Ah! flight is vain ;-each pass displays a foe,
And bloody torrents through thee copious flow;
Thy enemies thy tow'ring castles fill,
And blood, and slaughter desolation tell.-
Thy king and nobles, pierc'd by the report,
Become enfeebl'd midst licentious sport;
But, revelling in luxury, death meet

Ere one can fly to find him in the street. (30)
Proud Babel, such thy ruin'd state shall be,
That man no more can find a rest in thee,
Perpetual in thee beasts, ferocious, dwell,
Within thy towers shall perch the screeching owl,
The hungry lion in thy gardens roar,

The pois'nous serpent crawl thy dwellings o'er.
These be thy future guards, which men will shun,
And dare no more within thy walls to come:
Time's mould'ring hand thy grandeur so efface,
That future ages shall not find the place
Where mighty Babylon majestic rear'd
Her head o'er nations conquer'd by her sword.

ISAIAH.

Great Babel, glory of Chaldean pride! Thy pomp and gorgeous splendour shall subside; No mortal more beneath thy turrets dwell, Not wild Arabian pitch within thy wall,*

* See chap. xiii.

Nor roaming shepherd dare erect his fold;

But beasts, which range the deserts, in thee hold
Eternal haunts, shall undisturbed rest,

And monkies dance, and owls erect the nest.
Amid thy dwellings hungry tigers roar,
And for thy king the lion stalk thee o'er :
The bitterns, which the miry meadows bite,
About thee, too, shall revel in delight.

Thus saith the Lord to Cyrus, "Thou art he,
"Selected by Me Babel to destroy;
"I'll go before thee, and with ease will loose*
"The loins of kings, to open wide the clews,
"The brass barriers; I will asunder cut
"The iron bolts; these rampires shall❜nt rebut

Thy war's advance; and though thou know'st not Me, "To lead My conquest yet I've chosen thee, "To do My will against unrighteousness, "And by thine hand to get my wrongs redress. "I AM ALMIGHTY; lo, 'tis I alone, "Who specially have girded thee as mine; "I send the light, and darkness I create, "I made the world, and beauteous finish'd it, "The sun, the moon, and starry heav'ns, all "Appear'd in order at My sov'reign call: "Then, shall the clay thus to the potter say, "Why hast thou form'd and fash'oned me so? " "Tis I created man, and whom I please "I certainly may send Mine to release:

* See chap. xlv.

"Behold! thou shalt My captive tribes set free,
"Without a ransom give them liberty;
"And by thine order lov'd Jerusalem,

"See prosp'rous days, and splendour once again.

"Come, plant the banner on the mountain-brow, "Let forward on the march your armies flow; "Come, all ye northern warriors at My call, "And let your fury on proud Babel fall."

Hark! 'mongst the mountains what a noise is heard Of multitudes amid the thickets spread !

Ha! 'tis the forces of the Lord of might,
Advancing onward to commence the fight;
Yon clouds of dust announce approaching war,
And tell thee, Babel, that thy foe is near.

Thou, who in pleasures revel'st night and day, And in thine heart wilt thus audacious say, "None are so great and grand as I am seen, "I rule the nations, I'm a glorious queen, "I'll be no widow, nor my children lose, "For who's so bold as dare my will oppose?" Shalt shortly see a desolated rest,

And all thy glory crumbled into dust:

For, impious boaster, when with justice weigh'd, Thou art found wanting;-See, thy scale's upheav'd! And now I tell thee, proud, imperious dame,

Plagues in a moment shall upon thee come;

Destruction instantaneously surprise,

Ere thou shalt learn from whom the evils rise.
Call! call, thou now enchantments to thine aid,
See if thy sorcerers can help afford;

Bring thy astrologers, and let them try,

If, by their tricks, they can avert the blow!
Fool, quick as flame the stubble burns away,
Consum'd as soon shall be thy impious crew!*
Nebo, and Bel! to you she humbly bow'd,
Why lend not kind assistance in her need?-
Ungrateful deities!-be sleeping ye,

When you your mistress in distress should see?
Alas! Alas! you both are lumber thrown
Among her rubbish; there to be unknown.

Great king! who styl'd thyself, son of the morn, Who boasted nothing should thy rule disown; Who in thine heart so pompously would say, "I will above the stars my throne display, "I will ascend beyond the tow'ring cloud, "Sit in the heav'ns exalted as a God;" Take heed! a throne no more shall be thy seat, To a cold bed thou shortly shalt retreat; And not in heaven thy resting-couch be plac'd, But far beneath thy grandeur end at last. Lo! mostly princes meet a diff'rent fate, In silence they sleep in sepulchral state,

* See chap. xlvi. and xlvii.

T

They've stately dwellings built wherein to rest,
But, of this honor thou art not possess'd;
Pierc'd by the sword, and trampled underfoot,
Thy grave shall be 'mid Babel's filth and dirt;
Nor shall thy children e'er possess a throne,
For regal state departs from thee and thine.

Behold, and tremble, proud and haughty king,*
How Hades stirs, to meet thy coming down,
The potentates of earth! See, how the shades,
Of mighty princes, from their couches, rise
To hale thy entrance of the gloomy place,
Thy tyranny had sent themselves to grace!
See, how they bow! -Hear! how polite they say,
"What's Babel's monarch made as weak as we?
"To make cold earth his bed, is he too forc'd?

"Is all his grandeur come to this at last?

"Where's now the noise his merry viols made?

66

Why not rejoicing come to this abode?

"Ha, haughty king, who made the earth to quake,
"Who held in awe whole nations with thy look,
"Who fertile plains turn'd to a wilderness,

"From whom those injur'd never had redress,
"Who drench'd the groaning earth with human blood,
"Who deserts made where lofty cities stood,
"Now what a change! Of armies, courtiers, none
"As thy attendants to this place are come;

"And none but crawling worms henceforth will be, "Great king, the courtiers here to wait on thee;

* See chap. xii.