‘Milton dictating Paradise Lost to his Daughters’, painted in about 1826 by French artist Eugène Delacroix (1798–1863). Had Milton scaled the heights of a political career, as he once hoped, his legacy would have been little more than complicity in Oliver Cromwell’s appalling parliamentary dictatorship. As it was, when he died in 1674 Milton had a great deal more to show for his investment of God’s gifts to him. He had championed noble principles of liberty, and had bequeathed such masterpieces as Paradise Lost and At a Solemn Musick. It is for these things that he is remembered. “Thou hast been faithful over a few things” says their master to his two obedient servants in the parable of the talents: “enter thou into the joy of thy lord”.
WHEN I consider how my light is spent
Ere half my days, in this dark world and wide,
And that one talent* which is death to hide,*
Lodged with me useless, though my soul more bent
To serve therewith my Maker,* and present
My true account, lest he, returning, chide;*
“Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?”*
I fondly* ask: but patience, to prevent
That soon replies: “God doth not need
Either man’s work, or his own gifts; who best
Bear his mild yoke,* they serve him best: his state
Is kingly;* thousands at his bidding speed,
And post* o’er land and ocean without rest:
They also serve who only stand and wait.”*
* This sonnet, composed in 1655, assumes the reader knows the Parable of the Talents: see Matthew 25:14-30 or read The Parable of the Talents. A talent was a large sum of money in the ancient world. The story is about a servant who is commissioned by his employer to invest some money for him, but buries it instead, for which his master severely rebukes him. For Milton, his eyesight was his one talent.
* In the parable, the wicked servant buried (hid) the money (the sum of one talent, or 6,000 Roman denarii) instead of investing it as instructed. His punishment was to be cast out of his master’s household.
* Milton has lost his talent (eyesight), but unlike the wicked servant he actually wants to invest it, i.e. put it to good use for God’s sake.
* In the parable, the master left his three servants some money to invest while he went away on a trip. When he returned, he found one servant had not done as he was told, and chided him (scolded him, rebuked him) severely. Milton is worried that when the account of his life is reckoned up, he too will be rebuked for failing to do enough in God’s service.
* That is, Milton feels he is expected to do work for which God will not give him the necessary tools.
* Here, ‘fondly’ means naively, foolishly.
* See Matthew 11:28-30.
* That is, God is a mighty king, who has thousands of servants; as Milton goes on to explain, some of these servants God despatches on warlike errands, but being lord of so many servants he can afford to keep others around himself in more ceremonial roles. The soldier ordered to stand guard, prompt and ready beside his king, feels honoured even if he sees no action on distant battlefields.
* Here, ‘post’ means ‘travel very quickly’, a now obsolete use of the word.
* ‘Waiting upon the Lord’ is a recurrent theme in the Old Testament, especially in the Psalms. See for example Psalm 27:14, Psalm 59:9, Psalm 62:5 and Psalm 130:5, and also Isaiah 40:31, Lamentations 3:25 and Hosea 12:6. To stand and wait ready by God’s throne is a characteristic of angels: see Psalm 103:20, 2 Esdras 8:21.
Précis
In 1655, John Milton was losing his eyesight. In a Sonnet, he admitted to feeling as if God was forcing him to be like the unprofitable servant in the parable, who buried his only talent. But Milton reminded himself that God does not need our worldly labour, and can afford to keep servants whose duty is to wait on him. (59 / 60 words)
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