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 | The Fall of Lucifer |  |
Though his LORD's dignity his crime increas'd,
And his guilt render'd infinite, yet be,
In abject baseness of the heart at least,
And sordid av'rice, yields the palm to thee.
And his guilt render'd infinite, yet be,
In abject baseness of the heart at least,
And sordid av'rice, yields the palm to thee.
Some readers will perhaps suppose, that it savors somewhat of profanity, to consider Judas, in any respect whatsoever, in a less scandalous light than Arnold; but, as his necessities probably added force to the temptation, and as he evidently degraded himself less below his visible rank in life, in these points of view it is hoped, the comparison, as made, may be thought excusable. Mackight in his Harmony (if I mistake not) considers Judas in a light still more favorable, viz. As betraying his master, in order to force him to a declaration of himself, as a secular King of the Jews.
| The Fall of Lucifer | |