"Better to reign in hell than serve in heaven." Who said these words?

"Better to reign in hell than serve in heaven." Who said these words? Correct Answer Milton

The correct answer is Milton.

• Milton says "Better to reign in hell than serve in heaven."

Key Points

• John Milton was an English poet and intellectual who served as a civil servant for the Commonwealth of England under its Council of State and later under Oliver Cromwell.
• He wrote at a time of religious and political instability and is best known for his epic poem Paradise Lost.
• Better to reign in Hell than to serve in Heaven.
  • The saying is from John Milton’s book Paradise Lost - Book II and says that it is better to rule over - be like a king in hell than to serve somebody as a slave in heaven.
  • So it means it is better to be in a bad place and rule over the place rather than to go to a good place and work as a servant there.
  • These words are actually spoken by Satan after his fall from heaven.
• Conclusion
  • ​In the last two books of the poem, Adam receives a history lesson from the angel Michael; at the end of the history lesson, Michael leads Adam down from the mountain on which they have been standing.
  • Adam goes and wakes up Eve, and the two of them exit Paradise, holding hands and shedding a few tears.
• The message of Paradise Lost
  • ​The main theme of Paradise Lost by poet John Milton is the rejection of God's Laws.
  • This epic work deals with Satan's rejection of God's Law and Satan's subsequent expulsion to earth where he seeks to ruin Man.
  • Satan is expelled with a third of the angels (now demons) who chose to follow him rather than God.

Additional Information