The  lunar  sphere,  congealed  to  seas  of  blood,

Shall  dreadful  ruin  on  the  world  obtrude;

Heaps  piled  on  heaps,  orbs  shall  on  orbs  be  hurled,

Chaos  with  chaos  mixed,  and  world  with  world.
If  then  the  whole  be  not  from  doom  secure,

What  dreadful  ravage  must  this  part  endure!

As  when  the  deluge  covered  every  shore,

And  formed  that  chaos  earth  had  felt  before,

When  heaven  and  earth  did  both  their  oceans  join,

And  with  the  fountains  of  the  deep  combine,

Made  heaving  waves  in  liquid  mountains  come.
And  seas  boil  up  from  her  hydropic  womb.
So  from  the  sources  whence  that  deluge  came,

Oceans  of  fire  shall  teem  with  waves  of  flame.
Thus  by  God's  vengeance  cursbd  Sodom  fell.
Thus  bums  creation  a  terraqueous  hell.
From   earth's  wide  womb  large   floods    of  flame  shall

flow.
And  fires  above  unite  with  those  below.
Thence  all  the  righteous,  when  prepared  for  flight,
Shall  safely  soar  to  worlds  of  calmer  light
While  those  polluted  with  unpardoned  sin.
Must  writhe  in  groans,  and  all  their  woes  begin.
But  first  that  sentence  they  deserve  so  well
Must  fix  their  station,  and  describe  their  hell;
And  when  the  fiat  of  the  Judge  is  passed.
Their  raging  torments  must  forever  last

358


The  Life  of  Christ

"  High   in  the  midst  shall  my  tribunal  stand,
With  seers,  apostles,  saints  on  my  right  hand.
Martyrs  and  confessors,  the  glorious  train
Who  suffer  here,  shall  with  their  Saviour  reign.
While  on  the  left  a  dismal  gloomy   band
Of  haughty  t3n:ants  and  their  flatt'rers  stand;
Unfeeling  misers,  liars,  and  profane.
And  those  whose  swords  have  filled  the  world  with  slain ;
Lewd  priests,  apostate  poets  who  disgrace
Their  high  descent,  and  stain  their  heaven-bom   race;
Lean  hypocrites,  who,  with  deceitful  prayer.
