On the General Conflagration , and ensuing Judgment . A Pindaric Essay . Esse quoque in Fatis , reminiscitur , affore tempus Quo Mare , quo Tellus , corruptaque Regia Coeli Ardeat , & Mundi Moles operosa laboret . Ovid . Met. Ovid, 1.256-258. I. Now the black Days of Universal Doom , Which wond'rous Prophecies foretold , are come ; What strong Convulsions , what stupendous Woe , Must sinking Nature undergo , Amidst the dreadful Wreck , and final Overthrow . Methinks I hear her , conscious of her Fate , With fearful Groans , and hideous Cries , Fill the presaging Skies ; Unable to support the weight , Or of the present , or approaching Miseries . Methinks I hear her summon all , Her guilty Off-spring , raving with Despair , And trembling , cry aloud , prepare , Ye Sublunary Pow'rs t' attend my Funeral ! II . See , see the tragical Portents , Those dismal Harbingers of dire Events ! Loud Thunders roar , and darting Light'nings fly Through the dark Concave of the troubled Sky : The fiery Ravage is begun , the End is nigh , See how the glaring Meteors blaze ! Like baleful Torches , O they come , To light dissolving Nature to her Tomb ! And scatt'ring round their pestilential Rays , Strike the affrighted Nations with a wild Amaze . Vast Sheets of Flame , and Globes of Fire , By an impetuous Wind are driven , Thro' all the Regions of th' inferior Heaven , Till hid in sulph'rous Smoke , they seemingly expire . III . Sad and amazing 'tis to see , What mad confusion rages over all This scorching Ball ! No Country is exempt , no Nation free , But each partakes the Epidemic Misery . What dismal havock of Mankind is made By Wars , and Pestilence , and Dearth , Thro' the whole mournful Earth ? Which with a murdering Fury they invade , Forsook by Providence , and all propitious Aid . Whilst Fiends let loose , their utmost Rage employ To ruin all things here below ; Their Malice and Revenge no Limits know , But , in the universal tumult , all destroy . IV . Distracted Mortals from their Cities fly For safety to their Champian Ground , But there no safety can be found ; The Vengeance of an angry Deity , With unrelenting Fury does inclose them round . And whilst for Mercy some aloud implore The God , they ridicul'd before ; And others raving with their woe , ( For Hunger , Thirst , Despair they undergo , ) Blaspheme and curse the Power they should adore . The Earth , parch'd up with Drought , her Jaws extend , And opening wide a dreadful Tomb , The howling Multitude , at once , descends , Together all into her burning Womb . V. The trembling Alps abscond their aged Heads In mighty Pillars of Infernal Smoke , Which from their bellowing Caverns broke , And suffocates whole Nations where it spreads . Sometimes the Fire within divides The massy Rivers of those secret Chains , Which hold together their prodigious Sides , And hurls the shatter'd Rocks o'er all the Plains While Towns and Cities , ev'ry thing below , Is overwhelmed with the same burst of Woe . VI . No Showers descend from the malignant Sky , To cool the Burnings of the thirsty Field ; The Trees no Leaves , no Grass the Meadows yield , But all is barren , all is dry . The little Rivulets no more To larger Streams their tribute pay , Nor to the ebbing Ocean , they Which with a strange unusual roar , Forsakes those antient Bounds it would have pass'd before , And to the monstrous Deep in vain retires ; For ev'n the Deep it self is not secure , But belching subterraneous Fires , Increases still the scalding Calenture , Which neither Earth , nor Air , nor Water can endure . VII . The Sun by Sympathy concern'd , At those Convulsions , Pangs , and Agonies , Which on the whole Creation seize , Is to substantial Darkness turn'd . The neighb'ring Moon , as if a purple Flood , O'erflow'd her tottering Orb , appears Like a huge mass of black corrupting Blood ; For she her self a Dissolution fears . The larger Planets , which once shone so bright , With the reflected Rays of borrow'd Light , Shook from their Center , without motion lie , Unweildy Globes of solid Night , And ruinous Lumber of the Sky . VIII . Amidst this dreadful Hurricane of Woes , ( For Fire , Confusion , Horror and Despair , Fill ev'ry Region of the tortur'd Earth and Air ; ) The great Archangel his loud Trumpet blows , At whose amazing Sound , fresh Agonies Upon expiring Nature seize ; For now she'll in few Minutes know Th' ultimate Event and Fate of all below . Awake , ye Dead , awake he cries For all must come , All that had Human Breath , arise , To hear your last unalterable Doom . IX . At this the ghastly Tyrant , who had sway'd So many thousand Ages uncontroul'd , No longer could his Scepter hold , But gave up all , and was himself a Captive made . The scatter'd Particles of Human Clay , Which in the silent Grave's dark Chambers lay , Resume their pristine Forms agen , And now from mortal , grow immortal Men . Stupendous Energy of sacred Pow'r , Which can collect , where-ever cast ; The smallest Atoms , and that shape restore , Which they had worn so many Years before , Tho' thro' strange Accidents and numerous Changes past . X. See how the joyful Angels fly From ev'ry Quarter of the Sky , To gather , and to convoy all , The pious Sons of human Race , To one capacious place , Above the Confines of this flaming Ball . See with what tenderness and love they bear Those righteous Souls thro' the tumultuous Air ; Whilst the ungodly stand below , Raging with shame , confusion , and despair , Amidst the burning overthrow , Expecting fiercer Torments , and acuter Woe . Round them Infernal Spirits howling Fly ; O Horror , Curses , Tortures , Chains , they cry , And roar aloud with execrable Blasphemy . XI . Hark how the daring Sons of Infamy Who once dissolv'd in Pleasures lay , And laugh'd at this tremendous Day , To Rocks and Mountains now to hide 'em cry ; But Rocks and Mountains all in Ashes lie . Their Shame's so mighty , and so strong their Fear , That rather than appear Before a God incens'd , they would be hurl'd Amongst the burning Ruins of the World , And lie conceal'd , if possible , for ever there . Time was , they would not own a Deity , Nor after Death a future state ; But now , by sad Experience find too late , There is , and terrible to that degree , That , rather than behold his Face , they'd cease to be . And sure 'tis better , if Heav'n would give consent , To have no Being ; but they must remain For ever , and for ever be in pain . O inexpressible stupendous Punishment , Which cannot be endur'd , yet must be underwent . XII . But now the Eastern Skies expanding wide , The glorious Judge Omnipotent descends , And to the Sublunary World his Passage bends ; Where , cloath'd with Human Nature , he did once reside . Round him the bright Ethereal Armies Fly , And loud triumphant Hallelujahs sing , With Songs of Praise , and Hymns of Victory To their Celestial King , All Glory , Pow'r , Dominion , Majesty , Now and for everlasting Ages be , To the Essential One , and Coeternal Three . Perish that World , as 'tis decreed , Which saw the God Incarnate bleed ! Perish by thy Almighty Vengeance those Who durst thy Person , or thy Laws expose . The cursed Refuse of Mankind , and Hell's proud Seed Now to the unbelieving Nations show , Thou art a God from all Eternity ; Not titular , or but by Office so ; And let 'em the mysterious Union see , Of Human Nature with the Deity . XIII . With mighty transports , yet with awful fears , The Good behold this glorious Sight , Their God in all his Majesty appears , Ineffable , amazing bright , And seated on a Throne of everlasting Light . Round the Tribunal , next to the most High , In sacred Discipline and Order stand , The Peers and Princes of the Sky , As they excel in Glory or Command . Upon the Right Hand that Illustrious Croud In the white Bosom of a shining Cloud , Whose Souls abhorring all ignoble Crimes , Did with a steady Course pursue His holy Precepts , in the worst of times ; Maugre what Earth , or Hell , what Men or Devils could And now that God they did to Death adore , For whom such Torments and such Pains they bore , Returns to place them on those Thrones above , Where undisturb'd , uncloy'd , they will possess Divine substantial Happiness , Unbounded as his Pow'r , and lasting as his Love . XIV . Go bring , the Judge impartial , frowning cries , Those Rebel Sons , who did my Laws despise ; Whom neither threat , nor promises could move , Not all my Sufferings , nor all my Love , To save themselves from everlasting Miseries . At this ten Millions of Archangels Flew Swifter than Lightning , or the swiftest thought , And less than in an instant brought , The wretched , curs'd infernal Crew , Who with distorted Aspects come , To hear their sad intolerable Doom . Alas ! they cry , one Beam of Mercy show , Thou all-forgiving Deity ! To pardon Crimes is natural to thee ; Crush us to nothing , or suspend our Woe : But if it cannot , cannot be , And we must go into a Gulph of Fire , ( For who can with Omnipotence contend ; ) Grant , for thou art a God , it may at last expire , And all our Tortures have an end . Eternal Burnings , O we cannot bear ! Tho' now our Bodies too Immortal are , Let 'em be pungent to the last degree ; And let our Pains innumerable be , But let 'em not extend to all Eternity . XV. Loe now , there does no place remain For penitence , and tears , but all Must by their Actions stand or fall : To hope for pity is in vain , The Dye is cast , and not to be recall'd again . Two mighty Books are by two Angels brought , In this , impartially recorded , stands The Laws of Nature , and Divine Commands , In that , each Action , Word and Thought , Whate'er was said in secret , or in secret wrought . Then first the Virtuous , and the Good , Who all the Fury of Temptation stood , And bravely pass'd thro' Ignominy , Chains and Blood ; Attended by their Guardian Angels , come To the tremendous Bar of final Doom . In vain the grand Accuser , railing brings , A long Indictment of enormous Things , Whose Guilt wip'd off by penitential Tears , And their Redeemer's Blood and Agonies , No more to their astonishment appears , But in the secret Womb of dark Oblivion lies . XVI . Come now , my Friends , he cries , ye Sons of Grace , Partakers once of all my Wrongs and Shame , Despis'd and hated for my Name . Come to your Saviour's , and your God's Embrace ! Ascend , and those bright Diadems possess , For you by my Eternal Father made , E'er the Foundation of the World was laid ; And that surprizing Happiness , Immense as my own Godhead , and will ne'er be less . For when I languishing in Prison lay , Naked and starv'd almost for want of Bread , You did your kindly Visits pay , Both cloath'd my Body , and my Hunger fed . Wearied with Sickness , or oppress'd with Grief , Your hand was always ready to supply : When-e'er I wanted , you were always by , To share my Sorrows , or to give Relief . In all Distress , so tender was your Love , I could no anxious trouble bear , No black Misfortune , or vexatious Care , But you were still impatient to remove , And mourn'd , your charitable Hand , should unsuccessful prove , All this you did , tho' not to me In Person , yet to mine in Misery ; And shall for ever live In all the Glories that a God can give , Or a created Being's able to receive . XVII . At this the Architects Divine on high Innumerable Thrones of Glory raise , On which they , in appointed Order , place The Human Coheirs of Eternity ; And with united Hymns the God Incarnate praise . O Holy , Holy , Holy Lord , Eternal God , Almighty One , Be thou for ever , and be thou alone , By all thy Creatures constantly ador'd ! Ineffable Coequal Three , Who from Non-entity gave Birth To Angels , and to Men , to Heaven and to Earth ; Yet always was thy self , and will for ever be . But for thy Mercy , we had ne'er possest These Thrones , and this immense Felicity , Could ne'er have been so infinitely blest : Therefore all Glory , Power , Dominion , Majesty , To thee , O Lamb of God , to thee , For ever , longer than for ever be . XVIII . Then the Incarnate Godhead turns his Face To those upon the Left , and cries , ( Almighty Vengeance Flashing in his Eyes ) Ye impious , unbelieving Race , To those eternal Torments go , Prepar'd for those Rebellious Sons of Light , In burning Darkness , and in Flaming Night ; Which shall no limit or cessation know , But always are extream , and always will be so . The final Sentence pass'd , a dreadful Cloud , Inclosing all the miserable Croud , A mighty Hurricane of Thunder rose , And hurl'd 'em all into a Lake of Fire , Which never , never , never can expire : The vast Abyss of endless Woes . Whilst with their God , the Righteous mount on high , In glorious triumph passing thro' the Sky , To Joys immense , and everlasting Extasy . FINIS .