversation has Adam revealing that God had tested his sense of free will on his first day waking: “I, ere thou spak’st, / Knew it not good for Man to be alone, / And no such companie as then thou saw’st / Intended thee, for trial onely brought, / To see how thou could’st just of fit and meet” (Book 7). After the fall, though, instead of falling into the same mindset of stubborn rebellion and rejection, Adam and Eve take a more submissive pose, constantly asking for God’s forgiveness and accepting of their punishment (Book 12). As had been anticipated by Belial at the beginning of the tale, acceptance and supplication yielded mankind a chance at reunification with God as opposed to eternal damnation and exile.
Throughout Paradise Lost, Milton presents a fairly consistent view of a complex Supreme Diety in constant control of his creation, yet providing it with the ability to act on free will, indicating a certain lack of control. This paradoxical image of God is explained by first illustrating the greatness of God as something that so far surpasses human understanding as to be immeasurable. At the same time, Milton illustrates the just nature of God by demonstrating several instances in which his mercy and love can be seen. From here, he is able to begin illustrating how seemingly contradictory actions, such as allowing Satan access to Eve, are all a part of God’s Divine Plan. Rather than presenting an image where God is masterminding the entire puppet show and holding all the strings, Milton illustrates how free will, provided to both the angels and mankind, determines the direction in which things will occur. Because He cannot be certain of an individual’s true emotions regarding their faith and loyalty to him if every action they undertake is predetermined, God has imbued mankind with the gift of free will realizing he is risking losing his creations to wrong choices, such as following Satan. However, by knowing in advance what is going to happen, such as Eve’s partaking of the Tree of Knowledge, God is able to make plans long in advance of the outcome to such a well-thought-out degree that things end up working out just as he’d anticipated.
Works Cited
Milton, John. Paradise Lost. (unknown publish date, reprint 1996). Project Gutenberg.